Branded title? Curious question.

[Deezl Smoke]

I typed "branded title" into the search feature and only come up with these 2 threads.

 

But I have become curious now as when I have spare time and am looking around on say craigslist or whatever, I have come across a few ads that state the rig has a "branded title". One such said the pipes froze and burst, flooding the floor and was "professionally" repaired, but the law requires a brand on the title.

 

I know what that means etc. But I got to wondering to how many that might be a deal breaker if you were not able to see the damage and repairs being made?

 

So would you consider a rig of any type, that has a brand on the title, when looking to buy?

[SIBERNUT]

In some states, it depends on exactly what brand. In MD, (last I knew) it could be 'salvage 1" or "salvage 2". Difference is amount of damage. One of those can be flipped back by state police inspection to be sure no stolen parts, etc. It then gets a clear title, but the "salvage" will always show in the history. The other can be put back on the road with an inspection, but will always have a brand across the front. My truck is like that. Different states, different laws. If you want the scoop down & dirty, call a car salvage yard, they know all the straight poop in your state. Of course, there are certain states which you can "wash" the title through, too.

[gypsydan]

Of course, there are certain states which you can "wash" the title through, too.

Could you explain how this "washing" the title is accomplished? . . . . . I can see that if you bought through a dealer it would be harder to trace the title and be assured it was clean, or had not been manipulated. Conversely, buying it from a 2nd or 3rd owner down stream does not assure it is clean either. I looked at a rig once [class A] where the water tank in the rear had been leaking for a long time, to where there was rust on the frame. The owner had only had it for one year and was (supposedly) unaware of the problem, until I discovered it. He could tear out the damaged flooring and put in new. With carpet or laminate flooring over it you would not know the rear floor was not attached to the front floor and, since you could not put new flooring under the sides of the body and skin, the last 6-7 feet of the body frame and skin only be sitting on the back of the rear chassis extensions.

Am I wrong in this analysis?

[DuffMan]

Bunch of new cars in New Orleans - under water after Katrina. Bought by buyer in State A as scrap with a LA Salvage title. If I "refurbish" and can re-title in State B with a clean title, I can make a killing. There were warnings about this for several years after Katrina.

 

It would be interesting to see how that whole system works. (When I was youngun you could pass them to someone in New Hampshire (a state that didn't have a title requirement) then re-transfer to another state who would dutifully issue a clean title. But alas all those easy loopholes have been closed.

[nana25k]

Being careful is important. Just had a conversation with a couple who attempted to register their MH in Fl. Couldn't get it done because it had a salvage title from a state in New England.

[Kirk W]

 

So would you consider a rig of any type, that has a brand on the title, when looking to buy?

As previously mentioned, there are differences from one state to the next and if price was low enough it is possible that I might, but I wouldn't pay much for one. It would have to be half price or even less for me to consider any RV with anything less than a clean title.

[bigjim]

I am a little rusty but I know years ago u could put certain repaired salvage vehicles back on the road legally in Texas but the title was still supposed to say salvage and you were supposed to disclose it if you sold it. A friend with a repair shop use to buy 3-4 wrecked salvage vehicles a year that would be worked on in slack times to and sold to help make up a little money and keep the employees busy and earning during those slack times. He was always honest in his dealing but I am sure a lot are not. Obviously he was selective about which one he bought.

 

I do know there are ways to "wash" titles in lot of cases but only have an inkling of how it works. I believe that one vehicle I sold had a washed title to show much lower mileage than it had when I traded. One other vehicle I had way back when I ran up on later and talking to the new owner found that the mileage had been rolled back. He was luck as I had taken real good care of it and he had not had any issues with it.

[SIBERNUT]

I love buying "whacked" vehicles. No opportunity for them to be abused or neglected before trade in. Yes, I'd buy a salvage title truck, but only with pictures and damage itemized. When I sell mine, if a buyer isn't comfortable with Phoenix after I've put 30,000 on it w/ no problem, I'll find someone else.

Just understand a couple of things- with my background, I feel comfortable with rebuilt wrecks, many may not be. Also, remember many vehicles are "totaled" but not because the REPAIRS are not economical. Example: Car hits Volvo truck & is at fault. Car's insurance carrier is looking at repairs PLUS downtime (!!!) and lost revenue for the truck. Decision made to call it a "total", cut the trucker a check and send him on his way. Problem solved, trucker is happy and doesn't feel nearly as injured in his new truck. Ins co gets good return on salvage. Happy, happy, happy.

[Deezl Smoke]

For me it's the poor quality of repair services available anymore. Unless I were able to see it in loss condition and select the repair shop etc., on the insurance bill, I wont even look. But that's how I do things, not in any way saying any one with differing views are wrong. I've been living my whole life withing 5 miles, and I am quite familiar with how things are done "here".

 

So far, I have been a very lucky person and in all my miles, including hauling cattle and grain in white out conditions up the columbia river gorge, I have not had even a small fender bender. But my complete lack of faith in the repair industry would force me to sell a vehicle with more than a bumper replacement. And I would have to do the bumper replacement.

[bigjim]

I agree that you have to know who you are dealing with if you are going to pay for repairs on a salvage wreck. Also it depends on what the damage is and why it was salvaged. I bought a severly hail damaged car once that had a salvage title. It had about 22,000 miles and was almost like new except for hail damage. All the broken windows had been replaced. It worked good for my daughter to drive to college but she wasn't real happy about the looks but I told her this one was free to her and the next one is on her and she could buy what she wanted with her own money. It took a while but she did. Really good kid but a little stubborn. Must have got that from her mother. - aside brag- she is and has been a nurse at St. Jude for many years now and is tougher than I ever was in the Marines dealing with the heartache side of these kids. God bless the ones that can and do.

 

The car was all white severely dimpled and when she bitched I threatened to paint Spaulding down the sides. (golf ball look)

[oscarvan]

I recall Maine being a title laundromat.......but that too was a few years and then some ago.

[Gannet]

The biggest problem with branded titles is if (let's face it, when) you need to sell it - it's extremely difficult. The second biggest problem is insuring them. Many (most?) insurance companies won't insure them at all, even for PL&PD. The third biggest problem is they are almost never cheap *enough* to make up for 1 & 2. If it was 10-20% of non-branded price, sure, because you could walk away from it if you needed to. But it's usually more like 50% of the non-branded price. No way. Better to just look for a good deal. IMO.