Date:23/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/23/stories/2008112353850500.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Insurance firms told to speed up motor vehicle claims

Staff Reporter

Some cases have been pending in court since 1995

BANGALORE: Supreme Court Judge Arijit Pasayat on Saturday said the very idea of payment of compensation in a motor vehicle claims case is defeated when such cases take decades for settlement.

He was speaking on the High Court premises at a function organised by the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority and High Court Legal Services Committee on expeditious disposal of insurance claims. He said he had been told that some of the cases had been pending in courts since 1995.

Some cases, he said, could be easily disposed of, some listed and such cases taken up for hearing. He said the Supreme Court had some time ago organised a Lok Adalat and it had proved to be a huge success.

Chairman of the High Court Legal Services Committee and High Court Judge K.L. Manjunath, said though the Lok Adalat had received cooperation from all insurance companies, there were still minor problems.

Limitation

He said several times officers from insurance companies could not settle disputes as they did not have the authority to agree to pay insurance beyond a stipulated limit.