Hundreds of flood-related claims reported after South Florida downpours
MIAMI - After days of constant downpours across South Florida, State Farm Insurance reported 1,300 flood-related claims so far. Mechanics and auto dealerships were seeing lots of cars with water damage.
Jorge Giro got stuck in flood water last week in the Dania Beach, Hollywood area.
"Basically, the whole entire street was flooded, there's cars stopped in the middle of the street, water almost at the top level of my tire," Giro recounted. Now, he's waiting to find out if his car can be saved.
"If I had to guess, it's probably going to be a total loss," he figured.
Ivan Mendoza works at repair shop Davie Motorsport. He said that they received six water-damaged cars – half are a total loss.
"It's gonna be really hard for you to be able to save the engine. Because you're always going to have issues with the car," Mendoza said.
It's not just flood water damaging cars. An SUV brought into his shop had a leaky sunroof, drenching the inside.
"We remove all the carpets we let it dry, we soak up the waters, we remove the drain plugs out of the vehicle so the water comes out and hopefully put everything back together," he said.
Tips on buying a used car after the South Florida floods
Mark Friedlander is with the Insurance Information Institute, a nonprofit organization that provides information on the auto insurance industry.
"You must have comprehensive auto coverage to have the loss covered by your insurance policy," he said.
Aside from buying comprehensive coverage, he said if you have plans to buy a used car— do your homework.
"Go to a reputable dealer. If you're looking to shop for use vehicles check the CarFax report. Make sure you are fully aware of the history of the vehicle. You don't want to get stuck with a vehicle that was flooded out somewhere," he said.