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According to reports, Justice Kannamal of Madras High court, on Thursday dismissed  a plea filed by a person challenging the denial of third insurance compensation on the ground that he was a minor when the accident happened. The court held that “Though this Court sympathises with the appellant for the injuries sustained by him, it will not be a ground for this Court to recognise or to give a stamp of approval for the act done by him in riding the two wheeler, while he was a minor. “

The petitioner who was a minor met with an accident in 2010 when he was riding a Motor Cycle in Chennai. The accident happened on account of an Auto Rickshaw driver’s rash and negligent driving. The petitioner sustained injuries such as fracture on the head of 4th toe ii Grade-I Fracture Right Forearm iii Fracture of Lateral Epicondyle in humorous iv Laceration of Liver v Multiple injuries all over the body. He claimed a sum of Rs.7 lakhs as compensation against the driver of the Auto Rickshaw and its Insurer. The insurance company denied the claim on the ground that the claimant is not entitled to ride the two wheeler in as much as he was minor at the time of accident. The petitioner challenged this before the Insurance tribunal which upheld the order of the company, hence the petitioner herein approached Madras High Court in appeal.

The High Court while dismissing his appeal noted that it  is not in dispute that the petitioner was a minor at the time of accident. Furthermore the petitioner has himself admitted the same  even before the Tribunal. The court held that  owing to the above facts there is a clear bar and embargo for the petitioner to drive the vehicle even before attaining the majority or in the absence of driving licence issued by the competent authority.

The court noted that “This Court also takes judicial notice of the fact that juvenile driving is on the rise in our State and it is not encouraging. Innocent lives are being lost or impaired at young age, much to the chagrin of the law makers and the society as a whole. Instances are galore that teen-age boys indulge in bike racing without any impunity, with utter disregard to the safety of other road users.”

The court also remarked that it is high time that there should be an effective implementation of the Motor Vehicles Act to curb the menace of underage driving. This Court expressed its hope that ways and means will be found by the law enforcing agencies so that the incidence  of the adolescent getting entangled in untoward incidents of motor vehicle accidents and suffer silently.

The court concluded by noting that in many countries when an accident takes places, it is recorded in the driving licence of the driver or an endorsement is made in the driving licence to show the person’s antecedent. The by way of a recommendation noting that “whenever a second accident takes place, the endorsement recorded or made in the driving licence will facilitate the traffic police to take appropriate action to either suspend the licence temporarily or permanently or to take such other appropriate action.” 

Cause Title: Irfan vs New India Assurance Company Ltd