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Section 174: Recovery of money from insurer as arrear of land revenue

Motor Vehicles Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1988
Section 173 All 217 Sections of Motor Vehicles Act Section 175

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 174

Section 174 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 provides summary execution machinery, empowering the Claims Tribunal to issue recovery certificates to the District Collector to recover awarded sums as arrears of land revenue.

  • Core Legal Standard: Section 174 establishes an effective enforcement mechanism ensuring that MACT awards do not remain paper decrees.
  • Statutory Relief & Application: Where any amount is due from any person (including an owner, driver, or insurance company) under an award, the Claims Tribunal may, on an application made to it by the person entitled, issue a recovery certificate for the amount to the District Collector.

Upon receipt of the certificate, the Collector proceeds to recover the sum in the same manner as an arrear of land revenue under state revenue recovery laws, utilizing coercive powers such as attachment and public auction of movable and immovable property, freezing bank accounts, and civil imprisonment of defaulting judgment debtors.

Key Landmark Precedents:
  • State of Haryana v. Darshana Devi (1979) 2 SCC 236: Emphasized that execution of compensation awards under transport law must be rapid and effective; socio-economic legislation must not allow recalcitrant judgment debtors to frustrate judicial awards.
  • New India Assurance Co. Ltd. v. Mona (2005) 12 SCC 338: Affirmed that where an insurer has been granted pay-and-recover rights against the insured owner, the recovery certificate under Section 174 can be directly executed against the owner's assets without filing a separate civil suit.
Legal Commentary:

Section 174 eliminates the cumbersome requirement of filing lengthy execution petitions under Order XXI of the Code of Civil Procedure. Upon default of payment within thirty days of the award, claimants can apply for a Section 174 certificate. The District Collector's revenue machinery ensures that defaulting owners cannot conceal assets, ensuring effective financial satisfaction of compensation awards.

Section 173 All 217 Sections of Motor Vehicles Act Section 175