Social media has emerged as the most important pink flag for automotive consumers frightened about scams, with over a 3rd of shoppers (34%) naming it the almost certainly place to be focused, in accordance with new analysis from Shut Brothers Motor Finance.
Non-public gross sales (15%), on-line auctions (14%), and categorized adverts (8%) additionally set alarm bells ringing.
In distinction, conventional gamers fare much better in public belief – simply 4% suspect dealerships, and solely 3% worry finance suppliers could possibly be a rip-off threat.
However the risk is actual. Fourteen p.c of drivers say they or somebody they know has fallen sufferer to car-related fraud. In the meantime, sellers are feeling the warmth too: one in 5 (20%) report being scammed, and one other 31% say they’ve narrowly prevented it.
That’s left almost 80% of sellers frightened about fraud’s impression on their enterprise – with solely a tiny 4% saying they’re not involved.
Sellers are stepping up their defences because of this with 76% working buyer ID and credit score checks, 64% coaching employees to identify scams, and 40% deploying specialist fraud detection software program. Simply 7% don’t have any plans to make use of such tech sooner or later.
“Fraud is unfortunately changing into extra frequent within the automobile market, and it’s one thing that each consumers and sellers want to pay attention to,” stated John Cassidy, managing director of gross sales at Shut Brothers Motor Finance.
“Whereas many individuals nonetheless really feel assured shopping for from trusted dealerships, fraudsters are getting smarter, particularly on-line.
“At Shut Brothers Motor Finance, we’ve put in place additional safety checks to assist shield our prospects and supplier companions. This consists of utilizing superior ID and doc checks, in addition to working with organisations like Cifas to identify suspicious exercise. These instruments have already helped cease almost 800,000 potential instances of fraud.
“We’re additionally offering coaching to our sellers to assist them keep alert to scams, and we’ve created a crew of fraud specialists inside our enterprise to supply help when it’s wanted.
Supplier information is drawn from Shut Brothers Motor Finance’s Forecourt Foresight survey of 100 UK sellers earlier thi yr. Shopper information comes from Censuswide’s 2024 survey of two,074 UK drivers aged 17+ who personal or lease a automotive.
