A.P. lorry owners oppose proposed hike in third-party insurance premium

Members of the Andhra Pradesh Lorry Owners’ Association (APLOA) have raised a strong objection to the proposed hike in third-party insurance premiums by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and have demanded transparency in claims and premium collection data.

In a letter addressed to the Chairman, IRDAI, on Friday (June 13), the APLOA general secretary and vice-president of the South Zone of All-India Motor Transport Congress Y. V. Eswara Rao cited media reports stating that the authority had recommended an increase of 20 to 25% and that the Ministry is said to be considering its implementation. “This has caused serious apprehension among stakeholders,” he said.

He said third-party insurance was a mandatory requirement under the Motor Vehicles Act. “However, under the current economic circumstances the proposed increase will place a substantial financial burden on lakhs of small and medium transport operators,” he said, pointing to the fact that over 85% of vehicle owners in the transport sector were small operators who were already reeling under high maintenance costs, heavy taxes and penalties, ever-increasing toll fees, fuel prices, loan EMIs and rampant corruption in the RTO and Police Departments.

He said with the development of expressways and highways of international standards, the risk of accidents, especially involving trucks which account for 86% of highway traffic, had reduced. The contribution of heavy vehicles to total road accidents was relatively low, he claimed.

Mr. Eswara Rao said since the entry of private insurance companies, the burden of third-party claims had disproportionately shifted onto transport vehicles. “However, there is no transparent public data available regarding these claims,” he said.

The members requested the IRDAI to release the details of third-party claims made over the past five years (FY 2020 to FY 2025) category-wise, total amount of claims paid, categorised by type of vehicle, premium collection data from each insurance company and year-wise and category-wise data on vehicle registrations, accidents and fatalities nationwide.

“We have long demanded that the 12% GST currently levied on third-party insurance premiums be removed, as this insurance serves no direct benefit to the payer but is rather a social obligation,” said Mr. Eswara Rao and urged the IRDAI not to take any decision on premium hikes unilaterally. “It must be done only after consultation with stakeholders, particularly with the members of All-India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC),” he said.

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Published - June 13, 2025 09:14 pm IST