Can Owners Claim No-Fault Compensation Under Section 163A MV Act? Supreme Court Sends To Larger Bench

The Supreme Court has referred to a larger bench the question of whether an insurer’s liability under Section 163A of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, in relation to the owner or insured, is confined only to third party risks.
A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K Vinod Chandran said an authoritative pronouncement is required as two-judge bench rulings so far have held that claims under Section 163A are restricted to third party risks, a view with which they respectfully disagreed.
“We are of the opinion that this issue concerning the liability of the insurer in a claim under Section 163A qua the owner/insured requires an authoritative pronouncement. The dictum arising from various decisions of different benches of two judges is that the claim under Section 163A is restricted to third party risks, which, with all the respect at our command, we are unable to agree with,” the bench observed.