Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies | Motoring discussion | Back Room Forum

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 11:42

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Lrac

When people are daft enough to deliberately attempt to drive through obviously flooded roads do insurance companies simply say " oh poor you let us pick up the bill for your loss". Just that youtube seems to be full of such i****ic behavior. Apologies if this has been covered before

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 13:15

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - movilogo

If people drive thru fjords and hydrolock their engines, then very likely that it is classed as mechanical breakdown and not covered by insurance.

However, when your car was parked on driveway and then it suddenly flooded, I believe that damage is covered by insurance.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 13:16

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - gordonbennet

In the dim and thankfully distant past en ex decided our car was amphibious and attempted to drive through some 2ft of floodwater, amazingly enough it hydrolocked.

Fully expected to have to find a used engine due to driver stupidity, to my surprise the insurance coughed up.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 15:44

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

In a lot of those videos, it is not stupidity but user error. I say that because in many instances, if the drivers entered the ford slowly and then kept the car at a steady 7-8mph, low gear (if auto use the override) most importantly keeping up with but never overtaking their own bow wave, they would make it through. Unless they are in a BMW of course, they seem to have modelled their air intakes after bottom-feeding fish. Perhaps most importantly of all, if it stalls, DO NOT try to restart it!!! Often the first stall is a warning sign. The attempt to restart is when the major damage is done.

It does frustrate me the typical joe public attitude to anything out of the ordinary, to immediately call anyone who makes an error an i**** and just stand there with a camera, rather than trying to help or advise. Very rarely any sympathy is shown for a driver who likely simply doesn’t realise how flood water should be driven through. Terrible attitude.

Edited by Metropolis. on 12/11/2023 at 15:53

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 17:10

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Adampr

They pay out. If you crash your car through inattention, excess speed etc, they pay out so why wouldn't they pay out for driving into a flood?

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 17:40

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Xileno

There's a road near me that often floods. Even when signs were put up saying "Road Closed" some still risked it and came a cropper - or rather their car did. I suspect in this case the insurance might take a dimmer view. Recently flood barriers have been installed to prevent chancers.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 19:09

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

We really need to add adverse weather condition driving to the driving test, such as how to react to oversteer/understeer, how to drive through flood water (we don’t always get a choice if levels rise quickly). Calling people daft when they speed through flood water (some people genuinely think you’re supposed to put your foot down), or stupid because they lock up their brakes going down a snowy hill wondering why they can’t steer, doesn’t help anyone.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 19:51

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Lrac

I wouldn't think it wise to immerse your cam belt (around bottom pulley) or alternator in flood water.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 19:55

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

You would be surprised at what engines will tolerate, driving with water up to the windscreen is common in the off roading community, although I avoid it as I think water getting everywhere inside the car is no good! Guess it’s ok if you are towing the 4x4 on a trailer to the trail and/or its not your daily.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 20:31

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Lrac

Yep I would be extremely surprised if an unmodified car could tolerate such conditions.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 20:37

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Terry W

That great damage can be done to engine and electrical systems by driving through water deeper than that specified by the manufacturer is beyond doubt.

If a flood is (or appears to be) evidently deeper by reference to kerbs, roadside vegetation or other flooded immobile vehicles, (in my view) the driver is wholly at fault, an id....t, and should not be an insurance beneficiary.

Where there is no depth evidence, there are three possible options - (a) take a risk, (b) walk into the water to ascertain the actual depth, or (c) find an alternative route.

In (a) and (b) the driver should take responsibility for their decision - if damage ensues pick up some or all of the cost - the % may depend on circumstances but a minimum of 50% and in some cases 100%.

I do not want my insurance premiums increased due to the plain stooppidity of others!!

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 21:02

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

I agree about insurance, but there is a big difference between ignorance (most people simply don’t realise how to drive through flood water, and when it is unviable) and stupidity. If they don’t know, they don’t know! Most are not motoring enthusiasts and just drive.

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Sun 12 Nov 2023 22:33

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - bathtub tom

Apart from engine damage, what about transmission? All the. vehicles I've owned have had a breather on the gearbox or back axle. When a warm gearbox/axle enters cold water, if the breather is below the water line, the cooling will result in water being drawn in. Diluting oil with water doesn't improve its lubrication properties!

