Overview
- The tribunals reported on Monday, July 27, awarding Rs 51.65 lakh to the family of teacher Sudha Chopra and Rs 1.06 crore to her son for injuries and paralysis following a 2017 trailer crash.
- Mumbai courts ordered Rs 9.39 lakh to a 77‑year‑old Worli resident who suffered 68% permanent partial disability after a motorcycle struck him and Rs 33.8 lakh to the family of a Pune man killed in an October 2023 truck collision.
- Judges rejected insurer claims of contributory negligence in several cases and held vehicle owners and their insurers jointly and severally liable while fixing interest rates (for example 6% from filing in Palghar and 7.5% from 2023 in Mumbai orders).
- When victims lacked pay records tribunals used notional monthly incomes (examples: Rs 20,000 and Rs 10,000) and applied the Supreme Court multiplier method plus heads for pain, future loss and funeral costs to reach awards.
- Orders direct insurers to deposit amounts or pay claimants first with liberty to recover from negligent drivers, a step meant to speed relief for injured people and families who face long‑term care and income losses.