Car Claim Rejected Over Date Error: Chandigarh Panel Orders Insurer to Pay Rs 2.93 Lakh
Car Claim Rejected despite a date discrepancy in the claim documents. The Chandigarh panel has ruled against the insurer and ordered compensation of Rs 2.93 lakh.
Car Claim Rejected over a date error? Chandigarh's consumer panel has directed the insurer to pay Rs 2.93 lakh to the policyholder.
NEW DELHI – Car Claim Rejected: Chandigarh consumer commission has ordered United India Insurance to pay Rs 2,93,507 to a car owner whose motor claim was turned down because of a small mistake in the dates of his previous policy. The panel also awarded 9 per cent annual interest, Rs 10,000 for mental agony and Rs 10,000 for litigation costs. It called the insurer’s rejection “hyper-technical” and held that it amounted to deficiency in service and an unfair trade practice.
Car Claim Rejected: How a One-Day Typing Slip Led to a Rejected Claim
Neeraj Garg, a Chandigarh resident, bought a fresh motor insurance policy from United India Insurance in April 2025, after his earlier policy with Tata AIG expired. While filling in the online proposal form, he entered the previous policy’s period as April 3, 2024, to April 2, 2025.
The correct period was April 2, 2024, to April 1, 2025. The error was off by a single day, and Garg also uploaded a copy of his earlier policy, which showed the correct dates. The insurer accepted a premium of Rs 19,520 and issued the new policy without raising any objection.
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Car Claim Rejected: Accident Near Kartarpur and the Insurer’s Grounds for Repudiation
In July 2025, Garg’s vehicle met with an accident near Kartarpur, and he filed a claim under the policy. The insurer rejected it on two grounds. It said the mismatch in dates showed a two-day break in coverage between the old and new policies, and it said the mandatory pre-inspection of the vehicle had not been carried out. Garg then approached the consumer commission, arguing that the discrepancy was a clerical mistake and that the insurer already held the correct policy details.
Car Claim Rejected: Commission Calls Rejection Hyper-Technical, Orders Payout
The commission noted that the insurer had the previous policy document in its records from the start, so it could not use a typing error in the form to deny a genuine claim. It also pointed out that the insurer’s own surveyor had assessed the net liability at Rs 2,93,507, which meant the loss itself was not in dispute. On that basis, the panel found the repudiation unjustified.
It directed United India Insurance to pay the assessed amount with 9 per cent annual interest running from the date the claim was rejected, along with Rs 10,000 as compensation for mental agony and Rs 10,000 towards litigation expenses.
The ruling fits a pattern in consumer disputes, where commissions have often held that insurers cannot avoid paying valid claims on narrow technical grounds, particularly when the company accepted the premium and had the relevant documents all along. For policyholders, the case is a reminder to check every detail in online proposal forms and to keep copies of all documents submitted. It also shows that a claim rejected over a minor clerical error can still be challenged before a consumer commission.
