NICB Warns of Flooded Cars, Flooding the Used Car Market

The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) is warning consumers that vehicles flooded by Hurricane Ian may soon be appearing for sale around the United States.

After a disaster, NICB works with its member insurance companies, law enforcement, and auto auction companies to identify the vehicles that have had an insurance claim filed. All vehicles deemed to be a total loss will be retitled with the Department of Motor Vehicles and the new title will indicate the fact that the vehicle has been flood damaged. Most of the damaged vehicles are sold to parts companies who will dismantle them and re-sell usable parts that were not damaged by the flooding. However, it’s important for consumers to know some criminals will attempt to sell these flood-damaged vehicles to unsuspecting buyers.

NICB’s VINCheck® helps prevent this from happening. NICB’s VINCheck is a free lookup service provided to the public to assist in determining if a vehicle may have a record of an insurance theft claim, and has not been recovered, or has ever been reported as a salvage vehicle by participating NICB member insurance companies. Before you purchase a pre-owned vehicle, be sure to run the vehicle identification number (VIN) through NICB VINCheck.
Keeping damaged cars out of the hands of unsuspecting buyers is a major focus of the insurance industry. Unfortunately, some of the flooded vehicles may be purchased at bargain prices, cleaned up, and then taken out of state where the VIN is switched, and the car is retitled with no indication it has been damaged.

As the nation’s leading not-for-profit organization dedicated to fighting insurance fraud, the National Insurance Crime Bureau, has a history of excellence built over more than a century in operation.

We are asking for your help in informing your audience about post-disaster fraud, including the re-sale of flooded vehicles. These 30 and 60-second PSAs, available for both television and radio, are intended to raise awareness and inform consumers on how to stay vigilant when purchasing a used vehicle.

We trust you will find these beneficial for your audience and air them as time permits.
For more information on contractor fraud, please contact Danielle Naspinski via phone (847-714-2958) or email (dnaspinski@nicb.org).
Best regards,

Chris Stroisch
Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications
847-450-9814
cstroisch@nicb.org