Autotrader AUDI A1 scam - seller from Spain

I've contacted this criminal group many times myself as a potential buyer to get them to tell me what bank accounts they're using to launder money through. They're very well organised and post hundreds of adverts online every day but they have a large organisation setting up and getting hold of bank accounts as well as posting adverts. I have no doubt that they're turning over millions of pounds a year, and that's only the UK. Bear in mind that they can sell the same car to everyone who contacts them and they also post very high value vehicles, as well as construction and agricultural machinery.

Legitimate sellers can't compete against the scammers who can undercut any price they offer, so as well as stealing money from victims the crime also harms UK businesses, but the UK authorities don't even appear to record the crimes, let alone do anything about it. At some stage I expect that consumers will catch on to what's going on and they'll be a lot more wary of using sites that are overrun by scams.

Same as previous, saw a Volkswagen Touran on AT at a ridiculously low price. Advertised under a garage but with a private email address, when I emailed to see if the car was still available this was the reply

Today at 7:09 AM

Hello,

I still got the 2010 Volkswagen Touran 2.0 TDI Match 5dr Diesel Black Manual for sale at the price of £5500. The car is in excellent condition, garage kept and accident free. The mileage is real and I never had any problems with the engine. The car looks and works just perfect. I bought it from UK and it is still registered here. We live in the Northern part of United Kingdom, in a beautiful sea-side city called Thurso.
We are a nice couple of pensioners (I have 64 and my beloved wife is 63 years old) and don't use the car so often. We love to spend our time on the road but now we use to travel by plane, so a car is no more useful for us. Also we sold our house and bought a big farm here in Thurso. If you are really interested we are ready to make a trip to England and meet you personally. You can take the car for a test-drive and any kind of inspection.
Please tell us where do you live? I am sure that we will find a nice city in England to arrange a meeting, a region acceptable for us and for you in the same time. We have the faith that this can be a good deal!

P.S. I appreciate if we can continue our conversation by e-mail. The mobile signal is poor here, we have to walk over 2 miles for a good phone call.

Thank you and let me know

Peter

Location has changed and a bit more info. We arranged to meet in Carlisle this weekend but then he said his wife wanted to check it wasn't a wasted journey and advised Google Wallet to make sure we had the funds. Thankfully checked online and your site came up with the same email from different person. I was very nearly had.

Thanks for the great work


Added quote coding for clarity -Jillian

Welcome qwerty1! So glad that you found the information in time. If the name and email address the scammer used for you isn't already listed here, please do post it for others to find in searches.

Hi I've got some bank details for you! I've had another very professional looking email from the fake Google Wallet site.. the bank details are as follows:

How to send the payment:

Send the payment by Bank Transfer (Priority Service) using the following Google Representative account details :


Google Representative Account Name : ANA MARIA ADAM
Google Representative Address : Calle Neves Ferreira 11
Google Representative City : Cadiz
Google Representative Zip Code : 11001
Google Representative Country : Spain
Beneficiary Bank Name : EVO BANCO
Beneficiary Bank IBAN : ES52 20800264613040027936
Beneficiary Bank Account Number : 20800264613040027936
Beneficiary Bank Swift Code : CAGLESMMXXX
Beneficiary Bank Address : Plaza San Juan Dios 14
Beneficiary Bank City : Cadiz
Beneficiary Bank Zip Code : 11001
Beneficiary Bank Country : Spain


How to complete and confirm payment :

1. The payment must be sent by bank transfer to the bank account of our Google Representative.
2. After payment is complete send us the receipt from your bank by FAX or by e-mail.
3. E-mail us the serial numbers of the payment receipt document.
4.Fax the payment receipt to our fax number: (+44) 208 711 2466


*** Once the bank transfer cleares and our Google Representative confirms payment, we will instruct the seller to start the shipping process. We will hold the funds until you send us your confirmation that you are satisfied with the product you received. As soon as we receive your confirmation we will release payment to the seller.

As everyone has said, it look so professional. I have reported them to Autotrader, who told us they are taking it seriously and will be contacting the police... So grateful to have found this site!


Mod note: Bank account reported - CW

We have just been scammed out of £4,200 for a ford smax.

