Rogue buyers leave car owners in lurch

A number of car owners in Galway have been left empty-handed after bank drafts from ‘buyers’ proved to be fakes.
In the past six months, at least four cars have been ‘bought’ by scammers in Galway, or were recovered by Gardaí here.
Gardaí have issued a warning to anybody selling their vehicles on classified websites to be extra careful.
A spokesperson explained: “Contact is made expressing an interest in viewing and then purchasing the vehicle. The criminals also place adverts seeking ‘drivers wanted’ on websites, who can unwittingly become part of the scam.
“The applicants are then asked to meet for an interview in pubs, hotel receptions or car parks. These drivers are instructed by phone to meet prospective sellers to view the vehicles.
“The criminals make arrangements over the phone without personally viewing the vehicle to purchase same using a bank draft.
“This transaction will take place in the evening time, usually a Friday evening. The draft is handed over and the driver receives the vehicle and vehicle registration certificate. The seller is told the buyer is in the motor trade and given an RF105 (Change of ownership to Motor dealer) form with details of a fictitious garage.
“The vehicle is already re-advertised on the internet below the market value to attract attention. It is then immediately resold, sometimes within hours, to an innocent purchaser.”
A number of arrests and searches have been carried out, but Gardaí hope that the public will take on board the advice to only accept bank drafts that are verified by the banks as genuine.
“If they are about to purchase a vehicle themselves consider a method of payment that is traceable,” the Garda spokesperson said.
Nationally, 78 cars (out of 79) have been recovered in the past three years after being purchased with fake bank drafts and sold onto unsuspecting buyers for cash. So far this year, there have been 24 cases – an increase on all of last year.

For more on this story, see the Galway City Tribune.