Taranaki tyre shops are doing a roaring trade replacing bent and buckled wheel rims and tyres blown out on the region's pothole-riddle roads - but it is business they would rather not have.
Some customers are having to spend thousands of dollars to get back on the road - and they are not happy about it.
After the recent rain event more than 50 customers brought wrecked wheel rims and shredded tyres into Central Tyres and Automotive in Stratford.
Manager Ryan Merson said the potholes were so deep they were doing real damage.
"They are taking an impact in the pothole itself and it's either blowing the bead bundle in the tyre, which is whole heap of wire cords that go around, and if that's not taking the impact then the rim is taking the impact and cracking those or bending them severely."
Corson Tyres foreman Laine Rice says the number of damaged wheel rims being brought in has skyrocketed. Photo: Robin Martin
Merson said it could be costly exercise.
"The biggest we've had so far is probably they got two done on one side of a BMW and it came to about $2500. He was not happy."
He said while that might sound like good business, but it came with a catch.
"It's actually probably a pain because you have a lot of pissed off customers, eh, and they're all unhappy.
"So, yeah it's good for business but you don't want to be doing this all the time."
New Plymouth's Corson Tyres foreman Laine Rice said it had gone from receiving one or two damaged wheels a month to getting up to 10 a day.
"We're getting bent rims, cracked rims, demolished rims, rims that obviously can't be repaired but yeah it's starting to get pretty horrendous.
"And depending on how much their tyres are - some of these cars have $800 tyres on them - so by the time you add up a new tyre plus the rim repair or a new rim you've got a pretty big bill."
Rice could not see things getting better until the region's roads were rebuilt.
Truck driver Earl Barry had delivered chicken along State Highway 3 for 15 years and never seen the roads in such a poor state.
"I can tell you now, mate, the road is treacherous. I've seen the road in quite a bad state, but just recently when we had the rain that was the worst time I've ever seen it. I'm surprised no-one had a really tragic accident."
Filling the potholes with asphalt did not cut it, he said.
Recently repaired potholes in Taranaki. Photo: Robin Martin
Blake Christie, 18, fell victim to a pothole just days out from receiving his first-ever paycheque.
"It was pretty bad actually ... it made a pretty big thud on the front, it was the right front it was, and I just knew straightaway because the whole tyre starts wobbling and actually bent the rim and it ended up costing me a fair bit."
His wallet $600 dollars lighter, Blake Christie said his faith in the safety of the region's roads was shaken.
Waka Kotahi said it responded to more than 200 call outs following last week's rain event and it had temporarily filled "numerous" potholes and put in traffic management in the worst hit areas.
"Contractors have this week undertaken further temporary repairs, slip clearing, culvert clearing, and general preventative measures arising from the recent severe weather events. We are looking to programme longer-term repairs once the weather improves."
It said the temporary repairs to potholes were just that - temporary.
"Filling potholes is a means of holding the pothole together as best as we can until weather conditions are favourable enough to allow actual repairs to be completed.
"As these are not repairs as such, it is not unusual for potholes that have been 'filled', particularly during wet conditions, to have to be revisited multiple times over winter."
It said motorists should drive to the conditions and make sure their insurance was up to date to cover any damage that may occur on the road.
"Their insurer should be their first point of contact where any damage has occurred and, if appropriate, their insurer would then be in touch with Waka Kotahi.
"Waka Kotahi is not normally responsible for damage that may occur to a vehicle while driving a state highway."
It said complaints that claimed the road's condition had caused damage to a vehicle were assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Waka Kotahi said it had a significant amount of work was programmed for State Highway 3 during the upcoming construction season, including along three stretches in the Stratford District.