The Better Business Bureau says online vehicle buyers have lots of reasons to be wary.
Since 2020, the BBB has found that scammers not only list non-existent vehicles on real websites, but also use fake websites, target high-end buyers of rare classic cars and exploit vehicle history reports to steal money and information.
The number of online vehicle vendor scam reports dipped from 239 in 2021 to 201 in 2022 but then rose again to 256 in 2023.
Buyers aged 45 and above accounted for over three-quarters of all reports on virtual vehicle vendor scams filed with BBB Scam Tracker.
Online purchases, including car sales, are one of the scam types most likely to result in a loss of money, according to BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust research.
This fraud took off across North America during the pandemic, when limited in-person contact was encouraged. One study using FTC data determined that only 4.8% of victims of mass market fraud ever report to BBB or a government entity, meaning the number of cases reported is likely an undercount.
A relatively recent trend has emerged, as buyers have become well acquainted with different tools to research products -- including cars, trucks and recreational vehicles.
The BBB says scammers now strike during the research phase of the vehicle buying process, creating fake “vehicle history” lookup websites meant to steal money and sometimes consumers’ personal information.
In 2023, reports of this type to BBB Scam Tracker increased by nearly 30%.
Last year, BBB Scam Tracker received more than 150 reports about vehicle history scams. In many cases, consumers encountered the scam through an online vehicle listing.
Scammers frequently told potential buyers well-known vehicle history sites were missing vital information, urging them to instead use a specific site.
How do online car buyers get scammed?
The fraud starts when a consumer looks for a vehicle online. They may find too-good-to-be-true listings on real sites like eBay and Craigslist. While those sites remained popular in 2023, scammers increased use of social media sites like Instagram.
Fraudsters pose as private sellers or dealerships, using stolen pictures, fake addresses and elaborate stories to explain overly cheap prices. Sometimes, they even co-opt real dealership or seller names and locations.
Additionally, scammers may ask the buyer to use a fake escrow company to hold the money while the vehicle is supposedly shipped to the buyer for evaluation with an option to return the vehicle if they aren’t happy with it. In reality, the scammer controls the escrow company, so once the money is received, they disappear or give excuses for why the non-existent vehicle never arrives. Eventually, the fake escrow website also disappears.
BBB Tip: Ask to see a vehicle in person before you agree to purchase.
While BBB Scam Tracker data shows virtual vehicle vendor scams have held steady since its 2020 study was published, scammers in 2023 did appear to turn toward a new avenue to ensnare consumers: classic cars.
BBB Scam Tracker reports from across North America included a similar type of vehicle fraud. Buyers interested in classic cars found what they thought was a well-reviewed dealer selling vintage vehicles, but what they had stumbled upon was a scammer impersonating a classic car dealer.
BBB’s 2020 virtual vehicle vendor scam study found scammers were primarily located in Romania. A series of arrests have been made over the years, but the scam has continued.
BBB Serving Greater Cleveland issued a warning to the public about a similar scam in their region, where scammers posed as a shuttered vintage car seller in the area. Their website used pictures stolen from other legitimate sellers, and many fell for the fraud and sent tens of thousands of dollars to the fraudsters
BBB Tips:
While virtual vehicle vendor scams tend to rely on escrow accounts for payment, the FTC urged consumers to never send money to someone they don’t know over a payment service either like Venmo, Zelle or CashApp.
Brian Moody, executive editor at Autotrader, suggests buyers can follow a simple hierarchy when buying cars.
“Treat this as you would any serious financial transaction,” he said. “You wouldn’t go up to a house and simply say, ok this is good, where do I pay?” Moody said.
BBB Tip: Verify the identity of a seller independently, if possible
Fake vehicle VIN report websites: Who can you trust?
Online vehicle vendor fraud typically catches customers at the time of purchase; however, scammers have tried to steal from buyers even earlier in the process through an unusual method: fake vehicle identification number (VIN) reports.
In this instance, fraudsters target the part of the car buying process that leverages a consumer’s desire to make a wise purchase and protect the vehicle. They create a fake website that claims to operate like Carfax, a legitimate service used to aggregate accident reports and other information about vehicles. The scammers claim their preferred websites contain additional information. But they own the websites, and they steal both money and sensitive personal information from consumers who use them.
Fake vehicle report websites began popping up as early as 2018, but many people are unaware of them. BBB Scam Tracker data, reports to BBBs and news stories throughout the United States and Canada show fake “VIN search” websites rose in 2023.
An analysis of BBB Scam Tracker report data revealed connections between several fraudulent websites.
A group of websites, all registered under the same domain name server, featured similar URLs and names. Examples included “Check Auto Status,” “Check Motorcycle Info,” “Digital Title Check,” and “Check Title Status.”
While registration with the same domain name server (DNS) is not definitive evidence of connection between websites, further investigation found a phone number linked to at least 13 other websites with names like “VIN Summary Report,” “Carfax Line,” and “Vehicle Summary.” These sites all used nearly identical design and language and offered the same services. This tactic is common across all types of virtual vehicle vendor sales, such as fake escrow sites.
None of the websites are listed on the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System’s publicly approved VIN lookup websites. The Insurance Bureau of Canada provides a list of approved websites as well for consumers to verify VIN information.
As with other scams, when one website is taken down, fraudsters activate new ones that are nearly identical.
Fake history reports and vehicle websites highlight the need for consumers to be cautious during the earliest part of the buying process. Other prospective buyers found themselves encountering scams in which supposed vehicle sellers pressured consumers to use an unknown “VIN checker” or “vehicle report site.”
In many cases, these websites use fake history reports as another way to apply high-pressure tactics. They tell potential buyers they must purchase a vehicle report from their preferred service quickly, because the fake car being offered for a too-good-to-be-true price will sell fast. In others, the scammer provides a link to a fake report site with prices much lower than others.
These websites often have phone numbers to provide an air of legitimacy. Many consumers who called the numbers and got no answer or a dial tone soon realized it was a fraud.
Brian Moody at Autotrader said buyers should treat vehicle purchases like any other big-ticket item. Due diligence is needed, and buyers should not rush into a sale, no matter how good a deal looks.
“A person that appears to be in too big of a rush and can’t take a few moments for peace of mind -- that’s a red flag,” Moody said.
BBB Tip: Sellers should never purchase a history report for their own vehicle to finalize a sale.
Know the red flags of an online car-buying scam:
BBB tips to avoid falling for an online car buying scam:
Where to report:
Visit BBB.org to check out a business or register a complaint, BBB Scam TrackerSM to report a scam and BBB.org/scamstudies for more on this and other scams.