Safety & Security centre

Top tips to buy a vehicle safely

Buying a vehicle is safe and easy, as long as you follow these quick and simple steps.

1. Payment

2. Vehicle history check

3. Visit the seller

4. Price

5. Paperwork

Top tips to stay safe online

Buying a vehicle can be a safe and straightforward process, as long as you take these few simple steps to protect yourself.

Protect your PC

• Ensure security software is up-to-date, including anti-virus protection, anti-spyware software and a firewall
• Set a secure password for your Wi-Fi connection using a combination of letters and numbers
• Block spam emails and use an up-to-date web browser
• Encrypt your wireless network to protect against eavesdroppers and freeloaders
• Visit getsafeonline.org for more information on protecting your PC

Avoiding scams

If a vehicle is offered at a much cheaper price, ask yourself why. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

• Make sure the seller has a valid address and telephone number – be wary of mobile phone numbers, always visit the seller at home and never buy without seeing and driving the vehicle first
• Be wary of requests for upfront payments or private information, a false sense of urgency or unnecessary details – it could be a vehicle export scam
• Never wire money abroad as it is often a fraudulent seller

Protect your identity and privacy

• Avoid identity theft by using an up-to-date web browser and blocking bogus emails with a spam filter
• Use a secure password, with a mix of words, letters, numbers and punctuation, and avoid using names of loved ones or other easy-to-guess passwords
• be careful about the personal information you give away online (such as on blogs and social networking sites)

What to do if you think you’re a victim

If you think you’ve been targeted by a fraudster, contact Auto Trader immediately by emailing reportthisad@autotrader.co.za or calling 0860 60 50 50.

Avoiding fraudulent sellers

Fraudulent adverts are placed by thieves posing as sellers, often involving a hoax vehicle at a bargain price, a faulty phone number and demands to transfer money abroad.

Typical scenario:

• The phone number is either faulty or diverting to voicemail
• During email correspondence, the seller will say they are unable to use the phone due to illness or because they are away on business or moved abroad
• The seller will ask you to wire a large deposit or the full price of the vehicle to them before creating an excuse to avoid releasing the vehicle, telling you to transfer more money or becoming impossible to contact

Be cautious if:

• A vehicle is much cheaper than its market value
• If a seller cannot give you a landline telephone number
• If the advert or subsequent emails are full of spelling mistakes and poor grammar

How Auto Trader can help: Useful contacts

Top tips to avoid fraudulent sellers:

1. Payment:

2. Price:

3. Visit the seller:

4. History check:

5. Paperwork:

What to do if you think you’re a victim

If you think you’ve been targeted by a fraudster, contact Auto Trader immediately by emailing customerservice@autotrader.co.za or calling 0860 60 50 50

Avoiding fraudulent buyers

Fraudulent buyers are thieves who pose as potential purchasers. Find out how to avoid being caught by scammers with our simple guide.

Never let a buyer test drive your vehicle alone.

There is a risk they won’t come back, even if they have left their keys with you as security – they could belong to another stolen vehicle.

Make sure all test drivers have valid driving licences and suitable insurance cover because you could be liable for any accidents they may have.

Fraudsters trick victims into leaving them alone with their vehicle – often by distracting the seller with a phone call or a request to see something – as soon as the seller leaves the vehicle, the thief drives away.

The Police advise vehicle sellers to:

• Keep hold of their keys at all times
• Avoid leaving their keys in the ignition

Taking payment

However you take payment, you should always take care.

• Cash – ask for the cash to be handed to you in a bank, where the notes can be checked for forgeries and paid in immediately
• Cheques – never let the buyer take your vehicle until the funds have appeared in your bank account as the cheque could be forged, cancelled or stolen
• Online bank transfers – one of the safest ways to pay as it avoids handling large amounts of cash and the problems associated with cheques

How Auto Trader can help:
Fraudulent payments
Useful contacts

What to do if you think you’re a victim

If you think you’ve been targeted by a fraudster, contact Auto Trader immediately by emailing reportthisad@autotrader.co.za or calling 0860 60 50 50.

Fraudulent payments

When you’re selling a vehicle it’s important you know how to spot the signs of a fraudulent payment.

Remember:

• Never send money abroad
• Never pay a large deposit
• Don’t hand over your vehicle until you’re satisfied the funds are in your account – check with your bank that you can withdraw funds safely on the cheque
• Don’t be pressured into releasing your vehicle – a genuine buyer will not mind waiting until the funds has cleared

Forged bankers’ cheques

Sellers should be aware of the possibility of receiving a forged bankers’ cheque.

