An insurer rejected a man’s mediclaim citing mismatched Google Timeline data. The consumer forum ruled in the patient’s favour, calling the reason false and ordering full payment with interest.
Valsad: On July 26, a surprising case from Gujarat has caught national attention after an insurance company rejected a man’s mediclaim based on his Google Timeline location. However, the district consumer forum stepped in and ruled in favour of the insured, saying the company’s reasons were not valid.
Vallabh Matka, a resident of Silvassa, had a health insurance policy from Go Digit General Insurance Limited. In September 2024, he was admitted to a private hospital in Silvassa for four days due to viral pneumonia.
After being discharged, he submitted his medical bills to the insurance company, expecting reimbursement.
But to his shock, the insurance company rejected the claim. The company claimed that Matka’s Google Timeline – which records where a person has been using location tracking on their phone – did not match the location of the hospital where he was treated.
This discrepancy, the company alleged, raised doubts about his claim.
Left with no choice, Matka filed a complaint before the Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum in Valsad, seeking justice.
The forum, which functions like a court and handles disputes between consumers and companies, took up the matter.
During the proceedings, the insurance company maintained its position, stating:
“Upon internal verification of the claim, we noted that there are multiple discrepancies in submitted bills, indoor case papers and we have also noted discrepancies from insured statement to his verified Google Timeline.”
They further claimed:
“As per the customer’s statement, his phone was with him during hospitalisation, but as per Google Timeline, the hospital location was not found in the patient’s Google Map.”
However, the forum was not convinced by this explanation. The presiding officer, B G Dave, studied the hospital records and the patient’s documents carefully and found no reason to deny the claim based on Google’s location data.
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The forum pointed out that the company’s own report acknowledged that the patient was indeed admitted and treated.
In its order passed on July 14, which was recently made public, the forum clearly stated:
“In the report by the insurance company, it has said that the patient was admitted to the hospital and received treatment but it seems that they wanted to reject the claim and are giving false reason that the Google map timeline is not matching.”
With this finding, the forum directed Go Digit General Insurance Limited to pay Rs 48,251 (the mediclaim amount) to Matka within 30 days. It also ordered the company to pay 8 per cent interest on the amount.
The case brings forward a major concern: can tech-based data like Google Timeline override real hospital records when deciding claims? In this case, the answer from the forum was clearly no.
The judgment is a relief for policyholders who may not be tech-savvy or may have location tracking disabled, intentionally or unintentionally.
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