Mumbai: MACT rejects housewife’s ‘future loss of income’ claim
While the woman had sought compensation of Rs 8 lakh, the MACT ordered that she be given Rs 5.09 lakh towards medical expenses, disability, pain and suffering and special diet and conveyance. (Representational Image) While the woman had sought compensation of Rs 8 lakh, the MACT ordered that she be given Rs 5.09 lakh towards medical expenses, disability, pain and suffering and special diet and conveyance. (Representational Image)
OBSERVING THAT a housewife cannot be compared to government servants and corporate employees earning a handsome salary, a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) in Mumbai recently said that it cannot grant compensation to a 54-year-old woman for “future loss of income”.
The Ghatkopar resident had suffered injuries in an accident in January 2009 after a speeding autorickshaw dashed into her when she was walking on the road. While the woman, Kamrunnisa Sheikh, had sought compensation of Rs 8 lakh, the tribunal ordered that she be given Rs 5.09 lakh towards medical expenses, disability, pain and suffering and special diet and conveyance. Her compensation claim for loss of amenities of life and “future loss of income” were denied.
“There is nothing on record to show she was earning any income on the date of accident nor was she employed with any company or corporation. It seems from documents brought on record that the applicant was a housewife and non-earning member. As such, in my view, she cannot be compared with government servants or corporate employees who earn handsome salaries,” the tribunal observed.
According to experts, under the current provisions, in case there is no proof of income by a claimant, the tribunal calculates a notional income of up to Rs 5,000.
The tribunal took into consideration Sheikh’s testimony as well as that of others including the neurosurgeon who treated her and medical bills submitted by her. The tribunal observed that she should be given compensation towards “pain and suffering” as she would have to work as a housewife “throughout her remaining life with alleged injuries which are permanent in nature”.
In the absence of specific provisions to calculate income of housewives while deciding such claims, there have been varied orders by tribunals in the past. While one tribunal in Mumbai had calculated the income of a housewife on the basis of a domestic worker’s pay, a Delhi tribunal had observed that it should be considered at par with services rendered by a “skilled worker”.
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