The UAE has been experiencing heavy rainfall and adverse weather conditions recently. While the rain did bring the high temperatures down, it also led to flooding that eventually led to a lot of cars being submerged in the flood. 

If your car has been flood-affected too, make sure to follow our top 5 tips to claim your car insurance without hiccups.

You can also check our top 5 tips for driving safely in the UAE rain.

5 tips to claim flood-affected car insurance in the UAE

1. Do not start your car at any cost

If your car has been submerged in the floodwater, make sure that you do not start it. Starting your flood-hit car will immediately pull water inside the engine, ultimately leading to hydrolocking of the engine.

Not just that a hydrolocked engine needs a complete rebuild, but a lot of insurance companies reject the claims where they find that the flood-hit car was deliberately started or the owner has caused more damage.

2. Obtain a “To Whom It May Concern” certificate

Another thumb rule to claim car insurance in the UAE is to obtain the ‘To Whom It May Concern’ or TWIMC certificate. This certificate is issued by the regional police department, and it is important because it is then used as a base document to further claim the car insurance.

If you live in Dubai, then the TWIMC certificate can be obtained from the Dubai Police mobile app or their website under the “Natural Disasters” tab. The user will need to pay AED 95 to get this certificate in Dubai.

Meanwhile, Sharjah users can directly use the Sharjah Police mobile app to download this certificate. 

For Abu Dhabi users, the Saaed app or website has been designed to report an “unknown accident” to obtain the TWIMC certificate.

3. Verify your car insurance policy

The verification of the car insurance policy is a must-do step. Most car insurance companies do not offer ‘car flooding’ coverage in their third-party insurance, and even in their comprehensive coverage as well.

Make sure you get your policy verified, and look for words like ‘act of god’ or ‘natural calamity’ that can help the insurance company to avoid giving you the claim. Always act proactively and get the ‘car flooding’ add-on in your policy to get the claim in floods.

4. Gather all the evidence for “stationary”

Car insurance companies do not like the vehicle being used, towed, or the claim being lied upon. Therefore, the companies are always sceptical, especially when the case is intense, like car flooding.

The best tip is to gather all the evidence that can prove that your car was parked or stationary when the floods hit. There are numerous ways to do it; some are as follows:

• Capture photos and videos of your car from every angle to showcase that the flooding happened intensely.
• Make sure to capture the ‘waterline’, aka the highest point where the water reached inside and outside of your car.
• Capture the entrance and the parking location if your car was in a basement to showcase that the flooding was inevitable.
• Capture the photos and videos before it gets towed for further claim processing or repairs.

5. Take action within 24-48 hours

The majority of the car insurance companies in the UAE have a short window to report the incident for the claim. This timeline is usually between the first 24-48 hours. Make sure that you report within the permissible timeframe.

Moreover, call your car insurance company to get your vehicle towed by using their RSA or roadside assistance service to the authorised car dealership.

 Do not use any other towing service, as the insurer can later reject your claim by stating that the car was towed and it got damaged further. Avoid any risk that gives your car insurance company to reject your claim.

Cars24 UAE says

A flood-hit car is a sore sight and a nightmare for every car owner. While one can not stop the natural calamities, one can certainly take the right measures so that they get compensated for it through their car insurance company. Use our above-mentioned tips to claim the car insurance for a flood-hit vehicle seamlessly.