{"id":379773,"date":"2026-03-31T11:00:02","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T05:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/?p=379773"},"modified":"2026-04-01T16:24:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T10:54:54","slug":"sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/","title":{"rendered":"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Supreme Court:<\/span> In a civil appeal concerning liability arising out of a motor accident involving a bus requisitioned by the State for Gram Panchayat elections, a Division Bench of Sanjay Karol*<\/span> and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, JJ.<\/span>, upheld the view that liability to pay compensation would lie with the State authority and not the insurer. The Court held that liability attaches to the authority exercising effective control rather than the registered owner or its insurer.<\/p>\n

The Court further distinguished cases involving contractual use of vehicles, emphasizing that requisition is a statutory, non-consensual act. Accordingly, it held that upon requisition, complete control and possession of the vehicle vest in the State, and therefore, the State, having assumed control for public purposes, must bear liability for the accident, and dismissed the appeal.<\/p>\n

Background<\/h3>\n

In a motor accident involving a bus and a motorcycle that resulted in the death of the motorcycle rider, the bus, though owned by a school in Gwalior, had been requisitioned by the appellant for Gram Panchayat election purposes and was under the control of the election authorities at the time of the accident. The legal representatives of the deceased had filed a claim petition before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Gwalior, which had awarded compensation of ₹5,13,500 along with interest at 6% per annum. Aggrieved, both the Insurance Company and the claimants had preferred appeals before the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, where the former had challenged the fastening of liability upon it and the latter had sought enhancement of compensation. By the impugned judgment dated 8th January, 2024, the High Court had allowed both appeals by shifting the liability from the respondent to the appellant and enhancing the compensation to ₹27,01,556. The appellant had thereafter approached the Court assailing the shifting of liability upon it.<\/p>\n

Analysis, Law, and Decision<\/h3>\n

The issue for consideration before the Court was whether the High Court was correct in fastening liability upon the appellant, a State functionary, instead of the respondent, an Insurance Company. The Court noted that it is undisputed that the vehicle in question stands requisitioned by the appellant for Gram Panchayat elections. The Court while referring to the meaning of “requisition” and relying upon National Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Deepa Devi<\/span> (2008) 1 SCC 414<\/a> and Purnya Kala Devi v. State of Assam<\/span> (2014) 14 SCC 142<\/a>, clarified that that when a public authority requisitions a privately owned vehicle, the nature of possession and control changes entirely, as the owner is divested of custody and decision-making power and the vehicle is placed at the disposal of the State for governmental functions. It noted that during this period, the owner neither directs its use nor derives any benefit, and therefore, if an untoward incident occurs, responsibility would properly rest with the requisitioning authority and not with the insurer.<\/p>\n

The Court emphasized that once requisitioned, the vehicle is operated under official directions, with the authority determining its deployment, purpose, and conditions, while the owner has no say in these matters. It further observed that the insurer’s liability cannot be extended, since the insurance contract is premised on a wholly different footing, covering only ordinary, private or commercial use.<\/p>\n

The Court further clarified that requisition is not a voluntary arrangement but a command issued under statutory authority, and the owner is compelled to part with possession; hence, such compelled use cannot reasonably be characterized as regular use within the usual contemplation of the policy and that fastening liability on the insurer would extend the contract beyond the risk that was agreed to be covered and would be unfair, as it would make the insurer liable for a use neither authorized nor controlled by the insured.<\/p>\n

When the State steps in, assumes control, and deploys the vehicle, it also assumes the corresponding responsibility, and that the exercise of statutory requisition power carries with it an obligation to answer for the consequences, failing which it would impose upon private parties and their insurers the burden of risks generated exclusively by governmental action.<\/p>\n

The Court while rejecting the contention that the insurer would continue to be liable despite it being operated by the authority, distinguished U.P. SRTC v. National Insurance Co. Ltd.<\/span> 2021 SCC OnLine SC 3278<\/a> and U.P. SRTC v. Kulsum<\/span> (2011) 8 SCC 142<\/a> on the ground that in those cases the vehicles operated under an agreement, as opposed to the present case involving a requisition by the authority under a special statute. The Court observed that where a vehicle is requisitioned for public functions and an incident occurs during the period of such requisition, liability ought properly to be borne by the requisitioning authority, and not by the insurer engaged by the owner for the vehicle’s regular and voluntary use.<\/p>\n

