Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 – s.166 – Death due to motor accident in 1992 – Claim of appellants that the deceased was in the business of selling desi ghee and namkin bhujia and his monthly income was Rs.3,500/- – Tribunal assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.1,200/- p.m. and awarded Rs.1,15,200/- as compensation after applying a multiplier of 12 – High Court applied a multiplier of 15 and increased the compensation to Rs. 1,85,000/- – On appeal, held: Assessment of income by Tribunal at Rs.1,200/- p.m. is on the lower side – Having due regard to the nature of the business, the date of accident and all the circumstances of the case, income should have been assessed at Rs.2,500/- p.m. – Deceased was 38 years old, hence, the correct multiplier would be 16 – Further, in view of decision of Constitution Bench in Pranay Sethi case an amount of 40% is added towards future prospects – Compensation recomputed – Appellants entitled to Rs.5,23,000/-.
Person died when his moped was hit by jeep driven by the first respondent. Appellants, wife and children of the deceased claimed that his monthly income was Rs.3,500/-. Tribunal assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.1,200/-p.m. and awarded Rs.1,15,200/- as compensation after applying a multiplier of 12. High Court applied a multiplier of 15 and increased the compensation to Rs. 1,85,000/-. Hence, the present appeal. Allowing the appeal, the Court
HELD: 1.1 The assessment of income by the MACT at Rs.1,200/- per month was on the lower side. The income should have been assessed at Rs.2,500/- per month having due regard to the nature of the business, the date of accident and all the circumstances of the case. The deceased was 38 years old and hence the correct multiplier would be 16. In view of the decision of the Constitution Bench in Pranay Sethi case, an amount of 40 per cent is required to be added towards future prospects. Accordingly, the recomputed quantum of compensation is Rs.5,23,000/- with interest @ 9 per cent per annum from the date of the petition until payment. [Paras 6, 7] [501-E-F; 502-C] National Insurance Company Limited v Pranay Sethi (2017) 16 SCC 680 : 2017 (13) SCALE 12 – followed.
As published in the Supreme Court Reports, Supreme Court of India. Text from the Indian Supreme Court Judgments open data set (Dattam Labs), CC BY 4.0.
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