Beware

Bill- · Post by **Bill-** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 17:56

I got scammed

here are the emails You take up the conversation at the end so scroll to the bottom & start there
The scam was for a 2.2 Low milage Z3 which was advertised on Pistonheads by the scammer

final answer so far

Hi,

I am afraid PistonHeads doesn't organize private viewings or cash on delivery due to the bad experiences they had with a lot of timewasters and tyre kickers just wanting to test drive not to buy.
This is how the transaction is going to take place :
To verify you are a serious person and genuinely interested in purchasing the car you will first have to send the £2.800.00 by bank to bank wire transfer to a PistonHeads managed bank account.
As soon as the payment is received and verified PistonHeads will deliver the car to your address and offer you a 24 hrs inspection of the car.
If you will decide you want to keep the car PistonHeads will forward your payment in my bank account and the sale is concluded.If you will reject the car PistoHeads will refund your payment into your bank account and collect the car from you (absolutely no extra charges for you).
During the 24 hrs inspection period you can take the car to a garage or have it RAC/AA inspected,I absolutely welcome any checks you want to perform on the car and documents.
This is a 100% secure system for both buyer and the seller because I will receive your payment only after the car is delivered and inspected by you.
I used to work in the car sales business and I`ve used PH Buyer Protection to complete distance sales all the time,it is very very easy to use and absolutely safe for both buyer and seller.
PistonHeads will contact you with all the payment details and instructions as soon as I have started/authorized the sale.I can get things moving asap and we can finalize the sale this week all I need is your name,delivery address and contact number(s).
I look forward to your reply and hopefully to a smooth sale
Christine

________________________________
My second email below

I am still interested, give me a contact NAME & a Telephone number at Pistonheads so I can view the car & Documents please..

Her Answer (or his)

Hi,

The car is still available for sale,it is in extremely good condition,100% HPI Clear,full service history.Currently I am on a business trip to Australia and will have to stay here for about 6 months (this is why I am selling the car and I am looking for a fast sale to finance the Australian project )
I left the car in PistonHeads custody and they will handle the sale for me.The V5 log book is already signed on my behalf,the car will come with 2 keys,all service records and previous MOT's. PistonHeads will deliver the car directly to your home address and I will pay all delivery expenses.
I am waiting your reply if still interested.
Regards
Christine

This is my first email below

>
> f your car is as described I want to buy it please, a few questions
>
>
> why are you selling the car
>
> What were the miles on clock at last service (it should be in the service
> book)
> how many green lights are up?
> Is it
> MOTEED?
> when does mot run out?
> Taxed ?
> A crashed reclaimed car (Cat C or D)?
> Are there any jobs need doing?
> does everything work?
>
> can u send me the last 7 Vin numbers on the left through the windscreen
> please (on dashboard)
>
> I wont have the full amount until the end of this week
> tell me about the delivery
> thanks and sorry for all the questions

aceman · Post by **aceman** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 18:26

Tell me you have not sent money please

This pistonhead scam has been around for quite a while and there is no such thing as a pistonheads buyer protection scheme they only have a classifieds sale section and is always "Buyer beware" as with any other classifieds car sales site, I don't think even Paypal offer you protection for that kind of money.

Hope you have had a lucky escape

shantybeater · Post by **shantybeater** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 18:27

Without meaning to sound harsh please don't tell me you were silly enough to wire £2800 into a private bank account??

Bill- · Post by **Bill-** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 18:32

No didnt get suckered I was suspicious right away but went along with it, I looked at the pistonhead website to check earlier today after the last email

Very well worded scam this one, good English which is a first for me, normally you can spot them a mile off

aceman · Post by **aceman** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 18:37

Well I wouldn't exactly say you had been scammed yes if you had sent money but you have been astute enough to spot the scam before it went too far which there are many people nieve enough out there that wouldn't have spotted this so good on you fella

Phew you had me worrying for a moment.

shantybeater · Post by **shantybeater** » Tue 07 Jun, 2011 18:37

Phew!! Thank god for that. I agree the english is better than the usual but like you say its clearly suspicious from word go. The sad thing is people must fall for it or they wouldnt bother doing it in the first place!!

D-reame · Post by **D-reame** » Wed 08 Jun, 2011 08:55

Be aware you don't have to be foreign or speak/write in broken english to scam.

Some of the best scammers would appear to be the perfect seller, offering just what you are looking for, hence people fall for it.

