How to Avoid Scams When Buying a Car

How to avoid being scammed when buying a used car

Buying a used car is often more profitable than purchasing it off the assembly line. But at the same time, there are a lot of risks associated with unscrupulous sellers or even scammers. Fraud when buying a car is common, but it is possible to protect yourself from it. Before buying a used car, you need to familiarize yourself with the known schemes of scammers and swindlers. There are an infinite number of them, but there are not so many action algorithms. They will be discussed below.

Common scams when buying a used car.

Honest private owners

The most active sellers of used cars are private owners. A huge number of online platforms allow you to publish messages about the sale of a car literally on the same day that the owner makes this decision. There are also a lot of advantages for the buyer: the ads are sorted, they can be displayed by price or mileage, year of manufacture or brand, and therefore there is no need to search the site up and down to find the most suitable option for yourself. However, the chances of a private seller being deceived remain high. The buyer actually receives the car, but with a surprise. The car may have broken numbers, incorrect mileage, several accidents, it may be mortgaged, and the seller will not tell you about it. His goal is to sell the car, and therefore he believes that he is not obliged to be honest.

Important! If a private seller has any doubts, it’s worth checking the car by VIN code (there are online resources where you can do this completely free) or identifying the car by numbers (this is more difficult, but still possible).

Resellers and salons

Used cars are sold by dealers and showrooms. Resellers make money from this. Moreover, they are good enough, so they are ready to invest in their business. Often messages about car sales from resellers look the same as from private sellers. You can distinguish such publications in several ways:

1. The price is much lower than offers for sale with the same characteristics.
2. In the photo, the car is standing against the backdrop of a service station, a car wash, and other cars around. It feels like it was done in a hurry; it has neither a garage nor a parking space.
3. There are no photographs of documents for the car: service book, mileage readings, registration certificate.
4. The description of the car is replete with standard phrases and does not in any way inform about the features of the car. When buying a car, scammers do not spend much time on its history and features.
5. Using the phone number specified in the ad, the service pulls up several more ads about other cars.
6. In a telephone conversation, the interlocutor avoids answering, insists on an examination, and does not provide basic data.
7. The ad is updated very often: every two to three days or daily.

Of course, there is no need to draw conclusions based on only one of the above signs. Only their presence in the complex.

Many sellers commit scams when selling cars. There are an endless number of types of such scams. We can talk about different scenarios, but for the swindler the main thing is the lack of contact with the victim. These types of fraud most often involve online advertisements with prepayment. When, before buying a car, the seller asks to put a deposit on the card to make sure the buyer’s intentions are firm.

Once the money is deposited onto the card, the seller cannot be found. Most often this is an urgent sale due to going abroad, illness of a relative, or ephemeral debt. The seller says that the money is needed urgently, but the purchase and sale agreement is not drawn up in a day, and that is why he asks to confirm the purchase with a deposit. This type of scam is most often carried out by prisoners. That is, if the seller strongly avoids a personal meeting and inspection of the car, you can immediately hang up and forget about this sales offer.

Only talented people can come up with a “good” scam when buying a car. Therefore, the scammer is a calling. Such sellers establish contact with a potential buyer, forge documents, and change numbers or VIN codes. There are many options for real frauds, it’s easy to fall for them, because fraud requires quite serious preparation. When should you be careful:

1. The seller offers to issue a full power of attorney instead of a purchase and sale agreement. As a result, the owner recalls it and declares the car stolen.
2. There is no evidence that the car was not purchased on credit or pledged to the bank. In this case, the owner stops paying funds to the bank, and the bank can confiscate the car on completely legal grounds.
3. The car is registered according to the license plates of another car, was imported illegally or is stolen.

Another type of fraud is shell companies that don’t actually sell cars, but make money. Such guys cheat through a contract. A person comes to a used car dealership, they give him basic information about the car, several options for sales offers, they offer payment in installments or a loan, and after inspection they ask him to sign a contract and make an advance payment. When the advance payment is made, the buyer is asked to wait a day or two and then return for the car.

But when the victim returns, the office is closed and the phones are not answered. Of course, in this case, there is a desire to turn to lawyers and file a claim of fraud. Only lawyers, after reading the contract, will say that there is not a word in the contract about the car, payment in installments/credit. It turns out that the company provides consulting services, and the client pays for the information. Therefore, you should always read the contract carefully.

