Wasnt just the night time i wish it wasnt just the night time knowing i wish it wasnt just the night time knowing i wish it wasnt just the night time ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah [ cheers and applause ] jimmy alpines debut album is out now, jimmy i want to thank bill hader, richard simmons. Apologies to matt damon, we ran out of time. Tomorrow night, jane lynch, Jerry Oconnell and music from 2 chainz. Thanks for watching, nightline is next. Tonight on nightline, the engine runs, a shiny body, but inside there is a dangerous secret. The air bag could cause a problem. If this should have been scrapped, why is this guy selling it to us . How could you in good conscience sell this truck . And how did it end up with a clean title . We take our investigation to a Major Insurance Company and get a surprising admission. And have you ever been surrounded by people and felt utterly alone . We have the video on the addiction, and how hard it is to put it down. Keep it right here, america, nightline is back in just 60 seconds. From new york city, this is nightline with bill weir. Great to be with you tonight. And we start with a riddle, how could anyone in the heartland ever fall victim to a hurricane, one that blew ashore long ago and far away . Well, the answer is a flood car. Sold to an unwitting buyer. Superstorm sandy caused many of them to be sold. Tonight, we have a major update to our summer investigation. For this, nightline on the lookout. Reporter when cars are in a flood for any length of time, a place like this is where most should probablyni come to die. But not all do. We learned this lesson firsthand, thanks to this good looking pickup. We paid 20 grand for her in new jersey just two months ago, but now we would like to crush her in texas. Because even after this truck was inundated in the salt water of Hurricane Sandy, she still washed up on a used car lot with a clean title for sale to an unsuspecting customer. And since a flood car with a bogus title can be a dangerous thing, you got to wonder how many more are there . That is the question i wanted to ask the good folks here at Insurance Company aaa. Were here to see rebecca hersch. We hauled our evidence across country and up to the gates of their headquarters. Youre going to have to turn your camera off. Reporter hi, rebecca, how are you . Yeah, i know, but sometimes i persuade people. You have to see this tow truck we have to bring this truck down here to show you. It has dragons on it, it is awesome, come check it out with me. But we never got past security and it looked like a few defiant emails would be all we had. Are you a very small part to play in this story . How can you shirk this responsibility . But then came a pretty remarkable aboutface. Can i call you kevin . Can i call you general . Take your pick, bill, i answer to both. Reporter an about face led by the armyturned executive who invited us back. And this place is much more impressive than i pictured it. It would be, from the gate. Reporter im just curious, there was so much resistance to talk before, why did you decide to come talk to us today . Truth is at this point, im all ready for journalistic combat with the general. But then he said the one thing i never expected. I think we would want to tell you thanks for shining the light on something that is troubling to all of us. Reporter wow, great. But why is the good general falling on his sword . Well, it has a lot to do with exactly how this ford ended up back on the highway. If i can walk away givingni u 20 for everything . You want to take it now . I want to take it now. Reporter and it all began on a dark, stormy night. When Superstorm Sandy hit the northeast last fall, few were prepared for the misery she would bring, thousands lost their lives, many lost their homes, and then the there were the cars. An estimated 40 million of them submerged under water for days. Many abandoned here at the airport on long island. And look at them, each one a potential hazard. Because salt water flood cars are a special kind of wreck. Flood cars literally rot from the inside out, days, weeks, months later parts are going to fail. Which makes it a bit of a problem when you see the flood cars now empty. Yes, that is the same airport, packed after sandy, but empty today. So the obvious question is where did they all go . And the answer, like many things in life, has a lot to do with looks. Now, some cars obviously belong in a junk yard final resting place. But there are countless others that go through storms like sandy that look just fine at first blush. It is probably atlantic ocean. Reporter and as the folks at the used Car Tracking Service car fax showed us, theyre looking better after a fivehour makeover. They are estimating over 5,000 sandy cars are back on the road tonight, not just around jersey but across america. We see the mercedes on the lot right there. Reporter here is one in omaha. And another in st. Louis. You know, it is kind of an Old Fashioned notion that they traded it in locally, right. Reporter and even a landmark is passed off as pure. Even though Hurricane Sandy happened what . 