Wrecked Car Ripoffs Cheat Consumers
Did you buy a salvage car or salvage truck, or a wrecked
and rebuilt car, without knowing it?
Was
your vehicle totaled out in an insurance claim and they didn’t
brand your title as a salvage vehicle? Or did someone sell
you the vehicle without telling you that it was a salvage
car or salvage truck?
You might be able to get all your money back or a replacement
vehicle. In some cases you can even get triple your damages
and still keep the car!
In every case you could be driving a dangerous and unsafe
motor vehicle so get it checked out by an experienced, competent
mechanic or Wreck
Check shop right away. Don’t drive a dangerous
car or a dangerous truck.
Call us at 1-888-331-6422 or email us
today for a Free Salvage Fraud Case Review! We have helped
dozens of consumers recover their money, all at no cost.
Every year thousands of vehicles are totaled out by insurance
companies after accidents or a flood. A total loss usually
means the vehicle can not be repaired cost-effectively
up to mechanical or safety standards. Such vehicles are supposed
to be junked and used for parts only. But that doesn’t
always happen.
Many of those same totalled out vehicles are later sold
to "automotive recyclers" (repair shops, junk yards,
rebuilders, etc) with a "clean" title from the
insurance company because they can get more money out of
the vehicle remains if the title isn’t marked to disclose
that the vehicle is just junk salvage. No one knows for sure
how many vehicles are involved every year in this ripoff
scam but it can number in the tens of thousands. Doing that
allows thousands of totalled cars and totalled trucks to
be "rebuilt" and resold without future buyers getting
the required notice that the vehicles were actually supposed
to be just salvage and parts.
Think it can’t happen to you? Think your insurance
company is too honest to engage is this kind of deceit? Well,
think again!
In 1998 State Farm Insurance Company was caught selling
their salvage vehicles with clean titles, got sued by the
state of Indiana, and a court order was issued that ordered
them not to do it again and also required them to buy back
cars for the full amount of the consumer's purchase price.
You can read
the actual court order by clicking here. (Adobe PDF 295k)
That didn’t stop them though, because only a few years
later State
Farm admitted that they had continued to resell at least
30,000 more unmarked totaled out vehicles across the country.
What’s wrong with a salvage car or salvage truck?
No
one knows how many salvage vehicles are repaired by incompetent
mechanics or crooks just looking to make a fast buck with
shoddy and incomplete repairs.
Blown airbags may not have been replaced. Some companies
even sell dangerous fake
airbag covers that look like the real thing!
Bent vehicle frames may not have been straightened. Damaged
parts may not have been replaced or repaired at all.
The front half of the car may not come from the same car
as the back half (called a clipped
car in the business). Mandatory rebuilt vehicle safety
inspections may never have taken place at all because the
insurance company provided the repair shops with vehicle
titles that "hid" the truth about their past record.
A Salvage vehicle can be worth thousands and thousands of
dollars less than one that is not a salvage vehicle. Industry
sources report the decrease in value is at least 20%
and may be 50% or more, depending on the particular vehicle. "Diminished
value" is what it's called and there are experts who
can help you figure out how much it amounts to even when
the salvage vehicle is repaired properly, let alone when
it's not.
If you were ripped off, call us at 1-888-331-6422 or email us
today for a Free Salvage Fraud Case Review! We are experienced
consumer Law attorneys who handle wrecked car cases every
day.
How much less your vehicle is worth as a salvage
car or a salvage truck?
Here’s an easy way to find out.
Take
your vehicle to a new car dealer who sells your kind of vehicle
new (take a Ford to a Ford dealer, a Chevy to a Chevy dealer,
etc) and ask them what it is worth if you trade it in. Don’t
say anything about it being a salvage vehicle. After they
give you a number, then tell them that it has a salvage title
and ask them what they will give you now. You’ll find
out real fast!
Legitimate car dealers simply don’t like salvage vehicles
and won’t pay much of anything for one at all — assuming
they are willing to buy it at all! Why? Because salvage vehicles
can have all sorts of problems that haven’t been fixed
and can cost more to fix right than the vehicle might even
be worth. Worse yet, the car might look fixed but not really
be fixed at all, leading to serious injury or death in an
accident. No car dealer wants to be responsible for that!
