Following an incident of fraud in Salisbury, we’d like to remind people to be wary of car advertisements on the internet.
The victim, a man in his 30s, paid a deposit for a car he saw advertised on an online marketplace after discussing the purchase with the alleged seller online.
The alleged seller had created the advertisement after seeing the car advertised on an online marketplace.
They then misled the car’s owners into believing they were serious about purchasing the vehicle, and they demanded to see videos of the vehicle and related documentation, which they received.
The unknown suspect then reregistered themselves as the registered keeper of their vehicle and advertised the vehicle as their own using the videos sent to them.
They then duped potential buyers into putting down deposits on the vehicle.
DI “I want to take this opportunity to remind people to be incredibly cautious when buying or selling cars online,” said Ian Magrath of the Digital Investigations & Intelligence Unit.
“Sellers should list the make, model and the year of the car, but never share any information about Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs), V5 documentation or anything else.
“I would also advise sellers to consider removing the registration number from the advertisement because it is far too easy to clone a plate, for example, to avoid paying a congestion charge or to commit a bilking” (when someone makes off without paying a fare or bill).
“Most buyers will be willing to view a vehicle because they want to ensure it is in good condition and as described in the advertisement.
“Perhaps ask yourself if you would buy blindly and based solely on a few photographs from someone you’ve never met?
Be wary of those who claim to work overseas and offer to pay for cars to be collected and transported.
“This is a common scam in which funds are frequently reverse charged, causing the seller to lose not only the vehicle but also the money.”
