- Report: #390482
Complaint Review: Robert Swenson - Houston Texas
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Robert Swenson
2500 Ridgewood Street Houston, 77006 Texas, U.S.A.
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Robert Swenson Fake ad autotrader Houston Texas
This guy Deceived me into thinking i was buying a 1998 3000GT VR-4 for $3500. I thought everything on autotrader was legit but not this time. I was currently going through some financial stresses and because of that I was unable to afford a good reliable car that i wanted. After months upon months of searching i found this add saying this car was for $3500 and had only 89,000 miles on it. It was the car i had been looking for all these months i thought. The seller however wouldnt give me a number but just an email saying-
Hello,
I'm the owner of the 1998 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 on which you've recently show interest. The car is in excellent shape and running condition and it has a clean title. The price for the car is $3,500 with shipping and handling included in price. I am located in Houston,TX now and the car will be shipped from here. Shipping will be done via DAS and it will take no more then 2-3 days top (depending on your exact location).
The transaction will be made through MoneyBookers Escrow for our own protection. You will have 5 days to inspect and test drive the car upon arrival with no obligation to buy. If you are interested in the purchase, please get back to me and let know so we can make the deal.
Sincerely,
Robert
He told me how moneybookers escrow was a secre transaction website so after nearly a month of saving up enopugh money to buy the car i sent the money as instructed through a money gram. never heard from him or money bookers again...
Jabrilrayne
Ft. Wayne, Indiana
U.S.A.
Hello,
I'm the owner of the 1998 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 on which you've recently show interest. The car is in excellent shape and running condition and it has a clean title. The price for the car is $3,500 with shipping and handling included in price. I am located in Houston,TX now and the car will be shipped from here. Shipping will be done via DAS and it will take no more then 2-3 days top (depending on your exact location).
The transaction will be made through MoneyBookers Escrow for our own protection. You will have 5 days to inspect and test drive the car upon arrival with no obligation to buy. If you are interested in the purchase, please get back to me and let know so we can make the deal.
Sincerely,
Robert
He told me how moneybookers escrow was a secre transaction website so after nearly a month of saving up enopugh money to buy the car i sent the money as instructed through a money gram. never heard from him or money bookers again...
Jabrilrayne
Ft. Wayne, Indiana
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Flynrider
Phoeix,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Common scam
#2Consumer Comment
Sat, November 15, 2008
This one happens all the time. Your comment that, "I thought everything on autotrader was legit" leads me to believe that you're new to the car buying game. Look at everything with skepticism and you'll be much better off. Never buy a car that you haven't personally test driven and inspected. The tipoff in this scam is where the seller states that "shipping and handling" is included in the price. Think about it. They don't know where the potential buyer is going to be. If the buyer is located across the country, this would mean that the seller could lose big bucks having to ship it. The only reason a seller would offer this is if he is not planning on delivering the car at all. A couple of other obvious tipoffs are the fact that communication was via email only (which means the scammer doesn't have to invest in a throwaway cell phone). Also the payment required to be via Moneygram. Scammers will insist on this because there is no traceability. Once they've got cash in hand, they disappear. Better luck next time.
Edgeman
Chico,California,
U.S.A.
Unlikely that the scammer used his real name...
#3Consumer Comment
Thu, November 13, 2008
I'm sorry that you were scammed. This is a very common scam, particularly on Craigslist and eBay. In short, never use MoneyGram or Western Union to a stranger for an item or service bought through the internet. Once that person picks up your money, they can be virtually impossible to track down. File a police report. It is possible that Auto Trader may have a record of who placed the ad but I would think that the scammer would be too smart to use his actual contact information. Good luck.
Karl
Clovis,New Mexico,
U.S.A.
Why Didn't you fly to Houston?
#4Consumer Suggestion
Thu, November 13, 2008
Let's see - you could afford $3500 to buy this inappropriate car but couldn't afford a cheap airfare of $300 or so to personally check it out? You bought the car sight unseen based on an email with no VIN, Carfax etc. Smart move. Next time shop closer to home and look for an economical reliable car, not an exotic.