Popular fraud schemes

The most popular types of scams are also entire representations that will end up being a scam. Accomplices in the role of “bank security service” or “bank executive” may be involved in the fraud. There are also options with counterfeit money, scheduling an inspection in a remote location, or using a duplicate PTS. Therefore, you need to be extremely careful and listen carefully. Honest sellers will always be interested in you purchasing a car: they will provide complete information, draw up a contract in good faith, and insist on legal sales schemes.

Duplicate PTS

A very well known type of fraud. The subject of this deception is vehicles purchased on credit or pledged to a bank. When registering a pledge, bank employees leave the original PTS with the bank. A copy of it can be obtained from the traffic police after reporting the loss. It is this copy that the victim receives. After the transaction is completed, the former owner ceases to fulfill his obligations to the bank. He, in turn, seizes and confiscates property that already belongs to another person. It is extremely difficult to prove anything, and therefore the buyer is left without money and without a purchase. You can protect yourself from such a scenario by checking the status of the car using the STS number or requesting the original PTS.

Outbid documents

It is impossible to say that such a seller has an initial task in fraud. They use so-called gray documentation methods:

1. Registration of a general power of attorney. Allows the reseller to evade taxes, but there is a risk that the owner will revoke it before the car is re-registered.
2. Owner's documents. The purchase agreement is filled out with the owner’s signature, the buyer signs it, and the transaction is completed. In this case, the intermediary is not displayed anywhere, and therefore does not pay taxes.
3. Agreement with the commission. Such agreements are drawn up by intermediaries who officially carry out their activities. The owner himself chooses how he will cooperate with the intermediary. The percentage paid as a result of the transaction directly depends on the level of involvement.
4. Re-registration to yourself. The intermediary buys the car from the owner, registers it in his name and sells it in his own name. Such cases are quite rare.

Scamming a buyer at a car dealership

Of course, when buying a new car it is difficult to make a deal, because such transactions are usually handled by official dealers. Moreover, it is more profitable to buy from official representatives: minimum markup, promotional offers, favorable terms of service. But when it comes to a used car, you can get into fraud. For example, you call from a private advertisement and agree to come and inspect the car. Over the phone they tell you that you need to drive up to a certain address, saying that your car is currently parked in a paid parking lot. When the buyer arrives at the place, instead of paid parking, he sees a used car showroom. The psychological trick “since we’ve already arrived, why not take a look” works.

Upon inspection, it turns out that the car perfectly meets the “price-quality” criterion; they quote a cost of 540,000 rubles, for example. Then they can throw off up to 525,000 rubles. The buyer agrees to such a favorable offer. Managers offer to draw up an agreement, but for this you need to make an advance payment in the amount of, say, 90,000 rubles. While you make an advance payment, they draw up a contract. You bring a check with an advance payment and are going to sign the contract, but in the contract the cost of the car is no longer 525,000 rubles, but 630,000. It turns out that the salon announced the cost without taking into account the commission for the salon’s services. And here the deal becomes not so profitable, it spoils a lot of nerves, and puts the buyer on the hook for the already paid fee, which is not returned.

Advance payment scam

When meeting with a deceiver who asks for an advance payment on a card, it is quite difficult not to believe him. Such personnel are masters in communication and persuasion, they know many psychological tricks to bring the matter to an end. In addition to prepayment, there are also options with pseudo-winnings as confirmation of intentions. In such cases, the scammer calls you to announce that you have won a car, gives the address of a famous car dealership and explains how you can collect the prize. At the same time, he stipulates that before picking up the car, you will need to pay a state fee, and it would be better to do this on the way to the salon (no need to drive twice). The fraudster calls the card number and asks you to bring a payment receipt with you. As a result, it turns out that no one was waiting for you at the dealership, and the account number has nothing to do with the dealership.

Complex theatrical schemes

The main roles here are bank employees. The new owner receives a phone call and is told that the car is pledged/loaned by the bank, he urgently needs to confiscate this property, and then an offer to drive to a certain place followed by threats from the police. Often such “actors” manage to put pressure on the new owner, and he himself gives the car back. Or perhaps the car was purchased on credit. In this case, a bank security officer will call the owner and inform him that there are problems with the loan, but by a happy coincidence he is able to help for a nominal fee ($100 - $300).

Robbery

By and large, any of the types of deception mentioned above is indirectly robbery. But there are truly criminal stories with very dire consequences. Firstly, you need to be very careful when paying by card or transferring funds. Knowing the card number, mobile phone number or by looking at CVV codes, a fraudster can rob the card of a naive victim. You should also not go on test drives to an unfamiliar or remote area, as not only robbery, but also serious bodily harm may occur there. The same applies to inspecting the car or directly concluding a transaction.

