THIRDPARTY INSURANCE MUST FROM SEPTEMBER 1

NEWDELHI:Third-party insurance for three years will become mandatory for cars being sold from September 1, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday. A bench of justices MB Lokur and Deepak Gupta also made it compulsory for twowheeler owners to take thirdparty insurance for five years.

The order is expected to help road accident victims recover compensation from insurance firms, without going after the owner of the offending vehicle.

The bench also directed Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority to approve the insurance product as soon as it receives it from the General Insurance Council. The directive came after a court-appointed panel on road safety, headed by former SC judge justice KS Radhakrishnan, suggested having a long-term third party insurance.

The GIC sought eight months to prepare a policy but the court declined, noting that the “issue raised by the panel was of utmost concern”. It ordered insurance firms to compulsorily offer third-party insurance as a standalone product and not jointly provide it under a comprehensive policy.

The bench is hearing a PIL related to road safety and had appointed Justice Radhakrishnan committee to look into measures to prevent road accidents and improve accountability.

As per the panel report “longer term third-party insurance cover at the time of purchase would ensure that the road accident victims do not suffer due to the fault of the owner in not renewing his or her policy every year.”