Wednesday, August 05, 2026
By Kamal Swami
Supreme Court Proposes No Insurance, No Fuel
The Supreme Court has instructed the Central Government along with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to frame a pilot scheme that can make sure that those vehicles which are not insured do not get their tanks filled with fuel at the petrol pumps. According to the observations made by the Bench consisting of Justices Sanjay Karol and Prashant Kumar Mishra, there are many vehicles that run on the Indian roads without any third party insurance when it is required to be done according to the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act. With reference to the Standing Committee on Finance Report (2024-25), it was pointed out by the Supreme Court that more than 56% vehicles running on Indian roads are not insured.
Fuel Linked to Insurance Status
Under the proposed scheme, the Court has suggested that IRDAI along with MoRTH must develop a pilot project where the insurance of a particular vehicle would be linked to its refueling at petrol stations. Under this plan, any vehicle which does not have third-party insurance will be refused fuel by the participating petrol pumps until their insurance gets renewed.
Such a system is believed to fulfill two important objectives. The first objective is identification of uninsured and possibly unregistered vehicles. And the second one is compliance of insurance rules by the owners of vehicles.
Technological Solutions for Enforcement
Finally, the Supreme Court has also advised the use of technology-enabled enforcement systems. For instance, ANPR cameras can be linked with insurance databases to find out uninsured vehicles automatically. Moreover, handheld devices should be installed in the traffic law enforcement authorities to check the status of insurance and issue e-challans.
Mandatory Duration of Insurance for New Cars
On another note, the Court also mandated an increased period of compulsory third-party insurance for new cars. New cars will have to maintain their insurance for four years from purchase, whereas the duration of insurance for newly bought two-wheelers has been raised to six years.
Creation of Safer Roads
Additionally, the Court has recommended pilot projects to make high tech tolls and traffic collection through automatic vehicle detection systems which would help in making traffic regulation easier. This will ultimately ensure that accident victims are compensated properly and there are no uninsured vehicles on Indian roads.
