For hit-and-run death, government plans Rs 2 lakh compensation

The road transport ministry has finalised rules for an eight-fold increase in compensation for deaths in hit-and-run cases in which the vehicles involved can’t be traced. Similarly, compensation under ‘no-fault liability’ in case of death and grievous injuries in a road crashes involving insured vehicles will be increased by 10 times.

The increased compensation is aimed at bringing quick relief to the victims and their immediate kin. “The draft rules are being issued and we will notify the final rules subsequently,” a source said. The finalised norms say that compensation for a person killed in any hit-and-run case will be fixed at Rs 2 lakh (at present, it is Rs 25,000), and for grievous injuries it will be Rs 50,000 (up from Rs 12,500). According to the latest official data of 2019, at least 29,354 people were killed and 67,751 injured in hit-and-run cases in the country.

Since in these cases the offender cannot be caught and made to pay compensation, the government will set up a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, which will release the money.

Similarly, in road crashes where the vehicle and its owner can be traced, the ministry has proposed a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for deaths and Rs 2.5 for grievous injuries, to be paid by the insurance company which provided third party cover.