Kathmandu. There is still confusion among the general public about how to claim life insurance if a person goes missing due to landslide, flood, inundation, road accident, plane accident or other disaster but the body is not found.
According to the prevailing law, disappearance and presumption of death are not the same thing. Section 40 of the Civil Code, 2074 states that in normal circumstances, if a person has been missing for 12 consecutive years without notice or if the person who has received information about him has not received any information for 12 years, such a person will be deemed to have died until there is evidence of his or her being alive. However, if there is a strong basis and evidence of death due to a disaster or accident, then there may not be a need to wait for 12 years.
According to Clause 40 (1) of the Civil Code, 2074 BS, a person who has completed 12 years of disappearance, five years after the disappearance of the person, four years after the end of the war in the army deployed in the war site, and a person travelling in a crashed aircraft, ship or other vehicle if they have not come into contact for three years.
Similarly, Section 40 (2) also has a special provision that if there is no evidence that any of the other persons involved in the accident is alive, then the concerned person shall be deemed to have died at the same time.
If there is strong evidence that a person died in a landslide, flood or inundation, avalanche, or a major natural disaster but has not been found, the family may not have to wait 12 years.
Section 40 sub-section (4) of the Civil Code, 2017 provides that a person concerned can file an application in the court seeking a judicial declaration regarding the disappearance of a person without notice or the accident or the death of a person. The court may make a judicial declaration of death after taking into account the necessary evidence, including the facts, reasons, and grounds mentioned in the petition.
The Insurance Directive of the Insurer, 2080 issued by the Nepal Insurance Authority does not mention any provision regarding the process of insurance claim in the event of a disaster or catastrophe. There is no provision in the Insurance Regulations and the Insurer’s Claim Payment Directive, 2081.
Apart from this, in the event of a disaster, if the government has declared a particular incident as a disaster, then some legal provisions can be relaxed in the case of human and material damage caused during that period. For example, the nearest police station makes a recommendation that a person is missing from a certain date and has not been found due to a certain date. On the basis of such a recommendation and the application of the family members, the insured party can claim compensation if the local government issues a death certificate stating that the missing person is dead.
If the actual condition of the people missing due to floods is not ascertained, the following provisions can be included in declaring them dead and on the basis of that, the insurance claim payment process can be easily and legally recognized:
- Local and District Level Judicial Committee: If the condition of the disappeared persons is not ascertained after the search and study, the local judicial committee headed by the vice-chairperson or deputy mayor of the Rural Municipality or Municipality shall declare them dead on the basis of investigation and recommendation of the local judicial committee or district level judicial committee.
- Court Certification: The concerned court shall issue an order by legally certifying the matter on the basis of the recommendation made by the local or district level judicial committee.
- Legal Basis for Insurance TAG_CLOSE_span_21Claim Payment: Life and non-life insurance companies should accept the certification order issued by the court as the official legal evidence and make arrangements to pay the insurance claim to the heirs of the deceased without hassle.
