Possible car sale scam - Need advice !!

I have had another 2 enquiries exactly the same memo so thought i would add the emails to the thread so they can be spotted WHEN WILL THEY STOP!!!!-

[email protected]
and
[email protected]

Can you explain why a phone number starting with +44 070 is bad?

Even though they start with 44, which makes them look like UK numbers, phone numbers starting with 44 -070 are not real UK phone numbers. They are actually redirect, or "follow me" numbers. They are typically more expensive to call.

When you call a 44-070 number, the call is immediately forwarded to another phone, whose number you will not see. That phone can be anywhere in the world. Anyone can get one of these phone numbers online, without ever traveling to UK, and can program the redirection over the internet. Scammers in Africa, Malaysia, and other countries who are pretending to be in UK use these phone numbers.

When you receive a job offer supposedly from UK, or you are corresponding with someone who says they are in UK but give you one of these numbers, it should immediately set off some major red flags.

Just received this email after listing a car in auto trader

Thanks for getting back to me i have check the listing and am okay with it so I'm satisfied with the Price....

Thanks
Emma Conlon

I'm listing a car for sale on autotrader and just got the exact same email from [email protected], after replying to their first enquiry:

What's the present condition? Is there any condition not mentioned in the ad?

It didn't seem quite right, so I searched for their email address and found this useful website.
Just out of interest, how is this scam likely to proceed?

Welcome to Scamwarners tocasa.

He'll ask you extra questions and perhaps require extra photos and then ask that you remove the advert from the ad site.

Most frequently he'll ask you set up a Paypal account if you haven't one already. He'll state that he can't view or pick up the car himself and he'll mention that he'll get a carrier to pick up the vehicle. He'll then send you a 'spoofed' Paypal message and he'll ask you to pay the fake carrier his fee by Western Union or Moneygram pointing out he's sent extra to cover it.

He relies on the fact that he's destroyed any chance of you selling the car to a legitimate buyer, and mucked you around so much, you won't spot the faults and risks in his arrangement.

Getting you to pay the carrier is actually a silly idea as he could do it himself, but that's the essence of the scam, and should alert you to the fact that his initial payment is an illusion.

You can usually verify potential buyers, or at least weed out the obvious scammers, by insisting on getting their phone number to speak to them personally. You can then check that they are located where they say they are, and speaking to them will tell you a lot about them. Watch out for UK redirect numbers 44 (0)70 much used by scammers.

Frankly anyone buying a car 'sight unseen' is either an idiot or a scammer. I wouldn't want to deal with either.

This has been posted before but I just want to confirm that it's still running as at 20/5/2013 - this is in reponse to my car ad on Autotrader...

Thanks for getting back to me i have check the listing and am okay with it so I'm satisfied with the Price. I really want this to be a surprise for my friend so i wont let him know anything about it until it gets delivered to him .i have a shipping agent that do pick up for me, they will be the one to pick it up for me after the payment has been made to your account. I will be paying you through PayPal which is a fast, safe and reliable method of payment. .If you don't have a paypal account just logon to www.paypal.com and setup your paypal account, after setting up your paypal account you locate the request money button located at the top of your paypal account home page, use it to request money directly from my paypal account which is [email protected] once I receive your money request from paypal, I will submit payment to you immediately via paypal asap.

Thanks
Emma Conlon.

Welcome to Scamwarners tocasa.

He'll ask you extra questions and perhaps require extra photos and then ask that you remove the advert from the ad site.

Most frequently he'll ask you set up a Paypal account if you haven't one already. He'll state that he can't view or pick up the car himself and he'll mention that he'll get a carrier to pick up the vehicle. He'll then send you a 'spoofed' Paypal message and he'll ask you to pay the fake carrier his fee by Western Union or Moneygram pointing out he's sent extra to cover it.

He relies on the fact that he's destroyed any chance of you selling the car to a legitimate buyer, and mucked you around so much, you won't spot the faults and risks in his arrangement.

Getting you to pay the carrier is actually a silly idea as he could do it himself, but that's the essence of the scam, and should alert you to the fact that his initial payment is an illusion.

You can usually verify potential buyers, or at least weed out the obvious scammers, by insisting on getting their phone number to speak to them personally. You can then check that they are located where they say they are, and speaking to them will tell you a lot about them. Watch out for UK redirect numbers 44 (0)70 much used by scammers.

