Long-tariff rates have been generally treated as confidential information which even the clients, going in for insurance cover, are not aware about. Clients generally get an idea of the tariffs only when they approach the insurance companies for quotations on projects. According to TAC officials, the entire tariffs manual has been compressed and presented in a manner which is customer friendly.

Corporates and other clients can now make assessments on their own as to what premium they can expect to pay on their insurance covers, without having to go in for a time consuming evaluation on it.

"We are a service oriented organisation and information should be freely disseminated," TAC secretary AR Dudani told The Financial Express. Officials said they were also expecting a feedback from overseas insurance companies on the ratings. However, industry sources said this move could attract the ire of the "consultants" - intermediaries operating who work out premiums for prospective clients based on tariff ratings. "With such information coming into the public domain, their work will be made redundant" TAC officials said.The website also includes the draft of the recently rationalised fire tariff ratings.

Meanwhile, TAC has asked General Insurance Corporation (GIC) to furnish it with statistics on third party motor claims. "If we find a case for hiking the premiums then we will work on it, otherwise we will keep it as it is," TAC officials said. So far GIC has not obliged it with the requisite data.The decision to hike third party motor premium has for long been a contentious issue - while the insurance companies have been demanding a hike (most of the losses suffered by insurance companies stem from third party motor claims), the transport industry went on a strike to stop an imminent increase last year. Industry sources said GIC was bending over backwards to please the powerful transporters lobbyul and dragging its feet over any initiative in the hike of motor premium rates.