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 10:21

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - movilogo

Why don't councils put a ROAD CLOSED message when there is chance of flooding engines? Most YouTube videos show there were no such signs. So can't fully blame the drivers.

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 11:57

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Terry W

Of course the drivers can be wholly to blame - just as if they drive into a brick wall and seek to blame the lack of street lamps.

Drive within your limits -whether speed, visibility, road conditions etc. Floods rarely happen instantaneously - a clue is that they are often preceded by very heavy rain.

Expecting councils to put out signs where roads are flooded would be a celebration of the nanny state - an acknowledgement that drivers are incapable of recognising a puddle when it stares them in the face.

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 13:06

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - madf

When I was young - more than half a century ago:-( - I was invincible. Drove through snowdrifts in blizzard conditions with no fear of getting stuck - usually cars behind di get stuck or struggled to actually get through the 20cms of snow left after the snowploughs - drove p hills which were ice rinks - and happily turned back and made another route..Snow on the road? One wheel or the verge will give traction

Mini sliding down road out of control and heading straight for me on the wrong side of the road? Mount the pavement.

Etc etc.

But those were in the days when traffic was MUCH lighter. Today one slide means you are going to hit someone else. And forward visibility is impeded by others..You can be 20cms deep in water and rising without seeing how far the water stretches.

So I just don't take the risks and go the long and safer way..Or don't go

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Tue 14 Nov 2023 12:06

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Gibbo_Wirral

Why don't councils put a ROAD CLOSED message when there is chance of flooding engines? Most YouTube videos show there were no such signs. So can't fully blame the drivers.

They do - it gets ignored. When this happened near me and the TV crews were reporting at the location it showed cars ignoring the signs and driving on.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-66640310

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 21:44

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

Apart from engine damage, what about transmission? All the. vehicles I've owned have had a breather on the gearbox or back axle. When a warm gearbox/axle enters cold water, if the breather is below the water line, the cooling will result in water being drawn in. Diluting oil with water doesn't improve its lubrication properties!

Good point, I forgot about that. I have been reminded by others of it in the past and I understand the theory, but in practice I can't say I have ever found axle or gearbox oil to have any signs of water in them (maybe the green oval does things differently). But it would still be worthwhile to check as soon as possible after wading, even with something to dip into the fill hole to test for a milky oil.

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 13:10

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - alan1302

I agree about insurance, but there is a big difference between ignorance (most people simply don’t realise how to drive through flood water, and when it is unviable) and stupidity. If they don’t know, they don’t know! Most are not motoring enthusiasts and just drive.

Could you not argue that doing something without knowing how to do it 'stupid'? If you don't know how to drive through floods then find out before doing it rather than run the risk of a very expensive issue.

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 13:30

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Surreydriver

Encountered water deep enough to be careful on a well (to me) known road. Driver in front of me took care to go slowly through the middle (shallowest part) of the road. As I was about to do the same, two cars coming from the opposite direction enter the water at speed and literally swamp my car. The second was a police car! No blues and twos. Just sheers b***** ignorance.

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Mon 13 Nov 2023 19:13

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Metropolis.

Not necessarily.

As Donald Rumsfeld put it, “.. because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don't know we don't know..”

If in the last category then it is not stupid but just ignorant.

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Tue 14 Nov 2023 12:45

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Terry W

A puddle is not an unknown unknown. It is a blindingly obvious and anomalous feature on the tarmac.

Driving into it is both ignorant and stupid.

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Wed 15 Nov 2023 10:37

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Brit_in_Germany

Driving into it is both ignorant and stupid.

So your advice is not to drive if there are puddles on the road?

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Wed 15 Nov 2023 12:17

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Andrew-T

Driving into it is both ignorant and stupid.

So your advice is not to drive if there are puddles on the road?

No, just if that puddle is the full width of the road !! And perhaps when there is a depth gauge beside it !

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Wed 15 Nov 2023 16:05

Any - Flooded roads and insurance companies - Terry W

Driving into it is both ignorant and stupid.

So your advice is not to drive if there are puddles on the road?

Only if there is no reference to give a clue as to depth - eg: other vehicles traversing, level of kerb if visible, other roadside features (fence, trees, plants etc)

Driving into water of uncertain depth is risky - at the very least the driver should take full responsibility for the consequences. They have no one else to blame - they are either ignorant, stupid or both!

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