New Jersey

Owners of Flooded Cars Are Likely to Find Their Insurance Doesn't Cover the Damage

Many owners of flooded cars could find that, despite carrying insurance, they are out of luck when it comes to recouping their losses

NBC Universal, Inc.

Residents across the country are still mopping up from the remnants of Hurricane Ida, which hit the Gulf Coast before sweeping up into the Northeast, leaving parts of New York City and its suburbs under water this past week.

Dozens were killed, many after being trapped in their cars by flood waters. News and social media from across the New York-New Jersey region show cars that were abandoned along major highways as well as neighborhood streets.

The flooding from Ida caps a summer season that has left many parts of the country waterlogged. That, in turn, has created major headaches for car owners — and car buyers. Thousands of vehicles have been seriously damaged or completely ruined. But many owners soon could find that, despite carrying insurance, they are out of luck when it comes to recouping their losses.

In the months to come, meanwhile, some of those flood-damaged vehicles may show back up on the used vehicle market through an appropriately named scam known as “title washing.” Someone buying one of those vehicles could be in for a number of headaches.

Read the full story at NBCNews.com.

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