Some displeased relatives of victims of the ill fated Dana Air plane that crashed in Lagos on June 3, 2012 have accused the carrier’s insurers of refusing to settle the insurance claims appropriately.
The concerned relatives, who spoke through their solicitors during a press conference in Lagos on Thursday, claimed that while some of them had been given the initial 30 per cent of the total claims, others had either been underpaid or not settled at all.
However, Prestige Assurance Plc, the lead underwriter of the aircraft, denied the allegations, claiming that it was following due process in settling all the claims brought before it.
The Managing Partner, M. O. Awoyemi and Co, a firm of legal practitioners and consultants, Mr. Bunmi Awoyemi, who represents 40 of the victims in a mass tort law suit in the United States, said only 13 families of his clients had been paid $30,000 each, while the others had yet to be paid.
He said, four of the 27 victims, whose families had not been paid, died on the ground when the plane crashed into their buildings of residence.
According to Awoyemi, Section 48(3) of the Civil Aviation Act states, “In any case of aircraft accident resulting in death or injury of passengers, the carrier shall make advance payment of at least $30,000 within 30 days from the date of such accident to the natural person or such persons who are entitled to claim compensation in order to meet the immediate economic needs of such persons, and such advance payment shall not constitute recognition of liabilities and may be offset against any amounts subsequently paid as damages by the carrier.”
In a letter to the Chairman, Senate Committee on Aviation, the firm sought the committee’s intervention by putting pressure on the insurers to pay the claims according to the stated amount.
“We have tried several times and in vain through written letters and oral communication to get the airline and its insurers’ solicitors, particularly the law firm of Yomi Oshikoya and Co, who are responsible for giving the cheques to the families of the victims, to pay our clients their money as stipulated in the Act, but all our efforts have not produced the desired result,” Awoyemi said.
The solicitor also alleged that while four of his clients were paid $15,000 each instead of $30,000, the airline fraudulently listed two other members as having been settled the initial 30 per cent when they were not paid anything.
However, the Managing Director, Prestige Assurance, Mr. Anand Mittal, said whenever investigations and documentation were completed on the claims process, the findings would be passed to the firm and cheques issued immediately to claimants.
He said, “We don’t have any direct dealings with the relatives; they are purely legal issues; so, whatever documentations are complete, Yomi Oshikoya accepts them, and send to us to prepare for payment; based on that we issue our cheque and pass it down to Yomi Oshikoya and give the firm the discharge letter.
“We pay $9,000 and London pays $21,000. That is how it is done because these are purely legal issues.”
According to him, in aviation claims, when it comes to the liability aspect, the insurance company does not deal directly with the claimants because such liabilities have to be done by lawyers.
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Dana crash: Controversy surrounds insurance claims settlement