Category Archives: International

Clocking is still affecting 6.49% of UK vehicles today

NOTFEA

Dashboard of car

A Rapid Car Check survey has found that 6.49% of vehicles have mileage issues.

In a pool of 1 million, 64,986 were found to have issues, despite members of the European Parliament voting in favour of new legislation to combat mileage clocking in cars in 2018.

The most common clocked vehicles were the Renault Grand Scenic and Renault Scenic, with a fail percentage of 32.66% and 32.14% respectively.

The most common year of vehicle registration was 1998 with a 16.47% fail rate. Vehicle registered in the 1990’s made up six of the top 10, with no vehicles registered after 2003 present.

Overall, rapid check estimates that 2,479,180 vehicles in the UK have mileage issues.

Before passing legislation in 2018, German MEP Ismail Ertug said around 50% of used cars sold inside the EU, and between 30% and 50% of cars sold across borders within the EU, had been clocked.

MEPs called new legislation that included national mileage registers to be made accessible across borders. Car buyers should be able to verify mileage readings regardless of the country it was previously registered.

They also called for carmakers to set clear criteria for checking that odometers are tamper proof.

Barry Shorto, head of industry relations at cap hpi, said at the time: “In Belgium and the Netherlands where readings are collected more frequently than elsewhere, odometer fraud has been almost eradicated.

“We fully support calls for mileage alternation or clocking to be made a criminal offence. Even though clocking has a negative impact on road safety, only six EU countries recognise odometer manipulation as a criminal offence.”

Original Article: https://www.motortrader.com/motor-trader-news/automotive-news/clocking-still-affecting-6-49-uk-vehicles-today-07-08-2019

Sales of vehicles with rolled-back odometers lead to lengthy jail sentence

NOTFEA

A North York man has been sentenced to 450 days in prison after being found guilty of odometer tampering.

Mehran Amini received the longest sentence ever handed out in Ontario for illegal vehicle sales, according to a statement from the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC).

The statement said Amini was charged after OMVIC investigators discovered he’d purchased 30 vehicles from Western Canada, and shipped them to Ontario.

A North York man has been sentenced to 450 days in prison after being found guilty of odometer tampering and ‘curbsiding.’

Amini then rolled back the odometers on the vehicles, which were mostly late-model pick-up trucks with high mileage, investigators said.

“They are vehicles that could be near end-of-life, but they were paying huge dollars — $30 to $40,000 — for these vehicles,” OMVIC Director of Communications Terry O’Keefe told CTV Toronto’s Pat Foran.

“The warranties were all canceled.”

O’Keefe said some of the odometers had been rolled back as much as 150,000 kilometres.

The vehicles were sold to residents of the Toronto area, including Sean Wedge.

“Buying this truck was a financial disaster,” Wedge told CTV Toronto.

“I thought it had 52,000 kilometres which it had 180,000 kilometres. I had to do more than $22,000 in repairs.”

Amini’s case was heard by a judge who found him guilty of violations of the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act and the Consumer Protection Act, including “curbsiding.”

Curbsiding is the illegal practice of reselling vehicles without having the registered title to a car being sold.

“Evidence presented in court showed Amini placed ads in online marketplaces posing as a private seller, though he told some buyers he was a dealer, and that he used multiple aliases,” OMVIC’s statement said.

Amini was convicted and sentenced to 450 days in prison, but is appealing his sentence.

Records showed Amini had also been convicted previously for similar crimes. In one occasion, he and his company were fined $393,000 for selling 42 vehicles with rolled-back odometers, OMVIC said. Amini is appealing that conviction as well.

“Most consumers think today, with the digital dashes, that odometers can’t be rolled back, but for many vehicles, it’s actually very simple,” O’Keefe warned.

If you’re buying a used vehicle, OMVIC offered the following red flags:

  • The vehicle is priced below its true value
  • The vehicle isn’t registered in the seller’s name
  • The seller won’t allow a mechanic to inspect the vehicle
  • The seller won’t provide a car history report

Original article: http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/sales-of-vehicles-with-rolled-back-odometers-lead-to-lengthy-jail-sentence-1.2739565

Two accused of car scam

NOTFEA

Odometer on Dashboard

Two accused of car scam

Two men are accused of running a car racket in which they sold second-hand vehicles with false odometer readings.

Police allege the men bought 20 vehicles with high kilometre readings on sales websites this year.

They then allegedly bought car parts, including odometers with lower readings, from wreckers and swapped them into the vehicles before selling them to unsuspecting buyers.

