Scam warnings and advice
Beware Stolen Cars on Facebook
Warwickshire Trading Standards is warning buyers of used cars to carry out thorough checks before buying vehicles on Facebook Marketplace and other social media websites after one buyer reported buying a vehicle from Facebook that turned out to be stolen. Many car traders and people selling their vehicles privately now use social media marketplaces to advertise and sell their cars. If you buy a vehicle that turns out to be stolen, you may end up losing both your money and the car!
When buying cars online from social media marketplaces, you may wish to consider the following to help avoid buying a stolen vehicle.
- Obtain the registration number, make, and model of the vehicle and consider using a paid for vehicle checking service that can tell you (amongst other things), if the car is stolen, written off or has outstanding finance on it. A single check can cost less than £5. The DVLA also offers some free online vehicle history services. Visit https://www.gov.uk/
- Check the cars VIN or Vehicle Identification Number, a unique code that is like a fingerprint for your car. VINs can often be found in several places in the car, including on the engine block, chassis and windscreen as well as on documentation. Check that all the numbers match. If they don’t it may indicate that the car is stolen.
- If possible, inspect the car at the address listed on the logbook. Avoid if you can buying the car in isolated locations such as car parks.
- Don’t pay with cash. Use a payment method that is traceable and if possible protected. If you buy through Facebook, you may be covered by their purchase protection policy. Whilst private sellers typically won’t be able to take a credit card payment, if you are buying from a trader, consider using one. Using a credit card can sometimes give you extra consumer protection if things go wrong.
More advice from The Money Saving Expert
Bogus Advertisers Targeting Warwickshire Businesses
Warwickshire businesses, charities and schools have reported being cold called by bogus publishers falsely claiming to be producing council or safety related booklets. These booklets are either never published or are printed and distributed on such a small scale that advertising in them is essentially worthless. The rogue salespeople who cold call businesses are very adept at convincing business owners and staff into agreeing to take advertising space. If you are a Warwickshire business owner, charity or school, never agree to purchase any goods or services from cold callers. Don’t engage in conversation and put the phone down immediately. Also beware of similar approaches by email!
‘Modelling Day’ Invitation Scam
Bogus modelling agencies are reported to be sending out thousands of ‘modelling day’ invitations to unsuspecting Warwickshire residents. Those who attend are often pressured into agreeing to buy costly photo portfolios costing £1000 or more.
Attendees are told that the modelling agency has lots of connections within the fashion industry and the prospective models have the right ‘look’ to secure work. But in reality, these con artists have no connections and are simply seeking to make money from young and often vulnerable people. The photos portfolios they produce never lead to any work!
Scammers are also known to steal the names of genuine agencies to promote their fake advertisements.