Buying or selling a car after a disaster

What should you do if your vehicle is damaged and you have car insurance?

If your vehicle has been damaged by a disaster and you have car insurance, here are the standard steps you should take:

• Be safe. Wait until the environment around you is safe to check your vehicle for damage.
• Document everything. Upon checking your vehicle, be sure to take photos and document all the damage, plus evidence of any conditions that may have caused it.
• Contact your insurance provider. When you file a claim with your insurance company, make sure you provide all the pertinent information about your policy, the weather event, and all resulting damage.

• Wait for the insurance assessment. If your car has been flooded, it’s likely your insurance company will declare it a “total loss.” According to Consumer Reports, “Many states have guidelines for when a vehicle must be considered a total loss. That assessment is generally a calculation of the car’s value and the expected cost of repair.”
• Have a salvage title issued. Upon being “totaled out” by an insurance company, the vehicle should be issued a salvage title. Consumer Reports explains, “[Salvage] titles are usually plainly marked (known as being “branded”) with the word ‘salvage’ or ‘flood.’ In some states, this warning is shown on the title as an obscure letter or number code.”

• Salvage auction sales. Salvage-title vehicles are sold at auctions to junkyards. As Carfax describes, “Insurance payouts help owners move on, but the life of a totaled vehicle doesn’t end at the scrapyard. Usable parts can be used to repair other vehicles, such as engines, transmissions, wheels, tires, axles, doors and windows. Additionally, salvage vehicles can be bought and rebuilt.
• Receive the insurance money. When they pay your claim, your insurance company will likely give you the car’s cash value minus your deductible. 

• Begin your new vehicle search with experience in mind. Since you’ve already experienced a car being damaged by a disaster, you don’t want to make the mistake of purchasing a vehicle that has been “title washed,” yourself.

Find below tips to protect yourself and your wallet during the car-buying process.