What's the scam here?
Discussion
Car for sale.
Spoke to potential buyer on phone. He is other end of country. He can't fly up to collect car but says he'll look at getting transported. Seems sound from the conversation, comes across as a petrolhead guy.
Buyer does various checks over the course of the week, says he'll pay a deposit and transfer the rest on collection. Ok with this.
Some of the checks, I'm not sure of and this where I'm wondering if there is a scam?
- transportation guy requires v5 - sent a pic of a redacted v5
- insurance requires vin and engine no for a matching numbers policy - already on vcheck report.
- deposit sent yesterday afternoon- nothing in my bank account so far
- tried to call buyer to find out what's happening? Could his bank have have put a hold on the transfer for security purposes?
Maybe this is just an unusual set of circumstances stringing out what should be a straightforward process, I don't know.
If this is a scam, not sure what could he possibly gain from this???
If it's to steal the car, surely there are easier ways than this?
Spoke to potential buyer on phone. He is other end of country. He can't fly up to collect car but says he'll look at getting transported. Seems sound from the conversation, comes across as a petrolhead guy.
Buyer does various checks over the course of the week, says he'll pay a deposit and transfer the rest on collection. Ok with this.
Some of the checks, I'm not sure of and this where I'm wondering if there is a scam?
- transportation guy requires v5 - sent a pic of a redacted v5
- insurance requires vin and engine no for a matching numbers policy - already on vcheck report.
- deposit sent yesterday afternoon- nothing in my bank account so far
- tried to call buyer to find out what's happening? Could his bank have have put a hold on the transfer for security purposes?
Maybe this is just an unusual set of circumstances stringing out what should be a straightforward process, I don't know.
If this is a scam, not sure what could he possibly gain from this???
If it's to steal the car, surely there are easier ways than this?
I once sold a car on eBay to a chap in Scotland, 400 miles away, in 2018 who paid by transfer and sent a courier to pick it up, so it does happen.
This was a car that sold for only £1250 though (a Fiat Tempra, rare for a reason
). If it's very expensive, I'd be more wary of sending off so many details regarding V5c etc though.
This was a car that sold for only £1250 though (a Fiat Tempra, rare for a reason
). If it's very expensive, I'd be more wary of sending off so many details regarding V5c etc though.Not sure why they want the V5 other than to confirm you might the owner (owner/RK not always the same). Ask for details of the transportation guy. Is he genuine as in he has his own website/email address rather than gmail.com. Even if he's only on Shiply there will be details.Google his mobile number to see evidence of him working. If the buyer refuses to pass on details then beware.
No harm in taking photos of the VIN/enging number.
He may have forgotten to pay the deposit, but if I'd paid a deposit I'd bloody well make sure I'd done it and told the seller. All payments should be instant, apart from a handful of banks over a weekend.Just watch out if he decides to pay more than the agreed selling price. And if he claims he has paid the deposit, but you can't see it, what problems are you going to have being paid on collection day?
No harm in taking photos of the VIN/enging number.
He may have forgotten to pay the deposit, but if I'd paid a deposit I'd bloody well make sure I'd done it and told the seller. All payments should be instant, apart from a handful of banks over a weekend.Just watch out if he decides to pay more than the agreed selling price. And if he claims he has paid the deposit, but you can't see it, what problems are you going to have being paid on collection day?
Mabozza said:
I've bought a car remotely in the past as well, so ok with that side, it's just the other stuff. V5 had the code etc redacted
Buyer: Hello seller, something went wrong with the bank transfer, and the bank is now shut.Buyer: My collection guy will be there tomorrow morning early, can we sort this by Paypal tonight please.
Buyer: Monday morning, hello Paypal, the goods are not as described, I want a refund.
Seller: Hello buyer, any one there? Hello, can you hear me?
Other permutations might involve forged banking transaction receipts to get you to release the car, either for the deposit and/or the remainder. Or too much money arriving for the deposit and some sort of scam with the refund, I forget how exactly now, maybe someone else can chime in. Sometimes it involves laundering money by getting you to return the overpayment to someone else.
Just walk away if any weird money related stuff starts happening.
