Learner’s licence valid to claim damages, rules Kerala High Court

Kochi: Kerala High Court has held that the learner’s licence is also a valid licence and insurance companies are liable to pay compensation if a motorist holding such a licence is involved in an accident.

A division bench comprising Justice T.R. Rmaachandran Nair and Justice K. Jyothindranath held that absence of a pillion rider with a valid driving licence can be considered as purely technical and not a fundamental breach.

As long as the pillion rider of two-wheeler cannot be termed as a driver covered by the policy, the absence of a pillion rider with a valid licence cannot be treated as a fundamental breach of the policy condition allowing the insurer to avoid the liability.

Oriental Insurance moved the court challenging a single bench order which dismissed their appeal. The case pertains to the death of a pedestrian after a motorcycle knocked him down on May 27, 2007 in Thrissur.

The vehicle was driven by a person having a learner’s licence. After the incident, legal heirs of the deceased alleged negligence on the part of the rider as the cause of the accident and filed a claim petition.

The insurance company took a stand that the rider only had a learner's licence and was not accompanied by a licensed driver.