[anandtheleo]

Things are going from bad to worse. The insurance surveyor is still to see the car, everyday he gives a new excuse. No service centre or independent garage is free now, everyone has a flood (pun intended) of cars now. Spares is a big worry, and Hyundai as a manufacturer has not launched any special schemes for repairs or exchange.

Guess I have to be ready to see my car rot away, that too right in my front porch. A horrible way for a 7.5 year old who has been a integral part of our family.

[Thad E Ginathom]

The battery was not disconnected. It was a real case of Abandon House!

[chncar]

Originally Posted by satanic_dude

That said, I have made up my mind and have already accepted a total loss scenario. However, any advise from BHPians on what more is to be done, will be more than welcome!

Peace.

Reagards,
Abhishek.

I know it is easy to dish out advice, and harder to actually make such decisions. However IMHO it would be best to take the total loss and use it as down payment on a new car.

Originally Posted by anandtheleo

Things are going from bad to worse. The insurance surveyor is still to see the car, everyday he gives a new excuse. No service centre or independent garage is free now, everyone has a flood (pun intended) of cars now. Spares is a big worry, and Hyundai as a manufacturer has not launched any special schemes for repairs or exchange.

Guess I have to be ready to see my car rot away, that too right in my front porch. A horrible way for a 7.5 year old who has been a integral part of our family.

Make sure that you record all the conversations and interactions with them. Might come in handy one day in case they accuse you of never informing them.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I'm shocked that, in this country, a write off means, to the insurers, that when and if they sell the remains, then only the customer gets the money. I'd like to see those guys try doing business anywhere else in the world.

I wasn't aware of this - what a bunch of rogues.

My wife and an auto driver friend (who has been our savior through our flood experience) have persuaded me that there is nothing to lose by trying to get the car back on the road ourselves.

How submerged was it? With modern cars, the general rule is this = if the water level was up to the window line / entire bonnet was in water, it's best to replace the car. I guess it was the same with your car.

She will never be the same again. There will be frequent niggles here & there. You are looking at potential safety issues too if the functioning of a critical component is affected.

Even if you are willing to repair it, your insurance company might not agree to it.

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by GTO

She will never be the same again. There will be frequent niggles here & there. You are looking at potential safety issues too if the functioning of a critical component is affected.

Even if you are willing to repair it, your insurance company might not agree to it.

I echo GTO's words. However sentimental one is with the car they own, in situations like these it is better to let go. Repairs should not be on the mind unless it is very clear that the expected damage is not going to be very heavy on the pocket based on self inspection & surveyor report.

The worst part is that the Insurers knowing that they will have to open their purses are trying a last minute effort by misleading the Insured that they will be able to sell the flood hit car and reduce their outgo in a way. These Insurers are the very same who would call innumerably to get the business from you and once they sense something affecting their finances will find a way to get out of the sinking boats. Rats..

The best way to bring these Insurers to work for you is register a complaint with ombudsman and IRDA.

Funny part is not many manufacturers are coming forward pro actively to help those who gave them their income.

[speedmiester]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

recovery of flooded Polo.

Pole 1.6 Highline, 2011 model, purchased Feb 2012

I'm shocked that, in this country, a write off means, to the insurers, that when and if they sell the remains, then only the customer gets the money. I'd like to see those guys try doing business anywhere else in the world.

This is not true. Once the car is declared total loss, the owner has to handover the documents to the insurer and get the IDV of the car in return. It is the insurer's headache to dispose off the car. They cannot delay the payment of IDV to the customer.

Take the matter to the higher ups in the insurance company marking a copy to the IRDA.

[RGK]

Insurance companies have come out with an option of one time settlement. An amount based on the IDV, model of the car and category of the water level (Floor level, Dashboard and Fully submerged) will be dispersed to the Insured. It is up to the owner, to get the car serviced or sell it. This is a good option if one can get a good mechanic from outside and complete the job in quick amount of time.

Generally, if the loss is more than 75% of the IDV (accepted by the Insurance surveyor), then the IDV amount is dispersed to the owner of the car.

Heard that insurance companies are working out to speed up the process.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thanks for moving my sad tale to a thread it can share with others. There must be many of us in the same boat. Our even wishing we had a boat!

In case of misunderstanding, the insurers are not expecting us to sell the car; they will do it. They have, it seems, an. Online outlet for flooded cars. However, I still expected that the system would work as. Speedmeister describes.

We spoke to a mechanic this morning, who is confident of a fix, and confident of being able to source the VW spares. He also told us that we works for insurance companies.

He said that the ECU would certainly be dead, rest he has to investigate.

It is a good point that we should inform the insurers that we are opting for private repair.

Oddly, I was, until yesterday, absolutely unwilling to try such a thing. Somehow, my wife made me think it might be possible..

[angel_007]

Anybody had their new Jazz (2015) repaired or got repair cost estimated ? Quite curious on what lies ahead.

We bought our new Jazz on Diwali and in less than a month, it was fully submerged in flood water. It took around a week for our area to bounce back from the flood havoc and have phone lines and basics working. But by the time, Honda claims they are flooded with cars and can't accept any new car for another 2 weeks :( as they are maxed out.

I haven't even opened my car yet due to fear of loss of insurance. I am not sure how repairable modern cars are when they are fully submerged in water for couple of days.

Another concern is that since the IDV is same as ex-showroom price, I am guessing the insurer would only try to get it repaired rather than paying the full price of the car. Though even in that case, I might still loose around 1.5 lacs in road tax and accessories.

I have called RSA but due to heavy demand they are delaying the service for more than a week. The dealerships in the mean time are not accepting private towed vehicles quoting insufficient space.

