STATE CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, PUNJAB, CHANDIGARH.

Date of institution : 08.05.2024 Reserved On : 25.02.2025 Date of decision : 18.03.2025 Care Health Insurance Ltd., (Formerly known as Religare Health Insurance Company), Regd. Office Vipul Tech Square, Tower-C, 3^rd Floor, Golf Course Road, Sector-43, Gurugram-122009 (Haryana), through its Authorized Signatory.

….Appellant/OP No.1 Versus

1. Satpal s/o Sh. Piaru Ram R/o Adamwal Garhi, PO Hariana, Tehsil and District Hoshiarpur.

….Respondent/Complainant

2. Punjab National Bank, Branch Bhikhowal, District Hoshiarpur, through its Branch Manager.

….Respondent/OP No.2 First Appeal under Section 41 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 against the order dated 15.02.2024 passed by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Hoshiarpur.

Quorum:-

Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Daya Chaudhary, President Mr. Vishav Kant Garg, Member

1) Whether Reporters of the Newspapers may be allowed to see the Judgment? Yes/No

2) To be referred to the Reporters or not? Yes/No

3) Whether judgment should be reported in the Digest? Yes/No Present:-

For the Appellant : Sh. Raj K. Narang, Advocate For Respondent No.1 : Sh. I.S. Kooner, Advocate For Respondent No.2 : None.

JUSTICE DAYA CHAUDHARY, PRESIDENT Appellant/OP No.1 i.e. Care Health Insurance Ltd. through its Authorized Signatory has filed the present Appeal under Section 41 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 against the order dated 15.02.2024 passed by the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Hoshiarpur (in short, “the District Commission”), whereby the Complaint filed by Respondent No.1/Complainant had been partly ₹

allowed by issuing directions to the Appellant to pay an amount of 10 lac being the sum assured towards Accidental Death of insured ₹

Kamaljit Kaur and also to pay compensation of 25,000/- causing ₹

hardship and financial loss to the Complainant besides 10,000/- towards litigation expenses. OP No.1 was further directed to pay the said amounts along with interest at the rate of 6% per annum from the date of repudiation of the claim till its realization, within a period of 45 days from the date of receipt of the certified copy of the order.

2. It would be apposite to mention here that hereinafter the parties will be referred, as had been arrayed before the District Commission.

3. Briefly, the facts of the case, which are necessary for disposal of the present case, are that Respondent No.1/Complainant had filed the Complaint before the District Commission with the following prayer:

₹

i) The OP be directed to pay an amount of 10 lac being the sum assured towards Accidental Death of insured Kamaljit Kaur;

₹

ii) To pay compensation of 1 lac towards damages for committing ‘deficiency in service’

₹

iii) To pay an amount of 30,000/- towards litigation expenses; and iv) To pay interest at the rate of 12% per annum on the aforesaid amounts.

4. Upon issuance of notice in the Complaint, the OPs had appeared and filed their written reply, whereby certain preliminary objections were raised. Other averments as made in the Complaint were denied and dismissal of the Complaint was prayed.

5. By considering the contents of the Complaint and reply thereof filed by the OPs, the Complaint was partly allowed by the District Commission vide impugned order dated 15.02.2024. The relevant portion of said order as mentioned in Para-18 is reproduced as under:

“18. In the light of our above findings, the claim of the Complainant is held to be admissible and the Complaint is hereby partly allowed. The opposite party No.1 is directed to pay to the Complainant a sum of Rs.10,00,000/- being sum insured towards Accidental Death of the insured Kamaljit Kaur besides Rs.25,000/- as compensation for hardship and financial loss undergone by the Complainant and Rs.10,000/- as litigation expenses. The OP No.1 is further directed to pay to the Complainant the above said amounts alongwith interest @ 6% PA from the date of repudiation of the claim till its realization, within 45 da