Vehicle theft due to owner's negligence = no insurance claim

A vehicle's insurance policy is a safeguard that comes into action after an accident / incident occurs. However, a trial court has ruled that if a vehicle is damaged or stolen as a result of the owner's negligence, the insurance company is not liable to pay any compensation.

The scenario has come to light after the court denied an insurance claim made by Jamun Pandey, whose truck was stolen after his driver (Ram Nandan), forgot the keys in the vehicle and left it unattended for over an hour in an unauthorized area, leading to its theft.

According to additional district judge Kamini Lau, the vehicle was stolen due to the negligence of the driver of the plaintiff and that the plaintiff was guilty of breaching the terms and conditions of the insurance policy. The court was hearing a suit filed by Pandey, who had claimed Rs. 6.2 lakh from SBI General Insurance Company. The insurance policy was valid from December 14, 2012 to December 13, 2013, with Pandey's truck reported missing on October 25, 2013, from a spot near Pratap Nagar Metro station. In his plaint, Pandey stated that he was entitled to get the amount as per his policy. However, the company strongly opposed his claim, stating that the vehicle's theft was a result of owner's gross negligence; a defense that was subsequently upheld.

The case will prove to be an eye opener for existing and new car owners, who often do not pay attention to the fine print. The rule also exists to protect insurance providers from fraud, as sometimes, owners stand to get more from an insurance claim than they would from actually selling the vehicle. Suffices to say that the little "*" in a document as important as your car's insurance policy is not something you'd want to ignore.

Source: ET Auto

*Image for representation only