The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in Thane has awarded a compensation of ₹42.27 lakh to the family of Sanjay Wilson Tode, a 35-year-old private firm supervisor who lost his life in a road accident in 2019. The tribunal held both the owner and insurer of the offending vehicle jointly liable for the compensation, while also granting the insurer the liberty to recover the amount from the vehicle owner due to a breach of policy conditions.
The award was passed by MACT member KP Shrikhande on July 25 in a petition filed by the deceased’s family under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
According to the petition, Sanjay Tode was riding his motorcycle on Ghodbunder Road on November 30, 2019, when he was hit by a truck, resulting in fatal injuries. The petitioner’s counsel, Advocate P.N. Jadhav, argued that the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving by the truck driver.
The respondents, represented by Advocates V.P. Kadam (for the vehicle owner) and A.K. Tiwari (for the insurer), denied any negligence on part of the driver.
However, the tribunal took note of the First Information Report (FIR) registered against the truck driver under Section 304A of the Indian Penal Code and relevant provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act. MACT member Shrikhande held that the material on record clearly established rash and negligent driving on part of the truck driver.
The tribunal also accepted the insurer’s contention that there was a breach of policy conditions since the driver possessed only a light motor vehicle (LMV) licence, but was operating a heavy goods vehicle at the time of the accident. Consequently, while holding both the owner and insurer jointly and severally liable to pay the compensation, the tribunal permitted the insurer to recover the amount from the vehicle owner.
Out of the ₹42.27 lakh awarded, ₹40.47 lakh was granted for loss of dependency, in addition to amounts for loss of consortium, funeral expenses, and other statutory heads.