Jonttt · Post by **Jonttt** » Wed 08 Jun, 2011 19:57

I wold keep it going for a while, give false details, act desperate and ask for the bank account details.

Then later ask them where they are in australia and amazingly you will have a relative nearby who can meet them to pay the money, etc.. etc,,,

We kept a few going for a while last year

GROMMIT · Post by **GROMMIT** » Thu 09 Jun, 2011 07:53

Jonttt wrote:I wold keep it going for a while, give false details, act desperate and ask for the bank account details.

Then later ask them where they are in australia and amazingly you will have a relative nearby who can meet them to pay the money, etc.. etc,,,

We kept a few going for a while last year

This is your best option. Waste some of their time.

jumpinjack · Post by **jumpinjack** » Thu 09 Jun, 2011 20:59

had a clown try this stunt with me on ebay when I was looking for a van, I'm afraid I was'nt very polite with them and pointed out Iwas no fool. The van quickly disapeared off the listings.
Funny, the emails were vertualy identical, wonder if its the same person.

J1SUA · Post by **J1SUA** » Fri 10 Jun, 2011 08:35

These guys are jokers.

I had a good one where I was trying to sell my car and they offered me £500 more than asking price to secure it etc...lol

I had some fun then sent back the abuse, last I heard from them

Pinnacle · Post by **Pinnacle** » Fri 10 Jun, 2011 12:24

I've had my car up for sale for a couple of weeks on Autotrader. So far I've had 8 scammers, 1 car matching agent and 0 serious enquiries.

The scammers all start off with the same question. Is the car still for sale. Then it moves on to I work on an oil rig or I'm an oceanographer. As soon as they mention that they will pay by bankers draft, cheque or paypal it's amuses me.

One of the e-mails I got:

Hello,thanks for the quick response,I wish I could come for a view but will be happy if you can assure me that its in good condition,cos due to my job i cant make coming over there,am an oceanographer busy on an assignment and presently now am in Bermuda coast on a ship...So i chose to use PayPal because of the distance between us and for safe transaction...I hope you can read this mail and understand me better...Please if you don't have PayPal account yet,It is easy to set up,just log onto www.paypal.co.uk and get it set up...And i will only need the e-mail address which you use in registration with PayPal.

As for the pick up, my pick up agent will be accessing that and they will also be coming for the pick up immediately the payments have been made to you..Please send me your address so that my pick up agent can figure it out and come for the pick up and other necessary things after the payments have been made, they will also be coming with all the information needed,my details and transferring the name of ownership to me will be done by the pick up agent so you don't have to worry about that. Send me your registered email address with PayPal so i can pay in.

Cheers

And my response:
Hello Mella,

A very interesting offer you present there. However, I have a better idea. Why don't you live your fantasy by taking an oceanography course. During the course take off your oxygen mark while you are down there photographing the wonderful scenery. Leave it off for about 5-6 minutes until you start feeling faint, then before inserting the mouth piece again, take a sharp intake of water into your lungs. Your body should now enter panic mode and after 30 seconds or so should enter survival mode where it starts to shut down the main organs of your body in an attempt to survive. At this stage you will loose control of your bowels & bladder and may fill your pants before your brain shuts down. Shortly after this your heart will stop pumping and even now you will still have a greater chance of survival than the chance of me ever accepting a scam deal like the one you just mentioned.

Have a nice day!

Regards,

Z3cade · Post by **Z3cade** » Fri 10 Jun, 2011 13:28

should have played along then gave them a random address up in the scotish ilands somewhere.....

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » Sat 11 Jun, 2011 00:32

Pinnacle wrote:I've had my car up for sale for a couple of weeks on Autotrader. So far I've had 8 scammers, 1 car matching agent and 0 serious enquiries.

The scammers all start off with the same question. Is the car still for sale. Then it moves on to I work on an oil rig or I'm an oceanographer. As soon as they mention that they will pay by bankers draft, cheque or paypal it's amuses me.

One of the e-mails I got:

Hello,thanks for the quick response,I wish I could come for a view but will be happy if you can assure me that its in good condition,cos due to my job i cant make coming over there,am an oceanographer busy on an assignment and presently now am in Bermuda coast on a ship...So i chose to use PayPal because of the distance between us and for safe transaction...I hope you can read this mail and understand me better...Please if you don't have PayPal account yet,It is easy to set up,just log onto www.paypal.co.uk and get it set up...And i will only need the e-mail address which you use in registration with PayPal.

