Insurance company cannot be exempted from granting claim when person himself had not contributed to occurrence of accident in any manner

Last updated: 12 November 2022

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The Kerala High Court ruled that merely consuming alcohol above the legal limit does not automatically exempt an insurance company from paying a claim. The court clarified that 'under the influence of alcohol' means the alcohol must have actually impaired the person's senses and faculties, leading them to contribute to the accident. If the accident was caused by another party's negligence and the deceased did not contribute to it, even with alcohol in their system, the insurance company must still grant the claim.

Court :
Kerala High Court

Brief :
THE HIGH COURT HELD THAT merely because a person has consumed alcohol in excess of the limit prescribed under the penal provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, it could not be said that he was 'under the influence of the alcohol', and the insurance company cannot be exempted from granting the claim when the person himself had not contributed to the occurrence of the accident in any manner.

Citation :
WP(C) NO. 21669 OF 2012

Daily Limit Reached