The internet is a terrific resource to have at your fingertips. Unfortunately, because it is so easy to remain anonymous, it is a breeding ground for unscrupulous individuals looking to take advantage of regular people. One area where fraud seems to run rampant, is in the online auto sales industry. For the most part it seems that private sales are among the riskiest to take part in. That’s not to say that all private internet auto sales are a fraud, but it is important to know what to look for when you decide to go shopping.

Individuals Being Duped Every Hour

In a recent article, CBS Moneywatch says that every hour an online car shopper loses $1,000 due to a fraudulent seller. This is surprising, considering that most individuals are very cautious about buying large ticket items online. The common theme in most of these cases, is that the seller provides some form of false security. The most common example of this would be using a service like eBay’s Vehicle Purchase Protection. The fraudulent sellers say they are using this protection plan, even though the sale hadn’t originated on the eBay website. Sometimes the seller will even use a live chat to add credibility to the sale.

Once the seller has the buyer’s trust, they request the money be wired, but the buyer will never see the car. So how can you make sure that you never fall for this type of scam? Well you should always be cautious, and buy from reputable online marketplaces. In addition to that, there are some specific things you want to look for.

Things To Keep In Mind

• If a seller is trying to rush the sale, this is a good indication that something is wrong. Never let your excitement for purchasing a new vehicle get in the way of your logic. If something seems to good to be true…it is.
• If the price seems to good to be true, insist on seeing the car in person. Just think of it from their perspective, why would you want to sell a car for considerably less than it is worth. In most cases there is either something seriously wrong with the car, or the car simply doesn’t exist.
• If a seller wants to complete the sale of a car on different website than the car was offered for sale, this should be an immediate red flag. At this point one must simply walk away from the sale, no matter how good the deal is.

Just because there are a few bad apples out there, doesn’t mean you still can’t get a fantastic deal on a car online. It’s simply important to understand that there are individuals out there that can’t be trusted, and you should know how to identify them. Remember to always see the vehicle in person if possible, and never wire money to anybody if you are not comfortable.

Citations for this post:

• Stacey Bradford, Scam Artists Target Online Car Shoppers, moneywatch.bnet.com, 9/8/2011