Here are the bank account details:

Google Representative Account Name :

ANA MARIA ADAM
Google Representative Address :

Plaza Del Ejercito 21
Google Representative City :

Cadiz
Google Representative Zip Code :

11001
Google Representative Country :

Spain
Beneficiary Bank Name :

DEUTSCHE BANK
Beneficiary Bank IBAN :

ES71 00190491904930001074
Beneficiary Bank Account Number :

00190491904930001074
Beneficiary Bank Swift Code :

DEUTESBBXXX
Beneficiary Bank Address :

Calle Ancha, 22
Beneficiary Bank City :

Cadiz
Beneficiary Bank Zip Code :

11001
Beneficiary Bank Country :

Spain

Can't believe the banks cant do anything - we paid through Barclays. Reported to action fraud and auto traders. Seriously thinking of going to Watcdog.

Mod Note: Bank Account Noted. (BW)

What a fantastic service this site offers:-

Just stopped my son going ahead and buying a car for his girlfriend.
I googled the VIN number and ended up here
The email came from. [email protected]<[email protected]>;


Please see below.

Hello there,

I am glad to hear that you are interested to buy my 2011 FIAT 500 1.2 Lounge 2dr Convertible!
Although I am registered in the UK,i recently moved to Cadiz, Spain (where my family is from) and the car is being shipped from here. I want to sell it in UK due to the fact that it's an UK version (right handed),it meets all UK standards.I bought this car from UK and It still has UK registration, so you won't have to pay any import and insurance fees.The car meets all United Kingdom guidelines so there will be no problem regarding UK Customs policy on receiving the car.The car is in perfect condition, the bodywork is immaculate,no scratches, dents or hidden defects as well as the interior in excellent non-smoking condition , never been implied in any accident and it is as advertised.The car comes with log book, HPI cleared, No finance. You will get from me the keys and all documents to register the car in your name.If the car is not how i described it, i will offer a full refund. It will be insured during transportation and will be delivered at your address in maximum 10 days. Final price is GBP 2,650 (the price includes shipping and insurance fees).
The price is low because the car is right hand drive in a country where all cars are left hand drive so in Spain is very difficult to drive this type of vehicle and nobody wants to buy it here in Spain.Instead of keeping it in garage (during this economical crisis), I decided to sell it to someone back in the UK for a really attractive price.
I want to take this opportunity to assure you that this deal is 100% legitimate,the deal will be manage by a well known company,in this way both buyer and seller are 100% covered during the steps of this transaction.
Let me know if you need any further details or if you would like to buy my car.

Thank you
Sarah

My son replied and had this response.

Hello there,

I want to inform you the the car is in Spain and it will be shipped from here to UK.The shipper I will use will deliver the vehicle to your door, you don't have to pick it from the port. Shipping will take 10 days maximum.Due to the fact that i am located outside UK and we can not deal in person,i`ve contacted Google Wallet regarding this issue and they told me that they could offer to me a program that is created especially for international transactions that protects both of us.
Regarding the transaction, you will send the funds to Google Wallet and they will keep the money until you receive the vehicle and test it.In this way both buyer and seller are 100% covered during the steps of this transaction.Google Wallet will hold and insure your money until receipt of the car in good condition. That is how their service is working. As far as the seller concerns, i will be glad to know that Google Wallet is in possession of the funds during the delivery period.
You will be given a 15 days inspection period from the day you receive the car at home( i will ship it to your address insured for full value to you ).
If you decide to keep the car, then you will have to authorize Google Wallet to release the funds to me, and the transaction is complete.If the vehicle is not as described ( perfect interior,exterior,mechanical condition ), you will be able to send the vehicle back through the same shipping company ( return postage at my expense ), and ask Google Wallet to return the money to you. Though i am sure you will love the car and will not want to return it, it is good to know that you do have this second option available.

If you want to read more about Google Wallet service please visit :

http://google.wallet.com-ukonline.co.uk ... of-service ?Fake website will be reported for closure

If you want to get more info about their terms and condition please contact Google Wallet using the blue button from the web site.

