Police issue warning to used car buyers after busting fraud scheme
Posted Mar 31, 2018 1:57 pm.
Last Updated Mar 31, 2018 2:07 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
After busting a VIN cloning and vehicle insurance scam, Calgary police are warning people to be more diligent when buying a used car.
This week, the Auto Theft Resource Team busted a scheme, where a pair of auto shops disguised stolen vehicles by re-using vehicle identification numbers, and then claiming damage to get money from insurance companies.
It’s also alleged that luxury vehicles bought in Edmonton were then exported, with the VIN numbers used for stolen vehicles.
This could all end up hurting you if you bought a vehicle with a cloned VIN number, because it could be seized by police, and insurance will not provide compensation.
This happened to at least one person, who unknowingly bought a stolen vehicle from the scammer.
Constable Andrew Nicholson said there’s a few ways to check before taking the keys.
“Do some research. CARPROOF or Carfax will give you the history of the vehicle. You want to look for has it been multipally registered over the course of, you know, a year. Has it been registered in Ontario and then Alberta, but then in Ontario again. Those are some red flags.”
You can also check the Canadian Police Information Centre, type in the VIN number, and see if it has been reported stolen.
Another red flag is the mileage.
“When you’re looking at the vehicle, does the model year equate to what an average mileage might be. Because these vehicles are usually quite high mileage on them, and then all of a sudden they’re pretending to be newer models,” said Cst. Nicholson
Police estimate the offences totalled over $600,000, and a Calgarian has been charged with several counts of fraud.
