New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has sought responses from the Delhi government and the IRDA on a plea by a woman and her two minor children challenging an insurance firm's decision not to pay the entire insured amount on her husband's death after contracting COVID-19.
Justice Rekha Palli issued a notice to the Delhi government, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), the National Insurance Company Ltd and Fortis Hospital at Shalimar Bagh, where the woman's husband died during treatment last year. The court asked the authorities to file their replies within four weeks and listed the matter for further hearing on December 12.
The plea filed by Delhi resident Sunita Goel and her two minor children said her husband held a mediclaim policy, Parivar Mediclaim Policy, of the insurance company and the sum insured, was Rs 5 lakh.
The petition, filed through Anupam Dwivedi, said the woman's husband, Gulshan Kumar Goel, contracted the coronavirus infection in the last week of June 2020 and was hospitalised days later on June 30 at Fortis Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, and he expired on July 7, 2020.
The hospital raised a bill of Rs 5.33 lakh, which was paid by the woman as the insurance company committed a breach of policy terms and escaped from its liabilities of paying the hospital expenses to the extent of the sum insured, the plea claimed, adding that the hospital later refunded Rs 1.95 lakh on grounds that it was charged extra.
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