How to Avoid Buying a Car Flooded by Hurricanes
This year’s big storms have flooded a huge number of vehicles — hundreds of thousands, if not the half-million that were initially feared. But with some basic due diligence — and a discerning eye — you can usually avoid buying a water-damaged car from an unscrupulous seller.
Most newer vehicles hit by the storms will be written off as total losses by the insurance companies. The owner will receive a check, and the insurance company will take possession of the vehicle, reporting it to searchable databases.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau said this week that nearly 270,000 insurance claims related to Hurricane Harvey vehicle damage had been processed, and nearly another 70,000 for Hurricane Irma. It is not clear how many of those claims will be declared total losses.
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