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Venkateswara Syndicate – Appellant
Versus
Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. – Respondent
The court held that the survey report prepared by the joint surveyors, who assessed the loss without thoroughly verifying the records of the insured, was flawed and inadequate. The court emphasized that surveyors appointed by the insurer are expected to investigate, assess, and verify material facts with objectivity and competence. If the survey report is found to be arbitrary, exaggerated, or based on omissions, the insurer must provide valid reasons for rejecting it. The court also noted that the insurer has the right to appoint additional surveyors or independent experts if the initial report is not acceptable, but such appointment must be justified with satisfactory reasons. In this case, the court accepted the assessment made by a Chartered Accountant after detailed verification of the insured’s books and records, and it rejected the surveyors' report due to their failure to examine the records properly and their oversight of material facts.
JUDGMENT
H.L. Dattu, J.—
1) This appeal is directed against the order passed by National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, New Delhi in Original Petition No.135 of 2001 dated 19th day of January, 2003.
2) The brief facts are as under :
The appellant is a registered partnership firm. Their line of activity is trading in cotton. For the purpose of their business, they had taken M/s Jai Bharat Traders Cotton Ginning Mill on lease. The claim of the appellant is that an accidental fire took place in the godown of M/s Jai Bharat Traders, leased by the appellant firm, where its cotton stocks were stored and insured at about 2.10 a.m. in the morning hours of 24.8.1999 and according to the appellant the estimated loss was of Rs. 1.90 crores. The cotton stocks in question were covered by seven insurance policies issued by respondent - Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. hereinafter for the sake of brevity referred to as ‘insurer’ for a total sum of Rs.1.98 Crores during the period when the fire accident took place. The appellant made a claim of Rs.1.90 crores towards loss of stock due to accidental fire in its business premises, with the insurer. Pursuant to the claim so made, the insuran
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