The men also allegedly changed log book records to match the modifications and removed service stickers from vehicles.

By wiping off thousands of kilometres, the vehicles appeared newer and worth more, police claim.

Regional investigations unit officers swooped on the pair after spotting two sales advertisements for what they alleged was the same vehicle with different odometer readings.

Officers raided a Victoria Park property and allegedly seized documentation, vehicle service stamps and log books connected to the fraudulent modifications and sales.

The men, who are in Australia on student visas, allegedly made almost $40,000 profit from the scam this year.

One man who allegedly bought a Holden sedan from the pair said the odometer showed it had done 80,000km but he was told by police it had actually travelled 180,000km.

He claimed a check by a mechanic had not picked up the illegal modification.

“It’s a safety issue as well as an expense – because the car has been driven more than I thought, it will probably have more problems and because it had been tampered with, it isn’t even worth what it would have been with the correct odometer reading,” he claimed.

Police have charged a 28-year-old man with 19 counts of gains benefit by fraud and one count of attempted gains benefit by fraud. A 27-year-old man has been charged with 19 counts of gains benefit by fraud and two counts of attempted gains benefit by fraud.

They are both expected to face Perth Magistrates Court on September 15.

The police investigation is ongoing into vehicles sold last year 2014.

Original article: https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/29301489/two-accused-of-car-scam/ 

(Calgary) Dozens of victims caught in odometer roll back scam

NOTFEA

image

A Calgary man is facing charges in connection to a vehicle odometer roll back scam that defrauded more than 50 people.

The Economic Crimes Unit was notified in January by a credit card company that a number of skimmed cards were being used for fraudulent purchases in Calgary.

Police say the cards were being used to service vehicles and purchase vehicle parts and that the vehicles being serviced, were purchased at an auction house.

Investigators say that the vehicles had high kilometres but they had been rolled back between purchase from the auction house and attempting to sell them online.

“Investigation by the constables revealed that the offender was purchasing vehicles from the auction house at which time he would take those vehicles and have small repairs doe to them, maybe tune ups etc., change some parts out and take them to auto repair facilities where we believe that the odometers were rolled back. He would then list those vehicles on kijiji, Craig’s List, and the Auto Trader for sale and individuals would then come into negotiation with him to purchase those vehicles,” said S/Sgt. Kristie Verheul from the Economic Crimes Unit.

They say that in one case, approximately 208,000 kilometres were rolled back.

The suspect in the case purchased 54 vehicles over three years.

Andriy Plysiun, 28, of Calgary, faces one count of fraud over $5,000.

Police estimate the value of fraud is $300,000 and say that number is likely to increase as more victims are identified.

Original Article : http://calgary.ctvnews.ca/dozens-of-victims-caught-in-odometer-roll-back-scam-1.2031958#ixzz3Krf3Hg5L

Five men charged for allegedly winding back odometers in used cars

NOTFEA

FIVE men accused of winding back the odometers in high-end second-hand cars which they planned to offer for sale have been ordered to appear in court in June.

Serious Crime Task Force officers arrested the men after raids on six Adelaide properties, where 23 cars — including four Mercedes, four BMWs, four Holdens, three Toyotas, a Range Rover and a Volvo — computer equipment, odometer manipulation equipment and cash were seized.

Five firearms and ammunition were also claimed by police in a joint investigation with Consumer and Business Services officers, which began in February.

A 22-year-old man, of Colonel Light Gardens, a Kingswood man, 63, a Prospect, man, 66, a Greenwith man, 66, and a Parafield Gardens man, 65, were arrested and charged with conspiracy to defraud and participating in a criminal organisation.

Police have laid 20 charges but said the inquiry was continuing. Further charges are expected.

The men were granted police bail to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on June 27.

Police say the investigation uncovered odometer tampering offences by licensed and unlicensed used car dealers.

“(It is) a practice commonly referred to as odometer fraud, winding back or clocking,’’ Detective Chief Inspector John Gerlach said.

“This practice is carried out in order to deceive purchasers about a vehicle’s true mileage and value in order to obtain an increased profit.”

Any cars or other seized equipment deemed to be the proceeds of crime would be confiscated, Det Chief-Insp Gerlach said.

Police also advised prospective car buyers could protect themselves from this type of offending by comparing an odometer reading against available vehicle records, including service records, safety certificates, log books or previous sales contracts.

