More than 300,000 cars were damaged by Hurricane Ian. Be sure you don’t end up buying one.

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After hurricanes with large-scale floods — such as happened in Florida recently with Hurricane Ian — flood-damaged vehicles often end up at salvage auctions and are bought by rebuilders.

The vehicles should be marked as “salvage” or “total-loss” on the title, but every year, thousands of severely water-damaged vehicles are resold to unsuspecting consumers — often in different market areas.

The Montgomery County Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) is warning local residents seeking to buy a used vehicle that they should take precautionary steps to avoid unknowingly purchasing one.

The OCP says unscrupulous sellers know how to “wash” the titles and hide the damage. However, the damage caused by water will eventually impact the life of the vehicle.

OCP recently added to its staff automotive specialist Dave Elswick, an Automotive Service Excellence (ASE)-certified investigator with 17 years of automotive technician experience. The ASE certification covers 28 areas of expertise and three master designations.

Elswick is available to help residents who think they might be buying, or have bought, a vehicle that was water damaged.

“The effects may not be immediate, but they are disastrous and dangerous when they appear,” Elswick said. “Issues such as mold, corroded and damaged wiring, corroded control units, damaged airbags and rusted interior components present serious safety issues.”

Then there’s “the cost of repairing them later. Rust and corrosion tend to take time to develop, and mold also takes time to spread. What may seem like a great deal now could lead to a never-ending string of repairs, which makes detection the best protection.”

How to check before you buy

There are some steps OCP recommends used-vehicle purchasers should take before buying — especially if it seems they would be getting an extraordinary deal.

“It is estimated that more than 350,000 vehicles were damaged by the recent hurricane Ian,” said OCP Director Eric Friedman. “There is no telling how many of those will end up being resold across the country, but nonetheless, there are tools available to help purchasers avoid these well-disguised traps.”

OCP advises consumers to check online databases that identify flood-damaged vehicles. Free checks for flooded vehicles are available from Carfax, Inc. at its “Carfax Flood Check” website. Other available resources can be found at the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) website and at Experian’s service “AutoCheck.”

In using each of those services, OCP advises that it is important to have the vehicle identification number (VIN) to ensure you are obtaining the history on the actual vehicle being purchased. The VIN can be found on the left corner of the vehicle’s dashboard. It is visible through the windshield and can also be found on the panel inside the driver-side door.

Consumers who are purchasing used cars in Montgomery County who feel like they are being deceived in purchasing a flood-damaged vehicle can reach out to OCP for additional advice by calling (240) 777-0311 or by sending an email to consumerprotection@montgomerycountymd.gov. An OCP investigator can provide assistance.

Residents of other counties may call with questions, but the OCP can only investigate transactions occurring within Montgomery County, Md.

For more information on how OCP helps Montgomery County consumers, visit its website at montgomerycountymd.gov/consumer or view videos on its YouTube channel at youtube.com/user/ConsumerWise.

Courtesy of the Montgomery County Office of Consumer Protection.