Useful tips

Being aware of the topic of deception when buying a car will definitely help you avoid getting caught by scammers. It is important to remember the following:

• check the car by VIN code and STS;
• require original documents when concluding a contract;
• do not agree to dubious methods of car registration;
• do not travel to remote or unfamiliar places;
• be careful when handling the card and do not show confidential data to anyone;
• read the contract very carefully.

By following the above tips, you can purchase a used car without fear of dire consequences. Always be on the lookout!

Fraud schemes when selling and buying cars

Buying a dream car inexpensively, quickly and without deception is the dream of every car enthusiast. But the statistics look quite sad.

Fraud when buying a car is not a rare occurrence, and recently more and more such cases have been registered. Moreover, you can encounter scammers both on the real car market and on virtual Internet platforms.

For example, on Avito , which is not only the largest and regularly updated database for posting advertisements for both the primary and secondary car markets, but also a favorite target for scammers .

At the same time, fraud schemes when selling a car are constantly being improved. , telephone calls with information about a won car , which can be received immediately after confirming the data and paying a deposit to a bank card, have become widespread

Of course, this deception is the most banal and, fortunately, fewer and fewer people believe in non-existent winnings. But there are types of fraud when selling a car, in which it is quite difficult for an inexperienced person to detect an attempt to deceive.

Popular methods of fraud when selling a car on the secondary market

It should be borne in mind that all the methods of deceiving the buyer described below are very common .

You shouldn’t be too self-confident and assume that without taking certain precautions, buying the car you like will go without a hitch.

Be especially vigilant and carefully check every nuance.

Fraud when purchasing a car issued on credit or that is the subject of a pledge or encumbrance

In this case, there is a high risk of being left both without a car and without money. Criminals issue a car loan to a fake person .

The original PTS remains in the bank, and the potential buyer is presented with a duplicate issued by the traffic police. It is not difficult to obtain it; you can simply write a statement of loss.

Next, the scammers use an attractive price to find a client. After the transaction is concluded and the car is registered with the new owners, loan payments stop.

Bank employees put the car on the wanted list and place a lien on it , and it is no longer possible to find a seller to recover the money spent.

Methods of protection

under any circumstances complete a transaction without the original PTS or a certificate from the bank confirming full repayment of the loan. Fraud with STS may involve its failure to present it.

Using the STS number, you can track the actual number of owners, all encumbrances and prohibitions, and the presence of accidents.

Be sure to check your vehicle at the traffic police (on the official website) or through a special registry.

The online check procedure is free and provides information about restrictions and prohibitions imposed on cars in connection with litigation.

Data on pledged cars can be obtained on Avto.ru or the FNP website . The list of banks with which Avto.ru cooperates is presented on the portal.

The procedure for registering data on collateral is advisory for banks. Therefore, even the absence of a car on the lists does not guarantee its 100% legal purity .

Car advance payment scam

The option of the seller disappearing after making a deposit is becoming more and more common. The scammer asks for an advance payment in order to reserve the car for the buyer.

Most often, the procedure does not have documentary evidence, so the swindler resells the car to another person with impunity.

also cases of making advance payments for a non-existent car . In this case, the scammers assure the buyer that the car is located abroad and an advance payment is required for its delivery, customs clearance and registration.

As evidence, the client is provided with contracts with signatures, seals and legal addresses of the company providing such services. After receiving the advance, the seller disappears.

Methods of protection

Any transfer of funds must be confirmed by a receipt. The money must be transferred personally to the owner of the vehicle after mandatory verification of passport data.

The receipt must include all necessary information, including:

• passport details;
• car price;
• conditions for termination of the transaction, etc.

It is advisable that the document be signed by 2 competent witnesses who can subsequently confirm the fact of the transfer of money.

When purchasing a foreign car, check all the necessary information about the company on the Internet and using other methods. Make sure of the reality of the company’s existence, its stable functioning and good reputation.

If you discover any discrepancies or facts of document falsification, refuse the deal without hesitation and look for another option .

Buying a car with defects

Often, a car that looks perfectly straightened at first glance is absolutely rotten from the inside.

It is possible to ideally disguise all defects at any car service center , but in the end the buyer at an inflated price can purchase a “drowned car” or a car with a low mileage or restored after a serious accident.

