Car stolen, insurance claim rejected over delay in FIR: Man gets Rs 4.68 lakh payout

In a recent decision, the East Delhi Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission held National Insurance Company accountable for its service deficiency and ordered the company to pay Rs 4.68 lakh to a man whose insurance claim for a stolen car was denied due to delays in filing a First Information Report (FIR) and informing the insurance company.

President Sukhvir Singh Malhotra and Member Ravi Kumar presided over the complaint filed by a man whose insurance claim for his stolen car was rejected due to delays in reporting the theft to the police and the insurance company.

The commission ruled that a delay of four days in informing the police and seven days in informing the insurance company (OP) does not automatically reject the claim. The company had denied the claim in its entirety, a decision deemed as a deficiency on their part. The commission consequently ordered National Insurance to pay Rs 4.31 lakh to the man, along with Rs 25,000 for compensation and Rs 12,500 as litigation costs.

The man had filed a complaint with the nearby police station on December 26, 2019, claiming that his car, insured by National Insurance, was stolen from Pratap Vihar in Ghaziabad. However, the police did not convert his complaint into an FIR until December 29, 2019. The man then approached the insurance company, providing them with the delayed FIR, but the insurance executive refused to accept it as the primary proof of theft.

The vehicle was never recovered by the police, and the insurance company denied the man's claim, leading to a consumer complaint.

The insurance company argued that there was no deficiency, as there was no timely information given to them, and the police report was also filed late. The court, however, disagreed, emphasizing the obligation of insurance companies to process claims of consumers properly and not to ignore their concerns, causing unnecessary inconvenience. It directed individuals with consumer grievances to contact the consumer helpline of their respective states or the National Consumer Helpline at 1915 for assistance.