Fire and Flood Restoration

Should your car be caught in a flood or suffer a minor fire, it is sometimes possible to clean up the damage. However, this is something that needs to be treated very seriously - the first thing to take into consideration, especially with flood damaged vehicles, is the time factor. The water that floods cars is rarely clean and can be contaminated. This can be a health hazard to begin with (we are fully trained and equipped for this) but if left for even short periods of time it will begin to stink, and will eventually rot and corrode your car's interior causing permanent and irreparable damage. So it's important to understand that you need to get things moving along as quickly as possible.

The next thing to take into consideration is any damage to the engine and other mechanical systems. If your car is effected by either flood or fire, you should immediately contact your insurance company to have them assess the car. Do not attempt to start your car until it has been checked out by an expert. Water in the electrical systems can cause short circuits which can cause damage to electrical systems, the same can happen with fire damaged electrics. You will probably not want to drive your car anyway, and we can arrange a transporter even if your car is mechanically sound.

The car pictured here was saved but it was something the insurance company had to weigh up the costing with. You can see ho we treated this car from start to finish here.

You may be looking at these photos and thinking that you will want a replacement car out of your insurance company. But this kind of work can be done properly, if an insurance company has this done, it will be done right. Many of the parts will be replaced. It is well worth working with your insurance company over having your car repaired rather than demanding a replacement vehicle. The smaller your claim, the less it will effect your new policy price.

The photo above shows a car damaged by a small electrical fire, to see how we dealt with this, read the full article here.

If you have a fire or flooded car, contact your insurance company right away. If you are not covered by your insurance policy, contact us right away!

UPDATE: JUNE/JULY 2007
Due to the recent flooding in the North of England, we have had enquiries from people wanting to know what to do about their flooded car. Normally the sensible thing to do would be to contact your insurance company. But if for some reason they are unable to help, for example if you have an older car that you are attached to, but they don't feel warrants spending the money on, then it is possible to do some of the work yourself. Please read our forum and feel free to ask for advice.

Valeting Articles: Index Page A list of articles on various car care and car valeting subjects

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