According to Manitoba Public Insurance, many water-damaged vehicles that suffered from the Carolina and Florida hurricanes will be re-sold to unsuspecting customers in Canada.

Vice President of MPI Communications Satvir Jatana advises anyone looking to purchase a vehicle from the United States to exercise caution. “To avoid a financial loss, consumers should do their homework prior to making a used vehicle purchase.”

General Manager of Steinbach’s Loeppky Auto, Vince Loeppky, notes that one can search any vehicle on carfax.com to determine where it has been registered and what claims have been made. Still, he comments: “Knowing what has happened in Flordia and North Carolina, I would steer clear of anything coming from those areas.”

Loeppky indicates that very few Steinbach car dealerships do a lot of buying in the US because of the poor dollar, however, he suggests that vehicle trading and buying online is not altogether uncommon. He adds that just because a vehicle is not branded “flood damaged” does not necessarily mean it is completely sound. Water damage frequently causes electrical malfunctions, says Loeppky, and though they may not necessarily be detectable right away they can be extremely expensive in the long run. 

MPI admits that sometimes people do try and privately sell cars that have sustained water damage without informing the buyer and suggests being especially wary of unusual rust or mud deposits and musty smells that can often indicate water damage.

In addition to that, Jatana notes: “[On account of] vehicle branding rules in the U.S. and inspections conducted by the Registrar of Imported Vehicles upon entry to Canada, flood-damaged vehicles may not be allowed to be registered in Manitoba.”

Ultimately MPI urges vehicle buyers to look past the potentially cheap prices down south and shop elsewhere.