Summary
A 32-year-old fish vendor and registered goods-vehicle driver was killed in Kerala in 2015 when an insured car hit his motorcycle. The Tribunal fixed his income at Rs 17,500 a month, including Rs 3,500 of rent; the High Court, finding no proof of income, cut it to a notional Rs 10,000. The Supreme Court partly allowed the claimants' appeal. Welfare Fund Board membership proved he was a driver. Taking judicial notice under Section 57 of the Evidence Act of the Kerala Motor Transport Workers' Payment of Fair Wages Act, 1971 and its 2015 notification, which fix Rs 15,600 as the minimum wage for drivers as skilled workers, the Court adopted that income. It excluded the rent because it passes to the heirs. With 40% future prospects, a one-third deduction and a multiplier of 16, compensation rose to Rs 29,73,520 with 9% interest.
Issues
- How the income of a deceased self-employed driver should be determined in the absence of salary proof, and whether a statutory minimum wage notification may be used.
- Whether rental income of the deceased should be added to his income for computing loss of dependency.
- Whether the insurer, without appealing, could challenge the award under non-conventional heads.
Provisions considered
- Section 2 and Schedule B, Category III, Kerala Motor Transport Workers' Payment of Fair Wages Act, 1971A driver is a skilled worker; with the 2015 notification, the minimum wage of Rs 15,600 per month was adopted as the deceased's notional income. (¶¶ 19, 20)
- Section 57, Indian Evidence Act, 1872The Court took judicial notice of the Kerala Fair Wages Act and the notification issued under it. (¶ 19)
- Sections 166 and 168, Motor Vehicles Act, 1988Just compensation was re-computed by the Sarla Verma method with 40% future prospects, one-third personal expenses and a multiplier of 16. (¶¶ 16, 17, 18, 22)
Held
- In the absence of a salary certificate, a minimum wages notification, with some guesswork not detached from reality, is the yardstick for income; the High Court erred in fixing a notional Rs 10,000 when the statutory minimum for a driver in Kerala in 2015 was Rs 15,600. (¶¶ 19, 20)
- Rental income from property is not added to the deceased's income for loss of dependency because it devolves on the legal heirs, who continue to enjoy it. (¶ 21)
- Loss of dependency is Rs 27,95,520, computed with 40% future prospects for a self-employed person, a one-third deduction for three dependants and a multiplier of 16. (¶¶ 22, 25)
- The insurer, having not appealed, could not attack the modest sums awarded under non-conventional heads, though the question of law was kept open. (¶ 23)
Result
Appeal partly allowed; the High Court's judgment set aside and total compensation fixed at Rs 29,73,520 with 9% interest from the date of the claim petition, payable within six weeks after adjusting amounts already paid.