Method of protection

Any defect can be identified by careful inspection at a service station . By agreement, you can divide the costs equally or assign them to the seller. In this case, it is not advisable to contact an “experienced friend”.

Fraud when buying a car at a dealership

When buying a car from a dealer or taking it out on credit , there is a risk of paying a significantly higher cost and bearing the burden of inflated overpayments.

Stock . Each car dealership regularly announces the sale of cars at significant discounts. When visiting the showroom, it turns out that this price is set for cars with a minimum configuration, and the employees begin to aggressively push for additional options at an inflated price.

As a result, the final cost of the car can significantly exceed the market average. To avoid such situations, decide on all the parameters in advance and study the offers of several competing companies.

Too attractive interest rates and ephemeral conditions for free lending. Not a single financial organization will act at a loss, which means that the overpayment is already included in the initial cost.

In addition, the interest rates significantly underestimated in advertising slogans may increase significantly by the time the contract is signed due to non-compliance with various banking requirements.

Availability of hidden fees and conditions . Often, attractive conditions hide pitfalls in the form of hidden fees, illegally charged for early repayment of payments, forced insurance policies, unreasonably inflated fees and fines for late payments.

All conditions for prolongation, early repayment of the loan, etc. must be carefully and extensively spelled out in contracts.

You can protect yourself from concluding an unprofitable contract by showing the contract to a lawyer or inviting him to conclude the transaction.

Car fraud: how to avoid being scammed by the seller

As a rule, when concluding a transaction for the sale and purchase of a vehicle, the most vulnerable party is the buyer . But there are a number of schemes in which the seller can also suffer from fraudsters.

To insure yourself against fraud, you should navigate the following situations and follow a number of simple recommendations :

1. Exercise maximum vigilance , demonstrate the car and make a deal only during daylight hours, in a fairly public place. It is advisable to carry out the inspection at a service station or in the presence of a competent specialist who can refute the buyer’s unfounded claims.
2. If the buyer has agreed to purchase a car and asks to remove it from sale, in order to avoid wasting time and reduce the risk of subsequent refusal, it is worth taking a deposit and documenting it with a receipt, which indicates the grounds for terminating the agreement. As a rule, if a deal is canceled due to the buyer’s carelessness, the deposit is a non-refundable deposit and partially compensates for the inconvenience caused and wasted time.
3. Be wary if the buyer is looking for a car that has been deregistered . Persons carrying out robbery attacks mainly look for cars that are not registered with the traffic police. Plan your test drive route in advance and take a friend with you.
4. To protect yourself from receiving counterfeit money , it is advisable to be present when it is withdrawn from your account or at an ATM, or check it with the cashier on the adding machine. The procedure is paid and amounts to 0.1% of the total amount. To avoid substitution, do not send them back to the buyer. Before signing the contract, count the bills several times.
5. When making non-cash payments , sign the contract and draw up an act of acceptance and transfer of the car only after the money has been received into the account.
6. You should not relax even after making a transaction . If the seller is engaged in criminal activity, he can pass on information to accomplices who can commit theft or robbery at a traffic light, in a traffic jam, by deliberately creating a minor accident. The best option is not to carry a large sum of money with you, but to immediately deposit it into a bank account or card.
7. The last scheme is quite rare, but it is still worth knowing about it. As a rule, scammers delay the execution of the contract at the last moment and ask you to wait a little. At this time, an accomplice appears, who also comes up with a legend with anticipation and offers to pass the time by gambling. Hobbyists easily lose a car intended for sale.

Video: How to identify scammers on AVITO when buying a car, typical advertisements, scam schemes

Punishment for fraud in the purchase and sale of a car

There is no specific article for deception when selling a car , but the very fact of taking someone else’s property through deception and abuse of trust falls under Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

The new edition of 2019 implies the fact of committing fraudulent actions not only in cases of providing knowingly false information, but also in cases of deliberate omission. Also signs of a crime are distortion of factors such as price, quality and quantity.

Punishment depends on the severity of the crime and may include:

• imposing a criminal fine of up to 500 thousand rubles;
• imprisonment for up to 6 years (in especially severe cases and damage exceeding 6 million rubles, up to 10 years).

To record the fact of fraud, you must first file a criminal complaint with the police department.

The appeal should describe in detail the method of committing fraud , indicate all known data about the criminal, describe signs (if the identity has not been established or the data is subject to doubt), and indicate the presence of witnesses.

obtain a notification coupon from the duty officer . You can also duplicate the submission of an application to the Prosecutor's Office and the bodies of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation.

