There are quite a few options out there to buy and sell a good used car on the internet. Most ads are legitimate, so its easy to understand how buyers let their guard down and ‘assume’ everything is on the up and up. That’s not always the case, unfortunately. To battle this, some sites charge (expensive) fees promising no scams, spam, and a more trustworthy transaction. However these fees keep many honest sellers from posting on those sites, so a buyer may miss all that is available in the area. Not the best option. Don’t fret! and for sure don’t pay any fees….most scams and spam postings are easy to spot once you take a few minutes to understand the warnings and red flags.
No need to sign up for expensive and bespoke services. Just use wyndscreen.com. We have it figured out. After checking out the list below, if you have any questions, just reach out to info@wyndscreen.com and we will try to help!
- Ad has no pictures
What’s that saying….a picture is worth a thousand words? Yea, its true. If a person selling a car can’t be bothered to post a few pictures (Wyndscreen requires at least 2) of their car for sale, no amount of words can make up for that laziness. These days its not hard at all to include at least ONE photo, so there really is no excuse. Do you want to buy a car from someone that lazy or non-caring? What are they trying to hide? Stay away!
2. Text in ad looks different than all the others
This one is sometimes a bit tricky….but once you see it, it sticks out. Most ads include the year, make, and model….pretty straight forward. That’s easy to understand……however some scams add additional words and text to get past scam filters…..take this ad for example….why include ‘highway miles’ in the title? Why is the model ‘chrlFord’? Whats up with the random letters sprinkled throughout the ad? Oh, the icing on the cake? Wanting to communicate through a separate email. These are red flags and usually come from a scammer copy/pasting the text and pics multiple places. Again, stay vigilant!
See this? Run!
3. The vehicle is not located in the advertised area
Be wary if you see any variations of this:
-not located in ‘xxxxxxx’ but can ship
-leaving town/moving and need to ship IMMEDIATLEY
-the location on the map view doesn’t match the area
-shady used car dealers will flood Marketplace with vehicles located hundreds of miles away while masquerading as a private seller.
Be cautious!
4. Facebook user just joined or posted the same item in many areas
So Marketplace is full of scams, some well disguised….but one OK thing about FB is that you can check profiles. If you see that ‘John Smith’ just joined yesterday and has only posted the same car for sale 10 times in different cities, that’s a huge red flag.
5. Very little info in the ad
Maybe the photos are a bit blurry? Maybe they only post a phone number or email? No details in ad? While not always, there is a good chance it’s a scam and you need to stay away. Legit car sellers have plenty of options to sell cars, there is no need to be less than forthcoming.
Don’t let us stop you from reaching out to that seller….but have your guard up!
As a note….Wyndscreen REQUIRES all relevant info to be included in the ad…..a novel idea we think!
Can’t be bothered to include just 1 pic? What is this? The 1980 newspaper?
6. Misspelled or vauge for sale ads
Is the ad just saying “Car for sale” , “great used car” , or is the make and model misspelled? Not always, but quite often this arises from a foreign scammer not knowing how to spell in English or forgetting to double check the ad as they spam it across multiple cities and sites. As a note, Wyndscreen easily weeds out these lazy ‘copy and paste’ scammers by requiring a minimum level of info before posting an ad. Just by using Wyndscreen (for free), you’ll be greeted with less scams and confusion.
7. A 2021 truck for $5000?!
If you’re in the market for a good used car, you probably have seen how expensive used cars can be these days. Many scammers take advantage of this by posting a vehicle for sale with a super low price. Trust me, I know, its tempting. Your heart starts to beat a little faster. Maybe they don’t know what they have?! No, they scammer knows EXACTLY what they are doing and they know you don’t have much money….so they think you are easily scammed. Don’t get scammed. Like you’ve heard before….. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is. Thankfully for you, there are plenty of other cars that are similar for sale, so check those prices. Ask a friend or relative. Or use KBB.com or NADA.com as they are quite simple to use. If you’re seeing a truck that is listed at half price…..don’t get excited. Its not a fire sale, it’s a scam.
8. Never send anyone money without the vehicle or proof of ownership
Since you can easily track down your next used car from anywhere in the world now, what do you do when you see something you like 1000 miles away? Its not like you can just go down the street and kick the tires. Scammers know this and they like to post interesting vehicles that will get buyers from far away interested. They’ll use tactics like ‘send a small deposit’ or will offer to ship with ‘their guy’ once paid. Don’t do that! If you really want it, do you best to go see it or network with friends/colleagues/associates to have someone lay eyes on the prize….or ask the seller for much more detailed info before moving forward with the purchase….which leads me to the next topic…..
9. If you ask for more info and pics and the seller stalls or changes the subject…..
Buying a vehicle is expensive so you want to do everything you can to protect yourself when buying from a private party. You might want some specific pictures (rust, seat condition, tire condition, etc)….you might want a carfax or similar…..you might want a video of the car running or driving. These are all reasonable things to ask for before spending thousands of dollars. If the seller hesitates IN ANY WAY, changes the subject or insists everything is good to go without further proof…..please stay away. It’s probably a scam, but even if its not, the seller is hiding something.
The cars listed on wyndscreen are legit and you can feel comfortable interacting with all the sellers.
10. If you have ANY concerns, get a pre puchase inspection
There are hundreds of thousands of used cars for sale in the USA at any given time, so if you have any hesitations…any concerns……take a step back and breathe. Ask a friend, ask a relative, ask a coworker if it seems legit. You know everyone has an opinion!
If you don’t have anyone to ask, take the vehicle to an independent shop and ask them to do a pre-purchase inspection. This may cost you $100, but that is VERY cheap insurance…and if issues are found, that can be a bargaining chip on the deal.
If the seller doesn’t let you do that, or insists on taking it to ‘his guy’….then move along. There is something that they don’t want you to see lurking in the shadows.
Another good vehicle will come along.
AND FINALLY
Again, wyndscreen.com was launched to help rid the used car world of scams and spam. We are doing our best to make you feel comfortable and secure when both buying and selling. If you have ANY questions, reach out to us at info@wyndscreen.com and we’ll do what we can to help!
Wyndscreen 