Thousands of people are still cleaning up from Tropical Storm Irene, but the residual impact may be felt by people who didn’t see a drop of rain over the weekend.
Damaged cars and trucks from cities and towns affected by the storm are likely to make their way to auto auctions across the country. Once on used-car lots, these vehicles may then be sold at deep discounts relative to the going rates of similar cars, but without any disclosure from sellers about the vehicles’ exposure to the storm, echoing a common practice in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Jesse Toprak, vice president of industry trends for TrueCar.com, a Web site that tracks car and truck prices, said in a telephone interview that flood-damaged cars could be worth 40 to 70 percent less than comparable vehicles that were not damaged in a storm, and that such cars may look like relative bargains on dealer lots.
Read the entire article at the: NY Times Wheels Blog
Earthgarage – Greener Car. Fatter Wallet.