Compensatory provisions for road accident victims

Compensation to victims of road accidents has been a public demand. The Road Transport Rules, 2022 issued pursuant to the Road Transport Act, 2018 provides some clarity in this regard.

Chapter 8 of the 2022 Rules has elaborately discussed the provisions regarding compensation and treatment to road accident victims and also the insurance of motor vehicles.

According to rule 142, a financial assistance fund will be formed for road accident victims under a trustee board. As per rule 143, the owner of a bus, truck, and prime mover truck will pay Tk 1,500 a year for the fund, while the fee is Tk 750 for a minibus, minitruck and pickup.

Moreover, the 2022 Rules has also mentioned how much money the other vehicles' owners must pay to the compensation fund regulated by the trustee board. On the other hand, if any vehicle owner fails to pay the fee on time, he will have to pay a fine of Tk 50 for each month of delay.

Rules 144 and 145 have discussed the trustee board's duties and liabilities. The board will investigate and dispose of any complaint or grievance of the victims or the heirs of the deceased. Again, rules 146-148 have tried to analyse the administrative and procedural functions of the board.

As far as the amount of compensation is concerned, rule 149 has set up the minimum compensation for road accident victims. If someone dies in a road accident, the one-time compensation will be at least Tk 500,000, and victims who lose a limb or suffer other life-changing injuries will receive financial assistance of at least Tk 300,000 each. Further, a victim likely to recover from injuries and return to normal life will get at least Tk 100,000. It is important to note that the trustee board can reduce or increase this amount of compensation with the government's prior approval.

Rule 150 has elaborated the procedure for disbursement of financial assistance, inquiry, application approval, and disbursement period. According to this rule, an application should be made in the prescribed form to the chairman of the trustee board within 30 days of the occurrence of the accident. The chairman of the board will form a probe committee within 10 days of receiving the application, and the committee will submit a report on the damages within 30 days of formation. Then the board will take measures to compensate the victim or the heirs of the deceased within 30 working days of receiving the report.

In case of disagreement with the original order, rule 152 has provided the scope for filing a review, and further, an appeal petition by an aggrieved person against the board's decision.

Next, if the decision of the appellate authority aggrieves any person, rule 153 has conferred upon him another opportunity to apply before an arbitrator, who will resolve the issue within 30 working days.

These legal provisions shall enlighten a road accident victim or the heirs of the deceased to secure payment of compensation.

The Writer is a Student of Law, University of Dhaka.