S. Mohammed Hakkim vs. National Insurance Co. Ltd. 2025 INSC 905 - Contributory Negligence
Motor Accident Compensation - Contributory Negligence - On a highway, high speed of vehicles is expected and if a driver intends to stop his vehicle, he has a responsibility to give a warning or signal to other vehicles moving behind on the road. (Para 6) [In this case, both MACT and HC found that appellant was definitely negligent in not maintaining a sufficient distance from the vehicle moving ahead and driving the motorcycle without a valid license- In appeal SC observed: It cannot be ignored that the root cause of the accident is the sudden brakes applied by the car driver. The explanation given by the car driver for suddenly stopping his car in the middle of a highway is not a reasonable explanation from any angle-Appellant is liable for contributory negligence but only to the extent of 20% whereas the car driver and bus driver are liable for negligence to the extent of 50% and 30% respectively.]
Case Info
Case Name and Neutral Citation
- Case Name: S. Mohammed Hakkim v. National Insurance Co. Ltd. & Ors.
- Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 905
Coram (Judges)
- Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia
- Justice Aravind Kumar
Judgment Date
- July 29, 2025
Caselaws and Citations Referred
- Navjot Singh v. Harpreet Singh, 2020 SCC OnLine SC 1562
- Discussed regarding notional income for students in accident compensation cases.
- Sarla Verma v. DTC, (2009) 6 SCC 121
- Guidelines for calculation of compensation and multiplier.
- National Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680
- Guidelines for future prospects in compensation calculation.
Statutes/Laws Referred
- Rule 231 of the Road Regulation Rules 1989
- “Distance from vehicles in front: The Driver of a Motor vehicle moving behind another vehicle shall keep at a sufficient distance from that other vehicle to avoid collision if the vehicle in front should suddenly slow down or stop.”
- Article 142 of the Constitution of India
- Mentioned in the context of the Supreme Court’s power to do complete justice.
On a highway, high speed of vehicles is expected and if a driver intends to stop his vehicle, he has a responsibility to give a warning or signal to other vehicles moving behind on the road.#SupremeCourt in Motor Accident Compensation Claim Matter https://t.co/x41JjzsoFR pic.twitter.com/AYcGJlr6aT
— CiteCase 🇮🇳 (@CiteCase) July 29, 2025
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