The South Mumbai District Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission has dismissed a claim filed by a West Bengal resident, Seema Kumari, seeking claim under LIC
Amulya Jeevan Policy after her husband passed away in 2021. The claim was rejected because the deceased had failed to pay the last two premium installments, resulting in a lapse of the policy.
Kumari contended that her husband had been hospitalized due to illness in June 2021, during the pandemic, which prevented him from making the premium payment on time. She argued that LIC’s refusal of the claim was unjust, as her husband had regularly paid premiums for over eight years, keeping the policy active until his illness. Kumari stated that she and her minor child are now facing financial hardship due to LIC’s denial of the claim, which she called “unfair, unreasonable, and unjustified.”
Kumari sought a total of Rs. 50,00,000 as insurance claim benefit with interest from LIC, as well as Rs. 32,00,000 in damages for incidental losses, Rs. 32,00,000 for mental agony, and an additional Rs. 6,50,000 in litigation costs.
LIC did not submit a response to the claim. However, in its ex-parte order, the Commission referenced a Supreme Court judgment in LIC of India vs. Sunita, which held that policy benefits are not payable if a policy has lapsed due to non-payment of premiums. The Commission ruled that, according to the terms of the insurance contract, Kumari was not entitled to the benefit, as her husband’s policy had indeed lapsed after the grace period expired.
