Flood-Damaged Cars From California Are About To Hit The Used Market

The recent winter storms that have hit California have dumped trillions of gallons of water on the state. While that’s helped drought conditions, the downside is that all that winter weather and water have caused billions in damages across the state. Included in that number as the Los Angeles Times shows are thousands of flood-damaged cars that are about to hit the used market.

The next few weeks and months are going to be busy for car auctions and vehicle insurance companies as claims for flood damage come in and these cars head to auction. While the auto market seems to be improving a bit, many dealers and sellers are still inventory starved so there is a demand for these cars. Insurance companies will total out many of these cars, the California DMV will then issue them new rebuilt or salvage titles and they’ll be put on the market.

Read more

• These Are Your Guilty Pleasure Cars

• The 15 Most Successful Formula 1 Cars of All Time

• These Cars Should Never Have Been Killed Off

It’s legal to sell these vehicles with flood damage as long as it’s disclosed to the buyer. And many of these cars will wind up on auction sites like Insurance Auto Auction where they’ll be listed for cheap. Others will wind up on dealer lots, sold by individuals who don’t always follow the rules. Those are the ones buyers should be worried about.