In Brief
A group of motor accident insurance claims involved whether compensation paid to dependents of deceased government employees under state rules for ex-gratia financial assistance should reduce motor accident compensation claims against the insurer. The Supreme Court held that dependents cannot receive duplicate payments on the same head of loss (pay and wages). The amount receivable under the compassionate assistance rules for a specified period must be excluded from motor accident compensation to prevent double benefit. However, other service benefits like family pension, life insurance, and provident fund remain fully claimable, as they do not correlate specifically to accidental death. The appeals partly succeeded on this principle.
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