Insurance Crime Bureau Logs Flooded Cars

Consumers can now check online for records of vehicles and boats flooded by Gulf storms on a new National Insurance Crime Bureau Web site.

Sandy Praeger, Kansas insurance commissioner and secretary-treasurer of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, said the database is a cooperative effort of the NAIC, the insurance fraud unit of the Louisiana State Police and several insurance entities.

"Making this information available in an easily accessible format to consumers will serve to inform and protect them from vehicle fraud," Ms. Praeger said.

NICB is collecting the ID numbers of vehicles and boats from the flood region and logging them into a database. "This will help potential buyers avoid being defrauded by shady sellers," Ms. Praeger said.

Consumers wishing to check the history of a vehicle or boat impacted by Hurricane Katrina can log on to www.nicb.org, where a link will lead them to the database.