No Insurance – No Petrol: Supreme Court

In a remarkable verdict, the country’s top court has ordered that every vehicle coming onto the road should have valid insurance, particularly Third Party Insurance. The Supreme Court has expressed serious concern over the large number of vehicles on Indian roads operating without valid insurance. In a significant order, the apex court directed the Central government to take steps to curb the issue.

A bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra suggested that petrol pumps should deny fuel to vehicles that do not have valid third-party insurance. The court asked the Centre to consider launching a pilot project to implement this proposal.

Referring to violations of the Motor Vehicles Act, the bench observed that it is alarming that more than half of the vehicles on Indian roads are reportedly uninsured.

The Supreme Court said denying fuel to uninsured vehicles would serve two important purposes. It would help authorities identify vehicles without insurance and also alert vehicle owners about whether their insurance policy is valid or has expired.

Taking note of the high number of road accidents on national highways and the long queues at toll plazas, the court directed the Centre to implement pilot projects on such highway corridors to test the proposal.