The Court, further considering the scope of Section 160 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950<\/a> observed that while Section 160 grants power to the State to requisition premises and vehicles, it does not expressly contemplate requisition of drivers. In the case at hand, the authority having consciously requisitioned the vehicle along with its driver and utilizing his services, is deemed to have accepted his competence, thereby retaining complete operational control. Viewed thus, the liability rested squarely upon the requisitioning authority.<\/p>\n

Finding no infirmity in the impugned judgment, the Court held the appeal to be devoid of merit and dismissed the same accordingly.<\/p>\n

[DM and District Election Officer and Collector, Gwalior v. National Insurance Company Ltd.<\/span>, 2026 SCC OnLine SC 455<\/a>, decided on 23-3-2026<\/span>]<\/p>\n

*Judgement authored by: Justice Sanjay Karol<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Advocates who appeared in this case:<\/p>\n

Archana Pathak Dave, senior counsel, amicus curiae<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

‘A requisition is not a voluntary arrangement; it is a command issued under statutory authority.’<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67541,"featured_media":379774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,9],"tags":[101465,2617,43549,55015,101466,11741,101467,5363],"class_list":["post-379773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-casebriefs","category-supremecourt","tag-accident-from-requisitioned-vehicle","tag-insurance_claim","tag-justice-nongmeikapam-kotiswar-singh","tag-justice-sanjay-karol","tag-liability-of-accident-by-a-requisitioned-vehicle","tag-requisition","tag-s-160-representation-of-the-peoples-act-1950","tag-supreme-court"],"yoast_head":"\nSC: State not insurer liable for accident involving requisitioned vehicle |SCC Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SCC Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scc.online\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-31T05:30:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-01T10:54:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"886\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"590\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Malika Bhola\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Malika Bhola\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/\",\"name\":\"SC: State not insurer liable for accident involving requisitioned vehicle |SCC Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-31T05:30:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-01T10:54:54+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/45db260c9b47eac21ba4813c9a379af1\"},\"description\":\"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp\",\"width\":886,\"height\":590,\"caption\":\"liability for requisitioned vehicle accident\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"SCC Times\",\"description\":\"Bringing you the Best Analytical Legal News\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/45db260c9b47eac21ba4813c9a379af1\",\"name\":\"Malika Bhola\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ad40b34c562bedc415034fbcc0dc38433e5ef0c1f736b1961a9ebb53b5a3a65?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ad40b34c562bedc415034fbcc0dc38433e5ef0c1f736b1961a9ebb53b5a3a65?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Malika Bhola\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/author\/malika-bhola\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"SC: State not insurer liable for accident involving requisitioned vehicle |SCC Times","description":"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer","og_description":"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/","og_site_name":"SCC Times","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/scc.online\/","article_published_time":"2026-03-31T05:30:02+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-01T10:54:54+00:00","og_image":[{"width":886,"height":590,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Malika Bhola","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Malika Bhola","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/","url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/","name":"SC: State not insurer liable for accident involving requisitioned vehicle |SCC Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp","datePublished":"2026-03-31T05:30:02+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-01T10:54:54+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/45db260c9b47eac21ba4813c9a379af1"},"description":"SC holds that liability for accidents involving requisitioned vehicles vests in the State exercising control and not the insurer, distinguishes contractual use from statutory requisition.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp","width":886,"height":590,"caption":"liability for requisitioned vehicle accident"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2026\/03\/31\/sc-state-not-insurer-liable-for-accident-involving-requisitioned-vehicle\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"SC: State Liable for Accidents Involving Requisitioned Vehicles, Not Insurer"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/","name":"SCC Times","description":"Bringing you the Best Analytical Legal News","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/45db260c9b47eac21ba4813c9a379af1","name":"Malika Bhola","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ad40b34c562bedc415034fbcc0dc38433e5ef0c1f736b1961a9ebb53b5a3a65?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ad40b34c562bedc415034fbcc0dc38433e5ef0c1f736b1961a9ebb53b5a3a65?