Payment of compensation in case of death or grevious hurt, etc
Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 deals with payment of compensation in case of death or grevious hurt, etc. [Payment of compensation in case of death or grevious hurt, etc. The Act came into force on 01 Jul 1989.
1[Payment of compensation in case of death or grevious hurt, etc. -- (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force or instrument having the force of law, the owner of the motor vehicle or the authorised insurer shall be liable to pay in the case of death or grievous hurt due to any accident arising out of the use of motor vehicle, a compensation, of a sum of five lakh rupees in case of death or of two and a half lakh rupees in case of grievous hurt to the legal heirs or the victim, as the case may be.
(2) In any claim for compensation under sub-section (1), the claimant shall not be required to plead or establish that the death or grievous hurt in respect of which the claim has been made was due to any wrongful act or neglect or default of the owner of the vehicle or of the vehicle concerned or of any other person.
(3) Where, in respect of death or grievous hurt due to an accident arising out of the use of motor vehicle, compensation has been paid under any other law for the time being in force, such amount of compensation shall be reduced from the amount of compensation payable under this section.]
Section 164, The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Act 59 of 1988).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 6
- s. 150 Duty of insurers to satisfy judgments and awards against persons insured in respect of third party risks
- s. 153 Settlement between insurers and insured persons
- s. 164C Power of Central Government to make rules
- s. 165 Claims Tribunals
- s. 166 Application for compensation
- s. 212 Publication, commencement and laying of rules and notifications
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
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Dev S/o Gopinath Pawar vs Ibrahim S/o Gonisab Mujawar
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
In a petition under Section 164 of the IMV Act, the aspect of negligence has no role to play; only the involvement of the vehicle in the accident must be proved.
On this section: Applied as a provision for fixed compensation (no-fault liability) for grievous hurt.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… petitioner before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Attingal (hereinafter referred to as 'the MACT, Attingal) has not been numbered on the ground that there is delay of 151 days in filing the claim petition. 2. The learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that since the claim petition was filed under Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act 1988') there is no period of limitation for filing an application and this matter is covered by the judgment of this court in Vijayan v. Manoj; 2023 KLT OnLine 1714 where in paragraph 5 it was held as follows:- > "5. Prior to the amendment …
Made under this section, and citing it
1 instrument states that it was made under this provision — the power to make it comes from here, so a change to any of them changes what this section requires in practice. Newest first.
Questions about Section 164
What have the courts held on Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act?
Dev S/o Gopinath Pawar vs Ibrahim S/o Gonisab Mujawar (31 Jul 2025) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Applied as a provision for fixed compensation (no-fault liability) for grievous hurt.
How do I find court cases under Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: MV Act 164, section 164 MV Act, section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Dev S/o Gopinath Pawar vs Ibrahim S/o Gonisab Mujawar (31 Jul 2025).
What should I read with Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act, and has it changed?
6 other provisions in this corpus refer back to it. The rules and notifications made under it are where it actually bites, and there is one: most recently 18th amendment GSr 690(E) 6 November 2020 (2020).
When did Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act come into force?
Section 164 of the Motor Vehicles Act, commonly called no fault liability, and cited as MV Act 164, came into force on 01 Jul 1989, having been enacted on 14 Oct 1988. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions1948 words
- 88. Validation of permits for use outside region in which granted1560 words
- 51. Special provisions regarding motor vehicle subject to hire-purchase agreement, etc1199 words
- 150. Duty of insurers to satisfy judgments and awards against persons insured in respect of third party risks1102 words
- 96. Power of State Government to make rules for the purposes of this Chapter995 words
- 72. Grant of stage carriage permits868 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 15 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.