Real Stories
Mr X - Car Crime Victim of Fraudulent Bankers' Draft
Mr X sold his motorcycle through the Auto Trader magazine and accepted a bankers' draft payment for £4,000 and allowed the buyer take the vehicle away.
The banker’s draft was paid in to Mr X’s bank account and was returned as fraudulent 4 days later. Mr X contacted the police, but they said there was little they could do to trace the criminal in question as the only contact details they had were a pay-as-you-go mobile phone.
Mr X also reported the incident to his insurance company who said that because it was fraud and not theft, he was not covered. He now feels that he should have made out it had been stolen - seems to him you get nothing for honesty!! Now he has no motorcycle and he has lost a very substantial sum of money, which he worked hard to accumulate. Mr X would like to warn other sellers to wait until a banker’s draft has cleared before releasing the vehicle. He has paid a high price for trusting someone.
But it’s easy to be fooled so beware. Forged banker’s draft can look genuine, with authentic looking watermarks and bank branch stamps on them, so sellers should not release vehicles until they have had confirmation from their bank that they can withdraw the funds safely on the cheque. Criminals can try and obtain vehicles with fraudulent drafts relying on the sellers perception that drafts are as good as cash, but banks will not honour fraudulent drafts or drafts that can not be cleared through lack of funds.
Remember:
- Do not release your vehicle until you have had confirmation from your own bank that the bank draft is genuine and has been paid by the bank issuing the bank draft. Ask your bank whether the draft has been 'given value' rather than 'cleared' as it seems there is a difference between drafts being cleared and funds being in the account.
- Be particularly wary of potential buyers who view your vehicle after the banks have closed (Friday or Saturday afternoon or Sunday) and produce a bank draft already made out for the full asking price
- Don’t be pressured into letting the vehicle go - a genuine buyer will not mind waiting until the draft has cleared