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Malika Bhola"},"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/author\/malika-bhola\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/liability-for-requisitioned-vehicle-accident.webp","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":236143,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2020\/09\/23\/gauhati-hc-justice-nongmeikapam-kotiswar-singh-senior-most-judge-appointed-as-the-acting-chief-justice\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":0},"title":"Gauhati HC | Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, Senior-most Judge appointed as the Acting Chief Justice","author":"Bhumika Indulia","date":"September 23, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Appointment of Acting Chief Justice President appoints Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, senior-most Judge of the Gauhati High Court, to perform the duties of the office of Chief Justice of that High Court with effect from 21-09-2020 consequent upon the retirement of\u00a0 Justice Ajai Lamba, Chief Justice, Gauhati High Court. Ministry\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Appointments & Transfers"","block_context":{"text":"Appointments & Transfers","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/news\/appointments\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":285837,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2023\/03\/02\/justice-n-kotiswar-singh-sworn-in-as-chief-justice-of-jammu-kashmir-ladakh-high-court\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":1},"title":"Know Thy Judge | Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh – The 36th Chief Justice of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court","author":"Ridhi","date":"March 2, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Justice N. Kotiswar Singh was serving as the Acting Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court, prior to being appointed as the Chief Justice of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.","rel":"","context":"In "Know thy Judge"","block_context":{"text":"Know thy Judge","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/judges-information\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/MicrosoftTeams-image-588.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/MicrosoftTeams-image-588.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/MicrosoftTeams-image-588.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/MicrosoftTeams-image-588.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":200168,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2018\/08\/16\/fake-driving-licence-per-se-does-not-absolve-insurer-of-liability-to-pay-compensation-sc\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":2},"title":"Fake driving licence, per se, does not absolve insurer of liability to pay compensation: SC \u00a0","author":"Bhumika Indulia","date":"August 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Supreme Court: A.M. Khanwilkar, J. delivered the judgment for CJ Dipak Misra and himself whereby the matter concerning the liability of the insurer to pay compensation in a motor accident claim was remanded back to the Allahabad High Court. Respondents 1-5 filed a claim before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Case Briefs"","block_context":{"text":"Case Briefs","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/casebriefs\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Supreme-Court_Colour.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Supreme-Court_Colour.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Supreme-Court_Colour.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Supreme-Court_Colour.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/Supreme-Court_Colour.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":365368,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2025\/10\/31\/sc-upholds-pay-and-recover-principle-in-motor-accident-claims\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":3},"title":"‘Expecting insurer to pay third-party compensation beyond terms of agreement is unfair’: Supreme Court upholds pay and recover principle in motor accident claims","author":"Arushi","date":"October 31, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"To deny compensation to the victim\/dependents of the victim, simply because the accident took place outside the bounds of the permit would be offensive to the sense of justice, for the accident itself is for no fault of his.","rel":"","context":"In "Case Briefs"","block_context":{"text":"Case Briefs","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/casebriefs\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"pay and recover principle","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sc-02-77-1.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sc-02-77-1.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sc-02-77-1.webp?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sc-02-77-1.webp?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":281390,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2023\/01\/10\/president-appoints-justice-n-kotiswar-singh-as-acting-chief-justice-of-gauhati-hc\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":4},"title":"President appoints Justice N Kotiswar Singh as acting Chief Justice of Gauhati HC","author":"Bhumika Indulia","date":"January 10, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The President has appointed Shri Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, senior most puisne Judge of the Gauhati High Court, to perform the duties of the office of the Chief Justice of that High Court, with effect from 12.01.2023 consequent upon the retirement of Shri Justice Rashmin Manharbhai Chhaya, Chief Justice of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Appointments & Transfers"","block_context":{"text":"Appointments & Transfers","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/news\/appointments\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Gauhati High Court","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/MicrosoftTeams-image-431.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":218512,"url":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2019\/08\/22\/ker-hc-liability-of-insurer-to-indemnify-third-parties-subsists-unless-insurance-coverage-is-cancelled-and-an-intimation-thereof-has-reached-the-insured\/","url_meta":{"origin":379773,"position":5},"title":"Ker HC | Liability of insurer to indemnify third parties subsists unless insurance coverage is cancelled and an intimation thereof has reached the insured","author":"Bhumika Indulia","date":"August 22, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Kerala High Court: P.B. Suresh Kumar, J. allowed an appeal filed by the claimant against the insurer in which an award was passed exonerating the liability of the insurer to indemnify the owner. \u00a0In the instant case, the claimant sustained injuries in a motor vehicle accident and claimed for indemnity\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Case Briefs"","block_context":{"text":"Case Briefs","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/category\/casebriefs\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67541"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}