1200 miles away, these cars are shipped all over the place. Dealers buy them, turn around, fix them up, make them look good and dont tell but it. Our ford f350 truck was one of those vehicles. Owned by mike, his kids loved the truck so much they named it spirit. And we know that when sandy hit the kennedys watched sandy spoil their Point Pleasant home, and washed away spirit. Mike is a retired military man, so they declared spirit a total loss and sent mike a check for 32, 32,213 32,213. They say it is the insurers responsibility to brand the item, mark it as a stormhit vehicle. But they had a price tag of nearly 20,000. A lot of dough for what the experts say should be a pile of parts. So we decided to buy it with the help of our producer aaron, 20 large in cash, and a few hidden cameras. And glasses and water bottle, just to make things interesting we sent spirits former owner along for the ride. Here we go. How are you doing . Hi, i want to buy a truck, i want a big truck. Reporter she is quickly chatted up by a salesman named jack, who very quickly gets her behind the wheel of spirit. The power seats dont work. I think the seat is out he has to change the fuse, he told me. Reporter now, maybe it is a blown fuse, or maybe it is because they were submerged in salt water for two days. Now, jack did reveal that a car fax report showed that spirit had been in a flood, but shrugged it off. It is like a glitch in the title. Reporter a short time later, aaron has got a deal. She hands over the 20 large, signs the purchase agreement, and now aaron owns the truck. Here we go. How does it feel to be driving your old truck again . It feels great, feels good to be driving it again. But i dont want it. You can have it. Because she is not going to last too long. Reporter the purchase creates a bitter sweet reunion for spirits former owner, and mike cant resist taking it home for one more visit with the kids, where he notices a few obvious signs of her watery history. I had tools in the glove box, and believe it or not theyre still here. Theyre no longer functioning, because theyre rusted shut. The water was up to here. The front seats dont work. When we bought it today, they claimed it was a fuse, and to bring it back and swap it. It is not a fuse. I cant imagine whatever else is not working. Reporter these guys sure will, they are jersey shore mechanics and know a flood mechanic whenever they see it. That is definitely a waterdriven vehicle. That is like fine silt. Oh, my god, this thing may catch fire. If an air bag blows up on you, you could crash. Reporter would you put your family in it . Absolutely not in a million years. I wouldnt even drive this truck out of here. Reporter seems like a good time for me to have a chat with jack at the auto sales. We got a reaction camera going on this one. Reporter we dont want to tip them off. So aaron makes it a point to have the power seats checked out. And i will play the role of a tow truck driver. Abc news nightline brought to you by macys cheryl burke is chachaing in depend silhouette briefs for charity, to prove that with soft fabric and waistband, the best protection looks, fits, and feels just like underwear. Get a free sample and try for yourself. Step 1 study the competition. Step 2 get angry. Theyre boring. 3 make a car from scratch the dodge way. Steps 4 through 28 recall 100 years of knowhow. Start building, try things. Yes. Make it different. Not that different. Bring muscle technology muscle, efficiency muscle. Get it racing. Get it in a calendar. More calendars. Aww. Polish it. Punish it. And youre done. Wait. 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When you gotta have mexican. They say one mans trash is another mans treasure, but what happens when that trash is actually dangerous . Before the break, i was on my way to confront the used car dealer who sold us a flood truck for ten times its value. The Insurance Company is next on our list, so lets get back to nightline, on the lookout. After two days of being submerged in Superstorm Sandys waters, the mechanic says that spirit is driveable. But we want to take it back to the man who sold us for ten times more than it is worth. So we load it onto the flat bed which gives me good cover as the tow truck driver. And we take spirit for a little ride with the salesman, jack. Aaron asked him to come out and take a look at the damage he found. In here, there is a bunch of sand. Reporter now, jack thinks im just the tow truck