What can I do to avoid a scam?

Monday 26 to Friday 30 August is Scams Awareness Week 2024 with this year's focus 'share a story, stop a scam'.

Here at carsales we pride ourselves on offering a safe place to buy or sell a car.

It’s in our interests to protect your interests, starting with our dedicated customer care team there to help you with any concern that someone’s trying to take you for a ride.

There’s also plenty of online help available to ensure you don’t get ripped off by scammers, in all their various nefarious guises.

As a tip, confine your communications with buyers or sellers to the carsales member messaging function.

Another tip is to avoid providing any personal details that could be used for identity theft – so don’t supply your licence details, for instance.

And don’t release either the car or a ‘refund’ into the hands of the buyer until you’ve seen the full payment in your account – from evidence supplied by your financial institution, not the buyer’s.

If you suspect that someone is trying to scam you, bear in mind that they often sound like the world’s about to end unless you respond immediately. This is specifically intended to build your stress levels and affect your thinking.

You’re more likely to do something rash if you’re presented with a “one time only” offer, or some similar inducement. It may go even further, however, with ‘buyers’ threatening legal action against you if you don’t comply with their demands.

So consider the wise words of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: “Don’t panic”.

Scams are directed at buyers and sellers alike. A common theme with online marketplace types of cons is a false listing and an asking price that’s below the market value.

According to the ACCC, this type of scammer often claims to be a member of the Australian Defence Force, due to go overseas in the next few days. They further claim to be in a rush to sell, and the buyer won’t be permitted to inspect the car in person (or deal with the scammer by phone).

Variations on this scam include the seller working on an oil rig or in another remote location – a FIFO miner for instance.

The ‘remote location’ excuse also works in reverse – in scams aimed at a vehicle owner selling a car.

A scammer tells the owner that they will pay the price for the car directly into the owner’s bank or PayPal account. They then email the owner a fake receipt for the funds allegedly transferred, in order to convince the owner to repay part of the ‘transfer’ that has been overpaid – either ‘by mistake’ or to cover the cost of vehicle shipping. This overpayment shows up on the fake receipt.

The scammer tells the owner that the funds won’t clear – they won’t show up in the owner’s bank or PayPal account – until the courier is paid or the overpayment is refunded. This is when the ‘buyer’ will become insistent and press the owner to ‘refund’ the money.

In a similar vein, an ‘overseas buyer’ convinces a vehicle owner to open a PayPal account to receive the money transferred online for the car. The scammer emails a fake receipt to the owner and then instructs the owner to pay a fictitious freight company for the vehicle shipping.

Scams can be more than just money transfers, however. Buyers have been stuck with cars that have been reborn or written off interstate, so be aware too of what you might be buying if you don’t do your due diligence.

And that includes checking for any financial encumbrance on the car you’re buying.

Identity theft or loading malware using a telecommunications device is also known as ‘Phishing’. Scammers have used carsales branding to lure customers to a site where the customer is required to leave personal details that can be used to withdraw money from a bank account or set up another account to defraud a financial institution.

If you receive a text (SMS) from a buyer who claims they can’t speak with you by phone or in person, that’s a sign right there that they’re not legit. They may try to limit you to communication by email.

As another reason to suspect that this ‘buyer’ is not above board, they will make demands of you – there will be no ‘pleases’ and ‘thank-yous’ with this scammer. The more they can fluster you, possibly by making you feel like you’ll miss out on a sale or you’ll be hounded through the courts somehow, the more they’re likely to pressure you into making a mistake.

Find out more information on the latest scams and other helpful tips to stay safe online

• The scammer won’t meet with you in person or speak with you on the phone – it’s all email or SMS
• The scammer claims to be located remotely and unable to inspect your car in person – but still wants to buy it
• Scammer will only engage with you through a third-party
• Scammer won’t negotiate with you; they may even offer to pay more than the asking price
• Scammer will ‘overpay’ into your account and issue a fake receipt for a ‘refund’ from you
• Scammer will threaten you with legal action to throw a scare into yourself

Consumers are urged to ‘Stop, check, report’.

In addition to letting the carsales customer care team know of someone you suspect to be a scammer (include screen captures, where appropriate), you should also report this activity to the Australian government:

Scammers want you to hide or deny your experiences. Reaching out to support
services not only helps you to understand what happened but also informs authorities
about scammer activities so that they can make it harder for scams to occur.

The National Anti-Scam Centre and support agencies have heard thousands of
stories of scams. When you report your scam, the people who read your report
understand how you are feeling. You are not alone.

If a scammer has taken your money or personal details, contact your bank or card
provider immediately to report the scam. Ask them to stop any transactions.

IDCARE is Australia and New Zealand’s national identity and cyber support service.

They can help you make a plan (for free) to limit the damage. Call them on 1800 595
160 or visit idcare.org to find out more.

If a scam is causing you problems with debt, talk to a financial counsellor.

Moneysmart provides a list of free and confidential services to help you get your
finances back on track.

Being scammed is a horrible experience, and it can happen to anyone. If you need
someone to talk to, reach out to family and friends or you can contact Lifeline (13 11
14) or Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636).

More keeping safe online information is available on the carsales help page