India, Oct. 31 -- The Supreme Court has said that insurance companies cannot deny compensation to accident victims merely because there was a deviation in the route of the vehicle involved and that it was in violation of the permit.

A bench comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra said the purpose of an insurance policy in the present context is to shield the owner/operator from direct liability when such an unforeseen/unfortunate incident takes place.

"To deny the victim/dependents of the victim compensation simply because the accident took place outside the bounds of the permit and, therefore, is outside the purview of the insurance policy, would be offensive to the sense of justice, for the accident itself is for no...