Eight-month-old not a 'non-earning' individual, tribunal says; awards Rs 15.1 lakh

The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in Thane has ruled that a child killed in a road accident cannot be treated as a "non-earning individual" while determining compensation, awarding Rs 15.10 lakh to the parents of an eight-month-old infant who died after being crushed by a reversing truck in 2018.

In an order passed on Tuesday, MACT Chairman and Principal District Judge R.D. Sawant directed truck owner Dinkar Mane and the vehicle's insurer to jointly pay the compensation.

The accident occurred on 6 June 2018 in Thane's Wagle Estate when Mohammad Usman Mahibub Naik and his wife had visited a relative's house.

Their eight-month-old son, Sultan, was playing on a protected footpath when a truck allegedly reversed at high speed, crashed into an iron compound wall and caused it to collapse onto the child. He suffered a traumatic brain injury and died on the spot.

A criminal case was subsequently registered against the truck driver.

The insurance company opposed the compensation claim, alleging negligence on the part of the child's parents for allowing him to play on the footpath and contending that the truck driver did not possess a valid driving licence.

The tribunal rejected both arguments, observing that the insurer had failed to produce evidence or examine transport authorities or the driver to establish any breach of the insurance policy.

"Had there been no dash and the fall of the compound wall by the offending truck, the accident would not have taken place. Deceased was a minor child playing on the footpath," the tribunal observed.

While the parents had initially valued their claim at Rs 1 lakh for court fee purposes, the tribunal said it was duty-bound to award "just compensation" regardless of the amount claimed.

Relying on Supreme Court precedents, it adopted a notional monthly income of Rs 9,526, added 40 per cent towards future prospects, deducted 50 per cent for personal expenses and applied a multiplier of 18 to calculate the loss of future income.

"A minor child who suffers death in an accident cannot be placed in the same category as a non-earning individual... The computation of compensation... ought to be made by adopting, at the very least, the minimum wages payable to a skilled workman," the tribunal held.

It awarded total compensation of Rs 15,10,288 to the child's parents.