Car repairs to take longer
PROBLEM: SHORTAGE OF COMPONENTS
Motorists without car hire cover on their insurance policies should include it.
Motorists whose vehicles get damaged in accidents or other incidents are potentially facing long delays in getting repairs done because of “an acute shortage of motor body repair components”.
The SA Motor Body Repairers’ Association (Sambra) represents almost 1 000 motor body repair businesses which account for more than 80% of all insured repair claims in the country.
Its national director Richard Green said on Monday it had received notifications from several original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) advising supply constraints will continue for many months.
This component shortage is totally out of the control of Sambra members.
Lockdown impact
He said multiple factors have contributed to the shortage, including the hangover from Covid lockdowns, the fact that large manufacturing entities had to almost shut down for a period, with some going out of business, and the rationalisation process that almost occurred among suppliers.
“Then there is a ‘live’ economy again, with demand returning to pre-Covid levels.”
Green said there is a shortage of metal around the world, including steel, apart from the shortage of semiconductors.
He said these supply constraints have affected the production of alternative parts and this has had a knock-on effect on the quality of available alternative parts.
The shortage has been exacerbated by increases in the cost of international cargo container logistics, which has increased four-fold over the past 12 months.
‘Plan for delays’
He strongly suggested motorists who do not have car hire cover on their motor insurance policies include it as a matter of urgency because it is inevitable vehicle repairs will take far longer than normal while manufacturers struggle to restore the parts and component supply chain.
Green said it is impossible to specify the components which are in short supply because it varies from OEM to OEM.
“It really depends on what kind of car you are driving as to how badly you will be affected. It ranges from the semiconductor issue right down to a basic part which Mazda, for instance, says in some cases will take three months to supply.
“Mazda is the only one that has admitted in some cases there is at least a threemonth waiting list,” he added.
Supply chain disruption
National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers (Naacam) executive director Renai Moothilal confirmed a multitude of supply chain challenges are making it difficult to ensure the full availability of stock requirements, whether it is in the after market or even at platform level at some OEMs.
Moothilal said it is something that has been managed for a fairly extended period but started to intensify from the second half of last year.
“At present, the biggest challenge post the flood situation in KwaZulu-Natal has been the impact of some of the logistics stoppages that come through the Durban port.
“That has been a really important factor in the auto sector in the past 2½ weeks,” he said.
Moothilal said general sentiment is that supply chains, especially in terms of global supply, have been a challenge in the sector – but they are hopeful that towards the end of the year, a lot of these challenges will start making their way out of the system.
“But a shock like we have seen in the last two weeks, and the impact on an important harbour like the Durban port, makes it difficult to give an exact timing around when it will return to normality,” he said.
Moothilal said each OEM has its own specific global supply chains and the specific parts that are in short supply vary between the different OEMs.