We have now to this point had a broad have a look at the choices of constructing a third-party declare for a automobile accident. Now, what in case you maintain a motor-third social gathering legal responsibility (TP) insurance coverage coverage and a declare is made in opposition to you?

It pre-supposes your automobile has been in an accident and someone is injured, or their automobile or another property has been broken within the incident.

Forward of any consideration, it’s best to be sure that any injured particular person will get speedy medical consideration. Nevertheless, don’t supply any financial assist or promise be it damage, dying or harm. This might quantity to your admitting legal responsibility and should compromise your insurance coverage firm’s skill to deal with the case. That is, in actual fact, an specific situation in your TP insurance coverage coverage.

Inform the police and share private contact data of each events, the automobile registration particulars and different data. Name your insurance coverage firm and they’re going to take you thru the subsequent step and formalities for the probably TP declare in opposition to you.

You might wish to file an ‘personal harm’ declare as nicely.

If it is just an damage or a automobile harm, there can be ‘useful’ solutions to settle it between yourselves, from bystanders or family and friends. My recommendation is please select the formal path. The injured social gathering will lodge a grievance, a primary data report (FIR) might be registered by the police and all of the procedures outlined in these columns earlier could also be witnessed. Your presence can be required on the police station relying on the character and extent of the accidents.

As soon as your insurance coverage firm is within the image, you’ll be able to heave a sigh of reduction. Now that’s the true worth of TP insurance coverage. Do their documentation and allow them to take over the case on the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) and proceed with negotiated settlements the place permitted. You don’t should search for a lawyer, pay the lawyer charges or seem in court docket. Actually, insurance coverage corporations are cautious and won’t even let the litigant’s lawyer as a lot as get in contact with you. If someone does so, make sure you inform your insurer in writing with all the small print.

Within the case of third-party damage or dying, the legal responsibility of the insurance coverage firm is limitless. Because of this the whole award of the MACT or the negotiated settlement ratified by the court docket can be paid by your insurer. Within the case of third-party property harm, the restrict of the coverage’s legal responsibility is ₹7.5 lakh. If the court docket awards something greater than that, you need to pay out of your pocket.

As with something coping with insurance coverage, caveats apply. Your TP insurance coverage ought to be legitimate. Your driving licence, or that of the one who drove the automobile when the accident happened, ought to be legitimate.

The particular person driving mustn’t have been inebriated or medicine, and the automobile mustn’t have been in use for any illegal objective. Neither ought to it’s in use for any objective apart from what it has been supposed for, which might be a part of your insurance coverage phrases. As an illustration, utilizing a non-public automobile as a business automobile.

In these circumstances, the TP coverage is not going to be liable, however the buck would cease with the automobile proprietor.

(The author is a enterprise journalist specialising in insurance coverage & company historical past)