Vadodara: In an unusual move, an insurance firm retrieved the GPS location data of a policyholder, using his phone details, to prove that he was not admitted to a hospital on the dates he claimed. However, the Vadodara consumer forum rejected the insurer’s contention, observing that the person’s phone could have been carried by someone else.According to case details, Shankar Sharma, a resident of Chhani Road, purchased an insurance policy from Tata AIG General Insurance Company Ltd in 2019. He was admitted to a hospital on Sep 29, 2022, for treatment of enteric fever and was discharged on Oct 3.Sharma filed an insurance claim of Rs 58,953, but the insurer rejected it, stating that the documents submitted by him were bogus. He then approached the Vadodara District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Sep 2023.The insurance firm told the commission that there were discrepancies in the documents submitted by Sharma. It stated that he had been treated as an inpatient for two days starting Sep 29, 2022, and as an outpatient (OPD) for two days from Oct 1. The firm argued that Sharma failed to disclose this and instead claimed reimbursement for four days of hospitalisation.An investigator hired by the insurer presented Sharma’s global positioning system (GPS) history to support its claim that he was not hospitalised on Oct 2.The consumer forum, however, observed that the patient’s mobile phone could have been taken outside the hospital by someone else, and therefore, the GPS data did not conclusively prove fraud. It also noted that the insurer failed to submit a discharge summary to substantiate its claim.“It’s the first time I have come across a case where an insurance firm produced a claimant’s GPS history,” said advocate Bhavna Chauhan, who represented Sharma before the commission.The commission directed the insurance firm to pay Rs 58,953 with 8% interest, along with Rs 3,000 each towards mental agony and legal costs.
