Flood damaged cars will soon be flooding the used car market everywhere but without the tell-tale signs of water damage to give them away. Vehicles will be restored to new-like condition, water damage erased to the extent possible, sold several times to get a clear title that does not reveal flood damage, and then made available for sale to some unsuspecting consumer who is interested in a vehicle with a seemingly disguised water-damaged past. But there are things you can do to protect yourself against vehicles with hidden information.

Consumer Beware Has Never More True

Consumers do not need to be victims of a car's watery past. You can get a vehicle history report by simply putting the car's vehicle identification number (VIN) into the CARFAX web site, and then wait just a few seconds for CARFAX to search a nationwide database of information. Research is gathered on the car's title, maintenance record, registration, and odometer. If this car is stolen, has had a troubled mechanical past, or had the odometer rolled back, it will become obvious when the data appears on your screen and information on the vehicle is matched to this report.

A title check will reveal if a car has been salvaged, flooded, rebuilt, or is basically a "lemon." Consumers can and should protect themselves against being taken advantage of in the auto market.