If a homemaker dies in a road accident, her family can now claim a separate Rs 30,000 per month head called Loss of Domestic Care, on top of loss of dependency, consortium, funeral and estate, after the Supreme Court ruling in Shishu Pal v. Surjeet (2026 INSC 634) decided on 11 June 2026.
The Shishu Pal story: Rs 2.42 lakh became Rs 62.77 lakh
A homemaker died on 25 November 2001 in a road accident between Sirsa and Fatehabad. In December 2003 the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Sirsa awarded her family just Rs 2,42,000, valuing her household work at almost nothing because she had no salary slip.
The appeal then sat in the Punjab and Haryana High Court for nearly 20 years. The case file was even destroyed in a 2011 fire. The High Court finally enhanced the award to about Rs 8.43 lakh.
On 11 June 2026 the Supreme Court enhanced the total compensation to Rs 62,77,900. It treated her notional income as Rs 30,000 per month (Rs 3,60,000 a year), added 40 percent for future prospects, applied a multiplier of 16, deducted one fourth for personal expenses, and then added consortium, estate and funeral heads on top.
The lesson: a homemaker is not a zero income person. Her unpaid work has a money value the court will now recognise.
When a homemaker dies in a motor accident, her legal heirs can file a claim under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 before the MACT for the area. After Shishu Pal v. Surjeet (2026 INSC 634), the compensation is built on these heads:
The Rs 30,000 figure is a composite sum for three things together: her contribution to running the household, the loss of maternal support for the children, and the loss of spousal or parental support. It applies where all three apply, and is to be revised upward by 10 percent, cumulatively, every three years.
This is the full block of heads a family can claim now. Read it as the menu for any homemaker death claim filed after June 2026.
| Head | What it covers | Amount or basis |
|---|---|---|
| Loss of Domestic Care | Money value of unpaid housework, childcare and caregiving. Composite of three sub heads: household contribution, loss of maternal support for children, loss of spousal or parental support. Payable when all three apply. For a homemaker with no proven income this same Rs 30,000 is used as her notional monthly income for dependency, so it is not a second separate amount on top. | Rs 30,000 per month, revised up by 10 percent cumulatively every three years |
| Loss of dependency | Future support the family loses. Computed as income, plus future prospects, multiplied by the age based multiplier, minus a personal expenses deduction. For a no income homemaker the income input is the Rs 30,000 per month above. | Income x multiplier method (Pranay Sethi) |
| Loss of consortium | Loss of company, care and guidance for spouse and children | Per Pranay Sethi, revised 10 percent every three years |
| Loss of estate | Notional value added to the deceased estate | Per Pranay Sethi, revised 10 percent every three years |
| Funeral expenses | Cost of last rites | Per Pranay Sethi, revised 10 percent every three years |
Two situations to keep clear:
For a plain walkthrough of how the multiplier and future prospects actually work, see the multiplier method guide.
It helps to see the arithmetic from the judgment itself, because it shows how much the new head changes the outcome:
Compare that with the Rs 2,42,000 the Tribunal first awarded. The gap is almost entirely the value the court now puts on a homemaker's work.
If you have lost a homemaker family member in a road accident, here is the practical path.
For the detailed filing format, see our guide on how to file a MACT petition. You can also use the AI RTI Drafter to draft an RTI to the police for the accident records that your claim needs.
For decades, Tribunals computed a homemaker's worth on a low, conservative notional income, leaving families badly short. The Supreme Court called this out, said a homemaker should be recognised as a Nation Builder, and used the Hindi word grihaswamini, the lady of the house, to underline her standing. The bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh also told High Courts to clear long pending motor accident appeals and to prefer a summary procedure under Section 169 of the Act so that money reaches families faster.
The same accident law protects people who survive with grave injuries. If a victim loses a limb, see our note on prosthetic limb accident compensation.
For a full toolkit on using RTI and the courts to chase your own entitlements, read The RTI Playbook.
No. The judgment recognises that a man can also be a homemaker. The head Loss of Domestic Care attaches to the role of running the household and caregiving, not to gender. The Rs 30,000 per month value applies to whoever did that unpaid work.
It is a monthly value. Where the homemaker had no proven income, Rs 30,000 per month is treated as her notional monthly income and then run through the multiplier method, which is why it has such a large effect on the final award.
Yes. The Supreme Court directed that the amount be revised upward by 10 percent, cumulatively, every three years, so claims filed in later years should use the higher revised figure.
Then the Loss of Domestic Care head is added on top of her proven monthly income. You must file salary slips or income tax returns to prove that income, and the domestic care amount comes in addition, not instead.
You file under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT). You can choose the Tribunal where the accident happened, where you as the claimant live, or where the vehicle owner or insurer is located.
No. The Supreme Court directed that official date of birth proof must be filed and expressly excluded the Aadhaar card for proving date of birth. Use a birth certificate, a school leaving certificate or a passport instead.
You can claim loss of dependency, loss of consortium, loss of estate and funeral expenses, which are the standard heads laid down in National Insurance Co. v. Pranay Sethi (2017) 16 SCC 680, plus interest from the date of the petition.
It varies. In Shishu Pal the matter ran for about 25 years. To stop such delays the Supreme Court has now told High Courts to list the oldest appeals first and to use the faster summary procedure under Section 169 wherever possible.
Written for general guidance by the RTI Wiki editorial desk. For your own claim, consult a motor accident lawyer. Educational helper persona: Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak.