How are road accident claims decided? | Explained

India has the world’s largest road network, spanning about 6.7 million kilometres, larger than the U.S.’s 6.59 million km and China’s 5.49 million km, but it also records the world’s highest road fatalities. Over-speeding and reckless driving, poor road upkeep, inadequate driver training, and weak emergency and trauma care continue to make road crashes a severe public-safety crisis.

According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ Road Accidents in India 2024 report, 4,87,707 road accidents in 2024 claimed 1,77,175 lives (about 485 deaths a day or 20 an hour) and injured 4,71,441 people. With road crashes estimated to cost around 3.14% of India’s GDP, their impact extends beyond lost economic productivity, falling most heavily on dependants of those killed or permanently disabled. Yet, for many claimants, courts’ quantification and compensation awards remain difficult to navigate.