Typical scenario:

1. You receive a cheque from the buyer
2. Your bank informs you the cheque was forged days later
3. The buyer has already taken possession of the vehicle and you’re left without payment

Don’t release your vehicle until you have confirmation the cheque is genuine and has been paid by the buyer’s bank. Check with your bank to ensure the cheque has been ‘given value’ rather than merely ‘cleared’.

Be particularly wary of buyers who view your vehicle after the banks have closed and produce a bank cheque already made out for the full asking price.

Vehicle export scams

One of the most common online scams to affect all kinds of internet users is the Advance Fee Fraud, which encourages sellers to transfer “shipping fees” to “buyers” abroad.

The scam usually involves a fraudster gaining the victim’s trust over a period of several emails, convincing sellers they genuinely want to buy, sending a fake cheque to cover the cost before insisting on money for “shipping fees”.

A number of sellers advertising cars have been contacted in this way, but the emails are easy to spot. Typically they will:

• Originate from webmail accounts, such as Yahoo or Hotmail
• Be poorly written, or look as though they’re being sent in bulk with the seller’s vehicle details crudely pasted in
• Encourage sellers to use money transfer services such as Western Union

The scenarios vary, but usually follow this pattern:

1. The “buyer” arranges for a cheque to be sent from a third party to the seller for the asking price of the car – plus extra to cover the cost of shipping abroad
2. The seller pays the cheque into their bank and is pressured by the fraudster into sending the “shipping fee” abroad immediately via a legitimate electronic money transfer company
3. A few days later, the seller will be informed by the bank that the cheque was a fake
4. The seller hears no more from the fraudster

If you receive an email which you believe to be from a fraudster:

• Forward it to the abuse department of the sender’s email provider
• Use your email software to block further emails from the sender
• Do not respond
• Forward it to the Auto Trader Customer Service team – reportthisad@autotrader.co.za

Email and text scams

Auto Trader will never ask you for personal information such as website log-in details or credit card numbers in an email, and will never charge advertisers to make changes to adverts.

We do occasionally contact customers to ask for payment details over the phone. If you’re unsure about a call, don’t provide your card details and call Customer Care on 0860 60 50 50.

Never supply personal information via email, even if you’re sent emails claiming to be from internationally-recognised organisations.

How Auto Trader can help:
Top tips to staying safe online

Common scenarios scammers invent in order to gain victim’s log-in, credit card or other personal details include:

• Vehicle sellers are sent a duplicate of their advert, with a link to a bogus version of Auto Trader’s sign-in page. Once supplied, the details will be used to change the advert’s description and contact details.
• Sellers are contacted by scammers claiming to be from a credit card company’s fraud department calling about unusual purchases. They will then ask for the card’s details in order to make a refund.

If you are contacted about a potential prize which asks for your credit card or bank details, do not respond and forward the email to customerservice@autotrader.co.za

Other scenarios scammers may use to entice users to provide personal details include:

• A claimed lottery win
• Notification of potential account suspension
• Calls from scammers requesting credit card details for refunds
• Emails detailing offers for Auto Trader customers, with a full refund if your car is not sold within three weeks
• Emails purporting to be from a Facebook-type ‘friend’ prompting you to read what they’ve said about you

Auto Trader is not affiliated with any escrow or payment services – such as PayPal – or payment protection services.

Auto Trader isn’t involved in the process of selling your vehicle and does not support escrow services, such as PayPal. If a buyer offers to use an escrow service, take the same precautions as with any other payment. Never forward money to sellers to cover shipping or any other costs the seller claims they need to cover.

Only sign in to your account via the Auto Trader website, not from links in emails. If you’re already signed in and are asked to sign in again after clicking on a link from an email, think twice. If in doubt, type www.autotrader.co.za into your web browser and sign in as usual.

If you receive a phone call asking for your credit card details or other personal information, end the call and call Auto Trader’s Customer Service team on0860 60 50 50 immediately.

Text message premium rate scam

Be wary of text messages expressing an interest in your vehicle, but providing excuses as to why they can’t call. Check any numbers you’re asked to call and avoid premium rate lines.

The cost of calls varies but can cost several rands per minute, with calls from mobiles costing more.

Auto Trader does occasionally contact customers to ask for payment details over the phone. If you’re unsure about anything, don’t provide your card details and call Customer Service on 0860 60 50 50.

