The socio-economic background of the claimants must be taken into account when awarding compensation in situations of permanent impairment caused by motor vehicle accidents, according to a judgment issued by the Supreme Court's division bench on December 9. While allowing an appeal filed by a claimant seeking an enhancement in compensation for a motor vehicle accident, the bench of Justices Krishna Murari and S. Ravindra Bhat made this observation.

The Apex Court bench noted in the appeal that the claimant had sustained various injuries in addition to a permanent impairment of 70% and an amputated right lower leg.

"The Appellant is not a salaried person but is self-employed who manages his business. For the Appellant to be able to augment his income, he is most definitely required to move around. The Appellant can also not drive on his own, which hinders his mobility further. This proves that the functional disability of the Appellant will severely impact his earning capacity, and the 35% functional disability calculated by the High Court is incorrect in the facts and circumstances of the case and in our view the loss of future earning capacity must be calculated at 60%."

"This is because persons from marginalized sections of society already face severe discrimination due to a lack of social capital, and a new disability more often than not compounds to such discrimination. In such circumstances, to preserve the essence of justice, it becomes the duty of the Court to at the very least restore the claimant as best as possible to the position he was in before the occurrence of the disability, and to do so must award compensation in a liberal manner.", it further said.

In this instance, the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal granted him Rs. 15,76,465 in compensation. The Delhi High Court granted the petition raising the compensation to Rs.16,70,932/-.

By granting the appeal, the court determined that the claimant/appellant was entitled to compensation in the amount of Rs. 38,70,120 plus 9% interest per year starting on the application date.

The bench noted that people from disadvantaged origins frequently experience extra forms of discrimination because of physical impairments.

Case Title: Mohd Sabeer @ Shabir Hussain vs Regional Manager UPSRTC
Citation: CA 9070-9071 OF 2022

Link: https://main.sci.gov.in/supremecourt/2018/47236/47236_2018_14_1502_40489_Judgement_09-Dec-2022.pdf