Buyers beware: Scam dealerships

Following on from the November 2018 magazine feature ‘Ask your Club’ and recent discussions on Club Together about scam dealerships, we wanted to start this discussion in order to have a prominent place to list the websites that we are aware of that are scam dealerships.

The current scam is based around a very credible-looking website which uses dealership and caravan/motorhome information that has been copied from legitimate dealers. A key warning sign is that vehicles that are listed for sale are advertised at low prices. If you enquire you will be encouraged to put down a deposit by bank transfer. Once your money has been sent there’s no further communication.

The Club has been raising concerns over scam websites with Trading Standards (via Citizens Advice) and with the police ActionFraud service.

As general advice for anyone looking to buy a caravan or motorhome, always be cautious of deals which appear almost too good to be true. Be sceptical of any requests to pay a cash deposit to secure a vehicle you haven’t seen. If you must pay a deposit, use a credit card for at least some of the cost – that secures you ‘Section 75’ protection should you lose your money, meaning you can claim from the card company for the full amount paid (not just the amount put on the card) up to £30,000. Check the seller’s actual possession and legitimate ownership of the vehicle before making full payment. While everyone likes to get a good deal, never get carried away by the chance of an apparent bargain. There will always be the opportunity to buy something else should you miss out through being cautious. 

Here is a list of the current know scam websites:

http://pp-caravan.co.uk

http://floud-motorhomes.co.uk/

https://brett-caravans.com/ (now closed down)

Please let the Club know by emailing technical@camc.com if you think a website is suspicious and we will investigate and link below.