The Supreme Court on Monday stayed an order of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) that had directed United India Insurance Co. Ltd to pay ₹82.80 lakh to Royal Multisport Pvt Ltd, the parent company of IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals, over a claim related to cricketer S Sreesanth’s knee injury during the 2012 IPL season.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta passed the interim order while hearing the insurer’s plea challenging the NCDRC’s April 2024 direction. “He (Sreesanth) did not play for a single day (in IPL 2012),” the bench remarked during the hearing. It added, “Till further orders, the effect and operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed,” and posted the matter for further hearing.
In March 2012, Royal Multisport Pvt Ltd contracted players of the Rajasthan Royals team and obtained a special contingency insurance policy from United India Insurance for “player loss of fees cover” worth ₹8.70 crore. The policy covered the loss of player fees, remuneration, and other payments arising from non-participation due to injuries during the coverage period from March 28 to May 28, 2012.
On March 28, 2012, Sreesanth suffered a knee injury during a practice match in Jaipur, and subsequent medical examinations confirmed he was unfit to play in that IPL season. The company filed a claim for ₹82.80 lakh in September 2012 for loss of player fees and submitted medical records to the insurer. A surveyor appointed by the insurer noted that the injury was due to a “sudden unforeseen and unexpected event” and fell within the policy’s terms.
The insurance firm repudiated the claim, alleging that Royal Multisport had not disclosed a pre-existing toe injury of Sreesanth. The NCDRC, however, found this ground unsustainable. It observed that the evidence, including X-rays, MRI reports, and expert medical opinions, clearly established the knee injury during the policy period.
“When the fact of a knee injury is established through evidence such as X-rays, MRI reports and expert opinion of doctors, the repudiation based on a pre-existing toe injury, that has not been established to have occurred/recurred during the period of insurance cover, makes the repudiation a deficiency in service,” the Commission had said.
The NCDRC directed United India Insurance to pay ₹82.80 lakh to Royal Multisport Pvt Ltd for wrongful repudiation of the claim.
Challenging this order, the insurance company approached the Supreme Court, which has now stayed the NCDRC’s direction. The Court will examine the merits of the insurer’s challenge in the upcoming hearing.
