Now Reading: Two MACT awards: Rs 19 lakh for Patiala teen, Rs 61 lakh for delayed death in Mumbai
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Two MACT awards: Rs 19 lakh for Patiala teen, Rs 61 lakh for delayed death in Mumbai
Two MACT awards: Rs 19 lakh for Patiala teen, Rs 61 lakh for delayed death in Mumbai
Two Motor Accident Claims Tribunals have issued significant compensation awards this month. In Patiala, the MACT Mohali awarded Rs 19,03,452 to the family of 17-year-old Vinney, who died in an April 2025…
Two Motor Accident Claims Tribunals have issued significant compensation awards this month. In Patiala, the MACT Mohali awarded Rs 19,03,452 to the family of 17-year-old Vinney, who died in an April 2025 road accident. Presiding officer Atul Kasana held the motorcycle rider Robin, the vehicle owner, and United India Insurance jointly liable. The tribunal rejected the insurer's challenge about the validity of the driver's licence, calculating compensation based on Vinney's deemed monthly income of Rs 11,389.
In Mumbai, the MACT awarded approximately Rs 61.1 lakh to the family of Ashish Gupta, a security supervisor who died in 2020 from leg injuries suffered in a 2014 accident. The tribunal ruled that the five-year gap did not break the chain of causation, relying on orthopaedic surgeon Sacchidanand Pathak's testimony that septicaemia from the healed injuries caused terminal cardiac arrest. It directed SMS Taxi Cabs and Reliance General Insurance to pay jointly and severally.
The Mumbai ruling sets a precedent that delayed death with continuous medical treatment can be compensable under the Motor Vehicles Act. Both tribunals used the multiplier method and rejected insurers' defences.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both tribunals applied the same legal test of causal nexus, but the outcomes diverged on fact. Hindustan Times covered a straightforward, contemporary case where the tribunal awarded Rs 19 lakh, calculated according to standard multiplier norms. Times of India reported a more difficult causation dispute: a 2014 accident, a 2020 death, and a Rs 61 lakh award despite a five-year gap. The two stories together show that MACTs accept direct medical evidence, like continuous treatment records, to link a delayed death to an accident. The critical gap is that neither source examined whether insurers appeal such awards, which tests the precedent set by the Mumbai order. The next watch item is whether Reliance General Insurance challenges the causation finding in the Bombay High Court.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): hindustantimes.com (neutral report), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
