The Complainant qualifies as a consumer despite commercial use, and the repudiation of the insurance claim based on fraud is unwarranted in light of evidence showing an electrical short circuit as the cause of the fire.

1. As the facts and the dispute involved in the aforesaid two Consumer Complaints are same, they are disposed of by common order treating CC / 303/2017 as the lead case.

2. The Complainant is a cold storage and acts as a custodian for the agricultural produce stored by the farmers. The Complainant obtained a Standard Fire & Special Perils Policy No. 566018111310000062 for a sum of Rs. 14 crores (Rs. 4 crores for building, plant & machinery and Rs. 10 crores for stock) valid from 30.3.2014 to 29.3.2015 from National Insurance Company Limited. On 9.9.2014, vide endorsement No. 566018111382100004, the sum insured was enhanced from Rs. 14 crores to Rs. 19.5 crores (Rs. 5,50,000 towards building,plant & machinery and Rs. 14 crores towards stock). The insured stocks consisted of dry chilly,onion, potato, cashew nut, bengal gram, red gram, green gram, black gram, coriander, fruits, pulses, groundnuts and other agricultural products.
The Complainant also took another Standard Fire & Special PolicyNo. 463400/11/2015/70 on the stocks of mirchi, bengal gram, daal and all agricultural products for a sum of Rs. 8 crores valid from 30.5.2014 to 29.5.2015 from Oriental Insurance Company Limited. The farmers used to take loans from the Bank by pledging their cold storage bond sissued by the Complainant. The Complainant signed as a guarantor for the farmers who took loan from the Bank. The Bank had also taken collateral securities from the Complainant apart from guarantor agreements. It was a common practice of all the cold storages to have an agreement with the bankers to give loan facility to the farmers on the guarantee and collateral securities of the cold storage.
On 15.10.2014 at about 2.00 a.m., a major fire accident broke in the cold storage of the Complainant. The incident was immediately reported to the Police and A.P. State Disaster Response as well as the Fire Service Department and the local authorities. The Complainant also informed the Opposite Parties about the fire accident. Entire stocks got burnt in the fire andthe building also completely collapsed. Deputy Electrical Inspector, Guntur, along with local electricity authorities, inspected the premises and conducted necessary investigation and enquiries. On 15.10.2014, the Opposite Parties appointed Mr. Y. Siva to conduct preliminary survey. On receipt of preliminary Survey Report, the Opposite Parties appointed M/s. Comtec Surveyors for conducting final survey and assessment of loss. The Opposite Parties withdrew the said Surveyor and on 03.12.2014 appointed Mr. B. Nageswara Rao as Surveyor & Loss Assessor for assessment of loss. The Complainant submitted all documents sought by the Surveyor. The Complainant filed a claim before National Insurance Company Limited forRs.13,98,39,112 for loss of stocks and Rs. 5,50,96,707 towards building, plant & machinery. The Opposite Parties also appointed M/s. Truth Labs for ascertaining the cause of fire. As the claim was not settled even after expiry of 13 months, on 8.2.2015 the Complainant made a Complaint to IRDA requesting for early settlement of the claim. The Complainant also deputed M/s. Startech Labs to ascertain the cause of loss, who submitted their report dated 27.10.2015 stating that the samples were free from any inflammable substances and no hydrocarbons were detected. The Surveyor submitted Final Survey Report dated 29.10.2015 assessing the loss to the building, plant and machinery etc. at Rs. 2,30,71,979 and loss to the stocks at Rs.6,84,07,938. The Opposite Parties, however, vide letter dated 16.5.2016, repudiated the claim on the ground that as per the report of M/s. Truth Labs fire was not caused due to electrical