By Randy Hutchinson
President of the BBB of the Mid-South
Reprinted from The Commercial Appeal
Virtual vehicle scams exploded during the COVID pandemic and are still victimizing consumers shopping for new and used cars, trucks and equipment. They take a number of forms.
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti issued a recent alert about scam websites posing as vehicle and equipment dealerships. The crooks may actually answer the phone when consumers call, offer up a fake business license, and provide videos of vehicles for sale. The Attorney General cited two examples:
- Leo’s Luxury Motors claimed to sell and ship classic cars. Photos on its website were copied from a legitimate dealer’s website in Michigan.
- Equipment Express is a legitimate business in Lebanon, TN, that sells forklifts and other equipment. It does not have a website, but crooks created a phony website using the company’s name and address and offered to sell and ship equipment dirt cheap. Pictures of equipment for sale were copied from the Internet.
The BBB Scam Tracker service regularly gets reports from people who found a car on an online marketplace, sent their money to the seller, and got nothing in return. One consumer said, “I thought I was purchasing a car from a reputable dealer on Facebook Marketplace. Things did get a little weird but the guy told me this is how it’s done now after covid. This was all done online. The car was never delivered. Once payment was made all contact stopped and I can’t find them anywhere. The posting and website are gone and the phone numbers just ring.”
He didn’t say how much he lost, but another consumer reported losing $30,000 he wired to a fake dealer in Mississippi. One consumer actually got the car he paid $3,500 for, but it broke down two days later and a mechanic said the catalytic converter and engine were bad. He contacted the seller who just laughed and refused to refund his money.
Buyers have also been tricked into sending money to an escrow company to be held until they receive and inspect the vehicle, but it’s really controlled by the crooks who take the money and disappear. Others have paid to buy vehicle history reports from fake websites.
You should do your best to view a vehicle in person before handing over money. If that’s not possible, the Tennessee Attorney General and BBB offer these tips:
- Watch out for too-good-to-be-true deals: They’re most likely scams. Crooks often steal consumers’ personal information and money by offering them high-value goods at extremely discounted prices.
- Third-party inspections: If you can’t inspect the car or equipment in person, have a neutral third party, like an independent mechanic, inspect it on your behalf before transferring any funds.
- View the reviews: Look for reviews, ratings, or complaints about the business. To get started, you can access the Better Business Bureau’s website at www.bbb.org. When purchasing a vehicle, use a resource such as CARFAX, AutoCheck, or the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System to get a vehicle history report.
- Use a safe payment method: Be wary if you’re asked to pay for the vehicle using a wire transfer, gift or prepaid debit card, cryptocurrency, or person-to-person payment app. Scammers like these kinds of payments because it’s almost impossible to recover your money. Use a credit card or check.