Aussies are being warned to be on the lookout for a new hoax where scammers target second-hand car sales websites pretending to be defence force personnel. The goal is to con people out of thousands by playing up the trustworthy authority-figure angle. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) released a statement on Tuesday revealing that Australians have already lost more than $288,000 to vehicle scams in the first quarter of this year, which is more than all losses reported to Scamwatch in 2019.
The consumer and competition watchdog is warning consumers of the increase in vehicle scams, with more than $1 million lost in 2020. The most common hoax involves scammers posting fake online listings for vehicles at well below market value, luring buyers looking for a good deal on a second-hand car. The scammers seek payment to secure the car but never deliver....MORE
