Bassami, Vice Chairman of the General Transport Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has said that car rental firms have lost approximately SR100 million due to the recent floods in the city. Al-Bassami said that around 9,000 vehicles belonging to rental firms broke down due to the weather conditions. “Most of the firms affected are based on Palestine Street, while other vehicles were affected that were already rented out to customers,” he said. He said that many firms were being refused compensation for lost or damaged cars by insurance companies due to policies that do not cover natural disasters. “All car rental firms are obliged to take out full coverage policies,” Al-Bassami said. “That's a basic condition of the Ministry of Transport in order to obtain a license to operate legally.” He said that insurance policies for car rental firms would be a subject of discussion at an upcoming meeting with insurers. “The situation has led rental firms to register their lost and damaged vehicles with the Civil Defense on its list of damages suffered by members of the public,” he said. The car rental business has gone through a sharp upturn following last Wednesday's heavy rains. According to Al-Bassami, however, prices have also gone up by between 15 and 25 percent. “A lot of rental firms are refusing to hire out their vehicles for fear of further damage in rains expected over the next few days,” he said.
