India is one of the 5 countries with the highest number of road accidents in the world. Every day we read about some or the other road accident in the news, and after these accidents, the families of the people involved in the accident get tired of making rounds of the hospitals and insurance companies. Well, now it seems the government has found a solution.
When will the new rule come into force
In fact, according to the statement of the Ministry of Roads, a notification has been issued by the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal (MACT) to make it mandatory for early settlement of claims, investigation of accidents, complete accident report (DAR) and its reporting process. The ministry further said in a statement that ‘this new rule will come into effect from April 1, 2022’.
According to this notification, on receipt of information about the road accident, the investigating officer of the police will inspect the accident site, take photographs of the accident site and the vehicle involved in the accident. In case of injury, the Investigating Officer will also take photographs of the injured in the hospital, the notification said, adding that the investigating officer will take the next step after questioning the eyewitnesses and onlookers.
First report to be submitted within 48 hours
At the same time, the Investigating Officer will inform the Claims Tribunal within 48 hours of the accident by submitting the First Accident Report (FAR) in Form I. However, if the details of the insurance policy are available, the accident will also be reported in Form I to the Nodal Officer of the concerned insurance company of the vehicle concerned.
It said that a copy of Form I would also be provided to the aggrieved person, the State Legal Services Authority and the insurer and if available it would also be uploaded on the website of the State Police.
This work will have to be done in the case of driver and children
Simultaneously, the investigating officer shall provide a blank copy of Form III to the driver of the vehicle(s) involved in the accident and the driver shall submit the relevant information in Form III to the Inquiry Officer and the driver shall be given 30 days for this. Will go
Whereas, if minor children are involved in the accident, the notification states that the Investigating Officer shall provide the victims with a blank Form-VIA, who shall fill in the relevant information/documents required to be given to the Investigating Officer within 60 days of the accident.