driver. But that changes when i show him video of a familiar gentleman. And he sees my camera crew. Recognize this guy . Okay. That is you. Reporter okay. Where is the best part, this is the part where you say i want to be honest with you guys. How could you in good conscience sell this truck, where it is corroding from the inside . You know the air bag could pop on the thing on the highway . I dont buy these things, i just sell them. Reporter no, no, we want some answers, look, here is the auction sheet that showed it was in a flood. Then jack apparently calls the cops, but they seem confused as to why theyre even there. Who called . Did you call . And then a whole lot of other cars begin to pull up, the grimfaced drivers heading into the offices. We later learn theyre investigators from the new Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission which we have been talking to. And that theyre suspending the dealerships license to sell cars pending an investigation. The dmv later emailed us a statement saying they sincerely regret jacks unfortunate misrepresentation of spirit, and since the independent action is in in way reflective of our business practices, jack has been fined. There is now a criminal investigation by the new Jersey Attorney Generals Office in dealerships and investigations that includes cars, usaa sold at auction. Because when they paid off mikes claim, usaa became spirits owner, and according to new jersey authorities, all owners must register a vehicle like spirit as a salvage car. Branding its title as damaged goods before ever selling it at auction. But usaa didnt do that. They claim mikes title somehow got lost and rather than ask for a new one, they told the auction house to sell the truck for parts only. Somehow that car ended up in the used car lot for sale in one piece. Failure to sell a car with a used title is illegal in jersey. Thanks to our watchdog investigation, they allowed what is known in the industry as title skipping. Who are the worst offenders when it comes to used car skipping . What about Insurance Companies . They do it sometimes, because there is money to be made. Reporter usaa is now in an uncomfortable position. There is the ongoing criminal investigation of the dealership involving cars that usaa sold at auction. And there are questions raised by our story, which may explain why he decided it would be an opportunity to sit down for a friendly chat. Why did you decide to come talk to us today . We have learned some things over the course of your broadcast. We have learned some things about the situation you discovered. One that we found to be just as disturbing as did you. Reporter please, expound. Well, we went through 782 vehicles that were a number of total losses that our members had as a result of sandy hurricane. And of those we have found 174 of those cases. Reporter 174 cases, in which usaa sold flood cars without branded titles at auction in new jersey, just as it did with spirit. It is quite possibly that all of those 174 are on the road today. Usaa doesnt know. That is what were working with the new Jersey Commission is to go track down every one of those vehicles, 174. And well not stop until we are able to say all of them are off the road or in the right place. This is where that ford f 350 sits today, in a salvage yard. Reporter but where we went hunting before this interview we found a mercedes wagon. It does have a car fax total loss flood report . But, clean title. Reporter yeah, and then we found a town and country, a chrysler, 2009 that sold for 14,000 and is on the road in pennsylvania somewhere today. So unsatisfactory. Also a honda crv now on the road in new jersey, and a lexus, now on the road in pennsylvania, each sold to dmv auto sales at auction by usaa. It is a big deal, a big deal and what you guys have shined the light on is a really serious problem. We went back and looked at our process and said not satisfactory. We will change it and maintain the High Standard that it will involve a branded title. Reporter general burner is clearly set on fixing the problem that cast his very Reputable Company in a very bad light. But when you look at this, you wonder how many made it to the crusher and just how many are rolling down our roads . We appreciate usaa stepping up for the update, but well stay on the lookout for you. And coming up, did it happen . Listen up before you lose your friends or get parodied in a viral video. And there are three ways to do this, my way, my way, my way do i make myself clear . i like and better. Yeah and is better, the twenty fourteen fusion hybrid. Ford gives you hybrid fuel economy and a whole lot more. Go further [ male announcer ] youve reached the age where you dont back down from a challenge. 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