Multiplier must be based on the age of the deceased, not the claimant.

The Appellants challenged the award dated 19th March 2014 passed by the MACT, Shahdara, which granted compensation of Rs. 11,43,000/- with 9% interest following a motor accident.

The deceased was 18 years old at the time of the accident and was employed as a ‘Field Executive’.

The Tribunal had originally applied a multiplier of 14 (based on the age of the claimant/parent) and granted 50% future prospects.

The Appellants sought re-alignment of these figures in accordance with settled supreme court precedents.

1. Whether the multiplier should be determined based on the age of the deceased or the age of the claimants.

2. Whether the percentage for future prospects and non-pecuniary heads (loss of estate, funeral expenses, and consortium) required adjustment per current legal standards.

National Insurance Company v. Pranay Sethi Ors. (2017) 16 SCC 680, which mandates that the multiplier must be based on the age of the deceased and sets standardized percentages for future prospects and fixed sums for conventional heads.

United India Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Satinder Kaur (2021) 11 SCC 780, which clarified that compensation for 'loss of love and affection' is not a permissible head, while 'loss of consortium' must be awarded to each qualifying family member.

The Court found that the Tribunal erred by using a multiplier of 14; since the deceased was 18 years old, the correct multiplier under Pranay Sethi is 18.

Regarding future prospects, the Court reduced the Tribunal's 50% grant to 40% to align with the deceased’s employment status.

In re-calculating non-pecuniary damages, the Court deleted the Rs. 1,00,000/- awarded for 'love and affection' as per Satinder Kaur, but increased 'loss of consortium' to Rs. 2,00,000/- (Rs. 40,000 for each of the five claimants).

The 'loss of estate' was adjusted to Rs. 15,000/- and 'funeral expenses' were reduced to Rs. 15,000/- to match statutory standards.

The Court directed the Insurance Company to deposit the enhanced amount with 9% interest per annum from the date of the petition before the MACT within six weeks. The amount is to be released to the Appellants in the proportions previously determined by the Tribunal.