Salary and unpaid-leave records justify enhanced compensation for income lost during the recovery period.

The claimant sustained a trimalleolar fracture of the left ankle in a road accident on 9 March 2024, allegedly caused by the negligent driving of a Bolero car.

He worked as a screen printer and delivery boy and claimed compensation for his injuries.

The MACT awarded him Rs. 3,06,181, including Rs. 1,32,000 for loss of income during an eight-month laid-up period, assessed at monthly income of Rs. 16,500.

The claimant appealed under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, seeking enhancement.

Whether the compensation for loss of income during the laid-up period should be enhanced in light of the claimant’s salary certificate and evidence of unpaid leave.

Whether the compensation for loss of amenities and future unhappiness was adequate given the injury sustained.

The appeal was brought under Section 173(1) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which provides for an appeal against an award of the Claims Tribunal.

The Court applied an evidence-based assessment of compensation: the claimant’s established monthly salary and the period of unpaid leave were relevant to calculating loss of income, while the nature of the injury informed the assessment of compensation for loss of amenities.

The judgment cites no specific precedent or further statutory rule.

The Court accepted the salary certificate showing consolidated monthly pay of Rs. 20,000 and the evidence that the claimant took eight months’ leave without pay.

It therefore assessed loss of income at Rs. 1,60,000 for the eight-month period, rather than the Tribunal’s Rs. 1,32,000.

Considering the ankle fracture, it also increased compensation for loss of amenities from Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 70,000.

It left the awards for pain and suffering, medical expenses, and attendant, conveyance and nourishment charges unchanged.

The claimant was awarded an additional Rs. 48,000—Rs. 28,000 for loss of income and Rs. 20,000 for loss of amenities—with interest at 6% per annum from the date of the claim petition until realisation.

The insurer was directed to deposit the enhanced amount with interest within six weeks, and the claimant was entitled to release of the entire enhanced compensation.