Also, they suggested obtaining a professional car inspection by the RAA or motor trade association, be cautious of vehicles that are significantly underpriced for their make, model, age and condition and access the Personal Property Securities Register, to check the vehicle’s history and any finance arrangements. The PPSR does not include odometer readings but is a service offered by private companies that can be located on the internet.

It was best to buy through licensed dealers so you are protected by law against loss if the vehicle was later found to be stolen or financially encumbered, Det Chief-Insp Gerlach said.

“It is also important that buyers note that if they do not check the odometer reading when they buy a car, they could be accused of being the “clocker” if they sell the car later on and the new buyer finds it has been altered,’’ he said.

Original Article: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/five-men-charged-for-allegedly-winding-back-odometers-in-used-cars/story-fnii5yv6-1226887000376 

Foreign Destinations For Stolen Canadian Cars

NOTFEA

Big profits overseas for stolen luxury cars, SUVs, even family vehicles.Your car may be on a voyage to somewhere far, far away … Canada is a major auto-exporting country. Trouble is, some of the cars, trucks and SUVs headed abroad already have owners. While auto theft rates are falling, the lucrative export trade in stolen vehicles shows little sign of going down. By some estimates, 20,000 luxury cars, SUVs and even bread-and-butter family rides are ending up in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Central America every year.Vehicles stolen on the Prairies tend to be boosted by joyriders, often looking for something to use to commit other crimes. But the metropolitan areas of Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal are rich hunting grounds for organized auto-theft rings that funnel stolen wheels overseas.Montreal is the principal exit port for stolen vehicles going overseas – more than 500 stolen vehicles were seized on the docks there last year – followed by Halifax and Vancouver. Some are also shipped by rail across the U.S. border, then onto ships in ports like Elizabeth, New Jersey, and Baltimore, Maryland, says Ben Jillett, a former RCMP officer who now works for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, helping recover some stolen vehicles from foreign countries.They arrive often in places you’ve never heard of before reaching their ultimate destinations. Flip through the gallery to find out what five top locations are.

Tema, Ghana

 

This west African port city is one of two popular entry points for stolen vehicles destined to be sold on the continent. Automobile taxes and import duties are very high in African countries, especially for luxury models, which makes illegally imported stolen vehicles very attractive. Insurance Bureau investigator Ben Jillett and his colleagues have seen Canadian vehicles in Africa with their original provincial license plates, which apparently give the car added cachet. One car even had a parking pass for Toronto city hall. Ghanian media have reported government promises to crack down on lax import enforcement.

Tin Can Island, Nigeria

 

This major container port near Nigeria’s biggest city, Lagos, is also a key channel for stolen vehicles heading into the continent, says Jillett. While luxury cars and SUVs are in high demand, Jillett, who worked in west Africa, says Toyota models of all kinds are the most popular, especially the RAV4 compact SUV. They’re rugged and parts are easy to obtain. And if your Toyota Corolla or Camry has disappeared without a trace, there’s every chance it’s now working as a taxi in some African or Middle Eastern city.Condition isn’t that critical, even with luxury cars, Jillett and his IBC colleague Charles Rabbat, who works with Canada Border Services Agency and police to intercept stolen vehicles in Montreal and Halifax, point out. Vehicles often arrive with dings and dents because they’re not well-secured in their containers. Doesn’t matter – they find ready buyers.

Kotka, Finland

This Finnish port, along with Turku, Finland, is a known entry point for stolen vehicles headed into Eastern Europe. Jillett and Rabbat say former Soviet Bloc countries, especially in the Balkans, remain lucrative markets for stolen cars. East European crime rings have been discovered with tentacles reaching to Central America. Stolen vehicles also go through ports at Antwerp, Belgium, Rotterdam, Holland and Bremerhaven, Germany.The IBC has some success repatriating exported vehicles (at a cost to the owner) but prospects fall off outside of European Union and G8 countries. Jillett says former East Bloc countries such as Poland are improving and he’s even seen progress in Kosovo. But a major impediment is the lack of integration of North American and Interpol stolen-vehicle, which makes it harder to confirm a suspect exported vehicle is actually stolen.

