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Carvana Stolen Car Scam Problem

A new scam warning for car shoppers who need to know how to avoid buying a stolen car from Carvana or other dealerships.
Used Car VIN Trick to Sell Stolen Cars

New Scam Warning

In an earlier article related to car theft and the problems that result whenever someone unknowingly buys a stolen car, we learned the importance of why car owners might want to cover that exposed VIN on their dashboard near the cars A-Pillar.

VIN: The Fingerprint of Your Car

A VIN, or Vehicle Identification Number, is a unique code assigned to every motor vehicle when it is manufactured. It serves as a fingerprint for the vehicle, allowing it to be identified and distinguished from other vehicles. VINs are typically composed of 17 characters, including both letters and numbers, and they provide specific information about the vehicle's manufacturer, model, engine type, year of manufacture, country of origin, and more. The VIN is often used for vehicle registration, tracking recalls, and other administrative purposes in the automotive industry.

Unfortunately, scammers are finding out that putting a bogus VIN (or one nearly matching a similar model car) on a stolen car sometimes can slip by the attention of a car dealer who unwittingly resells the stolen vehicle to his customer who in turn winds up in trouble both legally and financially months to years afterward.

Related article: Used Car License Plate Warning for Shoppers

Who is Responsible for a Sold Stolen Car?

If you unwittingly buy a stolen car, are you responsible and out of the money you spent at the dealership?

That was the question addressed on a recent Steve Lehto YouTube channel episode where Steve talks about a recent case of which one car shopper bought a very expensive used Camaro from Carvana only to discover afterward that the car had been reported stolen months earlier.

In short, the final responsibility is expected to fall on the car dealer who sells a stolen car. In part, the onus is on the dealership to ensure a car being sold is not stolen. However, the bigger part of this has to do with the law and its interpretation of what it means when a car is illegally sold with a focus on the paper trail of the title, transactions, and true ownership.

The host explains that in a legal sense, Carvana did not really sell a stolen car to its customer but attempted to get money from a buyer with a car that was not theirs to sell.

Yes―nothing is simple once you throw a lawyer into the mix. However, the host is just telling it like it is to help viewers understand the complications of buying a car that has a checkered past.

For more about the Carvana stolen car story, here is a WFLA News Channel 8 report that talks more about what happened followed by the Steve Lehto video that goes into the complications should something like this ever happen to you.

The Value of These Two Videos

The value of these videos is that it serves as a good warning to used car buyers that it pays to take some of the responsibility of a car sale by asking the dealer if he has gone beyond checking the multiple visible VIN tags on a car and actually checked to see if the car’s computer system possesses a digital VIN as well, that matches with the physical VIN.

It’s a simple check that can be done with the right scan tool.

That said, here are the videos that are informative, entertaining, and well worth the time spent learning about how to avoid this type of stolen car fraud.

PCSO: Car Sold by Carvana was Reported Stolen

Police Seize Stolen Car Man Bought From Carvana

For additional articles related to stolen cars, here are a few for your consideration:

Timothy Boyer is an automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on  “Zen and the Art of DIY Car Repair” website, the Zen Mechanic blog and on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites  and Facebook for daily news and topics related to new and used cars and trucks.

COMING UP NEXT: Why You Should Not Fit Original Equipment Tires on Your Car

Image source: Deposit Photos

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Comments

Chandra Osterhaus (not verified)    March 10, 2024 - 2:54PM

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I'm pretty sure Carvana is fully aware of all the crazy things they are doing including selling stolen cars. When I picked out the Carvana vehicle I purchased and the rear drivers side handle broke off and cut my boyfriends hand,they were told about it. They supposedly do a 165 point inspection on all their cars. How would you not notice that and why else would it be broken on a 2016 that supposedly had no accidents or thefts noted. Also, the vin number changed from when I picked it out to when everything was finalized. Later on, I found the original title and registration hidden in it and the vin didn't match. The car barely ran from the day it was purchased and there was over 14,000 worth of repairs needed before it was drivable, it sat in my parking lot a long time and was rarely moved but 2 weeks after I found that, the car was stolen out of the lot. It barely ran and the breaks were bad and yet.... poof. I'm quite sure they knew what they were doing.