Authority: High Court of Uttarakhand at Nainital
Order Date: 10 September 2026
Case Overview
- Parties: Appellant Reliance General Insurance Co. Ltd.; Respondents Smt. Neelam Negi and others (family of the deceased).
- The claim arose under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 for death of Constable Narendra Singh Negi in a road accident on 25 March 2017 involving a bus (HP‑17D‑5124) and his motorcycle (UK‑07BU‑0912).
- The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal had awarded Rs 74,71,288 with 6% interest, applying a multiplier of 16 to the deceased’s annual income of Rs 3,08,387 and adding 50% for future prospects.
- Reliance General Insurance appealed, contending (i) contributory negligence of the deceased (who allegedly did not wear a helmet) and (ii) that the 50% addition was inappropriate because the widow receives a family pension.
- Respondents argued that contributory negligence was not framed as an issue and that the Tribunal had already considered it; they relied on Supreme Court judgments (Ranjeet v. Abdul Kayam Neb, Meera Bai v. ICICI Lombard, Dinesh Kumar J. v. National Insurance) supporting the Tribunal’s findings.
- The Court examined the pleadings, noting that the insurer had raised contributory negligence in its written statement but had not adduced evidence nor pressed the issue at trial. It also considered the Supreme Court decision in Sebastiani Lakra v. National Insurance (2019) confirming that a family pension does not bar the 50% future‑prospects addition.
Final Outcome
- The Court held that (i) no contributory negligence could be attributed to the deceased; (ii) the 50% addition for future prospects is lawful.
- Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed.
- Reliance General Insurance is directed to remit the balance of the compensation amount to the Tribunal within 45 days from the order date and to pay the mandatory deposit forthwith.
- The original record is to be transmitted to the concerned Tribunal.
Topics: Motor Accident Compensation, Contributory Negligence