A reader who wishes to remain anonymous sent us this letter about an RV scam and we asked if we could share it with you as a word of caution. Here’s what they wrote:
As a recipient of your online newsletters, I am reaching out to you in hopes that you can use your platform to alert others in our hobby of an ongoing scam, which I almost fell victim to. I have filed reports with both the Federal Trade Commission and the Better Business Bureau, but their processes take a long time and no telling how many victims this scam will claim by then.
I replied to a Las Vegas Craigslist ad for a 2014 Chevy Roadtrek. I called the number listed in the posting and received a text reply that he had posted the ad on behalf of his sister-in-law, and provided me an email address to contact her directly. The ensuing email exchange was wrought with red flags but also included enough details on the van to keep me interested (additional photos, interior video, and VIN#).
To close the deal, the seller (scammer) directed me to a logistics company that would be a ‘neutral’ 3rd party who would handle the transport, and escrow the funds until both parties were satisfied. Upon my investigation of the company, I have concluded that it is part of their elaborate and sophisticated scam, despite a professional and legitimate appearing website.
The name of the company is AutoSafe Logistics, supposedly based in Marion, IA. Its website address is https://autosafelog.com. Even though the company claims to have been in business for 31 years, the website was registered only two months ago with a virtual office address in Reykjavík, Iceland. The photos on the front page of its website of its employees and a transport truck appear elsewhere on the Web representing other companies. The photo of its general manager, Gloria, is identical to one on a site for accounting career consultants in St. Louis.
Based on the level of sophistication I suspect this is a much larger scam than the bogus sale of a few RVs, and likely includes other large items, requiring transport (cars, trucks, boats, heavy equipment, etc.).
Again, my hope is that you will include a warning in your newsletters to alert your readers.
Thank you.
Be careful out there, folks. Scammers are getting smarter every day and it’s harder all the time to differentiate an honest company from one that wants to cheat you. Always do your research and make sure you’re buying from a reputable source. Meet the seller, whether an individual or a dealer, in person, and in public, if possible.
Have you or someone you know ever been scammed on something RV-related? Please tell us about it in the comments below.
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I posted our For Sale rig on three places — one was a paid site for auto sales, the other two were CL and FB Marketplace. Both of the latter two I pulled within the first few days. Got a lot of responses — all pretty useless! I mean, who buys a rig unseen? And many simply asked “Is this available?” Well, duh, it does say For Sale, doesn’t it? I added a note on the ad that said if rig was sold, it would say so. Didn’t matter.
Finally just deleted all but the paid ad. It really is a crying shame, but you just can’t trust most people nowadays.
And for my $200 ad I have had over 700 views but only 11 inquiries, and exactly 3 visitors. Have to wonder how many of those views were potential spammers!?
We had this happen on Facebook . I also did my due diligence and told hubby to stop contact and block her on Facebook.
Craigslist has a section on it’s website that is devoted to informing users of just this type of scam and many others.
I’m surprised CL is still around, seems they would do more to protect their marketplace from scammers, or people would eventually stop using them. I’ve used it in the past, and I can always tell the scammers… they’re pretty easy to see thru. Not too smart.
I’ve used CL probably a 100 times with no problem. Just because some people are stupid, don’t penalize us all
An advantage of buying thru Ebay is the Guarantee of the product or vehicle or your money back. I bought our motor home on Ebay. Also, I bought an 87′ ElCamino some years back and the nite it was to be delivered to the shipper (in Calif) it was stolen. I was extremely concerned as I had already paid for it. I called the Orange County sheriff’s dept. and they had the file and suggested I forget it as it was probably already stripped out! The seller immediately refunded my money and I found another one which I bought and still have.
If you find “good deals” on Pintrest – they may be scams also with no recourse. Do your research, stay with reputable known names only!
OH YES. THIS SCAM IT SEEMS IS EVERYWHERE. I HAVE RESPONDED TO SEVERAL OF THESE ALL FOR DIFFERENT MERCHANDISE. ALL NICE LOOKING FAIRLY NEW, BUT ALWAYS POSTED FOR A FRIEND OR RELATIVE. THESE APPEAR ON FACEBOOK UNDER LOCAL SALE OR TRADE PROGRAMS. I HAVE NEVER FALLN FOR THESE BUT THIS ARTICLE SHOULD BE A WARNING FOR ALLO.
NEVER SEND ANYMONEY AND IF YOU DO SEND VIA PAY PAL OR A CREDIT CARD
Cash on the barrel head ONLY. That’s the only way I sell on CL.
Same if/when I buy, which is very rare.
Craigslist is Heaven for scammers and even dangerous criminals. Use it at your own peril.
Thanks for sharing this, Emily. So far we have not been scammed, but we remain vigilant.
I sometimes sell things on craiglist or facebook marketplace. Now at the bottom of the add I put all scammers will be reported to the government scam website.
That has cut down on the scam responses. Mostly those who say I don’t need to look at it, I want it. They will send a check for too much and ask that you send them the extra back. Their check is bad and can take up to 2 weeks not to clear. If you have sent a check then they have your bank acct info.
Buyer and seller beware!
The above scam mentioned by Gigi is by far the most prevalent on the web.
Good research!
The world is full of scammers. They exist because the world is also full of people who lack the ability to control their temptations. It may well be the world’s second oldest profession. I would not be amazed if they found hieroglyphics in Egypt bemoaning the fact they got taken.
Nice job. You did a domain name whois lookup and a reverse image search.
As for me, I can’t imagine even putting down a deposit without an inspection of the item and the title.
As for Craigslist, the advance fee scams have even filtered down to cheap items. You wouldn’t think that a scammer would trouble themselves over a $50 TV stand, but you would be wrong.
If you cannot physically see, smell or taste it, it is probably fake.
I am a member of three different motorcycle websites. There are many ‘for sale’and “wanted” on these and a lot are scammers. One thing I watch for is when the seller joined the site and how many posts they have on the site. The ones that just joined are a caution flag. If it’s their first post, it’s a red flag. Another thing to watch for is people posting their phone number and email address. These are two things I never to do or reply to on a public website. The sites have an option to send private messages, but that is limited to members that have posted at least 10 times. Also look for @gmail, @yahoo addresses. These are easy to obtain and hard to track.
Those ads are everywhere. Some key details are “no accidents, clear title, stored inside”, etc. Also, it’s usually an email selling for sister/father/aunt. Never send money to anyone, period!
This sounds similar to an add I responded to for a pickup truck that was in a eBay warehouse in WY. I would send the money to an address in WY where it would be held in escrow until the truck was delivered and my week to inspect the truck was expired. If I changed my mind the deal would be cancelled and my money refunded. Right!! I called eBay, they don’t have warehouses, well I’ll be doggone this sounds like a scam. Authorities said the same, no crime has been committed unless I fall for it and send the money. BUYER BE WARE, IF IT SOUNDS TO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT PROBABLY ISN’T!!
I think you meant to say If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is…not isn’t.
We experienced a similar scam when selling our 1956 truck. We woke up and started investigating when the corespondents seemed“to good to be true”. We notified all the proper authorities including our local sheriff We pretty much got the response of “Thank you, but there is nothing we can do as no crime was committed.”
I constantly get emails that the post office has been trying to deliver a package to me but no one is home. 1 the Post office will not email you. 2 if you phone the number listed and Chinese is listed as option 2 you should know it’s a scam.
Other than consignment through a dealer, if you can’t meet with the proof of ownership registered owner directly, walk away.