Dealer Sales Strategy: Posing As A Private Party On Craigslist?

Last week we bought you the story of a Craigslist scammer. He posed as a dealership employee in order to secure deposits from unsuspecting individuals before disappearing with their cash. Today’s story also involves craigslist and what is being called a scam, however this time; the finger is being pointed squarely at a dealership for trying to pull off a con.

A Florida woman on disability searched Craigslist looking for her next used vehicle purchase that she had put money aside for. She found a Kia that caught her eye and agreed to meet the private party at a local Walgreens parking lot to check out the car. She liked it and wanted to pull the trigger on a sale, however the seller had a request.

The man selling the car wanted to go sign the papers over at his friend’s car dealership. He insisted. She agreed. The next thing that this car buyer knew she had a bill of sale from Fort Myers Motors. According to her, a local car salesman had posed as a private party in an odd attempt to secure a sale through deception.

The situation immediately began to worsen. The buyer received temporary tags for her vehicle, but no title. The vehicle had problems that cost her nearly $700 in repairs over the next few weeks, however, there was no talk of warranty, likely since the sale was initiated as a private-party, no guarantees transaction.

The buyer returned to the dealership seeking a title and was told by the dealership’s owner that she needed to pay a “dealership fee,” before she could get the title for the vehicle. She didn’t agree and was asked to leave the property. She promptly filed a complaint with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, the 6^th of its kind for Fort Myers Motors, during the past 12 months.

A reporter who worked on this story noted that there are currently 16 ads on Craigslist using an unlisted number for this dealership. Thus, there may be more incidents of this kind arising in the near future. However, the big problem here is what this type of customer treatment does for the retail automotive industry. For all that dealerships may do to seek transparency and stronger customer service, this type of incident deals another blow to public trust of car dealerships and their employees.