Tyre Burst Not Act of God
The Bombay High Court has observed that the bursting of a tyre leading to an accident cannot be termed as an act of God, but an act of human negligence. The court made this observation while hearing an appeal filed by New India Assurance Co. Ltd, which had claimed that the accident was an act of God and therefore it was not liable to pay compensation. The court upheld the 2017 order of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, which had directed the insurance company to pay compensation of ₹2.25 lakh to the deceased’s family. The court also dismissed the insurance company’s contention that the compensation awarded was high, as the tribunal had taken into account various heads as income of the deceased. The court cited a Supreme Court judgement that said each claimant is entitled to ₹40,000 as consortium amount, ₹15,000 for funeral expenses, and ₹15,000 for loss of the estate. As there are four claimants in the present case, the consortium amount comes to ₹1.6 lakh, while the total for funeral expenses and loss of estate comes to ₹30,000. Thus, the total amount comes to ₹1.9 lakh, and the court observed that the tribunal had awarded an excess of ₹35,000, which the insurance company was allowed to withdraw along with the accrued interest on it.