How to avoid deception: fraud schemes when selling used cars

How to avoid being scammed when buying a used car? Let’s figure out what schemes and risks exist and how to identify them in a timely manner. We strongly ask you not to use fraudulent methods yourself.

Content

So, the problems could be:

• with mileage;
• PTS and other documents;
• integrity of the car (involved in an accident, defects);
• legal purity.

Scheme 1. Twisted run

Hundreds of used car sellers consider it normal to inflate mileage. This procedure is often resorted to when the mileage exceeds 200-400 thousand, when expensive maintenance is required. They also twist it at lower mileage if the car’s instrument panel is damaged after an accident. Also, a fraudulent scheme is often used when importing a car from a country where taxes are calculated taking into account the mileage accumulated over a certain time.

Alexander Morozov, auto expert, radio host:

“Usually the mileage is collected from friends at a car service center. Some craftsmen do it themselves. Often they simply remove the odometer, disassemble it and set the required numbers manually or, for example, using a screwdriver. If the odometer is electronic, connect a laptop with a special program and set the necessary indicators.”

You can learn even more about how to check the mileage of a car from our article.

Diagram 2. Problems with PTS

A vehicle passport is an important document that provides information about the vehicle’s owners. The original version will not disappear just like that: either there is no space left for a new entry (there are more than six owners), or the seller wants to deceive you.

Often a car is left without a title when it is partially or completely not cleared at customs. Also, the title is taken by the bank when the car owner pledges the car on credit or leaves it as collateral. If the seller is a car thief or knows that the car has been stolen, he will also not have the original vehicle passport - only a duplicate or fake.

However, even when buying a car with an original title, there are certain risks. For example, spare parts from stolen cars are often installed on cars with an original title. When a car has been involved in an accident, is wanted or is being pawned, it is quickly disposed of. This can be easily seen from the vehicle’s passport: each owner drove it for no more than a year. Also, for example, they can drive a problematic car without registering with the traffic police, which is often done by outbid dealers.

Diagram 3. Car with defects

Alexander Morozov, auto expert, radio host:

“Today, scammers easily disguise even serious defects in used cars, such as an engine after an accident or a transmission that has already given up its life.

For example, if the car was in a serious accident and received a lot of damage, scammers can leave small ones visible: chips, small dents, scratches, and reduce the price by 20-30 thousand. And serious defects are disguised under a new bumper, a repainted hood, etc. Thus, dishonest sellers make the buyer think that he has saved a lot, but in reality they throw a pig in a poke, into which he will have to invest half the purchase price or even more.

Also, scammers set a price noticeably lower than the market average, thereby masking heavily worn parts, bent but straightened body geometry, etc.”

Scheme 4. Car with restrictions

There are different types of restrictions: restrictions on registration actions, bans, car seizure.

A car with restrictions will also be sold below the average price on the market. Often, a car with restrictions or a ban on registration is sold by resellers or those who have utility debts, traffic police fines, loans, or minor children for whose maintenance they need to pay alimony.

Also, participants in property disputes get rid of cars with restrictions: the new owner risks losing the car, but they receive money for selling the car. The sellers of such cars only have a duplicate title in their hands; the original is in the hands of another party to the property dispute.

Scheme 5. Car with encumbrances

A car is considered such when it is pledged, loaned, seized or leased.

A mortgaged car comes in two types: a credit obligation or a guarantee of loan repayment (if you receive “quick” money), when the owner remains not the bank, but the borrower.

A credit machine is only the property of the bank. When a fraudster sells a car as collateral or a loan, he reduces the price and also does not have the original title in his hands - it is in a bank or other financial institution. There is only a duplicate. This happens when fraudsters ask traffic police officers for a duplicate vehicle passport due to the loss of the original. After selling the car, they transfer the loan obligations to the new owner.

Alexander Morozov, auto expert, radio host:

“Fraudsters often take out several cars on credit at once, remortgage them in several organizations and try to get rid of them as quickly as possible, thinking only about making money. After the sale, dishonest sellers stop paying loan obligations. Banks put cars on the wanted list and then take them away from their new owners.”

Diagram 6. Stolen car

Alexander Morozov, auto expert, radio host:

“Such cars are sold by car thieves themselves, dummies, outbid dealers, and even bona fide sellers who do not know that the car is stolen.”

