More fraud unfortunately.

[roohairy]

Edit: This has nothing to do with me, came from boats and outboards just passing on the latest scam warning to those who haven't seen it..

Roohairy

Hello,

FRAUD WARNING !!!

We recently received the email below from someone selling a jet ski and thought we would bring it to your attention immediately. Although in this case a Jet Ski was involved FRAUDSTERS ARE ACTIVE IN THE UK targeting those selling boats and engines as well as Jet Ski's. Please beware that Jet Ski's are a favourite target for fraudsters who not only try to buy them with false cheques but they also try to advertise non existent ski's to attract deposits or payments in full.

Key points

1) People present in UK from abroad targeting marine trade.
2) They make arrangements to see you.
2) They may provide "Bankers Drafts" that bounce.


Email -

"I had an enquiries about the ski from a foreign person one Friday evening
saying they would like to have a look tonight. ( this was strange they say
they were living looking at a another Polaris make like mine up the M1 and I
am in Bognor at least 2.hours drive away. So I said ring me when you get
closer to Sussex and I will give you directions.

Later on I got a call saying they are stuck in traffic and will not bother
coming down. They then said what is the lowest you will take and I said that
I was not going to move on the price, however if you decide to take it
tomorrow I will nock £50 OFF.
To my sup the man said how do you want payment ( THEY HAVEN'T EVEN SEAN THE
UNIT YET!) but I said bankers draft, and then I said if you are coming
tomorrow please be early in the Morning.

On Saturday morning I waited for a call but did not hear anything so I went
out. About 16:00hrs I got a call saying they have just left the bank and
will be with me shortly.

When they arrived the two men supposedly from Bulgaria liked the machine and
compared it to another machine advertised on your site. Very shortly after
they handed me an envelope with a banker cheque in it so I presumed they
wanted the ski and said when do you want to take the machine, the Man Named
Ramus said "now" and I said you will have to come back Wednesday. They then
got the car,said talk Wednesday and wheel span off.

On Wednesday I got a call from my office saying that they have called and
want to get the machine tonight, I then phoned the bank which told me the
draft had bounced on the day I put it in but could not tell me any more. I
rang the man I said your cheque had bounced he said he would call the bank
and sort it out tomorrow.

I did not hear any more until two weeks later I was in my local tesco buying
some nappies and my card got taken away from me and told to contact the bank
on Monday to find out why this had happened.

On Monday I was told they didn't know why my card, cheque book and account
had been frozen and I would have to go it to a branch.

On Tuesday I went to the bank and they confirmed that all was frozen my
standing orders X 6 had been rejected and I am under investigation by Abbey
National Fraud Team.

I then phone the police and haven't heard any more since apart from a crime
reference number and that the car reg and been stopped in oxford involving
another ski."

[Louise]

A scary story! Thanks for the warning!

Hope you get it all sorted out soon.

[Brian]

This is indeed a very perplexing story.
When it's all sorted will you let us the outcome please if it appears on the website?

i.e. as far as I know, a Bankers Draft (issued by a Bank by definition), will only bounce if it is a forgery. If it is a forgery I would have thought the police would have beeen all over the guy like a rash.
And the why did Abbey freeze the account? Is money missing from the account such that there is not enough to pay the SO's or is it that having tried to pass a suspect draft through the account, they want to lean on the individual concerned? If that was the case I would still have thought the boys in blue would have given him a tug anyway.