Consumer
advocates say consumers can end up being cheated by
salvage car deals because many bad repair jobs can’t
be spotted or may not show up for years. You could literally
be driving down the road and have your car fall apart around
you when bad welds give way or air bag sensors suddenly
discharge from careless electrical or body repairs. Almost
anything could go wrong.
Failing to brand these wrecked cars as salvage can violate
motor vehicle title branding laws and title defect laws in
many states.
If you’re the victim of a salvage car ripoff, we can
help you. Consumer protection laws can entitle consumer victims
to recover your actual damages and, in some cases, punitive
damages too. If you bought it from a car dealer, your state
law may even entitle you to recover three times your damages
(Ohio’s law does). Plus these laws can be used to make
the car dealer pay for your legal fees, too!
Don’t be a victim of insurance company greed or car
dealer fraud! Don’t go it alone. Call us at 1-888-331-6422 or email us
today for a Free Salvage Fraud Case Review!
If you’re a victim owner of a salvage car or salvage
truck or other salvage motor vehicle, protect yourself! We
can help.
If you paid good money for what you thought was a good car
and what you got was ripped off, don’t go it alone!
Be Aware of Totaled Car and Truck Title Types
The kind of vehicle titles that may have been supposed to
be issued on these totaled cars may include:
Dismantled Title - The
vehicle sustained major damage to one or more major component
parts and the cost of repairing the vehicle for safe operation
exceeds its fair market value. When a Dismantled title is
issued, the vehicle may be used only for parts or scrap metal.
It cannot be re-titled or returned to the road.
Flood Damage Title -
States issue flood titles when a vehicle has been in a flood
or has received extensive water damage.
Hail Damage Title - The
vehicle sustained major damage due to hail. In most states,
hail damage titles are issued when the cost of repairing
the vehicle for safe operation exceeds its fair market value.
Junk Title - A Junk Title
is issued on a vehicle damaged to the extent that the cost
of repairing the vehicle for safe operation exceeds its fair
market value; or a vehicle that has been declared a Total
Loss by an insurer or other state or jurisdiction. Some states
treat Junk titles the same as Salvage but the majority use
this title to indicate that a vehicle is not road worthy
and cannot be titled again in that state.
Loss Due To Fire Title -
The vehicle sustained major damage due to fire. In most states,
fire damage titles are issued when the cost of repairing
the vehicle for safe operation exceeds its fair market value.
Rebuilt/Reconstructed Title -
A Rebuilt/Reconstructed vehicle is a salvage vehicle that
has been repaired and restored to operation. These vehicles
are often severely damaged before they are rebuilt and refurbished
parts are typically used during reconstruction. In most states,
an inspection of the vehicle is required before the vehicle
is allowed to return to the road.
Salvage Title - A Salvage
Title is issued on a vehicle damaged to the extent that the
cost of repairing the vehicle for safe operation exceeds
its fair market value; or a vehicle that has been declared
a Total Loss by an insurer or other state or jurisdiction.
Some states treat Junk titles the same as Salvage but the
majority use this title to indicate that a vehicle is not
road worthy and cannot be titled again in that state. The
following ten States also use Salvage titles to identify
stolen vehicles - AZ, FL, GA, IL, MN, NJ, NM, NY, OK and
OR.
If you bought one of these types of vehicles and the dealer
didn’t tell you the truth about it before the sale,
then call us at 1-888-331-6422 or email
us today! Don’t let any car dealer, or any insurance
company, make you their victim.
Watch out for frame damaged cars and frame damaged trucks
or other frame damaged motor vehicles.
In most cases, a vehicle is inspected for frame damage after
an accident or other damage incident. All levels of accidents
from minor to severe can cause frame damage and in many cases
it can be repaired but not always. Having a vehicle's frame
inspected before purchase is highly recommended.
There are ways to tell if that dream car you are looking
at is really a disaster waiting to be discovered. Go to framefacts.com for
information about frame damage and what it can mean to you
and your vehicle.
If you ended up with a vehicle that has frame damage and
didn’t know it before you bought it, you might be a
victim of fraud.
Call us at 1-888-331-6422 or email
us today! Don’t let any car dealer, or any insurance
company, make you their victim.
