Beware Used-Car Scams

With new car sales booming, there’s a flood of pre-owned models heading into the used-car market, and consumer experts are predicting a concurrent rise in auto-buying scams. “There are many traps that shoppers can fall into when buying a car, so we advise taking it slow and avoiding any deal that seems too good to be true,” says Brian Moody, editor of the used-car Internet site Autotrader.com. “Shoppers who rush their purchase decision are more likely to overlook red flags or agree to unusual requests from the seller.” Moody says shoppers should be especially wary of sellers requesting deposits via wire transfers to “hold” a car or ship it from another state or a foreign country. He or she could well vanish after the money is transferred, so shoppers should be sure not to put down a deposit on a used car unless they know the seller personally or are buying it from a reputable dealership.