Page 5 - ROA Online Riview Library

Scammers Set Sights on Internet Car Sales

BY TODD A . UGLOW takes hundreds of people each year in our hobby. Emotions
run high when we see a car we love and must own. I have been
I have 25 years of experience buying and selling cars on eBay
and other internet sites. It is a great way to find whatever you there myself. Scammers know this, too, and they prey upon
may be searching for. But it is very important to be knowledge- our vulnerabilities.
able about scammers to protect yourself. Regardless of whether This past March, I communicated with an independent car
you are buying or selling, you can be hurt by people out to dealership in Florida about a silver ’65 Riviera Gran Sport.
scam and take your money with nothing in return. I will share I searched for the address online and on Google Maps and
my experience to save you from being taken by these people. found the address on their website was a private house. When
he wouldn’t send me a photo of the title, I phoned. The person
BUYING A CAR who answered had an eastern European accent, was evasive
about the location of the dealership, and said that this rare car
Scammers will advertise on eBay, Craigslist, Auto Trader and came into his possession through a trade. Unlikely!
even Hemmings. You must be cautious with private sellers
as well as with small independent car dealerships, where the If you have been able to confirm the car exists, had it inspect-
business address doesn’t match the company name. Here’s an ed, and you have seen the title, then and only then, consider
overview of how they operate, the red flags to look for, and sending a small deposit.
tips on how you can protect yourself against being scammed
out of thousands of dollars. SELLING A CAR

Since the popularity of the early Rivieras has increased, so Scams can even happen in reverse when you are the seller!
have the prices. We become aware that some have sold pri- Here is the scenario: You list a vintage Riviera on eBay or
vately and at auctions for extremely high prices. That opens Craigslist. It’s valued at $20,000 or more. (Lower priced cars
the door for the scammer to draw attention to their ad by list- are not usually worth the trouble to the scammers.) You pay
ing a popular model such as a 1965 Gran Sport priced lower $50 to list the car and in minutes you get numerous emails
to attract attention. They may not even have the car or access from potential buyers. One wants to send you a cashier’s
to one. Your first reason to be suspicious is to see one priced check and buy the car “sight unseen!” Great! You really don’t
far below market value. That is not to say that there is never a want to show the car to strangers at your home. But the buyer
good deal to be found, but generally if it is too good to be true, insists on communicating only by email because he is “in the
it probably is. Step back and research the seller. Learn all you military and has been deployed overseas.” Scammers love to
can from the listing play the military card. He says that he has arranged for his
and of the company agent to pick up the car immediately. Plus, he’ll send a ca-
if their information shier’s check for $1,000 over your asking price to compensate
is listed. Contact you for your “inconvenience.” You trust him even more when
the seller and ask he confirms that, of course, he’ll wait until the check clears
questions. before picking up the car.
I recently saw a listing for a very clean 1965 Gran Sport on This all sounds great and you quickly give the buyer your ad-
eBay, but the only way to contact the seller was by email. dress for payment. You receive the cashier’s check three days
Initially, I received an enthusiast reply stating that the car was later and it clears your bank the next day. The buyer’s “agent”
still available. But when I asked to speak with him directly, he picks up the car with a trailer and drives off. “Wow,” you think.
said he was on an offshore oil rig and unable to talk or meet “That was so easy. The guy even paid more than asking price.”
with me. He sent me a collection of photos but could not To celebrate you take your spouse out for a fancy steak dinner.
take specific shots I requested since the car was in storage in But when you check with your bank days later you discover
Oregon. I asked for information on the storage location and if the cashier’s check was a fake, and the bank had to reverse
there was someone in Oregon I could speak with and see the the charges. You ask
car. Unfortunately, he said, that was not possible. The photos then, how did the
were nice but seemed to be of a car I had seen previously on bank clear the check?
Google images. I sensed that as I asked more questions, he You are told that the
was growing increasingly impatient. He told me I should not automated system
let this deal get away and would get me all the information I did not catch that it was a fraudulent transaction and that they
requested if I made a good faith deposit with a money-back typically credit their customer’s accounts as a courtesy. By
guarantee. Although I ended my contacts, he continued to then you realize that your car is long gone – probably out of
email me several more times. the country. Sadly, this happens all too often.
When we hear stories like this as outsiders, it seems unbeliev- PayPal is fine for sending and receiving deposits in smaller
with the ROA! able that these tactics could work on anyone, but this scam amounts. PayPal is safe, but they charge fees and if the buyer

The Riview July/August 2019 5