Flooded / totaled cars: NZ laws / register?

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kingdragonfly

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#303278 29-Jan-2023 15:53

I searched for NZ laws/rules around what happens to flooded / totaled cars.

Obviously the car doesn't just disappear in a puff of smoke, like in a video game.

My search pointed to an old article from the Insurance Council of New Zealand, titled "ICNZ welcomes new rules for flooded cars."

But they had removed the article.

I know there'll be unscrupulous actors who'll but these totaled cars, and attempt to resell it without mentioning the flood damage.

Is there are official searchable on-line database to identify insurance write-offs?

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#3028924 29-Jan-2023 16:08

Laws?

What happens to any piece of insured property is a decision around repair-or-replace.

If the car would pass a Warrant of Fitness then it can be used on the road.

Once a vehicle is declared written-off then there's rules that apply there.

https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/choosing-the-right-vehicle/recalls-and-damaged-vehicles/written-off-and-damaged-vehicles/ might be what you're after?

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kingdragonfly

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#3028978 29-Jan-2023 17:09

I've heard of stories, out of Australia and the US, of people buying "totaled" cars from dealers, that were

no longer "totaled"
had problems later

It's impossible to look everywhere in an inspection, like under the carpet for rust, or behind the dash for damaged electrical connectors (oxidized but temporarily working)

It must happen here too.

BlakJak

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#3028980 29-Jan-2023 17:10

Did you click the link I gave above? It has a searchable register.

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kingdragonfly

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#3029004 29-Jan-2023 18:44

Good to see the system working

Stuff: Car dealer to pay $7k for not disclosing car had been written off in accident

An Auckland car dealership has been ordered to pay more than $7k after not telling a customer the vehicle they were buying had been written off in an accident.

The car had been in a crash in Australia a year before the sale, where it had sustained heavy damage and been deemed an insurance write off, according to a decision from the Motor Vehicle Disputes Tribunal.
...

cddt

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#3029020 29-Jan-2023 18:59

When I was young and naive Jucy Rentals sold me a car which had been in a flood.

They also told me the cam belt had recently been changed, when it had not.

Dodgy dodgy company.

Batman

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#3029047 29-Jan-2023 20:25

However if the car had not been insured, no claims would be filed and there would be no records.

Wheelbarrow01

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#3029079 29-Jan-2023 22:33

Batman:

However if the car had not been insured, no claims would be filed and there would be no records.

Correct! It's not the insured cars you have to worry about - any insured cars written off by an unsurer due to flood damage are deregistered and added to the damaged vehicle register. They can't be re-registered for road use without a comprehensive audit by an entry certifier (which it is likely to fail anyway). These are usually broken up for usable parts, shipped off overseas for parts, or kept for offroad use only.

Here is an example currently listed on Trademe - the seller makes it clear that it was deregistered in the past due to water damage, and that it is not registered and can't be on the road. Any prospective purchaser can be in no doubt about what they are buying. It still has value in that it could still be of use to someone such as a farmer or for someone who needs parts (such as a 4 wheeler who rolled their own ute or blew an engine)

It's the ununsured cars damaged by flooding that are the problem - in theory an owner can dry it out, clean it up, and if it's still running they can just flick it off on Trademe etc, and the subsequent purchaser would be none the wiser - until it either fails a WOF or something goes wrong as a consequence of hidden water damage.

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Bung

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#3029111 30-Jan-2023 00:43

Wheelbarrow01:
Here is an example currently listed on Trademe - the seller makes it clear that it was deregistered in the past due to water damage, and that it is not registered and can't be on the road. Any prospective purchaser can be in no doubt about what they are buying. It still has value in that it could still be of use to someone such as a farmer or for someone who needs parts (such as a 4 wheeler who rolled their own ute or blew an engine)

Deregistered in past but still has plates on??

Sidestep

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#3029138 30-Jan-2023 07:50

Bung:

Deregistered in past but still has plates on??

Carjam those (now cancelled) plates and you'll get: "Cancellation Reason: Vehicle written off by insurer"
Still lots of useful information attached though, the VIN and engine number, mileage records, GVM, import history..

The seller mentions "I need a road legal ute as I kept driving this on the road too much" which means he's been driving around on those cancelled plates hoping no-one bothers to check them.
- at least he's honest.

Where I'm living (not in NZ), that would get "a minimum fine (first offence) of $2,500 and $5,000 if you are caught a second time. The maximum fines for first and second offences are $10,000 and $20,000, respectively."

Back at home - NZ's very far north - where probably a third of local's vehicles are either unreg or unwarranted, that would get me a "Maate I've told you, get a warrant and rego on your car or stop driving it on the road.. now go home and don't let me catch you driving it again.." Lol

Wheelbarrow01

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#3029810 31-Jan-2023 00:58

Sidestep:

Bung:

Deregistered in past but still has plates on??

Back at home - NZ's very far north - where probably a third of local's vehicles are either unreg or unwarranted, that would get me a "Maate I've told you, get a warrant and rego on your car or stop driving it on the road.. now go home and don't let me catch you driving it again.." Lol

Absolutely! My brother lives in the far north and he tells me that many people don't bother with reg or wof. It seems it's not well policed in that region - or if it is, time to comply (or "compliance") is routinely asked for and freely given. He said stroll through the supermarket carpark and look at the windscreen labels and you can see for yourself.

If it were me, I'd get pinged in a heartbeat. That's my privilege I guess 😂

Goosey

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#3029823 31-Jan-2023 07:39

The consumer information notice (CIN) is used by reputable dealers to show any “recorded damage”. If you find recorded damage not in the CIN then you have a claim for false info provided.

for private sales, then it’s in your own hands to to due diligence and there’s places like;

car jam or https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/choosing-the-right-vehicle/recalls-and-damaged-vehicles/written-off-and-damaged-vehicles/

(although nzta says it’s not 100% accurate).

as they say…buyer beware and in the case of buying private many people do their own diligence which includes a comprehensive check by a qualified and reputable service like the AA. It’s a case of if you really want it, best you spend some money to check it out (just as you would get a house inspection before buying to make sure you can get insurance and you ain’t buying a lemon).

allan

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#3029900 31-Jan-2023 10:55

Written off from an insurance company perspective doesn't necessarily mean that its no longer roadworthy of course, it simply means it was uneconomic to repair compared to the sum insured.

richms

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#3029919 31-Jan-2023 12:19

Unable to be repaired to the point that you are suffering no loss.

A car with water damage on the history is worth less so they either write it off or do what some other countries have where you get a payment to cover the loss in value the car has.

This is why they need to assess them, but if you have a photo of the car with water up to the top of the wheels, there is no point assessing it.

They may be able to get repaired and be totally workable but with that cloud hanging over them, they are worth a lot less than a non flooded one. And with most of the cars that you see being used as boats in the tiktoks that the news has taken, it is no loss having them taken off the road.

Richard rich.ms

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#3029924 31-Jan-2023 12:31

BlakJak: Did you click the link I gave above? It has a searchable register.

They need a new coder... one who knows how to spell and order things alphabetically :D

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#3029925 31-Jan-2023 12:36

With so many cars being written off, February is going to be a happy month for Auckland car dealers supplying the replacements.

At a guess, I'd say Auckland car yards will also be buying quite a few vehicles off dealers in Waikato & Bay of Plenty, shipping them north and flicking them on to unfortunate people with insurance money in their bank accounts

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