Californians should be on the lookout for used cars coming from other parts of the country that might have flood damage. Here's what to look for:
Californians should be on the lookout for used cars coming from other parts of the country that might have flood damage. Here's what to look for.When looking at Hurricane Ian's devastation, we tend to focus on lost homes and neighborhoods, but look closer and you will see there are plenty of lost cars, too.
Here in California, there isn't much flood damage awareness among California car shoppers. Fortunately there is a consumer protection law that brands flooded vehicles. Drury says the process is called "title washing." That's where the car ends up with a title that does not say "salvaged.""Now the problem is that some cars were not insured or uninsured. So the insurance companies didn't declare the total loss. So those cars are where the danger lurks," says Huffman.
Electric cars have been among the most seriously damaged. Video of Teslas on fire are all over the local news in Florida.