Automobile experts warn owners of flood-hit vehicles

‘Don’t switch on ignition blindly’

Automobile experts and finance companies have warned owners of submerged vehicles not to blindly switch on the ignition, when the water level recedes, as it could cause irreparable damage to the vehicle.

“The moment you move your vehicle on your own, you take responsibility for it,” said Chief Executive Officer of UB Finance Ransith Karunaratne. “The best thing to do is to call the insurance company and seek their advice.”

Karunaratne said in most cases, this would be treated like an accident. “This means that they need to have photographic evidence and find the documents (if applicable), the insurance company may have links with workshops known to them, so they would advise owners as to where the vehicle should be towed to.”

He said most fully insured vehicles were covered under the ‘Natural Perils and Flood’ policy and owners need to alert the finance and insurance companies.

“It’s not practical for a person without an understanding of how vehicles work to bring their car engines back to life,” said Sajaad Zuhair, owner of Auto Force automobile workshop. “Turning on the ignition will burn components in the car that cannot be easily replaced as they are not wear and tear spares and hence they will need to be brought down.”

Zuhair said if the vehicle is insured, owners must alert the relevant finance or insurance company.

“If the vehicle is not leased and the owners want to fix it on their own, the first thing to do is to remove the battery and in the case of hybrid cars, the main fuse needs to be switched off,”he said. “If vehicle owners take it to a garage or workshop, they must ensure that it is attended to immediately. Not doing so would result in more damage,”he said.

In the case of motorcycles, he said owners should clear the water out and use lubricants to clean the engine parts after which it could be used. “The older the vehicle, the easier it is to fix it, because there will be less electronics and less expenses,”he said.