‘No insurance, no fuel’: SC directs govt to prepare pilot project

The Supreme Court has directed the government to implement a pilot project to link fuel supply to vehicles with valid third-party insurance. As of the 2024-25 report by the Standing Committee on Finance, nearly 56% of Indian vehicles remain uninsured. The court, comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra, cited this statistic and ordered the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), along with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), to develop the project.

The project would involve using Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras at petrol pumps to deny fuel to vehicles without valid insurance until they obtain coverage. This move aims to encourage vehicle owners to obtain insurance, streamline enforcement of Section 146 of the Motor Vehicles Act, and ensure prompt compensation for accident victims by reducing prolonged litigation.

The court also extended the mandatory third-party insurance period for new cars to four years and for new two-wheelers to six years, urging IRDAI to issue immediate directives. Additionally, the Supreme Court directed the deployment of ANPR cameras in selected states, connected to the Insurance Information Bureau and the VAHAN portal, to automatically issue e-challans to uninsured vehicles and enable real-time verification by state police through handheld devices or downloadable applications.