TOP 5 fraudulent schemes when buying a used car
Content
A huge number of used cars are sold on the market today. However, when it comes to buying, trying to find a well-groomed, well-maintained car becomes a real headache. One of the main problems in the used car market is that buyers cannot quickly identify common used car fraud schemes. Some used cars may look great on the outside, but detailed inspection reveals many hidden defects. This will inevitably lead to unexpected and costly repairs in the future.
Avtotachki.com teamed up with carVertical to offer recent research to help you understand the five most common scams in the secondary market today.
Methodology of this study
Data source: A study of the most common used car frauds was carried out by carVertical. The carVertical Vehicle History Checker service collects a wealth of information about individual vehicles, including records from national and private registries, insurance companies and stolen vehicle databases in many countries. Therefore, all these sources were used for this study.
Study period: carVertical analyzed vehicle history reports from April 2020 to April 2021.
Data sampling: More than 1 million vehicle history reports were analyzed.
Countries: This study was conducted using data from Croatia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Hungary, Estonia, Finland, France, Belgium, Belarus, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Sweden.
Based on the report carVertical, the following types of fraud are most common when buying a used car:
- Damage to the car in an accident. 31 percent of the inspected cars had damage that the seller concealed;
- Twisted run. 16.7 percent of inspected cars had inappropriate mileage (every sixth car);
- Sale of stolen cars. there were several hundred cars from the list of investigated cars that were considered stolen;
- The car was rented or operated as a taxi (2000 cars out of the total);
- Any other pitfalls. Usually sellers try to get rid of problem vehicles as soon as possible, so the cost of such vehicles is often underestimated.
1 The car was damaged in an accident
As traffic in cities becomes denser, drivers are more likely to get into accidents. A study by carVertical found that nearly a third (31%) of all vehicles checked through this platform were damaged in an accident.
When choosing a car, it is recommended to check the gaps between body elements. If some of the clearances are very different, it could indicate damaged parts or cheap, low-quality body repairs. Fraudsters and unscrupulous sellers try to hide such defects, so the buyer needs to carefully examine the body elements close up.
2 Twisted mileage
In the carVertical study, one in six cars (16,7%) had rolled mileage. Used mileage scams are very common among dishonest dealers who import used cars and try to sell them with understated odometer readings. Coiled mileage is especially common in diesel vehicles. For more information on how to identify twisted mileage, read here.
One-time odometer correction is a cheap service on the black market, but it can increase the value of a car by 25%. And even more - for especially demanded options.
It is quite easy to find the unwound run. Vehicle wear can speak for itself. If the seats, steering wheel, or gear shifter look badly worn, but mileage is low, this is one of the first signs that you should look for another car.
3 Stolen car.
Buying a stolen car is perhaps the worst thing that can happen to a car buyer. Usually, in this case, vehicles will be confiscated from the unfortunate new owners, but getting the money back can be difficult, often unrealistic. Over the past 12 months, carVertical has identified several hundred stolen vehicles, saving customers significant money (and time).
4 The car was used as a taxi (or rented)
Some drivers do not even suspect that their car was previously used as a taxi or was rented out. Such cars usually have high mileage. And - due to operation, mainly in urban conditions (where there are much more traffic jams, congestions) - they are already sufficiently worn out. And they were usually served not very well, often saving on spare parts and consumables.
Last year, carVertical's vehicle history checks revealed about XNUMX vehicles that were previously operated as taxis or rented. Such cars can sometimes be identified by the color of the paint, but especially diligent dealers can even repaint the car.
The Vehicle History Checker Report is a much more reliable solution for identifying such vehicles, which are definitely best avoided when buying.
5 Car price is too low
Used car buyers should avoid suspiciously cheap vehicles, although the temptation is too great for many. If the price is too good to be true, the buyer should be especially careful to check the car, also comparing it with similar options in other car markets.
Although at first glance this option may look very tempting, in practice it may turn out that the car is imported from abroad and has twisted mileage or has serious hidden defects. As a result, it is better for the buyer to immediately stop and look for another car. However, a low price is not necessarily a sign of a scam. Sometimes people need to urgently sell a car for one reason or another. Although in most cases, a low price is a good reason to check the car's history online. The test results will help identify the reason why the price is so low.
Conclusion
Buying a reliable used car is not an easy task. However, by using an online vehicle history checker service, buyers can see the real picture of how the vehicle has been used in the past. And avoid common scams. Of course, the buyer of a used car should not be gullible - this will help to avoid deception, which will save you from unforeseen expenses in the future.
