Almost half a million cars and trucks that were damaged in Hurricane Harvey and have since been sitting in impromptu holding lots are set to head back out onto the roads or into scrap yards with salvage titles. And thousands more that were uninsured are out in the wild and could be headed anywhere, with no information stating they’ve been in a flood.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) said more than 422,000 such insured vehicles have been parked at salvage locations. For comparison, there were about 300,000 vehicle claims from Hurricane Katrina and some 250,000 from Superstorm Sandy. Another 215,000 vehicle claims have been filed in the wake of Hurricane Irma in Florida. About a million vehicles total are expected to have been damaged by Hurricane Harvey alone.
In Texas, makeshift holding areas have been filled with thousands of such vehicles as insurance companies decide what to do next. “Flooded vehicles have finally stopped arriving at the Royal Purple Raceway east of Houston,” the NICB said in a release, adding that there are about 23,000 cars and trucks at that site alone. The insured vehicles will be processed and rebranded with a salvage title and then either sold at auction for parts or crushed and sold for scrap, the NICB said. The cars and trucks will have their VINs entered into the NICB’s VINCheck database, where consumers can see if a vehicle has been damaged or branded as salvaged. The VINs are also put into the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System.
Of course, the same is not the case for the thousands of uninsured vehicles that were damaged in the storms. The Insurance Council of Texas has said about 15 percent of Texans drive without any insurance. And the NICB has acknowledged that while owners of uninsured vehicles should have new, branded titles that denote flood damage, “many flooded vehicles that weren’t insured will be cleaned up and sold with no indication of any damage.”
This is where some due diligence on the part of the used-vehicle shopper can help. If you’re in the market and want to make sure a car or truck is not a flood survivor, some recommendations include checking the vehicle’s carpeting for water damage, looking for rust on screws or metallic bolts that typically wouldn’t get wet, and seeing if there are water stains on seatbelts or other interior upholstery. Another area to check for water damage is under the spare tire. It’s also good to look for mud or other signs of earthy residue in the engine compartment. If interior and exterior lights look foggy, it’s a sign the car or truck could have spent some time submerged in water. The smell of mold or an otherwise musty odor is also an indication the car may have been flooded. In short, if the vehicle’s history report seems questionable, use your eyes and nose, and then your best judgment.
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