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Criminals are using eBay to sell stolen and cloned cars, a BBC investigation has revealed.
The vehicles were being sold in Greater Manchester via at least three accounts after having their details switched with legitimate cars.
Among the victims was a retired police officer who lost £17,000 buying a Mercedes from a seller in Rochdale.
He said he reported the incident to the police, but no action was taken. Police said the decision is being reviewed.
Former police officer Graham Murray lost his money after buying a Mercedes C-class in Rochdale two months ago, leaving him "devastated".
He said he reported the case to police and has questioned why the fraudulent eBay sellers have not yet been caught.
It's safer to buy used Yugos.
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Cloned Cars Sold in Greater Manchester Ebay Scam
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(Score: 2) by inertnet on Tuesday May 09 2017, @01:39PM (5 children)
In Europe it's still very common to pay in cash for used cars.
(Score: 2, Disagree) by ledow on Tuesday May 09 2017, @01:54PM (4 children)
Common or not, it's stupid.
And it's not that common to drop £17k (a year's wages for some people) in cash.
Hell, you can't even WITHDRAW that amount of cash from a bank in one transaction without prior appointments and security checks (and now they warn you if they think what you're withdrawing for may be a scam, according to a BBC News article about the elderly being scammed).
If nothing else, meeting a stranger on a road with £17k in cash on an arranged meeting is likely to see you mugged. You'd have to be a damn idiot.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Arik on Tuesday May 09 2017, @02:05PM (1 child)
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by inertnet on Tuesday May 09 2017, @03:42PM
Right, what I do i when I want to buy a used car after initial inspection, is make a small down payment and agree to have the car inspected by a specialized organization (e.g. DEKRA in Germany). The agreement is written down and signed by both parties. If the inspection is successful, I return to the seller (not alone) to transfer the car to my name and make the payment. This process can take several weeks. This also gives me time to let the bank know that I'm planning a sizable withdrawal.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 09 2017, @05:20PM
£17k ($21,980) in cash could also easily get "civil forfeited" in the USA. All the cop has to do is get some weed from the evidence locker and claim he found it in your car.
If I had that much cash on me, I'd be more paranoid of civil forfeiture than any mugger. I can at least use force to defend myself from a mugger if necessary.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 09 2017, @06:49PM
Some people don't let all their money go through some rat ass den of thieves (banks). i can also protect myself from mugging like a grown man. Not some pig calling slave. You try to mug me and i'll turn your head into a pink cloud.