A sophisticated scheme, in which the car is not formally listed as stolen, is the distillation of a car from Europe. There it is issued as a loan or lease using fake documents, the bank receives a down payment. After this, the car is driven to Russia, where they know nothing about it. The car is registered, a title is issued - it becomes an ordinary vehicle that can be easily bought and sold. The European bank that registered the car comes to its senses, but will not be able to return the car because it simply cannot find it.

The hijackers also change the chassis number. To successfully carry out the fraud, they find a car after a serious accident, remove part of the body with a number and weld it to the stolen car. They do it conscientiously - it is difficult to detect welding, even if you put the car on a lift.

Another option is to create a double car. The car is stuffed with license plates belonging to another iron horse, and documents are falsified. European cars are often taken as a “model”.

A car can even be stolen when a person goes shopping at a shopping center. They “silence” the car alarm, then read it. While the owner is confused and wastes time searching for a second set of keys, the car is quietly stolen.

Thieves can sell the car for pennies to a reseller or dismantle it for parts. Another option is to weld the car from several other “cuts”. This scheme is often used when stealing Japanese cars.

Scheme 7. Car after taxi

When using a car in a taxi, one year becomes three years. Sometimes even a 2-3 year old car needs major repairs. The suspension, engine and clutch suffer the most - the load is very heavy on them.

Cars sold after taxis are often sold at the same price as private cars. Before this, heavily worn parts are straightened, seat covers are put on, the front panel is polished, the roof is tinted in place of the checkers, and the mileage is also checked for 200-300 thousand kilometers. When communicating with the buyer, they insist that the car is their own.

Another fraudulent method is a beautiful wrapper. A new car is wrapped in yellow film, typical for taxis, the car's service life is completely exhausted, and then the film is removed. The body already looks like new. They will put the necessary numbers on the odometer, and they will falsify the service book. It is possible to understand that the car was used in a taxi only by the wear of parts, which is almost impossible to detect upon purchase.

Alexander Morozov, auto expert, radio host:

“Another fraudulent scheme is used in car dealerships that sell used cars. Taxi companies agree with them to sell “used” cars and share a percentage of sales. The third ordinary buyer of such a car will not be able to show anything to the second, because often he simply does not know what his car is.”

Diagram 8. Car in recycling

This scheme is the most harmless. There are 3 types of cars available for recycling:

• turned into “meat” after an accident;
• with exhausted resource, unused;
• the owner of which will receive a discount from the state when purchasing a new car.

Often a car is scrapped just to avoid paying taxes on it. Such machines often cost 1.5-2 times less than the market average. You can buy it, the main thing is to register it correctly.

Children's mileage and low price: what's the catch?

How to avoid running into a problem car

Fraud schemes and risks when buying a used car are different. You can easily run into an unscrupulous seller or an “iron horse” with a “sad” story. But you can learn about the pitfalls long before buying a used car. This doesn't require much effort.

For example, you can check a car using the special “Autocode” service. You can check the information yourself. To do this, you only need to know the license plate number or VIN number of the car. The service will collect information from the databases of the traffic police, tax and customs services, banks, and then issue a detailed report about the car. You will check the equipment, find out the year of manufacture, the number of fines, current information from the vehicle’s passport, facts of being involved in an accident. See if there are any encumbrances or restrictions on the car. The verification will take 5 minutes.

It will also be effective to invite an on-site inspection specialist to inspect the car. Choose a convenient time and place where you are ready to meet with the master. You must first submit an application on the website. The mobile service technician will check the information about the car. During the inspection process, the technician will evaluate how the electronics work, monitor the condition of the suspension, engine, interior, technical fluids, and check the body geometry and paintwork. The technician will evaluate handling, dynamics, steering response and other aspects.

Let's leave the scammers with their noses: How to sell a car without being deceived?

Experienced people do not see any difficulties in selling a car on their own , but those who do it for the first time are afraid of being deceived. But for both, the deal could have unpleasant consequences. Even the most vigilant and distrustful person runs the risk of being confused by the ingenuity of scammers.

This introduces additional risks into the car sales process. Knowing the basic methods of scammers and the rules for selling cars will help you protect yourself from deception.

How to sell a car without getting scammed?

Get ahead of the scammer

“Scammers” act according to a pre-determined scenario. Therefore, to protect yourself, use their own weapons - get your own step-by-step action plan. Think in advance about the entire process of selling a car, from the moment you submit an ad to completing the transaction and transferring money. Try not to deviate from your plan. Decide right away which transaction option will be acceptable for you, how much money you will be willing to “throw away” and which service center you will contact for diagnostics, if necessary. If you think carefully about your every step, then deceivers will not be able to drag you into an adventure.

