Punjab consumer commission upholds truck claim against United India Insurance

The Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission on 5 November 2026 dismissed an appeal by United India Insurance Company Limited and upheld an order directing it to pay a truck owner Rs 1,51,672 for accident damage, with 9% annual interest from the date the complaint was filed. The insurer must also pay Rs 60,000 as compensation, including litigation expenses, as the Amritsar District Commission had ordered on 27 March 2023.

What Happened

The complainant bought the truck for his livelihood. It was badly damaged in an accident on 10 June 2020; the police and the insurer were informed. The insurer's surveyor assessed the loss at Rs 1,51,672.

The insurer rejected the claim on 10 February 2021. Its investigator said that on checking with the transport office in Jalandhar, the original licence on which the driver's licence was based belonged to a person with the same name but a different father's name, and so the licence "seems" fake.

The commission held that it was the insurer's duty to prove the licence was fake. It noted that the same investigator's report recorded that the driver's licence had been verified with the transport office and found genuine, and that the insurer gave no reason for setting that aside. There was "not an iota of evidence" that the driver was a different person from the licence holder, the commission said. It relied on earlier rulings of the National Commission that an insurer cannot avoid paying unless it proves the vehicle owner was negligent or knew the licence was fake, and called the rejection "totally without any merit".

What It Means

For vehicle owners, the order says an insurer that rejects a claim on the ground of a fake driving licence carries the burden of proving it with clear evidence; an investigator's observations alone are not enough.

The insurer had deposited Rs 1,17,991 when it filed its appeal. The commission directed its registry to release that sum, with any interest earned, to the truck owner 45 days after certified copies of the order are sent. The order may be appealed to the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.

Policyholders whose claims are rejected can file a complaint through the National Consumer Helpline (1915) or online on e-Daakhil.

Source: Consumer commission order