Toyota sues for $361 million over south Africa flood damage

Toyota South Africa Motors has filed a lawsuit seeking 6.5 billion rand ($361 million) for damages caused by severe flooding in 2022 that forced its factory near Durban to close. The legal action, lodged in a South African court, targets the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government, eThekwini Municipality, and Transnet, a state-owned company managing ports and railways.

Toyota claims these groups failed to maintain waterways and drainage systems, which worsened the flooding at its Prospecton plant. The floods, which dumped heavy rain in April 2022, caused widespread destruction, damaging equipment worth about 4.4 billion rand ($244 million) and leading to over 2 billion rand ($111 million) in lost business due to a four-month shutdown. Toyota argues that the poor upkeep of the Umlaas Canal, meant to divert the Mlazi River, played a big role in the disaster.

All three defendants have signaled they will fight the lawsuit, according to Toyota’s legal team at Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa. The 2022 floods were part of a larger disaster in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, where heavy rains and snow killed over 90 people and damaged roads, bridges, and thousands of homes. Toyota’s lawsuit highlights the financial toll of the floods and raises questions about infrastructure maintenance in the region.