Flood damaged cars legal to sell, how to spot them when car shopping

Experts said Florida is ground zero for the flooded car market.

It's perfectly legal to sell a flood-damaged car as long as the seller lets potential buyers know beforehand.

Sometimes, that disclosure is in easy-to-miss fine print.

Amy Wade has been trying to find a used car for her daughter.

“I found the one and said, 'Wait a minute, something is not right,'” Wade said.

She said she did a quick search on the vehicle identification number and the car actually had flood damage.

And on the Motor Mall website, Wade said there were at least five other vehicles that were previously flooded.

“They were just popping up left and right, flood,” Wade said.

The manager of Motor Mall said they let their car shoppers know of any issues.

“I don’t know anyone who would say, 'Yeah, I want to buy a car that’s been flooded,'” Wade said.

In Florida, selling cars with flood damage is legal as long as the dealer discloses it to the buyer.

Action News Jax law and safety expert Dale Carson said it’s up to the car’s previous owner to report the flood damage to their insurance company and that’s when it's branded on the title.

“Unless you see the title, you won’t know it’s flood damaged,” Carson said.

Carson said flood damage limits the lifespan of the vehicle.

“I find it unusual that DMV and the state of Florida doesn’t better protect consumers from purchasing items that will have problems down the line earlier than you would expect them to,” Carson said.

When you're buying a car, you can go to the DMV website and type in a VIN and the vehicle information will pop up, showing if it had any damage.

Cox Media Group