Used vehicle fraud a costly Business
... when buying a used car themselves, or when a family member purchased a used vehicle.
The study, conducted by Vedaauto.com, put at $3,128 the average cost to purchasers of the individual fraudulent sales revealed in the survey. With around two million used cars sold across Australia annually, this equates to average vehicle fraud costs of $375 million each year.
The study also found that fraudulent transactions were more likely to occur through private sales rather than through a certified dealer. The findings were gleaned from a nationally represented on-line survey conducted between October 26 and 29, 2009. The sample included more than 1000 men and women respondents above the age of 18. The survey also shows that three in five or 57 percent of used car buyers prefer purchasing a used vehicle from a motor dealer while 34 percent of respondents would prefer to purchase through a private seller.
Sixteen percent of survey respondents said they would purchase a used vehicle online if they were able to obtain a full history report prior to purchase. Vedaauto.com boss David Scognamiglio says buying a used car is a gamble when you don't do the research.
"Australia is a country where crooks can move cars across borders to hide the history.
"Some good information is available online that will help prevent a number of surprises, however our analysis shows that around 70 percent of people do not know about it," he said.
Even the people covered in the survey were not themselves "squeaky clean" and in fact six percent of them said they would consider winding back their car's odometer if they thought they could command a higher sale price. Really disturbing was the finding that five percent conceded they would buy a stolen vehicle "if it was in good condition and represented good value for money."
Of the 53 percent of respondents who intend to purchase a used vehicle in the next 12 months, 33 percent have already decided to pay for the vehicle outright while 18 percent will apply for finance.
When it comes to concerns about the legitimacy of a car they are considering purchasing, the major issues are -
-accidents/insurance claims (66 percent);
-the value of the vehicle relative to other similar vehicles (49 percent);
-the vehicle's odometer reading (48 percent); and
-the service history of the vehicle (44 percent).
One in five (22 percent) will own their vehicles until it breaks down and starts costing them money and on the question of future running costs, 76 percent are most concerned about fuel costs. This is followed by repairs and non service maintenance (69 percent) and mechanical servicing (62 percent).
Vedaauto.com has the following advice for used car buyers.
They recommend that you --
-inform the seller you intend to do checks on the car;
-obtain the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) and visit vedaauto.com to get the cars complete history (your VIN number can be found on your engine, on your registration papers and sticker, or on the inside of most car doors);
-get an independent mechanical inspection; and
-read the used car warranty.
For $24.95, the vedaauto.com on-line report includes a REVS check, written-off and stolen vehicle status, flood or storm damage, odometer readings, previous sales listings, the estimated current car valuation and safety and emission ratings.
Ian Crawford
