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Motor Vehicle Amendment Act 2019 and its Implication on Drivers

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Published on September 5, 2019. EST READ TIME: 5 MIN

As rightly pointed out by Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Hon’ble Minister for Road Transport & Highways of India and Shipping Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Government of India that nearly 1.5 lakh people in India lose their lives in road accidents.

A major reason for such a high number of casualties is the negligence on the part of drivers on following the traffic rules and flouting of safety norms.

With the passage of Motor Vehicle Amendment Act 2019, it is expected that people realize the importance of having motor insurance and for the existing policyholders to get their motor insurance renewals done on time. Motor Vehicle Amendment Act 2019 has strong implications for the offenders, let’s look into the provisions of the act in brief.

• Driving an uninsured vehicle would now be fined Rs 2,000 and/or punishment up to 3months, the fine goes upto Rs 4,000 for subsequent offense and/or punishment up to 3 months

• Drivers not wearing their seat belts would now have to fork out Rs 1,000 instead of Rs 100, so guys buckle up and get those seat belts on.

• For the victims who have been disabled in hit and run accidents, the compensation has been increased from Rs 12,500 to Rs 50,000

• In event of demise of the victim in hit and run accident, the family of the victim would now be getting a compensation Rs 2 lakhs instead of the current Rs 25,000.

• The time limit for the applications in regards to compensation to the claims tribunal has been stated as 6 months

• People found to be drunk driving could now face upto Rs 10,000 fine and /or 6 months imprisonment and on committing subsequent offence can face upto Rs 15,000 as fine or upto two years imprisonment

• The Act also allows the union government to recall any vehicle having a defect that can prove to be detrimental to the safety of the driver or road users or also the environment, the manufacturer of the vehicle would then have either reimburse the owner, the full cost of the vehicle or would have to give owner vehicle with similar or better specifications.

HDFC ERGO supports this initiative aimed at improving safety of drivers and urges the drivers to buy motor insurance for their vehicles and to get their renewals done beforehand.