Nov 06 2008
Do you suspect that the vehicle has more miles than is shown on the odometer?
Odometer fraud is one of the oldest forms of auto fraud. Consumers are clearly willing to pay more for vehicles with lower mileage, thus creating an incentive to rollback the mileage on odometers. Odometer fraud can be accomplished in various ways: physically repositioning the numbers, changing the mileage reading electronically, replacing the entire odometer, and/or disconnecting the odometer. Dealers sometimes orally misrepresent the mileage and put the odometer reading on the trip meter.
To avoid this practice, you should closely read the odometer. The average person drives approximately 12,000 miles per year. Is the mileage on the vehicle way below the average? You may want to ask the dealer to explain why. You should also get a vehicle history report. You can get summary title reports from service providers such as: Carfax (www.carfax.com), AutoCheck (www.autocheck.com), and CarFraud.com (www.carfraud.com). The history reports usually include information on vehicle mileage. A major discrepancy between the mileage reported and the actual mileage could signify fraud (especially if the actual mileage is lower than previously reported).
If you suspect that you have been a victim of this type of fraud, you may wish to contact the DMV and/or consult with an attorney who specializes in auto fraud.
