Hanhumantha Bylapattar was working as a bus conductor with North Eastern Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NEKRTC). As an employee of NEKRTC, he was covered under a group life insurance policy from Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance. The policy provided for a coverage of Rs 3 lakh for which a premium of Rs 50 a month was deducted from his salary.
When he expired, his widow lodged a claim. As the insurer did not settle the claim, she approached the Bellari District Forum by filing a complaint against NEKRTC and Bajaj Allianz.
The insurer contested the case, saying that the policy which was originally issued could be extended for four years through renewal by mutual consent. And though the insurer had received a total annual premium of Rs 63.33 lakh from NEKRTC, along with a list giving the details of its employees, the names of 70 employees, including that of Bylapattar were omitted. NEKRTC, then, requested the insurer to include these 70 names. However, while this correspondence was going on, Bylapattar expired on May 28, 2007. Bajaj Allianz contended that it was justified in refusing to settle the claim because Bylapattar’s name was not on the list and claimed that his wife had no right to file the complaint since the master policy had been issued to NEKRTC.
via Employer, too, liable for group policy lapses | Business Standard News
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