Advice from experts that all used car sellers must be checked out by buyers prior to the sale of the car commencing is a must. This follows the theft of car number plates and registration documents which could be used by unscrupulous people in an effort to defraud the public.

It is believed that around 45,000 number plates were stolen in the last year. This follows the theft of thousands of registration documents in 2006 which are also believed to be in the hands of people looking to commit fraud.

The registration plates and documents can be used to clone cars and an unsuspecting buyer could end up paying for a car that is actually stolen. Even though there has been a launch of new vehicle registration documents, these will not affect cars already on the road until they are relicensed or declared as off the road. This allows the fraudster plenty of scope for carrying out his business, leaving many people out of pocket.

This can be avoided by doing business with car dealers that are trusted in the area. If an operation is new or appears temporary then it might not be completely above board and should be checked out. The same goes for private sales. If you are looking to buy a used car from a private seller then they must be checked including the car for sale to ensure they are indeed legitimate.

published: 19/11/2010