A Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has ordered a tanker owner to pay over Rs. 21 lakhs in compensation by a driver whose skin and tissue got ripped off from his thigh and hip in a road accident in 2013.
A medical practitioner who testified before the tribunal told it that the injury, called a ‘degloving injury’, is such that skin does not grow back on the area and there is a chance of chronic infection. As per his complaint, the victim Mohd. Ali, a Wadala resident, was driving a taxi on the fateful day in Jan 2013, when the vehicle was hit from the rear by a tanker that was rashly driven. Ali said in his deposition before the tribunal that he alighted to check the damage to his vehicle and the tanker’s driver started the heavy vehicle and fled while the vehicle hit him while doing so. He spent over 2.5 months over the months in different hospitals in the city and in Allahabad and incurred medical bills of Rs. 7 lakhs, he stated.
He said he used to drive trucks before the accident and earn Rs. 10,000 monthly. Due to the injuries, he said, he is unable to drive for long hours and hence, that his income had halved. The tanker owner did not appear before the tribunal despite notice. The insurance company had rejected the claims.
The tribunal considered his notional income at Rs. 8,000 as he did not provide any income proof. Member SB Munde said in his order that the degloving injury and the pain and sufferings due to it will be there for his entire life and he will have to face difficulties in enjoying his life to the fullest. While deciding the compensation, the tribunal took into account that he was admitted in three to four hospitals.
It further noted that the very nature of his job as a truck driver will certainly get affected due to the injuries. It also considered that during his deposition he was uneasy and when asked, had told that he gets pain in his right leg due to standing for long. It stated that he had no option but to continue his job despite the difficulties, but that due to being unable to work for long hours, certainly his income will get reduced.
The insurance company had proved before the tribunal that the tanker driver was not holding a license during the accident and hence, there was breach in policy conditions. The tribunal directed that it pay the compensation to the victim and then recover it from the tanker owner.
