Cardiff man loses £13K in ‘truly terrible’ car clone fraud

Amy Mackrill,BBC WalesandCatherine Earlam,You and YoursBBC”I am a sufferer, I am paying 5 years for one thing I do not personal,” says Sevak MaljianA man who unknowingly purchased a stolen automotive for £13,000, after fraudsters allegedly used a complicated sort of identification theft to “clone” it, is urging others to be vigilant.Sevak Maljian, 35, made what appeared like a well-researched buy of the Kia EV6 with no thought the automotive was offered to him with duplicate identification paperwork of one other car, full with identification numbers and what gave the impression to be a real DVLA V5C logbook.”All the main points matched… there was no motive to query,” mentioned the automotive fanatic from Cardiff.He was instructed by police the automotive had been reported stolen and it has now been seized.The case is being investigated by the Report Fraud service and Metropolis of London Police.Automotive-cloning may be so simple as stealing quantity plates, however the fraud sort has grow to be extra subtle, leaving patrons of second-hand automobiles susceptible. Whereas there aren’t any official figures for automotive cloning throughout the entire of the UK, motoring organisation RAC believes “it is more and more widespread”.Mr Maljian, a physiotherapist and NHS challenge help officer, mentioned he first noticed the three-year-old electrical automotive marketed on Fb in September and, after messaging the vendor, they agreed on an “enticing worth” if it was paid for in money. He travelled to London and met the vendor exterior Putney station on 5 October earlier than viewing the automotive exterior the tackle listed in its DVLA V5C car registration certificates (logbook).As a automotive fanatic who had purchased second hand automobiles earlier than, Mr Maljian believed he had taken each precaution. “I did all of the checks that have been really useful by the DVLA,” he instructed BBC Radio 4’s You and Yours.”I began first by checking the MOT, I checked the mileage after which I did the Whole Automotive Test. It confirmed cleared finance, clear HPI, no accidents. “All the main points matched together with the mileage, the color, the specs of the automotive.”The vendor additionally confirmed him what gave the impression to be a real logbook, full with watermarks and had matching ID.”There was no motive to query,” he mentioned.Automobiles additionally carry a Automobile Identification Quantity (VIN) which is stamped into the chassis – the principle load-bearing body of the automotive – however can be discovered on the windscreen, aspect of the dashboard, or the door jamb. Mr Maljian mentioned: “I did test those which can be simply accessible which have been on the entrance windshield and on the door however I didn’t on the chassis as a result of it is normally not an accessible place.”Whereas the all-cash fee rang alarm bells “a little bit”, he was assured that if he did all of the checks he wouldn’t have something to fret about. Mr Maljian mentioned the vendor “gained my confidence on each side” and he drove 200 miles (320km) dwelling to Cardiff with out situation.The shock got here days later when he took the automotive to a neighborhood Kia dealership to ask a couple of defective button on the important thing fob designed to entry the boot. Employees realised the important thing was a forgery and additional inspection revealed the VIN on the chassis didn’t match the one on the windscreen and door. Police confirmed to Mr Maljian the car had been reported stolen in Kent and seized it. Sevak MaljianSevak Maljian bought the Kia EV6 for £13,000 in OctoberMr Maljian, who had taken out a private mortgage to purchase the automotive, was left with nothing, and continues to be having to pay £236 a month to repay his debt. “I used to be actually in shock,” he mentioned.”I am a sufferer. I misplaced my cash… I am paying 5 years for one thing I do not personal.”He says he feels annoyed that a number of safety layers, DVLA paperwork, VINs and key coding methods might be bypassed. He mentioned he contacted Kia to level out that the automotive was nonetheless below guarantee and it shouldn’t have been capable of bypass the safety on such a “excessive worth merchandise”.A spokesperson for Kia mentioned it was “saddened” by what occurred and suggested Mr Maljian to proceed working with police and the DVLA. A DVLA spokesperson mentioned: “We perceive how distressing car crime may be. To assist scale back the chance of fraud, we encourage patrons to comply with the steerage on GOV.UK reminiscent of checking car identification quantity particulars and confirming the vendor’s identification.”Anybody who believes they might have been a sufferer of fraud ought to contact the police via Report Fraud immediately.”The case is at present being investigated by Report Fraud – previously referred to as Motion Fraud – and Metropolis of London Police, who’ve been contacted for remark.What are the indicators of automotive cloning?Whereas there aren’t any official figures for automotive cloning throughout the entire of the UK, motoring organisation RAC believes “it is more and more widespread”. Simon Williams from RAC described Mr Maljian’s case as “really horrible”. He mentioned: “Criminals lately go to unbelievable lengths and they’re stealing automobiles and defeating safety methods extraordinarily simply sadly.”He added that Mr Maljian made most of the appropriate checks and he discovered the existence of what gave the impression to be a real DVLA logbook notably troubling.He urged patrons to confirm the vendor genuinely lived on the tackle on the V5C logbook, test each VIN together with the chassis, and think about shopping for from respected sellers as an alternative.