Buying a car on the Internet: a bad idea

Car, backhoe, mini digger… If you’re looking for a vehicle or a piece of machinery on the internet, beware of ads with very low prices.

Description of the fraud

After having found the car of your dreams at an excellent price, you contact the person who posted the listing. They respond immediately with a photocopy of their ID, explaining how they are the child of the owner who lives in another city in Europe, and that they prefer to communicate via email rather than through the website.

Straightaway they tell you that there are many people interested in the listing and that, as such, the first who puts down a payment of the half price of the car will get it. You wire transfer the money to the owner's bank account (who supposedly lives in yet another country), and you receive no more information. You contact the listing website, which informs you that they cannot be held liable, especially as the transaction took place over email.

Methods used by fraudsters

  • Proof of ownership (such as photos of the vehicle, a photocopy of the seller’s ID etc.) is designed to gain your trust.
  • You also feel a sense of urgency: if you don't transfer the money immediately, you're going to miss out on a fantastic opportunity!
  • Multiple countries are often implicated to make it more difficult to track the fraudster. For example: the seller is based in Germany, hold French citizenship, and has a Portuguese bank account.
  • The website of the so-called seller often usurps the contact details of a real company. The fake company may have another website or no website at all. A simple search on the internet with these URL’s allows you to avoid these traps.
  • The seller redirects you to the website of a pseudo transport company: the website is poorly made, often with several addresses in Europe. This transport company is of course non-existent or displays usurped contact details.

Advice to avoid the fraud:

  • Don’t listen to a seller who emphasises the popularity of the listing. Take time to fully evaluate the information about the listing. If a seller pressures you, it can often be due to an ulterior motive.
  • Ask for a detailed description of the car, and avoid sellers who respond in vague terms or evade your questions.
  • Verify the address of the photos of the car. After looking up the car online, you could find that the photo’s address actually corresponds to the address of an ad from another seller or private person.
  • Be wary of listings that seem too good to be true. Ask yourself if the listing makes sense, and compare prices on other websites.
  • Don’t immediately trust a photocopy of an ID – it could easily be the ID of the last victim or an edited card from someone else.
  • Be wary when there is a multitude of interlocutors and countries. This allows fraudsters tocover their tracks.
  • Pay by credit card rather than by bank transfer, which is irrevocable. If the person you are in contact with asks you to go through an unsecured ‘trusted third party’, be wary and choose known services offering verifiable guarantees.
  • NEVER send a photocopy of the front and back of your ID, or your card information.

What to do if you have already paid

  • A wire transfer is, in principle, irreversible, but you should still contact your bank to find out if there are any possible solutions or options of recourse to recall the money.
  • If you’ve paid via an alternative payment method, immediately contact the service provider to dispute the payment.
  • Once the payment has gone through, check if you can receive a refund.
  • File a complaint with the police. If you do not know the name of the fraudulent interlocutor, you can file your complaint against X.
  • Market places and websites which show advertisements and connect sellers and consumers cannot, in principle, be held responsible in case of complaints brought up between the tenant and the owner, unless they were aware of previous complaints and allowed the listing to remain. Consult the website’s general sale conditions to see if they propose any solutions in case of a problem.

Reporting fraud and the obligations of online platforms

If an online platform becomes aware of the sale of an illegal product or service by a seller, it must inform buyers. It must also provide them with the identity of the seller or service provider and the solutions available to them. Failure to do so may result in a fine of up to 6% of the company’s annual worldwide profit. This obligation is enforced since 2024 by the European Digital Services Act (DSA). It applies to all European online platforms or platforms targeting European consumers covered by the DSA.

The DSA also makes it easier to report a potential fraudulent ad to the platform. 

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Innovation Council and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Executive Agency (EISMEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.