A wrecked car sticking out of mud and silt in Esk Valley. Photo / Paul Taylor
A wrecked car sticking out of mud and silt in Esk Valley. Photo / Paul Taylor
Insurance companies say the need for tow truck drivers in Hawke’s Bay is “unprecedented” as claims for flood-damaged vehicles rise.
An exhausted tow truck driver told Hawke’s Bay Today he was being inundated with requests to salvage thousands of cars swamped by Cyclone Gabrielle floodwaters, many of which he was unable to get to.
The longer a stricken car is left, the more of an environmental hazard it can become due to fluid leakage.
The frustration was leading, in some cases, to stress-related abuse of tow truck operators, he said.
“We’re getting stopped by people saying ‘why can’t you do it today?’ It doesn’t work like that, and people don’t understand that we have a list we have to follow.
“Sometimes we get to a job that we’ve been given by our dispatcher that we can’t even get to because of the road conditions. With the ones we can get to, we are doing the absolute best we can.”
A ute outside Hukarere Girls' College. Photo / Warren Buckland
The towie said like many other crucial workers and responders in the region, they were all “fatigued” but were doing as much as they could.
“Just ring your insurance company before you start jumping,” he said.
AA Insurance general operations manager Simon Hobbs said the company had received 334 motor claims relating to Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawke’s Bay.
“We have either settled - or made an offer to settle - 75 per cent of those motor vehicle claims.”
Hobbs said it was focused on solving customers’ motor vehicle claims as quickly as possible.
“We acknowledge the unprecedented need for tow trucks in Hawke’s Bay and the challenging situations our suppliers are contending with.
“The volume of work and the conditions are not easy, and we appreciate the continued support of our tow truck suppliers.
“It is challenging to recover vehicles which are inaccessible due to silt, and AA Insurance is working with Civil Defence and local companies who specialise in earth-moving machinery to remove the silt and gain access to these vehicles.”
Storage for flood-damaged vehicles was also at a premium in Hawke’s Bay, because it could take some time to assess them.
IAG executive general manager Wayne Tippet said AMI, State and NZI were prioritising urgent claims for those who were in vulnerable positions, and had received 356 claims related to vehicles in Hawke’s Bay as a result of the floods.
“We understand this is a stressful time for our customers, and also for our suppliers who are working hard to help us get our customers back on their feet as soon as possible.”
Tippet said many claims had already been assessed and settled based on photos.
“This may mean some vehicles aren’t towed as part of the salvage process, as we’ve been able to settle the claim and pay our customer without needing to tow the car.
“We are in daily contact with our towing company partners and are working closely together to ensure we are managing the workload and customer expectations.”