Our brand new car is still rotting in the storm water in our parking. Wondering what lies ahead. Any experiences of getting flooded new car repaired would help me in getting my head sorted out.

Is there any chance the car be restored to its initial state ? (if Honda chooses to change the engine or parts that were damaged)

[vigsom]

^^ the longer you keep the car in its current state , the greater the damage.

Even if you get the car done up , she will never be the same .Sell and get another Jazz if you may.

Although from a different genre , let me share this example. I restored my Premier Padmini to a better state than pre-floods in Surat-1998.That was probably possible because the car was a simpleton. It took 4 weeks of single handed effort.

Approx one year later , I had to get the car tinkered and repainted because corrosion had set in in places which were never affected earlier. However , the effort was well worth it.

In the 2006 floods in Surat , not one MPFI car was restored to anywhere near original as garages were flooded with cars. Some cars took 3 months to get back to their owners.I saw issues cropping up in such cars within a year of rectification.

Unless the car is stripped down to bare bones and every component is cleaned or redone , the car will never return to its original state.

[VW2010]

He said that the ECU would certainly be dead, rest he has to investigate.

It is a good point that we should inform the insurers that we are opting for private repair.

Oddly, I was, until yesterday, absolutely unwilling to try such a thing. Somehow, my wife made me think it might be possible..

@Thad,

I perfectly understand the sentimental value. But i do not think its the right decision. To me if the car is wet over the console, you have literally exposed every possible places in the car to the dirty water. Its not even clean water to think other wise.

There is no way one can guarantee that every part is dry and there is no way a private mechanic can guarantee you safety post this.

If VW as a company deems that car is not road fit and does not certify you are taking a huge chance on safety which would have been one of the reason for you to even buy this car.

The car is full of sensors and these sensors work on voltage difference. Sounds simple but at the same time with so much parts underwater its disaster waiting to happen.

Can the private repair shop completely dismantle everything, dry every inch of the wiring in the car, remove the mat,disinfect of all things, and make it back to the same state it was before.

To me disinfecting the car requires the same time submersion in a cleaning alcohol.

@Thad - My personal advice. Go through VW. Ask them if they can certify road safety and provide assurance on cleaning the entire car.

If VW clearly says it cannot be restored, please go with IDV. The loss here is much safer than that car being in the road and failing at the most important time. Not worth it per me.

[pradeepnair]

If VW clearly says it cannot be restored, please go with IDV. The loss here is much safer than that car being in the road and failing at the most important time. Not worth it per me.[/quote]

with VW2010.
I was in dilemma as both my car (OHC-2002) and my wife's car (Zen Estilo-2008) got half submerged in the Chennai flood. Until the vehicle is moved to the ASC (it will take another 10 days as per my discussion with them) and estimated, the cost factor is still not clear. After talks with many people, and going through this discussion forum, i had decided to go for scrapping of vehicle due to the following reasons.
1. The vehicle will not be in the same shape as before.
2. Even if we get it back to working condition, in case it starts giving a problem on the way to office or an important function with family, we are stuck and..... definitely precious 1 to 3 hours will be lost to get it moved to ASC. It will be tougher if we are in a hurry to attend an important meeting.
3. The time spent in the above and the tension we undergo is not worth, I believe.
4. We definitely will have peace of mind with a new one even though we might end up shelling a little more than we thought.

[Aceman82]

Guys,

I need your inputs on towing the car. My Fiat (2013 Linea Dynamic) was fully submerged in the floods and was towed to ramkay fiat. The estimate for repairs comes to around 12 lakhs and hence my insurer (Bharathi Axa) is moving to process the claim as Total loss.

The issue is that since the car is a total loss , the service center wants to tow out my car back to my home (or anywhere else for that matter) due to lack of space. If not they would start charging Rs:500 as parking charges per day. I talked with Surveyor and he is fine with keeping the car in my home garage since due to the amount of cars which are affected it would take at-least 20-30 days for the car to be towed away by the scrap dealers. The claim would be settled only after that.

Thus my query is,

a. Would be okay to tow my car back to my home. This would save some Rs:15,000 -- Rs:20,000 in parking charges vs Rs:1000 for one time towing expense for pulling the car back to my home.

b. Or it is better to just leave the car in garage and pay the parking charges.

Thanks

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by Aceman82

a. Would be okay to tow my car back to my home.

b. Or it is better to just leave the car in garage and pay the parking charges.

Sad to know that your Fiat car has been declared as total loss.

Before you tow the vehicle back to your place, please take in writing
1) From Insurance co, that the car is declared as total loss and the amount + time plan by when the claim would be settled in full.
2) Approval from Insurance co that the car can be kept at your place in view of lack of space at the garage + additional charges levied by garage which can be saved.

You don't want any surprises later from the Insurance co accusing you of self made total loss case.

[Rahul Rao]

TAX REFUND POSSIBLE for all those who are getting their cars declaired as total loss and claiming the IDV from the insurance co.
Procedure to do so.
1. Ask for the scrap order, and vreckers certificate of the car, insurance companies may try to avoid giving them as they may want to sell the car to restorers.
2. Go to the local RTO along with scrap order and certificate. Fill up form 'DT' for tax refund. The form has to be filled within 6 months of scrap order being issued by registering authority.
3. Filling form 'DT' makes you eligible for refund. Refund may take a long time, so you can opt for an credit note, and use it for tax payment for your replacement car.

You not only save money, but also save some unsuspecting buyer from purchasing a restored scrap car and risking themselves and others.

Rahul

http://www.transportindia.org/pdfforms/form_dt.pdf You can download it here.