Supreme Court orders integration of road accident portals so that accident reports, vehicle and insurance records and earlier claim histories can be cross-checked, in a bid to stop fraudulent motor accident claims. The Court also issued show-cause notices to heads of insurers who did not appear in person.
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New Delhi: The Supreme Court has directed the Union, the States and the Union Territories to integrate the VAHAN, SARATHI, electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR) and Insurance Information Bureau (IIB) portals within four weeks, so that accident reports, vehicle and insurance records and previous claim histories can be shared across systems to curb fake motor accident claims, while also issuing show-cause notices to chiefs of several insurers for non-appearance [The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Tuni Pati and Others].
A Bench of Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice Prasanna B. Varale passed the order in SLP (C) No. 5582 of 2023 on September 23, 2026. The Court has asked Senior Advocate Ranjit Kumar to assist it on the principal issue.
The directions on the portals
The Court directed that VAHAN (vehicle records), SARATHI (driving licence records), eDAR and the IIB be interlinked within four weeks. The integration is meant to let accident reports, vehicle and insurance details and prior claim histories be shared, and it is to extend to hit-and-run cases and the PM-RAHAT Scheme so that early accident alerts can reach insurers directly. Noting that only some States had uploaded data to eDAR, the Court directed all States to upload the relevant accident data without delay.
States that have not yet constituted Special Investigation Teams to examine fraudulent claims were directed to do so within four weeks, and a compliance report with an affidavit answering the Court’s earlier queries is to be placed on record.
Show-cause notices to insurers
The Court took up the failure of several insurers’ managing directors and chief executives to appear in person as directed on May 26, 2026. Show-cause notices in contempt were issued to the heads of insurers including Navi General Insurance, New India Assurance, GIC Re, Credit Access Life Insurance and Zuno General Insurance. The Court rejected the apology tendered on behalf of Navi General Insurance, describing it as “only cosmetic and not heartfelt”, and directed its managing director and chief executive to file a personal affidavit showing cause.
The chief executive of Zuno General Insurance had appeared by video link instead of in person; the Court took strong exception but allowed a fresh affidavit and directed personal appearance at the next hearing. Narayana Health and Niva Bupa were directed to file separate affidavits.
In the case of some other insurers, among them Liberty General, Zurich Kotak, Kiwi, Kotak Mahindra Life, Aditya Birla Health and Valueattics Reinsurance, the Court closed the proceedings, generally because the non-appearance was found to be bona fide or inadvertent. The notices are show-cause notices only; no finding of contempt has been recorded against any insurer.
Why the order matters
Fraudulent and duplicate claims before Motor Accident Claims Tribunals are hard to detect when police, transport, licensing and insurance records sit in separate databases. By ordering these systems to be interlinked and by requiring States to feed accident data into eDAR, the Court is attempting to build a single verifiable trail from the accident to the claim. The insistence on personal appearance of insurer chiefs signals that compliance with the Court’s directions is expected at the top of the companies concerned.
Case Title: The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Tuni Pati and Others [SLP (C) No. 5582 of 2023]
Bench: Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice Prasanna B. Varale, Supreme Court of India
Date of Order: September 23, 2026
Next hearing: November 27, 2026, 2 PM