When purchasing car insurance, it is important to ask what does your car insurance cover before you finalize your policy.  The recent hurricanes and severe tropical storms we have been experiencing should serve as a reminder that you should consider all possibilities when finding out what does your car insurance cover.  Similarly, when it comes to purchasing a vehicle, flood damage is something that you need to watch out for.

Working Around Your Insurance Coverage 

For those that didn’t ask questions about what does the car insurance cover, their only option may be to sell the car after it becomes damaged by a flood.  Unfortunately, some may cover up the fact that the vehicle was involved with a flood and was damaged by the waters.  For these unscrupulous individuals, it is better to sell the car rather than report the damage to the insurance company and try to collect on the damage.  In order to make the sell easier, they may clean up the outside of the car in order to make it look and smell great.  Mechanically, however, these cars are nothing but a disaster waiting to happen.

If you fall victim for one of these vehicles and make the purchase without realizing that the car was involved in a flood, you may end up spending a large amount of money on a lemon that won’t last very long.  Since the damage occurred before you made the purchase, asking what does your car insurance cover won’t really matter, as your insurance company won’t pay to repair damage that occurred before the policy was in place.  Therefore, it is important to know how to recognize a car that has been involved in a flood.

Recognizing a Car with Flood Damage 

Recognizing a car that has been damaged by a flood is not always an easy task.  Still, there are several telltale signs that you should watch for that will indicate flood damage has occurred.  These include:

• Finding debris, mildew or silt in areas that are unusual for this type of mess, such as beneath the carpeting, in the engine compartment and in the trunk
• Finding rust on metal parts such as screws
• Noticing that the upholstery, door panels or seat belts are faded, discolored or contain water stains
• Feeling dampness on the carpeting and flooring or seeing moisture inside the instrument panel
• Smelling a moldy odor or the scent of deodorizer or Lysol in an attempt to hide the odor

Of course, it is always a good idea to get an expert opinion as well.  So, take the vehicle to mechanic that you trust and have the vehicle inspected thoroughly before making a purchase and obtaining car insurance coverage.

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