Frankly anyone buying a car 'sight unseen' is either an idiot or a scammer. I wouldn't want to deal with either.

Many thanks for the detailed reply. This forum is a wealth of useful information.

Evening all,

I just had the same scam while trying to sell my car, here's the conversation:

Blue (me), black ("Emma")

On 7 Jun 2013, at 18:18, Emma Conlon <[email protected]> wrote:

Thanks for your mail, my shipper who is also a motor trader will be coming for the pick up and will provide the details and sign every necessary details needed to be sign.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To: Emma Conlon <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, 7 June 2013, 18:16:11
Subject: Re: Ford focus

Hi Emma,

That would be fine, however I would require the full name and address of both yourself, as the buyer, and also your friend as he will be the person the car is transferred to on the v5. I will not release the car until payment is confirmed into my bank account following your transfer from PayPal (3-5 working days).

The courier you wish to use must be able to provide a statement of insurance protection for the vehicle and a written receipt to protect both you as the buyer and me as the seller in case anything happened to the car in transit.
Please email me back to confirm whether this is acceptable and I will then make the money request via PayPal.

Regards
Pete

On 7 Jun 2013, at 17:18, Emma Conlon <[email protected]> wrote:

Thanks for getting back to me i have check the listing and am okay with it so I'm satisfied with the Price. I really want this to be a surprise for my friend so i wont let him know anything about it until it gets delivered to him .i have a shipping agent that do pick up for me, they will be the one to pick it up for me after the payment has been made to your account. I will be paying you through PayPal which is a fast, safe and reliable method of payment. .If you don't have a PayPal account just logon to www.paypal.com and setup your PayPal account, after setting up your PayPal account you locate the request money button located at the top of your PayPal account home page, use it to request money directly from my PayPal account which is [email protected] once I receive your money request from PayPal, I will submit payment to you immediately via PayPal asap.
Thanks
Emma Conlon.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, 7 June 2013, 17:09:26
Subject: Ford focus

Hi Emma,
It's in excellent condition both inside and out. I've just had both bumpers resprayed as they had a couple of scratches on and a stone chip, there was also a bit of rust break through on the drivers rear door corner, which again I had sanded back and resprayed properly.

Your very welcome to come and view/test drive the car and I'll give you the full run down of what work has been done.

Kind regards

PeteSent from my iPhone

Received: 7 June 2013 16:39

Customer Details:
NAME: MRS Emma Conlon
TELEPHONE:
EMAIL: [email protected]

Message:
What's the present condition? Is there any condition not mentioned in the ad?

I also phoned PayPal to ask where I stand with seller protection (PayPal don't protect car sales btw), I explained the scenario to the guy on the phone who pulled up her account from the info she had supplied me. Clearly they have to abide by the data protection act and therefore couldn't provide me with any specific info but did say "If I could give you some assurance I would!" and then went silent! Well that says it all to me, definitely a scammer with a dodgy PayPal account!

Welcome to Scamwarners Texaspete81,

Emma Conlon [email protected] does not have a Paypal account. Emma Conlon is not the scammers name. The scammer wants to steal your money.


You have posted a scam attempt. It is 100% scam. The scammer is not interested in your car.

In this scam the scammer will ask the Seller to take PayPal for more than the price of the car. The fake email from Paypal will look real but it is a fake. He will then ask the Seller to send the OVERPAYMENT to his FAKE SHIPPER / Agent by Western Union or Moneygram to pay for the pickup and shipping. The scammer will tell you that Paypal will release your funds when you send the over payment. The shipper, mover, or agent is the scammer himself or someone working for him. PayPal will never hold your funds.

If you send money to anyone via Western Union or Money Gram there is no way of getting it back.

This same scam can be used by the scammer sending fake cheques, money orders and cashier checks.

It is best to deal locally face to face with cash in a public place

If a buyer is stupid enough to purchase a car without viewing it first, the seller should never be stupid enough to pay the fake shipping agent to collect it.

The scammer isn't interested in the car at all, but the money he'll get sent as the pretend shipper.

It's a simple and common scam performed with 'spoofed' Paypal e-mails. The scammer will send out hundreds a day.

