Hyderabad: Flood of calls for tow trucks in GHMC limits

Hyderabad: Scores of four-wheelers, especially cars and SUVs, were flooded in several places in GHMC limits due to non-stop heavy downpour the other day rendering them unusable. No matter how well-maintained or new your car is, once rainwater leaks into the car it can lead to problems and invariably, they have to be taken to a service centre to make them run on the roads again. Every car owner has to depend on vehicle towing services to resolve this new problem that they are facing now. Drivers into towing services have been receiving continuous calls regarding the same. K Kumar, who attends vehicle SoS calls and has his own towing services stated that they are working from 8 am till 10.30 pm due to the unprecedented rush from the last two days.

He said that compared to lifting cars that met accidents or have a breakdown on roads, the present situation is more challenging. "We are taking the help of one or two additional staff to bring out vehicles from waist-deep waters or in apartment cellars where there is a big risk of power shock as well. For this reason, the customers are paying Rs 200 to 500 extra voluntarily without us asking for it," he said.

K Kalyan of Om Towing Services said that they are attending 10 to 12 calls per day now, which is very unusual. He said that they get calls once in a week or sometimes it can go up to a few weeks. For towing distance below 8 or 10 km, the amount charged is Rs 1,500 to 2,000 and if it had to be towed up to a distance of 15 km, the charge goes up to Rs 2,500 to 3,000. The damaged car or four-wheeler is picked up and dropped near the service centre of the customer's choice.

When asked how do they get calls, towing operators said that they leave their contacts with showrooms and service centres, business search portals on the internet which get them business and they have their contacts printed on the towing vehicles.

Due to the situation now, people are stopping the towing vehicles that they spot moving in their colonies or on roads and taking them to their houses for moving their damaged cars to nearby service centres.