Scam - Vehicle World Services

MM2

Hi, I'm sick to the stomach about being scammed by these b£$%&^*s and I noticed that you said you were going to waste their time to make yourself feel better, brilliant idea. Is there anyway we as a forum could swamp them with emails or calls all at the same time? Please let me know how I can make life as difficult as possible for them, I'm very happy to send you my email or prove who I am. I contacted my credit card as soon as I got home from work but they say that because I authorised the transaction there's nothing they can do except send out a form once it's on my statement, thanks!!!!!
I will keep phoning these people every day, bombard them with emails and when I'm next in London I will look up the address and try to pay them a visit like Mr Cook used to.
Keep your chin up, better men than me have been conned!

hammond6668

My cheque is in the bank now so fingers crossed, i still do not trust them, and expect it to bounce. I did not have to use the MCOL by the way, i will let you all know next week if it has cleared.

Nobby99

Likewise, I am hoping the VWS cheque does not bounce, will keep you posted.

In the meantime, I have received a suspect bankers draft for £7500 from "Percy Shelly" in the "Repbulique du Benin", who wants me to cash it, then hand over my car to his "Agent" along with the £3500 diference (car is up fo £4K)
NB. I used my work address, as the security is tight here.

I just strung Percy along with stupid emails and made him up his offer several times, childish but fun.

If anyone wants to try Scam baiting, try this link:
http://www.419eater.com/index.htm
(check out the hall of fame)
Interesting reading and might be fun if you're feeling brave!

I don't think this is linked directly to VWS, but probably from my email address on Autotrader.
NM2 - Maybe we could get some scammers to visit VWS?

hammond6668

I recieved one from a Mrs Annabel Lawrence who was based in jersey, she said she was pregnant with triplets so needed a bigger car, when i asked to speak to her she said she was profoundly deaf and her husband was away on business, i was nearly crying reading it. She ( probably he) said pretty much the same thing, her ' associate' would turn up and get the car, i was then to pay in more than the car was worth and hand over the money to the ' associate' for shipping costs. When i pointed out that you could just get on a ferry and sail to jersey, unsurprisingly i heard no more.
I honestly think autotrader should be more accountable for these scams, i forwarded them the e-mails but heard nothing back, i have also pointed out that VWS are quoting their name when they contact you, but again i have not heard from them.

maninthestreet

hammond6668 wrote: »

I recieved one from a Mrs Annabel Lawrence who was based in jersey, she said she was pregnant with triplets so needed a bigger car, when i asked to speak to her she said she was profoundly deaf and her husband was away on business, i was nearly crying reading it. She ( probably he) said pretty much the same thing, her ' associate' would turn up and get the car, i was then to pay in more than the car was worth and hand over the money to the ' associate' for shipping costs. When i pointed out that you could just get on a ferry and sail to jersey, unsurprisingly i heard no more.
I honestly think autotrader should be more accountable for these scams, i forwarded them the e-mails but heard nothing back, i have also pointed out that VWS are quoting their name when they contact you, but again i have not heard from them.

Why should Autotrader accept responsibility for this? They have no control over who calls you as a result of your advert.

hammond6668

I just think that autotrader should be aware that these people are scamming others using their website. VWS quote autotrader on ther website, i would not be happy having my name linked with them.
Perhaps a warning when you are placing you advert would reduce these scams.

fewleh

Hi Hammond, I'm another one that fell foul of these m*********s It's so upsetting and makes me angry inside. I've just been down to chat to the bank, and they have washed their hands of me, so it's down to getting something back from VWS. I'll be intrigued to see if your cheque cashes. I'm going away on holiday tomorrow, so won't be able to find out until after i'm back..but im still tempted to get a claim in now before I go, just while the going is good. What do you think? Does MCOL require alot of info, or is it fairly simple to fill out? Any help would be greatly appreciated, im pulling my hair out here! I've sent in the scare tactics letter to them and theyve replied with their, "oh im sorry we cant refund you, as we are currently marketing your car and will continue to do so....blah blah" Is it time to step the letters up a notch? We need a proper plan of attack on these people. What about a mass invasion of their finchley road premises? Im in.

hammond6668

fewleh - I did not go down the MCOL route in the end, i threatened to do so, but this was after writing several letters to the head office and also to the 2 directors home addresses. I made it clear that i would not let the matter drop and that their claim the vehicle was being actively marketed was a joke as i hadn't had one single phone call.
I also rang the sales number and spoke to someone about my complaint, after going through the normal ' this is the sales desk we do not have your details, you will have to speak to customer services ( who never anwser) i got the person to take my details and they said they would pass on my complaint.
As for any other route, i don't know, trading standards are a joke, watchdog don't seem to have done anything, so it is up to the individual.
All i can say is keep writing and make a note of letters sent and phone calls if you need them for legal action. As you know myself and nobby are waiting for the cheques to clear, will let you know when/if they do.

fewleh

Cheers Hammond, Im going away from tomorrow for 7 days, and ideally would like to get the claim in beforehand, but I think Ill wait and find out if the cheques clear. I'll be eagerly checking the board when I get back..Fingers crossed it goes through.

laura_mac_2

My husband just rang me from work asking me to Google the company "Vehicle World Services". He had received a phone call which went EXACTLY like the one outlined in the first post. He felt very pressured by the guy on the phone to make a decision there and then, but didn't fall for it. Thank you to everyone who has posted on here, you have saved alot of people from making big mistake!