IMPORTANT POINT
The assessment of compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, for loss of future earnings due to permanent disability is not solely based on the disability percentage in the certificate and may differ based on factors such as age, nature of profession, etc.

ORDER :

1. The present civil miscellaneous appeal under Section 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short ‘the Act of 1988’) has been preferred by the claimant-appellant seeking enhancement of the compensation amount as awarded vide judgment dated 12.04.2023 passed in MAC Case No.120/2021 by the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Merta whereby the claim petition filed by the claimant-appellant under Section 166 of the Act of 1988 was partly allowed and the claimant was held entitled to a compensation of Rs.27,23,406/- with interest @ 9% per annum.

2. Brief facts of the case are that on 22.11.2020, the claimant-appellant, was going on a motorcycle bearing registration No.RJ01-SL-2092 from Padukala towards Ajmer. At about 04:30 pm when he reached near Tehla Sarhad, he was hit from front side by offending vehicle i.e. Bolero bearing registration No.RJ05-UA-5675, being driven rashly and negligently on wrong side by its driver/owner respondent No.1, as a result of which, the claimant sustained injuries. The offending vehicle, on the date of accident, was insured with respondent No.2 – Insurance Company.

3. The claimant-appellant preferred a claim petition claiming compensation of Rs.1,39,34,960/-.

4. The learned Tribunal after framing the issues, evaluating the evidence available on the record and after hearing the counsel for the parties, assessed the annual income of the claimant-appellant to be Rs.3,79,314/- and awarded a sum of Rs.27,23,406/- as compensation in favour of the claimant-appellant, the break-up of which is as under :

Learned Tribunal along with the aforementioned compensation also awarded interest @9% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition.

5. The claimant-appellant has preferred the present appeal seeking enhancement of the compensation amount as awarded vide judgment & award dated 12.04.2023.

6. Learned counsel for the appellant submitted that in the aforesaid accident, the appellant sustained 60% temporary physical impairment in his right upper limb as per the disability certificate dated 27.06.2022 (Exh.17) and 70% disability as per the disability certificate dated 29.10.2022 (Exh.108), but the learned Tribunal assessed the said disability only to be 40% and awarded a meagre compensation of Rs.27,23,406/- only while determining the loss of future earnings. He further submitted that amount qua medical bills (Exh.23-53, 55-60, 69-93 and 100-106) has erroneously not been awarded by the tribunal whereas the same ought to have been considered while computing amount of compensation. He therefore, prayed for modification of the impugned judgment and for enhancement of the amount of compensation awarded by the learned Tribunal.

7. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondent-Insurance Company submits that the interest rate as awarded by the learned Tribunal @ 9% is on a higher side and deserves reduction. Counsel further submits that alleged medical bills were not supported by any prescription and hence, the same were rightly not considered while computing the amount of compensation.

8. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material available on record.

9. The primary issue under consideration in the present matter is - Whether the learned Tribunal rightly assessed the loss of future earnings @ 40% despite the disability certificates dated 27.06.2022 and 29.10.2022 reflecting