Beirut, Lebanon

 

TThe Middle East, including Israel, Lebanon, Iran and Iraq, are tagged as stolen-car hotspots by the IBC. Containerized vehicles make their way via Genoa, Italy and to eastern Mediterranean ports such as Beirut. Jillett says the advent of electronic ignition immobilizers has spurred the growth of fraud as a way of acquiring vehicles. Theft rings, often using stolen identities, lease or buy vehicles on credit and drive them straight into containers or to staging areas for later shipment. A few years ago 165 vehicles financed in Toronto were traced to the Middle East, says Jillett. It’s often hard to confirm a vehicle is even stolen because the bank hasn’t reported the financing in default. It also allows rich customers to get vehicles stolen to order. And not only cars. Jillett says a Saudi police officer told him he found stolen snowmobiles, imported to the desert country just for their novelty value.

Hong Kong

China has begun tightening rules on the importation of older-model vehicles, mainly for environmental reasons, but that hasn’t completely choked off the demand for imported stolen cars. Hong Kong is one entry point but Jillett says vehicles shipped to Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand often are really destined for China. The IBC says the trade moves out of Vancouver and Seattle but the extent of it isn’t clear. RCMP Sgt. Gord Elias of British Columbia’s integrated auto crime team says there have been few seizures recently and the B.C. stolen-vehicle recovery rate averages about 92 per cent, including Metro Vancouver, compared with as low as 50 per cent for Metro Toronto. Elias says that suggests organized export-based theft rings aren’t as active yet on the West Coast and that those that do leave from Vancouver were shipped in from elsewhere in Canada.Federal government has toughened the law, creating separate Criminal Code offences for auto theft – previously covered as theft over $5,000 – which carries a mandatory minimum six-month sentence for an auto thief caught three or more times. There are also new sections covering the alteration or removal of the vehicle identification number and possession of a stolen vehicle for the purpose of trafficking. Border services agents now also have the power to detain suspected stolen vehicles without a police officer being present. Jillett says it’s hoped these tools will help cut the flow of stolen vehicles abroad.

[CA] Fraudsters using Internet to bait high-end car buyers

NOTFEA

Online fraudsters are going upscale and targeting unsuspecting buyers of newer-model and luxury cars, the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council warned Friday.

“This represents a change in strategy by curbsiders and fraudsters,” said Terry O’Keefe, spokesman for OMVIC.  “Curbsiders, unlicensed dealers who usually pose as private sellers, used to target buyers of inexpensive economy vehicles. Now,  we’re seeing a shift towards newer and high-end vehicles such as Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, and even newer-model pick-ups, which command higher prices and higher profit margins. Unfortunately, just as curbsiders commonly misrepresent themselves, they also misrepresent the vehicles they sell, which are often insurance write-offs, accident-damaged or odometer-tampered.”

O’Keefe also said he knows of six Ontario residents who lost a total of about $250,000 to phoney websites claiming to selling luxury cars such as Ferraris and Corvettes.

Car buyers have to be doubly vigilant: lurking in online classifieds are not only curbsiders, but out-right fraud artists operating fictitious dealerships supposedly based in the U.S, said O’Keefe.  These two trends are converging when it comes to car-buying rip-offs, he said.

Residents of border cities, such asWindsor, need to be extra careful as they are accustomed to shopping across the border, said O’Keefe.

“Consumers should understand they are only protected byOntario’s consumer protection laws when they buy from an OMVIC-registered dealer,” added O’Keefe. “If they buy privately or outside the province and something goes wrong, OMVIC can’t help.”

These fraudsters target Canadians by advertising in Canadian online marketplaces, offering high-end and exotic vehicles at attractive prices, he explained.  “The fake dealerships had polished websites and phony reviews for the dealerships on numerous other websites,” he said. “Unfortunately neither the dealerships nor the cars they purported to offer existed. We know of numerous victims who lost tens of thousands of dollars each.”

These online techniques persuade “even smart yet strongly motivated buyers to drop their guard and chase the great buy they’ve always dreamed of owning,” said O’Keefe.  “And, online often means the crimes are borderless and faceless so it’s much more difficult to verify and catch criminal activity.”

A survey carried out for OMVIC highlighted  a heavy reliance by car buyers on online sources of information. For example, 40 per cent of respondents visited a dealer website; 34 per cent visited an automobile-specific classifieds site (e.g., autotrader.ca); and 23 per cent relied on other online classifieds (e.g., Kijiji, Craigslist).

Research from the Used Car Dealers Association  last year found that almost one-third of vehicle ads on online sites were placed by curbsiders.  “They’ve mastered using the Internet to make their appeals look professional and authentic,” O’Keefe said. . “Often their vehicles are priced below market value. Consumers should see this as a warning, not an opportunity.”