I bought this car from UK and it is still registered there so you don't have to pay any import taxes or any other fees.The car comes with log book, HPI cleared, No finance.
You will get from me the keys, V5 document, manuals and all documents to register the car in your name.You don't have to worry about anything.

If you want to check the car here are the reg details:

Vehicle Registration Mark (VRM) OY61XED
VIN (chassis number) ZFA31200000751169
Manufacturer's Warranty 10/2014
Road Tax 01 09 2014

If you wish to purchase it and agree to these terms i will need you to provide your full name and address. I will then notify Google Wallet and they will contact you to explain the entire procedure.

I will be waiting for your reply as soon as possible

Thank you in advance!

Good luck to all involved with scamwarners..

I can't tell you how delighted I am too, to hear that the hard work of members has had a positive effect in saving a victim from having their money stolen. It's a collaborative effort with many members working to thwart this fraud in particular, and from the adverts to the money mule recruitment sites, the effort involved is quite intense.

I reported something like 50 adverts on just one site last night. I simply don't have time to spare for other ad sites, though I know that other groups are working against the scammers on them. I have a good system for picking up the adverts and I can reliably reduce their successes to a negligible amount and, they can't function without money mules, so 'knocking down' their money mule recruitment sites hurts them badly.

Your information is very valuable as it links the adverts to the templates they use when contacting victims and they try constantly to avoid detection by changing tactics, though this one is quite an old one.

Whenever we hear that a scammer has missed out on getting his hands on a victim's money through our efforts, it's a cause for celebration.

Losing that amount of money before Christmas would spoil it for the whole family.

[AlanJones]

[email protected] is currently advertising a Range Rover Evoque on Autotrader.

Hi,
My daughter found this car, Fiat 500 - OY61 XED, on Auto Trader agian last night - 9th March.

I received the reply below by email.
It seemed too good to be true and my very first google check found found your blog
Thank you all for posting this thread!

Roberta Riley <[email protected]>

Hello there,

I am glad to hear that you are interested to buy my 2011 FIAT 500 1.2 Lounge 2dr Convertible!
Although I am registered in the UK,i recently moved to Cadiz, Spain (where my family is from) and the car is being shipped from here. I want to sell it in UK due to the fact that it's an UK version (right handed),it meets all UK standards.I bought this car from UK and It still has UK registration, so you won't have to pay any import and insurance fees.The car meets all United Kingdom guidelines so there will be no problem regarding UK Customs policy on receiving the car.The car is in perfect condition, the bodywork is immaculate,no scratches, dents or hidden defects as well as the interior in excellent non-smoking condition, never been implied in any accident and it is as advertised.The car comes with log book, HPI cleared, No finance. You will get from me the keys and all documents to register the car in your name.If the car is not how i described it, i will offer a full refund. It will be insured during transportation and will be delivered at your address in maximum 10 days. Final price is GBP 3,280 (the price includes shipping and insurance fees).The price is low because the car is right hand drive in a country where all cars are left hand drive so in Spain is very difficult to drive this type of vehicle and nobody wants to buy it here in Spain.Instead of keeping it in garage (during this economical crisis), I decided to sell it to someone back in the UK for a really attractive price.
I want to take this opportunity to assure you that this deal is 100% legitimate,the deal will be manage by a well known company,in this way both buyer and seller are 100% covered during the steps of this transaction.
Let me know if you need any further details or if you would like to buy my car.

Thank you
Mrs Roberta

Yep, it's a scam. She (or more likely he) is not from the UK or from Spain but from sub-Saharan Africa.

Welcome to Scamwarners paullove and thanks for taking the time to give some feedback.

A lot of members put in a lot of effort to work against this organised group of scammers, from their 'money mule' recruitment sites to their fraudulent adverts, and they'll only stop when they aren't snaring victims any more, so it's nice to know you've avoided becoming another victim of these criminals.

It can't be said enough - you should never ever pay any money in respect of a vehicle you haven't viewed and inspected.

Bear in mind that you can still be scammed over a car you've viewed and inspected, so it's really reckless to pay money without ever seeing it and the scammer knows it, which is why he invents all sorts of fairytale stories about how you can be certain you aren't being duped using non-existent third party services.