As for the pick up, my pick up agent will be accessing that and they will also be coming for the pick up immediately the payments have been made to you..Please send me your address so that my pick up agent can figure it out and come for the pick up and other necessary things after the payments have been made, they will also be coming with all the information needed,my details and transferring the name of ownership to me will be done by the pick up agent so you don't have to worry about that. Send me your registered email address with PayPal so i can pay in.

Cheers

And my response:
Hello Mella,

A very interesting offer you present there. However, I have a better idea. Why don't you live your fantasy by taking an oceanography course. During the course take off your oxygen mark while you are down there photographing the wonderful scenery. Leave it off for about 5-6 minutes until you start feeling faint, then before inserting the mouth piece again, take a sharp intake of water into your lungs. Your body should now enter panic mode and after 30 seconds or so should enter survival mode where it starts to shut down the main organs of your body in an attempt to survive. At this stage you will loose control of your bowels & bladder and may fill your pants before your brain shuts down. Shortly after this your heart will stop pumping and even now you will still have a greater chance of survival than the chance of me ever accepting a scam deal like the one you just mentioned.

Have a nice day!

Regards,

I must be thick but i've missed the scam here?

Clearly it's an exaggerated story and from seeing similar stories looks dodgy. But unless i've missed something this guy is saying his agent will call after the PayPal payment has been made. I assume that the scam is that he could easily cancel the payment after picking up the car?

Warrior · Post by **Warrior** » Sat 11 Jun, 2011 00:32

Pinnacle wrote:I've had my car up for sale for a couple of weeks on Autotrader. So far I've had 8 scammers, 1 car matching agent and 0 serious enquiries.

The scammers all start off with the same question. Is the car still for sale. Then it moves on to I work on an oil rig or I'm an oceanographer. As soon as they mention that they will pay by bankers draft, cheque or paypal it's amuses me.

One of the e-mails I got:

Hello,thanks for the quick response,I wish I could come for a view but will be happy if you can assure me that its in good condition,cos due to my job i cant make coming over there,am an oceanographer busy on an assignment and presently now am in Bermuda coast on a ship...So i chose to use PayPal because of the distance between us and for safe transaction...I hope you can read this mail and understand me better...Please if you don't have PayPal account yet,It is easy to set up,just log onto www.paypal.co.uk and get it set up...And i will only need the e-mail address which you use in registration with PayPal.

As for the pick up, my pick up agent will be accessing that and they will also be coming for the pick up immediately the payments have been made to you..Please send me your address so that my pick up agent can figure it out and come for the pick up and other necessary things after the payments have been made, they will also be coming with all the information needed,my details and transferring the name of ownership to me will be done by the pick up agent so you don't have to worry about that. Send me your registered email address with PayPal so i can pay in.

Cheers

And my response:
Hello Mella,

A very interesting offer you present there. However, I have a better idea. Why don't you live your fantasy by taking an oceanography course. During the course take off your oxygen mark while you are down there photographing the wonderful scenery. Leave it off for about 5-6 minutes until you start feeling faint, then before inserting the mouth piece again, take a sharp intake of water into your lungs. Your body should now enter panic mode and after 30 seconds or so should enter survival mode where it starts to shut down the main organs of your body in an attempt to survive. At this stage you will loose control of your bowels & bladder and may fill your pants before your brain shuts down. Shortly after this your heart will stop pumping and even now you will still have a greater chance of survival than the chance of me ever accepting a scam deal like the one you just mentioned.

Have a nice day!

Regards,

I must be thick but i've missed the scam here?

Clearly it's an exaggerated story and from seeing similar stories looks dodgy. But unless i've missed something this guy is saying his agent will call after the PayPal payment has been made. I assume that the scam is that he could easily cancel the payment after picking up the car?

shantybeater · Post by **shantybeater** » Sat 11 Jun, 2011 08:06

I doubt it, these elaborate stories are always scams

chris1984_99_99 · Post by **chris1984_99_99** » Sat 11 Jun, 2011 08:25

The irony to me is that last year I WAS working abroad on a ship when I was in contact with the guy I ended up buying the car from. Having had god knows how many of these emails myself over the years I didnt mention any of that to him incase he thought I was a scammer! I just said im on holiday and will be back in a few days to look at the car, dont sell her until I vew her! 2 days after being back in the country, I had a Z sitting in the drive