Original Article: http://blogs.windsorstar.com/2013/10/18/fraudsters-using-internet-to-bait-high-end-car-buyers/

[UK] Trainee solicitor guilty of car clocking fraud

NOTFEA

A trainee solicitor has been found guilty of being part of a car clocking ring which generated thousands of pounds.

Karmjit Sohal, aged 24, allowed thousands of pounds in cash to pass through her bank account to trade vehicles in the racket which also involved her brother Inderjit Singh Sohal and a cousin called Jatinder Sandher.

The operation was based at Enzo Motors, inGreat Bridge Street, WestBromwich, and Netherton Motors, inHalesowen Road, Netherton.

Vehicles were bought and sold days later with thousands of pounds added to the price and up to 144,000-miles removed from the odometer reading between December 2009 and February 2011, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

Sohal had claimed she was ‘too busy studying law’ to be involved but jurors unanimously found her guilty after spending just under an hour and a half deliberating at the end of a four day trial yesterday afternoon.

The jury of nine women and three men returned guilt verdicts on two charges of conspiracy to defraud.

Judge Mark Eades asked the jury to deliver a verdict of not guilty on a third charge of converting criminal property after prosecutors offered no evidence.

Inderjit Singh Sohal and Jatinder Sandher along with two others, Sundeep and Pardeep Shinh – have already admitted their involvement in the racket.

The court previously heard police officers seized £10,000 in cash in a raid on Karmjit Sohal’s family home in Willenhall from inside a safe in the garage which also contained paperwork.

However during interview with trading standards officials she claimed she withdrew the cash over fears it could be stolen from her account if she lost her debit card .

TheKeeleUniversitygraduate had also denied knowledge of some transactions on her debit card, including a sum of £2,071 paid at an auction in Wednesbury for a W-reg Mercedes C220.

She claimed she had left her debit card ‘lying around’ her home as she was a ‘trusting person’ and did not realise it had been used in deals.

Forged MoTs and bogus service books were produced to match the false mileage, revealed prosecutor Mr Mark Jackson

The judge ordered a pre-sentence report to be compiled on Karmjit Sohal, of Sherlock Close, Willenhall.

She will reappear at Wolverhampton Crown Court with her four co-conspirators for sentence on October 28.

Original Article: http://www.expressandstar.com/news/2013/09/27/trainee-solicitor-guilty-of-car-clocking-fraud/

Insurance fraud mastermind sent to jail for 4 years

NOTFEA

BY LORRAINE NICKEL GLOBAL NEWS
MPI
 It’s believed Manitoba Public Insurance was defrauded of more than $800,000. Global News/File
A man considered the mastermind of the largest defrauding of Manitoba Public Insurance in history is going to jail.

Quincy Adurogboye, 33, of Winnipeg, pleaded guilty and was convicted of eight counts of fraud in what police called Project Rollback in 2009.

Wednesday, a judge sentenced him to four years behind bars and ordered him to pay back $150,000 to MPI, only a portion of what he fraudulently received from the corporation.

About 40 people were arrested and charged for their involvement in an elaborate scheme to defraud the insurance company by rolling back the odometer readings of recently purchased vehicles, staging collisions in Winnipeg and then reporting the vehicles as stolen.

It’s believed the scheme cost MPI more than $800,000.

“This crime is extraordinary,” said Justice Chris Martin.

Odometer fraud worries FRCA

NOTFEA

Most secondhand imported vehicles odometers have been tampered with when compared against its irrespective declared cancellation certificate mileage.

This was revealed after a thorough investigation conducted by the Fiji Revenue and Customs Authority (FRCA) in Nadi, Lautoka and Suva

“We are clear that the odometers have been tampered with and consumers need to keep a look out,” said FRCA chief executive Jitoko Tikolevu.

“The odometer readings have been reduced significantly to encourage consumers to buy the vehicles and we found that there is a big gap from the country of origin of the vehicle compared to the readings being showed here,” he said.

He said odometer fraud is a serious threat to car buyers because they may be burdened with having to pay extra cash for the vehicle, additional insurance costs, additional maintenance costs and the vehicle safety.

“When buying vehicles consumers need to ensure they demand for a cancellation certificate from dealers to verify the readings on the odometer.”

He also confirmed that FIRCA is working closely with the Land Transport Authority in providing superior services to the public.

By Mereani Gonedua

Orignal Article: http://www.fijilive.com/news/2013/04/odometer-fraud-worries-frca/53544.Fijilive