Govt proposes changes in Motor Vehicles Act

The road transport ministry has proposed ammendments to the Motor Vehicles Act to make ex-gratia given by central and state govts to kin of road crash victims a separate component to be paid over and above the total compensation.

At present, ex-gratia is adjusted, or included, in the final compensation when it is released in an accident case involving a motor vehicle, including hit-and-run.

A similar provision has been proposed for the compensation paid by insurance companies in road crash cases in which the kin of victims accept INR 5 lakh and INR 2.5 lakh for death and injury, respectively. At present, the ex-gratia is reduced from the amount of compensation payable under section 166 of the MV Act.

“These are good amendments proposed by the govt, which will bring more immediate relief to road crash victims and their kin. The opportunity of amending the law should be utilised for bringing more safety related legislations considering the high number of road fatalities and injuries,” said Amarjeet Singh, a lawyer and road safety expert.

The ministry has also proposed to amend a section to allow the Motor Accident Claims Tribunals to entertain an application for compensation after six months from the date of occurrence of a crash up to 12 months, if it is satisfied that there were enough reasons of an applicant for failing to file claim within the first six months.

At present, no application for compensation can be entertained by tribunals unless it is made within six months of the accident.