Hurricane Ian may have flooded 50,000 cars, according to a new estimate. Ian made landfall in late September as a Category 4 storm, crossed the state from west to east, recharged over the warm ocean, and made a second landfall in South Carolina.
On its path, Cox Automotive estimates, the storm destroyed between 30,000 and 70,000 cars. More precise estimates are difficult at this time, as insurance companies are still reporting claims. However, a fraudulent process called “title washing” can put flood-damaged cars back on sale as if they are undamaged used cars. Fraudsters will buy damaged vehicles at auction and move them to a state with different title requirements and retitle it. Sometimes this succeeds in hiding the paper trail of flood damage.