Remarriage no ground to deny compensation to accident victim's widow, rules Bombay HC

Remarriage of a widow cannot be a reason to deny compensation to her under the Motor Vehicles Act for the death of her husband in a road accident, the Bombay High Court has said while dismissing an insurance company’s petition. Iffco Tokio General Insurance Company had filed the petition in the high court, challenging the order of a Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT)

Remarriage of a widow cannot be a reason to deny compensation to her under the Motor Vehicles Act for the death of her husband in a road accident, the Bombay High Court has said while dismissing an insurance company's petition.

Iffco Tokio General Insurance Company had filed the petition in the high court, challenging the order of a Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal (MACT), which had directed the company to pay compensation to the woman, whose husband was killed in a road accident in 2010.

A single-judge bench of Justice S. G. Dige on March 3 decided the appeal of the insurance company. Its detailed order was made available recently.

The counsel for the firm had submitted that since the claimant, the wife of deceased Ganesh, remarried after his death, she is not entitled to get compensation.

The court, however, held that one cannot expect that for getting compensation for the death of her husband, she has to remain a widow for life or till she gets the payout.

The court noted that it appears from the record that at the time of the death of her husband, the woman was 19 years old.

Considering her age and the fact that she was the wife of the deceased at the time of the accident is sufficient ground for her to get compensation, it said.