Motorists are conned out of large sums of money each year. We look at how you can steer clear of the most prevalent scams
Claire Evans claire.evans@haymarket.com
IN THE FIRST half of 2023, criminals stole £580 million from consumers through scams and fraud, and a growing number of those fraudulent transactions were for second-hand cars or car parts.
Automotive scams are proving highly lucrative for fraudsters. And the worrying news for car owners and buyers is that scams such as these increased by 74% between January and June 2023, compared with the same period the previous year, according to data released by Lloyds Banking Group.
The most costly vehicle scams are ones where criminals advertise fake cars for sale at temptingly low prices, get buyers to pay for them up front and then disappear with the money. The used Ford Fiesta is the model most commonly reported as being the subject of a scam, followed by second-hand examples of the BMW 1 Series and Volkswagen Transporter van. The Fiesta is also the UK’s most stolen car.
There’s a thriving trade in fake ads for car parts and accessories, too, and the average loss to consumers for vehicle-related scams is £998.
So, what are the most common car scams, and how can you avoid falling victim to them?
Fake car sales websites
WHAT ARE THEY? Online scammers set up fake car sales websites for dealerships that don’t exist, and populate them with extremely cheap cars to lure buyers into paying for them, thinking they’re getting a bargain.
HOW DO THEY WORK? Criminals create car sales portals, often with names that are similar to genuine used car dealerships, and fill them with photos and information of real cars that are for sale elsewhere, offering them at big discounts – sometimes half the price they would usually cost. When buyers phone or email to get more information about the vehicles, they are encouraged to pay for them in advance of seeing them to secure the deal. The criminals promise to deliver the car once payment has been made, but the cars are not delivered, and the fake dealer becomes uncontactable once they’ve got the money.
What Car? and Car Dealer magazine found one fake dealer in Scotland that claimed to have 79 cars for sale. It advertised them to buyers in the south of England, knowing that few would travel hundreds of miles to view a car; most would be more inclined to just pay online.
HOW CAN I AVOID BEING SCAMMED?
The old adage that if a deal
