UNITED INDIA INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED Vs. HARBANS SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is insurer's appeal under Section 15 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 against the order dated 10.10.2008 passed by the District Forum, Dehradun in consumer complaint No. 149 of 2004, whereby the District Forum has allowed the consumer complaint and directed the appellant opposite party to pay compensation of Rs. 1,05,700/ - to the respondent complainant together with interest @9% p.a. from the date of filing of the consumer complaint till payment.

(2.) BRIEFLY stated, the facts of the case, are that the complainant is the registered owner of truck No. UP07 -F -2965. The said truck was insured with the appellant United India Insurance Company Limited at an IDV of Rs. 2,80,000/ - for the period from 23.04.2003 to 22.04.2004. On 22.08.2003, Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh issued a letter to Sh. Subhash Kumar, IAS, Commissioner, Garhwal Mandal, Pauri for deployment of trucks for transportation of apples from District Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. The goods tax on transport vehicles entering Himachal Pradesh was exempted from 01.08.2003 to 31.10.2003 vide H.P. Govt. Notification No. EXN -F(10)2/2003 dated 13.08.2003. As per the requirement, 100 trucks were to be sent each day to Rohru Sub -Division for a period of one month and the said truck were to go to various places in the county like Delhi, Kolkata, Kanpur, Mumbai etc. The transportation charges were to be borne by apple orchardists. On the basis of the said letter, the Regional Transport Authority, Dehradun issued a letter dated 25.08.2003 to the President, Truck Operators Union, Dehradun / Rishikesh / Haridwar / Roorkee, stating therein that the Union Members, whose vehicles have been granted National Permit, be intimated about the above letter dated 22.08.2003 issued by Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. On the basis of the letter dated 25.08.2003, the President, Truck Operators Union, Dehradun issued a letter dated 10.10.2004 and the complainant was directed to take his truck to Shimla. When the insured vehicle was coming back from Shimla to Dehradun, it met with an accident on 13.09.2003. The complainant lodged the claim with the insurance company, which was repudiated by the insurance company on the ground that as per the permit, the complainant was not authorised to take the vehicle to the area where it met with an accident. Alleging deficiency in service on the part of the insurance company, the complainant filed a consumer complaint before the District Forum, Dehradun.

(3.) THE insurance company filed written statement before the District Forum and pleaded that the place where the accident took place, was not covered under the permit granted to the complainant; that as per the letter of the Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, only the transport vehicles were exempted from payment of goods tax on entering Himachal Pradesh in respect of transportation of apples from Himachal Pradesh for the period from 01.08.2003 to 31.10.2003 and that the claim was rightly repudiated and no deficiency in service was made by the insurance company.