Kerala Floods: 17,500 Cars Worth Rs 1,000 Crores Get Submerged

At the beginning of this month, the most terrible floods in almost one century hit the coastal state, killing 373 people, making thousands of others homeless. It has been estimated by the state government that the loss has amounted to Rs 20,000 crore with some small businesses being seriously hit.

Kelara, which accounts for 27% of the 245,000 quarterly car sales, is the biggest in the six markets for passenger vehicles in the southern part of the country. Unfortunately, long-time drowned cars are often smashed into pieces because they will have very low price very cheap if resold.

Kerala floods leave thousands of cars submerged

About 17,500 cars all over the state are reported to have been impacted by the floods. A senior executive from the Federation of Automobile Dealer Association commented:

The average ticket price per car sold in Kerala is around Rs 6 lakh

The loss will have the direst consequences for the dealers because they are supposed to pay the cost to the car makers. Nevertheless, car makers can consider helping their dealers to undertake part of the cost.

The insurance claim process will take a huge amount of time due to the large-scale damage. The executive added:

“We are presently helping our dealers with bank procedures and insurance claims. We are requesting insurance companies to at least release 75 percent of the amount”

Many types of vehicles such as scooters, mopeds, motorcycles and agricultural machines have also been heavily impacted by the floods. To prepare for Onam, the biggest automotive festival of the state, 700 dealers have filled their stocks with cars. Consequently, thousands of cars in many showrooms such as Tata Motors, Hyundai and Maruti Suzuki got totally immersed.

The cost of the car damage amounted up to Rs 1,000 crores 

The unfortunate natural disaster coincided with the time when the state was developing as one of the leading auto markets in India. Kerala is starting to recover after the natural tragedy; however, it would take at least 2-3 months for the state to regain its prosperity since the first priority for the buying class now is to repair their livelihoods and their homes.

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