Chandigarh: Car insurer fined 15k for rejecting claim

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has directed an insurance company to reimburse a claim of ₹10 lakh to a Panchkula woman, whose car was stolen in Delhi.

The forum also directed the firm to pay lumpsum compensation of ₹15,000 to the complainant on account of mental tension, harassment, agony as well as litigation expenses.

Sumita Setia, a 47-year-old Panchkula resident, has filed a case against ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co. Ltd, Chandigarh, and its three centres in New Delhi and Mumbai.

The woman pleaded that her car was insured for ₹10 lakh from February 15, 2019, to February 14, 2020. It was stolen in February 2020, while it was parked in a mall in Rohini, Delhi, by her driver.

The FIR was registered by the crime branch in Delhi and the insurance company was informed about the theft, following which the surveyor appointed by the firm took the photographs at the site.

The claim, along with the relevant documents, was filed with the insurance company but it was not released and was closed in July 2021 on account of non-submission of the documents.

Alleging that this amounted to a deficiency in service and unfair trade practice, the woman filed a complaint with the commission.

The insurance firm argued that it has acted strictly within the four corners of the terms and conditions of the policy. The complainant did not intimate about the theft within the period. “Remaining allegations have been denied, being false. Pleading that there is no deficiency in service or unfair trade practice on their part, the opposition parties prayed for dismissal of the complaint,” it said.

The company mentioned that the theft of the car was reported to them on February 3, 2020, and they appointed one Anurag Midha as a fact finder, so it is proved that the insurance companies got the theft intimation on the very next day. Therefore, it is held that they have committed a deficiency in service by not releasing the genuine claim of the complainant.

“It is usual with the insurance company to show all types of green pastures to the customer at the time of selling insurance policies, and when it comes to payment of the insurance claim, they invent all sorts of excuses to deny the claim,” it added.

The commission observed: “The OP-Insurance Company has committed deficiency in service by not releasing the genuine claim of the complainant. The complaint is partly allowed.”

The forum directed the insurance company to pay the insured declared value (IDV) of the vehicle to the complainant along with interest @9% p.a. from the date of theft till the date of its actual payment.