The Washington Post reports on vehicles underwater:
“Harvey appears to be the most destructive event for cars in the nation’s history, based on early estimates, with floodwaters destroying hundreds of thousands of vehicles in a sprawling city that relies on them for much of its transportation….By Friday, as floodwaters had begun to retreat, insurance adjusters had arrived and they were eyeing the mud-streaked vehicles. The situation was bad: Cars that looked okay were useless under the hood because of destroyed electrical systems. Even with repairs, managers said, the vehicles would be unsafe to drive….
Harvey appears to be the most destructive event for cars in the nation’s history, based on early estimates, with floodwaters destroying hundreds of thousands of vehicles in a sprawling city that relies on them for much of its transportation….
Harvey appears to be the most destructive event for cars in the nation’s history, based on early estimates, with floodwaters destroying hundreds of thousands of vehicles in a sprawling city that relies on them for much of its transportation.”
“Scrap itOwners should take a page from Mike Jackson, CEO of auto retailing giant AutoNation, who said his group will be scrapping all the flooded vehicles in inventory. “Any time you get a flood level in a vehicle above a foot or two, you really should scrap the vehicle,” Jackson told CNBC’s Squawk Box. “The damage that’s done to the electrical systems in these high-tech cars—just forget about it. They’re all going to have to be replaced….”“In the flood’s aftermath, insurances companies decide the fate of affected vehicles. Many are written-off, branded as flood damaged and sold for salvage. However some will hit the roadways once again – slowly deteriorating from the inside out – and due to a tactic called “title washing”, you might never know you’re driving one….In the flood’s aftermath, insurances companies decide the fate of affected vehicles. Many are written-off, branded as flood damaged and sold for salvage. However some will hit the roadways once again – slowly deteriorating from the inside out – and due to a tactic called “title washing”, you might never know you’re driving one.Laundering the ownership trail
Title washing occurs when a vehicle’s title is branded in one state – for example, as “flood” damaged – but then transported to another state that may have different criteria for title branding. Due to these slight differences, certain vehicles branded as flood damaged in one state may receive a clean title in another.”….
Dig history
The best defense is a good offense–go online and buy a vehicle history report. These comprehensive overviews can be accessed from sites like Experian’s AutoCheck, and will track important information including title branding and registration over the vehicle’s life, regardless of where the vehicle is registered.
Other helpful tools include the Department of Justice’s National Motor Vehicle Title Information System as well as the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s VINCheck service, which is free to use. VINCheck compiles data from insurers and allows consumers to see whether a vehicle has ever been declared a total loss or salvaged.”
