Chennai, Apr 1 (IANS): The striking truck owners will decide on Monday whether or not to continue their strike after a meeting with the Chairman of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), said an official of All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC).

"One of the reasons for going on strike is the drastic 50 per cent increase in the third party premium charged for trucks by the insurers. We have a meeting with the IRDAI Chairman on Monday in Hyderabad," P.V. Subramani, Vice President, AIMTC-South Zone told IANS on Saturday.

Subramani is also the Chairman and Managing Director of Cargo Wings Logistics Ltd.

The third party premium for automobiles is decided by IRDAI while all other premium rates are decided by the insurers-private and government owned.

When pointed out the insurer's argument about rising the third party accident claims and the compensation paid, Subramani said: "Let them show their numbers in a transparent manner.

"If the business is loss making why is that the insurers are offering discounts on premium that ranges up to 70 per cent in the case of comprehensive policies and up to two per cent in the case third party policies," Subramani said.

He said fleet owners normally go only for third party policies and take care of the damages to vehicles on their own.

Subramani said only the insurance premium is going up whereas the prices of tyres and other components remain stable.

According to him, around 650,000 trucks are off the roads in the Southern states and the business loss per day is around Rs four crore.