Follow the law

Do not neglect the services of the people who represent the law. Involve a lawyer, notary, consultant or police officer. A lawyer present during the sale of a car will be able to take into account all the nuances of the transaction, resolve financial issues, correctly prepare and execute documents and avoid controversial situations.

Keep a clean bill

There is an unspoken rule of car sales - the price of a car should be set taking into account the discount. Fraudsters acting as buyers usually immediately agree to pay the full price without haggling. This lulls the seller’s vigilance and forces him to agree to complex payment schemes. For example, they can offer 50% before registering the car, and the second 50% in installments, based on trust. Naturally, you won't see any more money. Be wary of any unusual buyer behavior. Don’t be afraid to look suspicious; it’s better to be distrustful than to be deceived. The main thing is not to forget about your own plan.

No need for familiarity

Limit yourself to strictly business communication with the buyer; politely let him know that it will not be possible to establish friendly relations with you. As soon as the fraudster gains trust, he will immediately try to take advantage of it - he will get a big discount, agree to pay in installments, or resort to more sophisticated methods. The classic trick of scammers in such cases is a card game with a new friend. The attackers claim that the car is being looked at for a serious buyer, and while one of them is studying it, the other offers to play cards to brighten up the wait. The seller is jokingly asked to bet a wheel from the car, then some other part. As a result, he is left without a car and without money.

Get support

Never sell a car alone, be sure to take friends with you. The best option would be if your friend comes by car.

It is too dangerous to leave on foot after selling a car - criminals often track down sellers and forcefully deprive them of the money they received. They can also follow your car, so stick to busy roads, don’t stop at gas stations and shops, but go straight to the bank. Fraudsters will leave you alone once they realize you no longer have cash.

How to sell a car without fraud and problems?

An experienced fraudster may remain undetected until the very end, so you should not let your guard down, even if the entire sales process went according to your plan. Remember that the most important part of the transaction is getting the money.

It should be treated with special attention:

If possible, avoid bank transfers . This method of transferring money might be considered secure, but a person who does not understand the intricacies of banking could easily confuse a regular bank transfer with the transfer of an enclosed blank check.

It is also better to be more careful with cash . The point is not only that they can later be taken away by force, but also that instead of real money, they can slip you counterfeits or even a “doll”. If transferring cash is still necessary, try to have it take place in a public place and have one of your friends with you. You can also transfer money at a bank, where for a small fee the cashier will immediately check the authenticity of the bills.

The safest way is for the buyer to deposit cash into your bank in your personal presence. At the same time, do not touch the money under any circumstances - the buyer himself must deposit it into the cash register.

A new way to deceive car sellers has emerged

A car is an expensive item that very often attracts thieves. Of course, cars are most often simply stolen, but cases are not uncommon when an honest owner of a car decided to sell it on the secondary market, but ended up left without money or a vehicle. What methods of deception exist, and how can an owner protect himself from scammers? These questions are always relevant, especially when it comes to a prestigious model.

Sending passport photos and bank details is prohibited

The seller decided to list his car on one of the websites for sale. And then he receives the long-awaited call from a potential buyer. He became interested in the car and is ready to buy it, but, unfortunately, it is not in the city at the moment. To prevent the owner from selling the car to anyone, the buyer is even willing to leave a large deposit. But is it really safe?

To allegedly circumvent bank bans, which often limit the size of the transfer, scammers often ask car owners to send them a passport photo and full bank card details. Of course, the happy seller does not even suspect that they are trying to deceive him and happily agrees to such a dubious offer. After this, money disappears from the accounts or dubious loans are issued to the honest owner.

Is it possible to take a deposit?

Deposits during operations on the secondary automobile market are a common occurrence. It seems that there is nothing special about this, but even here the attackers found a loophole on how to deceive the seller. This method appeared relatively recently and is best analyzed using a real example.

A resident of the city of Kansk posted an advertisement for the sale of his VAZ car on one of the websites. Some time later he was disturbed by a potential buyer. The man convinced the man not to sell the car to others, and to reinforce his intentions, he decided to transfer an advance payment of 8,000 rubles to the seller. To transfer money, he asked for bank card details. Presumably the seller told him not only the number, but also the password for the Internet bank. The attacker made a transfer of 800,000 rubles from the seller’s savings account to his own plastic card. After this, the “deceiver” called the man back and asked to transfer the money back to him, explaining that he had simply mixed up the amount.