How Auto Trader can help:
Useful contacts
Top tips to staying safe online

Clocked, stolen or unsafe cars

If you’re buying a vehicle there’s a risk it could have a hidden past. Find out how to avoid buying a stolen or illegal car.

Stolen vehicles

The onus is on buyers to ensure their next vehicle isn’t a stolen one. Even if a vehicle is bought in good faith, the police can seize it and if it has been bought on finance, the lender can still demand payment.
Stolen vehicles are usually passed on with their identity changed, but there are some golden rules to help reduce the risk of buying a ‘hot’ vehicle.

• Always invest in a history check – it’ll immediately reveal if a car is stolen or written-off
• See an original copy of the Natis registration document and check it carries its Department of Transport watermark
• Stolen vehicles are often sold without the Natis document, with the seller claiming it has been sent to the Traffic Department for updating – it may be the case, but there’s no way of checking
• Check the number plate and Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) match those recorded on the Natis Document

How Auto Trader can help:
Check a car’s history
Check a bike’s history
Check a van’s history

Clocking

A clocked vehicle is one where an unscrupulous seller has ‘wound back’ the mileage recorded on the odometer.
That means vehicles with high mileage could be passed-off as having a low mileage to an unwitting buyer. But spotting a clocked vehicle can be straightforward with little more than a bit of detective work.

• Check the mileage appearing on the odometer in the instrument cluster tallies with its service history and old Road Worthy Certificates
• Ensure the numbered barrels are aligned correctly on analogue odometers
• Check the general condition matches its age and mileage – worn seats and steering wheel or lots of stone chips can point to high mileage
• If it has patchy or no service history, a history check can help verify the mileage
• Contact previous owners to verify the recorded mileage when they sold the vehicle

How Auto Trader can help:
Check a car’s history
Check a bike’s history
Check a van’s history

Vehicle ringing

A ‘Ringer’ is a stolen vehicle with its identification numbers replaced by a set from another written-off model and will be supplied with bogus documentation.
Ringers have their VIN replaced, so look for evidence of tampering around the VIN plates and etchings.
The VIN is on a small plate riveted under the bonnet and stamped on the vehicle’s chassis, under the carpet beside the front seat. In addition, the VIN number will sometimes appear in the door pillar or at the base of the windscreen.
If you buy a ringer, in legal terms it doesn’t belong to you, and will be returned to the owner or insurance company if and when it is traced back to you.

How to avoid buying a ringer:

• Ensure the Natis registration document is genuine with a Department of Transport watermark running through it
• Check for tampering around the VIN numbers
• Make sure there is a satisfactory amount of paperwork

Cut and Joins

A cut and join is where the remains of two or more vehicles have been welded together to create a ‘new’ model.
The structural integrity of such vehicles is seriously compromised, and can lead to serious injuries in a crash.

• Examine the windscreen pillars and the middle section of the vehicle for signs of welding and pull away carpets and trims for signs of hidden welds
• Look for poor paintwork or colours that don’t match properly and check for overspray on glass seals and trim
• Watch out for badly fitting or mismatched trim
• A history check will highlight if it has been stolen or written-off – a cut and shut could be both

How Auto Trader can help:
Check a car’s history
Check a bike’s history
Check a van’s history

Cloned vehicles

A vehicle which wears the stolen number plates from an identical model is known as a clone.
Clones are not necessarily stolen vehicles, with some criminals using stolen number plates to avoid parking or speeding fines, leaving the owner of the genuine vehicle to pick up the bill.
Many owners are unaware they’re a victim until fines begin arriving, and the onus is on them to prove their innocence.

• Always check the number plate and Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) matches those appearing on the logbook
• Check for signs of damaged number plates, or evidence they have been recently removed or replaced
• A history check can provide clues to identify a clone, such as colour, trim specification and – in some cases – mileage

Useful contacts

There are plenty of organisations which can help you if things go wrong, but if you have an experience – good or bad – let us know at customerservice@autotrader.co.za

Crime Line

You can SMS your tip off to 32211.

South African Police Force

You can call 10111 or visit www.saps.gov.za to report scams

Vehicle Check

Visit www.transunion.co.za to purchase a vehicle check report.

The Motor Industry Ombudsman

The Motor Industry Ombudsman or MIO is a totally independent institution that focuses on the resolution of disputes where a deadlock has been reached between the motor and related industries and their customers. The Motor Industry Ombudsman therefore strives to contribute to the continuous improvement of customer care in the motor industry to the benefit of all parties concerned. Visit www.miosa.co.za