I would also add that if you aren't contacting the scammer through the website system, you're doing that because the scammer is also a hacker, so that you risk losing not only your money but your computer too and all the information on it. You're having to contact the hacker/scammer by another means because he knows that he'll lose the compromised account shortly and needs to use another means of direct communication.

Any accounts you have he'll compromise and take over if he can. He operates by hacking computers and avoiding contact of any sort is imperative. He'll take over your pc, your mail accounts, your bank accounts and any website access log ins you have. If he knows your email addie and bank info he has all he needs to send you spoofed messages to gain access to your banking. These are professional criminals and hackers. Avoid at all costs.

I had an identical email when I enquired about an AUDI A1 (2013) in Autotrader (Below). It is a genuine vehicle that passes the HPI check. So I am glad I looked up this website. Thanks:)

Hello again,

The car is in perfect cosmetic and engine condition, and meticulously maintained. No damage, no scratches or dents, never been into accidents and it is as advertised. Due to the fact that i am located outside UK and we can not deal in person,i`ve contacted Google Wallet regarding this issue and they told me that they could offer to me a program that is created especially for international transactions that protects both of us. They agreed to supervise this deal.
You will send the funds to Google Wallet and they will keep the money until you receive the vehicle and test it.In this way both buyer and seller are 100% covered during the steps of this transaction. They will hold and insure your money until receipt of the car in good condition. That is how their service is working. As far as the seller concerns, i will be glad to know that Google Wallet is in possession of the funds during the delivery period.
You will be given a 15 days inspection period from the day you receive the car at home( i will ship it to your address insured for full value to you ).
If you decide to keep the car, then you will have to authorize Google Wallet to release the funds to me, and the transaction is complete.If the vehicle is not as described ( perfect interior,exterior,mechanical condition ), you will be able to send the vehicle back through the same shipping company ( return postage at my expense ), and ask Google Wallet to return the money to you.

If you want to check the car here are the reg details #:

VRM: AK13 HOA
VIN: WAUZZZ8X1DB077809
V5 serial: BY3235226
Engine number CAYC15315
Date of first registration in the UK 03/05/2013
Mileage: 5400

If you want to read more about Google Wallet service please visit :

http://google.wallet.acc-store.co.uk/fo ... of-service

If you wish to purchase it and agree to these terms i will need you to provide your full name and address. I will then notify Google Wallet and they will contact you to explain the entire procedure.

I will be waiting for your reply as soon as possible

Thank you!!

[email protected] Updated (BW)

Hello there,

I am glad to hear that you are interested to buy my 2012 BMW 1 SERIES 120D M SPORT 5dr.
Although I am registered in the UK,i recently moved to Cadiz, Spain (where my family is from) and the car is being shipped from here. I want to sell it in UK due to the fact that it's an UK version (right handed),it meets all UK standards.I bought this car from UK and It still has UK registration, so you won't have to pay any import and insurance fees.The car meets all United Kingdom guidelines so there will be no problem regarding UK Customs policy on receiving the car.The car is in perfect condition, the bodywork is immaculate,no scratches, dents or hidden defects as well as the interior in excellent non-smoking condition , never been implied in any accident and it is as advertised .The car comes with log book, HPI cleared, No finance. You will get from me the keys and all documents to register the car in your name.If the car is not how i described it, i will offer a full refund. It will be insured during transportation and will be delivered at your address in maximum 10 days. Final price is GBP 5,600 (the price includes shipping and insurance fees).The price is low because the car is right hand drive in a country where all cars are left hand drive so in Spain is very difficult to drive this type of vehicle and nobody wants to buy it here in Spain.Instead of keeping it in garage (during this economical crisis), I decided to sell it to someone back in the UK for a really attractive price.
I want to take this opportunity to assure you that this deal is 100% legitimate,the deal will be manage by a well known company,in this way both buyer and seller are 100% covered during the steps of this transaction.
Let me know if you need any further details or if you would like to buy my car.


Thank you

^^^^^
[email protected]

His advert is for bmw 1 series 12 plate selling for 5400 from spain

Hi, just to warn everyone, the Finland one was up again on autotrader, I nearly fell for it until I found this forum! Was payment through eBay but wording almost identical to the Toyota Prius but for a land rover range rover sport