Edited by GT9 on Saturday 7th February 13:44
OutInTheShed said:
I've bought and sold vehicles long distance.
There are scams, some quite convoluted, involving deposits and couriers.
If I was the buyer and the deposit didn't arrive with the seller, I'd be very active in sorting it.
So, I'm suspicious.
Bought and sold like this very often, only ever pay a holding deposit upfront, pay in full when car is collected. There are scams, some quite convoluted, involving deposits and couriers.
If I was the buyer and the deposit didn't arrive with the seller, I'd be very active in sorting it.
So, I'm suspicious.
Only I collect it or deliver it if selling.
A reputable transporter might be wanting to check weights and values before giving a quote, but Google would answer that, can't really see a reason for V5 information.
Unless it is a cloning job. If it is not taxed they would need the reference from V5 to tax the clone.
If I pay you more than the agreed price, that lulls you into a false sense of security. What happens is they use a compromised bank account to fund the transaction, and everyone thinks BACS payments are final. Then one of the banks claws back the funds and you have no money and no car.
Same with PayPal which is worse than BACS and you should never ever consider for high value sales, no matter how much the buyer pleads "Oh I have loads of money in my PayPal account from selling loads of stuff, please, pretty please". Tell them to FRO and convert funds back into their bank account.
Same with PayPal which is worse than BACS and you should never ever consider for high value sales, no matter how much the buyer pleads "Oh I have loads of money in my PayPal account from selling loads of stuff, please, pretty please". Tell them to FRO and convert funds back into their bank account.
I also don't understand why transportation guy needs a picture of the V5.
Quite often the scam is the 'buyer' asks you to pay for their car report which is on their own hooky website, stealing your payment details or just pocketing the fee.
Whatever happens do not let the car and/or V5 out of your sight until the money is in your bank account. Not paypal as mentioned above.
Quite often the scam is the 'buyer' asks you to pay for their car report which is on their own hooky website, stealing your payment details or just pocketing the fee.
Whatever happens do not let the car and/or V5 out of your sight until the money is in your bank account. Not paypal as mentioned above.
Mabozza said:
- deposit sent yesterday afternoon- nothing in my bank account so far
I think its as simple as, the buyer SAID they'd sent the deposit but its not arrived in your bank account. There is either a hold on the transfer, they don't actually have the funds available to do it, they sent it to the wrong account (unlikely now, with payee verification) or they didn't send it at all.Its useless asking them to prove they sent it, since there is no way to prove it (screenshots can be doctored, etc).
"They say" bank transfers can take up to half a day, but pragmatically for values under tens of thousands, they likely go through in less than 30 secs.
Its only their bank which would have put a fraud hold on it, its not possible for the receiving bank to decline to receive money (unless it is closed or frozen, etc).
Buyer has not responded. Who knows if something has happened like a family emergency or something, but if I'd sent a £1K deposit, I'd be seeking confirmation it's been received and if not, straight onto my bank.
If he does come back to me, it's a big no to PayPal or any other payment except a bank transfer for the correct amount, and only the correct amount.
Anything fishy with payment and I'd cancel the sale - even if there was someone there to collect the car.
If he does come back to me, I'll ask for details of the transport company to verify if they are genuine as well.
If he does come back to me, it's a big no to PayPal or any other payment except a bank transfer for the correct amount, and only the correct amount.
Anything fishy with payment and I'd cancel the sale - even if there was someone there to collect the car.
If he does come back to me, I'll ask for details of the transport company to verify if they are genuine as well.
Mabozza said:
If he does come back to me, I'll ask for details of the transport company to verify if they are genuine as well.
Ask for a copy of his passport and driving licence.I bought a reasonably high value 911 last year - I didn't ask for any of that guff (V5 etc) and transferred the money when the car arrived. All very easy.
Mabozza said:
If he does come back to me, I'll ask for details of the transport company to verify if they are genuine as well.
You could also let the transport company know its not paid for, and it won't be available until it is - they might choose to rearrange/cancel their job instead of adding waiting time onto the job, for which they may never be paid.Gassing Station | Car Buying | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff