Insurance Act, 1938

The insured, Tata Steel Ltd., suffered a fire that destroyed its 20‑Hi cold rolling mill and claimed Rs 35.08 crore under a fire policy issued by New India Assurance Co. Ltd. (NIACL). The policy contained a Reinstatement Value Clause, but the insured failed to provide required documents and could not replace the mill w…

The petitioners, a company dealing in the purchase and resale of life‑insurance policies, challenged LIC's circulars of 2003 and 2005 that refused to register assignments of policies to firms engaged in trading such policies. They argued that Section 38 of the Insurance Act, 1938 makes policies transferable and assigna…

Khatema Fibres Ltd. (appellant) filed a claim for loss of waste paper after a fire, estimating the loss at Rs.13 crore. The insurer, New India Assurance Co., appointed a surveyor who used volumetric analysis and assessed the loss at about Rs.2.86 crore, which the appellant contested. The National Consumer Disputes Redr…

The appellants hypothecated goods to The Surat People’s Co‑operative Bank and were required to insure them. The bank, acting as a corporate agent, obtained fire and special perils policies from New India Assurance, but for the 2005‑06 period the Rs 60 lakh policy expressly excluded storm, flood and inundation (STFI) pe…

The cement manufacturer M/s J.K. Cement Works insured its coal stock under a Standard Fire and Special Perils policy that covered "Flood and Inundation". Heavy rains on 29-30 August 2003 caused water to accumulate and wash off some coal, and the insurer's surveyor affirmed the loss was payable, but the insurer later re…

The insured, M/s. Mudit Roadways, held fire and customs duty insurance policies with New India Assurance Co. Ltd. for a bonded warehouse in Raigad, Maharashtra. A fire broke out on 14 March 2018; the insurer repudiated the claim, alleging that the fire occurred in an uninsured area and resulted from the insured's negli…

Marsh India Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd appealed against a Securities Appellate Tribunal order that set aside the IRDA’s dismissal of a complaint by Atkins Special Risks Ltd alleging that Marsh paid a bribe to Jagdish Gupta, Chairman of Jagson International Ltd, to obtain a re‑insurance brokerage contract. The Tribunal h…

The petitioners, the husband and son of a 39‑year‑old housewife who died in a road accident, claimed compensation under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal initially awarded Rs 6 lakhs based on the notional income provision of Clause 6 of the Second Schedule but reduced it to…

The rice mill suffered a boiler collapse after a lorry allegedly collided with it, and the insurer, New India Assurance, repudiated the claim, citing overload as the cause. The insurer appointed a preliminary surveyor, a structural expert, an investigator, and a final IRDA‑licensed surveyor, all of whom concluded the c…

The Managing Director of a company was injured while travelling in a car owned by the company and insured with National Insurance Company Ltd. He claimed compensation under Sections 140, 147 and 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal held the insurer liable. The insurer appealed, arg…

The General Insurance Council and several insurers filed a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution alleging that police and other agencies were not complying with Supreme Court directions concerning the disposal of vehicles seized in criminal investigations. They contended that non‑compliance of Sections 451…

The insured, a manufacturer of polyethylene products, suffered a total loss of plant, machinery and stock due to a fire on 6 November 1999. The insurer appointed joint surveyors who submitted a loss assessment, but thereafter delayed settlement and appointed an investigator in June 2001. The insured filed a complaint b…

SBI General Insurance issued a fire insurance policy to Krish Spinning, which settled the first fire claim by a discharge voucher and payment of Rs 84,19,579. Krish Spinning later disputed the quantum of the settlement, alleging coercion, and invoked the arbitration clause in the policy by filing a Section 11(6) applic…

The owner of a bus paid the premium for a motor vehicle insurance policy by cheque, which later bounced. The bus was involved in an accident causing the death of a passenger, and the claimants sought compensation from the insurer, United India Insurance Co. Ltd. The insurer argued that the policy was void due to non-pa…

The appellant, a widow, claimed that her deceased husband had paid an insurance premium for a loan secured by Shriram City Union Finance Ltd., but the finance company delayed forwarding the premium to its sister insurance company, resulting in a failure to activate the policy. The District Forum and State Commission he…

PGF Limited, which sold and developed agricultural land and ran joint‑venture schemes, was directed by SEBI to cease collecting money and to refund investors, on the ground that its activities constituted a collective investment scheme (CIS) under Section 11AA of the SEBI Act. PGF challenged the SEBI order and the cons…

The appellant, daughter and nominee of a deceased insured, claimed death benefits under two life insurance policies, which the insurer repudiated alleging that the insured had concealed multiple other policies. The insurer relied on an unauthenticated tabulation of fifteen alleged policies without producing any documen…

The appellants held an annual medical insurance policy with United India Insurance that was renewed each year. For the 2008‑09 renewal the insurer introduced a cap on coverage for certain procedures, notably angioplasty, without informing the policyholders, who believed they were merely renewing the existing policy on …

The insured's factory suffered a fire and the insurer, New India Assurance Co., appointed a surveyor, joint surveyors, and later an investigator who alleged arson, before seeking the opinion of former Chief Justice Y.V. Chandrachud who concluded the fire was accidental. The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissi…

The appellant purchased a 25‑year endowment life insurance policy in 1993, paid premiums for 31 quarters, and in 2001 took a loan of Rs 15,000 against the policy before stopping premium payments. He sought the surrender value, and LIC offered Rs 2,268 after deducting the loan and interest, which the District Consumer F…

The insured imported two machines and obtained transit insurance. During road transport only the printer machine was damaged; the film processor remained functional. Surveyor reports and the manufacturer’s engineer confirmed that the printer was extensively damaged and could not be repaired in India, while the film pro…

Genus Power Infrastructure Ltd., the insured, suffered fire damage and claimed under a fire policy issued by New India Assurance Ltd. The insurer assessed the loss and the parties executed a letter of subrogation on 11 March 2011, wherein the insured accepted Rs 5.96 crore as full and final settlement. Three weeks late…

The appellant United India Insurance issued a Standard Fire & Special Perils (SFSP) policy to Levi Strauss (India) for fire loss, while Levi also held a global Open Marine Insurance (STP) policy issued by Allianz covering the same goods. After a fire, Levi claimed under the SFSP policy, but the insurer denied liability…