MV Act | Light Motor Vehicles License Sufficient For Driving Transport Vehicles Below 7500 Kgs, No Separate License Needed: Rajasthan High Court

The Rajasthan High Court has affirmed that a transport vehicle weighing less than 7500 Kgs does not need a separate driving license other than the one issued under Section 10(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (“the Act”) for driving a Light Motor Vehicle (“LMV”).

“That there is no requirement to obtain a separate endorsement to drive transport vehicle, and if a driver is holding licence to drive light motor vehicle, he can drive a transport vehicle of such class without endorsement to that effect…”

The bench of Justice Nupur Bhati was hearing an appeal filed by the United India Insurance Company Limited (“Insurance Co.”) against the judgment of the Commissioner, Workmen Compensation wherein the claim petition filed by the respondents was accepted and the Insurance Co. was directed to pay an amount to them.

It was the case of the counsel for the Insurance Co. that the driver who was driving the insured vehicle in question, at the time of the accident, was bearing a driving license to drive LMVs only and the insured vehicle was a transport vehicle. Hence, terming it to be a breach of conditions of the insurance policy, the Insurance Co. filed an appeal against the decision of the Commissioner alleging that the driver did not have a valid and effective license at the time of the accident.

Rejecting this argument of the counsel for the Insurance Co., the Court referred to the Supreme Court case of Mukund Dewangan v Oriental Insurance Company Limited, which held the following,

“A transport vehicle and omnibus, the gross vehicle weight of either of which does not exceed 7500 kg. would be a light motor vehicle and also motor car or tractor or a road roller, 'unladen weight' of which does not exceed 7500 kg. and holder of a driving licence to drive class of “light motor vehicle” as provided in section 10(2)(d) is competent to drive a transport vehicle or omnibus, the gross vehicle weight of which does not exceed 7500 kg…no separate endorsement on the licence is required to drive a transport vehicle of light motor vehicle class as enumerated above.”

Based on the above, the Court held that if the driver had a valid license for driving an LMV, no separate license was required for driving a transport vehicle weighing below 7500 Kg.

Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed.

Title: United India Insurance Co. Ltd. v Smt. Madni Bai & Ors.

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Raj) 218

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