The trusting seller, of course, could not refuse such a “kind” buyer and agreed to such a large transfer. Of course, for this he needed to perform many operations. As it turned out, you can transfer an amount of no more than 15,000 rubles at a time. In the process, the man noticed that about 280,000 rubles had disappeared from his account, and only then did he suspect fraud. After money disappeared from the account, the seller immediately contacted law enforcement agencies.

Everything needs to be completed

According to the Law, the new owner of the car is obliged to register the purchased vehicle no later than 10 days from the date of purchase. In turn, the seller must come to the traffic police with a copy of the sales contract and officially deregister the sold car. If this is not done, and the new owner of the car does not appear at the traffic police, then the car will be registered with the seller. What does this mean?

Everything is very simple. If the new owner of the vehicle violates traffic rules, for example, speed limits, etc., then all fines will fall on the shoulders of the former owner. And he will have to pay the bills. Of course, such injustice can be challenged in court, but this will take a lot of effort and time.

It is very easy to protect yourself from such unpleasant situations. It is enough to come to the traffic police to deregister the sold vehicle. It is also not recommended to sell a car on a checkpoint road without a date, which, by the way, is very common. Then the new owner will be really limited by deadlines. It’s better to sell the car with a notary certification.

The potential buyer demands to see a second key

This is also a common scheme for deceiving car sellers. When carrying out such an operation, fraudsters usually pose as potential buyers and make an appointment with the owner to inspect the car. But this is not just a meeting, as you might guess. In advance, they ask the owner to take two keys for inspection at once. Often, the naive owner simply does not ask himself why this is needed, and the happy one (in anticipation of a quick sale) agrees.

The scammers come to the meeting in small groups. This makes it easier to carry out all the machinations, because one person is simply not able to keep track of everyone. During the inspection, one person communicates with the seller, a second person, under the guise of a specialist, looks at the paintwork, the engine or studies the documents, and a third person turns that same second key in his hands. But it doesn’t just spin, it takes data from the built-in chip.

All! It is done. After this, potential buyers decide to “think” about the purchase and go into hiding. And what a shock the seller experiences when one morning he simply does not find his car under the windows.

Exchange with risks

Of course, you shouldn’t assume that every exchange transaction is dangerous. However, scammers have also found a way to deceive naive buyers. The scheme is very simple. A pure exchange always occurs under one agreement and no more! The exchange between the seller and the scammers always involves the conclusion of two contracts. And when a seller gives his car into the hands of “deceivers”, but receives nothing in return, you shouldn’t be surprised. Moreover, there is practically no point in challenging such an agreement, since its clauses are formally fully complied with.

Inspection in a deserted place

The simplest, crudest and oldest method of deception during a car inspection is a simple theft. In this case, the theft is carried out right from under the nose of the official owner. As a rule, scammers make appointments in deserted and remote places.

Then everything happens very simply and quickly. Potential buyers are asked to inspect the vehicle and drive it. Of course, the seller gives his consent. At this point, the car thieves simply leave the inspection site, and the owner has no choice but to contact the police to file a report about the theft of the vehicle.

Installment payment

Such a dubious operation as installment payment to a potential buyer is the very last thing when selling a car. Moreover, lawyers believe that no honest buyer would ever offer the seller to give money for the car in parts.

If the owner of a car hears such an offer, then he should immediately refuse it, because the lack of funds is the problem of the person who wanted the car, and not the one who is selling it. You should not agree to a deal with such conditions, even if the potential buyer offers to formalize the installment plan, that is, to have it certified by a notary. In addition, not a single competent specialist will sign such a dubious agreement.

And what's the bottom line?

Selling a car is always a very difficult issue. And you shouldn’t think that there are only dishonest sellers who are trying to sell their rusty “horse” at a higher price. There are plenty of honest people on the secondary market, as well as scammers.

To avoid deception and simple theft, you should always exercise caution and not trust all potential buyers. You need to be especially careful when it comes to money. Even if the seller is confident in the buyer’s intentions and considers the transaction clean, it is always necessary to follow through and double-check all actions. Even when money is being transferred, there is no need to be shy about counting the money directly in the presence of the buyer, because it even happens that scammers simply pay the owner of the so-called. “doll” (at the top and bottom are genuine banknotes, and in the middle of the stack are sheets of blank paper).