Employability Of A Person With Serious Head Injuries Is A Circumstance To Be Considered For Determining Loss Of Income: SC
The Supreme Court partly allowed the Appeal filed by the legal representatives of the deceased motor accident victim for enhanced compensation.
The Supreme Court has held that the employability of a person with serious head injuries is a circumstance which has to be kept in perspective for determining the loss of income of the victim of a motor accident.
The Court partly allowed the Appeal filed by the legal representatives of the deceased motor accident victim against the Oriental Insurance Company Limited (Insurer) for enhanced compensation.
A Bench of Justice KV Viswanathan and Justice SVN Bhatti held, “There is no discussion for arriving at Rs.3,000/- per percentage. The first appellant established his avocation as a mason. The employability of a person with serious head injuries is a circumstance which ought to have been kept in the perspective for determining the loss of income of the first appellant.”
AOR TRB Sivakumar represented the Appellant, while AOR Ankita Chaudhary appeared for the Respondents.
Brief Facts
The victim was hit by an autorickshaw driven rashly and negligently. The victim was working as a mason at the time of the accident. He filed a motor accident compensation claim under Section 166(a) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (the Act).
The Madras High Court reduced the compensation awarded by the Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT).
Court’s Observations
The Supreme Court redetermined the total compensation awarded to the victim.
The Court noted that the victim suffered serious head injuries for which he more than one operation.
“From the nature of the head injuries, it cannot be held that the first appellant would have returned to complete normalcy and is entitled to loss of income only at Rs.100/- per day. The observation of the Tribunal, which had the advantage of appreciating the witnesses, including the claimant, noted that the appellant continued to suffer from disability such as memory loss, defective speech, etc. The Tribunal concluded that the first appellant was earning Rs.450/- per day, then applied the multiplier for 70% disability loss,” it noted.
This approach, the bench stated, needed interference. “To that extent, the High Court may be right in not applying multiplier in an abstract manner. Simultaneously, determining Rs.3,000/- per percentage as a loss of future income is unsustainable,” it remarked.
Consequently, the Court held, “Thus, the compensation works out to Rs. 12,09,017/- (Rupees Twelve Lakh Nine Thousand Seventeen) with interest @ 7.5% per annum from the date of the claim petition till the date of payment. The compensation already paid shall be given due credit.”
Accordingly, the Supreme Court partly allowed the Appeal.
Cause Title: T. Rajamoni v. The Manager, Oriental Insurance Company Limited & Anr. (Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 107)
