Criminals involved in title washing might need some additional scrubbers if they hope to slip a previously flooded or totaled automobile by potential buyers, thanks to a new partnership.

Liberty Mutual, the eighth largest insurer in the U.S., has become the first insurer to offer vehicle identification numbers (VINS) to Carfax of every car that is declared a total loss and sold for salvage in the last five years and moving forward. Carfax provides vehicle information to the public for a fee.

“Varying state laws and a deceitful practice called 'title washing' allows salvaged cars to be sold without any documentation that they were once totaled,” said Ted Gramer, Liberty Mutual executive vice president, personal claims, in a release. “In the aftermath of disasters like the recent Midwestern floods and hurricanes, consumers need added protection from increased fraudulent activity.”

Liberty Mutual also recently announced its support of the National Insurance Crime Bureau's VINCheck buyer protection program. Consumers can input any vehicle's unique 17-character VIN at www.nicb.org to determine if a participating insurance company has previously declared the car a total loss.

More information is available at www.libertymutual.com.

Interested in more auto-claim news and in-depth articles? Head over to Claims' auto-claim channel for more information.

Special Reports /

Liberty Mutual Offers VINS to Carfax

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