The Supreme Court of India, in a significant judgment on fire insurance law, has held that the precise cause of a fire is “immaterial” for settling a claim, provided there is no finding of fraud or that the insured was the instigator of the fire.

In a judgment dated October 30, 2025, a bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Manmohan ruled that if a loss by fire is established and fraud is not alleged, the fire “will have to be assumed and presumed… that the fire is accidental” and covered by the policy.

The Court set aside the repudiation of a claim by the National Insurance Co. Ltd., dismissing the insurer’s appeal and allowing the appeal filed by the insured, M/s Orion Conmerx Pvt. Ltd. The Court found the insurer’s rejection of the claim was “untenable in law and suffer

See Full Page