This scam is still going strong. I've just received the same email in response to my autotrader advert from [email protected].

Thanks for taking the time posting this thread. A quick google proves it's a scam.

Still active, got two emails from him:

Date: Mon, 17 Jun 2013 10:00:39 +0300
Subject: 2004 VOLVO V50 T5 AUTOMATIC
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hello,

I'm sorry for my late reply to your email, but I was busy with my work. I have an email with your interest in my car, you are still interested, the car is still for sale! Hope you understand me. I sending you some pictures and details with my car! Waiting for your reply!

Zar: 30.000
Make Volvo
Year 2004
Kilometers 237000
Body Type Wagon

Thank you,
Andreas Grubmuller

Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:27:03 +0300
Subject: Re: 2004 VOLVO V50 T5 AUTOMATIC
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Thanks for your reply!
The car is in very good running condition, no damages, accidents or scratches no need repairs of course, is in perfect condition inside and outside as well the condition of the engine is perfect. I never smoke in it and i want to sell it to a serious person who will take very good care of the car.

First i must tell you that I am located in United Kingdom. I hope this in not a problem! I have used the car in South Africa (It still has South Africa papers) but here the taxes are very big so i can't register it!! I have worked for my company in South Africa but now i am back home! Due to the economic crisis i need to sell the car fast!! I have tried to sell it here but nobody wanted it! Someone adviced me to sell it on the South Africa because it still has South Africa papers and will be easier!

If you want the car you can come here to take it or, if you can't come I would like to use a shipping company for this deal. The process is very easy. This company will handle the delivery of the car and also they will handle all the registration papers. If we will use it you will have 5 days for testing the car before deciding to buy it. They will also give me the payment after you will decide to keep the car.

I will pay the delivery of the car! The delivery time will be arround 3-4 days and the car will be delivered at your home address. In this time you will receive the tracking number of the transaction so you can use it to check the status on the company website. If you want, the company will help you with all the registration papers in your country!

Please e-mail me with your decision and your full name and address!! Please don't contact me if you do not have the money for the car or if you only e-mail for simple curiosity!

Best regards
Andreas Grubmuller

Damn

Currently having an email conversation right now with this exact same guy,gutted,glad I checked in here first.

HI again ,
Before leaving I had prearranged shipping and the payment with PayPal (the most secure way to pay and get paid) so my presence isn't necessary(The camper is at our 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault) ). The Logistic Department will deliver the camper to your home. The price includes all the shipping costs and insurance, so you won't have to pay any extra charges. Since I work with the Army the delivery process is not an issue, I'll have the camper shipped at your home address in maximum 2 days.
Here is what I suggest: we will use PayPal services, you'll make the payment in an PayPal managed account trust fund ( they'll hold the money until you'll receive the camper ), I will send the camper over( the camper will be delivered with the owner's manual, service records, and of course the bill of sale authorized and signed by me),I will offer a 5 day period from the day you'll receive the camper , you can inspect it, take it to a mechanic to check it out, drive it and then if you decided to keep it, you'll confirm to PayPal the sale and they will send the payment to me. If, by any reason, you will not be satisfied with it ( even though I can assure you that it is exactly as described), you can return it at my expense for a full refund of your money, no questions asked .Please note, that the return of my camper will be made, only after you will get your deposit back. I think this is more than fair for the both of us.
The payment is refundable, and is just a security measure, to make sure that the buyer is serious, and that I am not going to ship the camper, and loose time and money. Your payment is 100% covered, because I have open a Trust Account with PayPal and if something goes wrong, you will get a full refund from my account. If you are interested to go ahead with the deal, please reply with your full name, phone # and shipping address so I can ask PayPal to open a case! After, they will contact you explaining all the details regarding the payment.
I'm looking forward to hear from you.
Sgt. Simon Tony Matthwes

Item is on eBay now : item 290939115738

Andreas grubmuller is at in again.
This time he is offering a Jaguar XJS convertible (spelt convertible) supposedly from Cape Town.

Takes ages to reply with similar excuses I have noted on scamwarners.

Ignore

This guy Gary McDonald is still scamming but now he is using the name David McDonald. He tried to scam me on Cars.com and used the email address [email protected]. Stop all communication with him and then block his email address. Wonder why they can't arrest this guy after 2 years of his scamming?