- (1.)The appellant (Subba Rao) was the owner of a fishing boat in Andhra Pradesh registered with the respondent insurance company. There is no dispute that the fishing boat capsized on 27th July 1992 while the insurance policy covering the boat was still valid.
(2.)Upon the boat having capsized, Subba Rao made a claim with the insurance company on 3rd August 1992 for a sum of Rs. 6 lakhs. The insurance company appointed M/s Reliance Surveillance as a surveyor. Reliance Surveillance submitted its report on 3rd May 1993 to the effect that the case may be treated as a total loss.
(3.)Apparently dissatisfied with the report, the insurance company appointed another surveyor M/s Coastal Consultants Private Limited. The second surveyor submitted its report on 15th July 1993 but expressed a doubt whether the vessel sank in the Andhra Pradesh coastal waters or the Orissa coastal waters. Subsequently, Coastal Consultants submitted an addendum to its report on 14th February 1994 in consultation with M/s Mohanty Associates. It was then concluded that the fishing boat sank in the Orissa coastal waters. Since the vessel had transgressed the required territorial limits, there was a violation of the policy conditions.