Used cars - spotting and avoiding the odometer scam

Odometer fraud on second-hand cars is very widespread, particularly in sales between private individuals, on classified ad sites such as Leboncoin, La centrale etc... These vehicles quickly break down, and it is estimated that they have already travelled twice as far as the fake odometer shows!

600,000 cars affected in France alone

With an average of 6 million cars sold between private individuals in France each year, at least 10% of them have an odometer that has been tampered with. This enormous figure is based on a scam that's very easy to set up. The aim of the scam? To be able to resell the vehicle concerned at a much higher price than its real value.

How do scammers do it?

The operation is much simpler than you might think. With roller counters, the fraudsters simply rotate the rollers to change the figures displayed. To see for yourself, access the meter. You'll see that the figures are not perfectly aligned, a sign of manual manipulation and therefore fraud! Many crooks also use the disconnection technique. This means that even if the vehicle is moving, the speedometer does not keep track of the kilometres travelled.

As far as digital meters are concerned, on recent vehicles it's extremely easy to get hold of boxes on the internet, with prices starting at around €150! They are extremely simple to operate, and tutorials abound on the web. Basically, all you have to do is plug in the box and enter the number of kilometres you want to display.

Digital meter modification box.

The consequences for the buyer can be disastrous

As well as being fooled, the purchaser of a vehicle with a falsified meter may be in for other (very) nasty surprises. Firstly, they will have to change a large number of parts more quickly than expected. All the replacement deadlines will be skewed, and they won't have the reflex to make the necessary changes, for example to a timing belt that may break. The consequence? The engine will have to be replaced!

What's more, if they want to resell the vehicle, they risk prosecution if the buyer discovers that the odometer has been tampered with! As a reminder, lowering a vehicle's odometer is an offence punishable by 2 years' imprisonment and a €37,500 fine.

An almost undetectable scam, but not 100% detectable

The real problem is that it is virtually impossible to identify the fact that the odometer has been tampered with. The operation leaves no trace, even for professionals. However, there are a few tricks you can use to spot the scam. The purely cosmetic appearance of the vehicle must be consistent with what the odometer shows, and if items such as tyres, pedals, seats, gear lever, plastics or even the dashboard are worn, even though the odometer shows a very low mileage, there is undoubtedly a problem somewhere.

For even greater security, when buying a second-hand vehicle from a private seller, make sure the seller is also the owner of the vehicle and has all the paperwork and service records in his or her name.

Another tip is to ask for all the invoices, especially those relating to the vehicle's servicing. If it's been a long time since the last service, but the number of kilometres shown has increased only slightly, something's wrong. The maintenance booklet is therefore an excellent ally for making your decision and analysing the situation. However, they can also be falsified. Beware of service books that are too "clean", with the same handwriting, the same stamps, the same entries... It's impossible for a book to have been filled in by just one person over the lifetime of a vehicle.

Beware of vehicles from abroad

The phenomenon of tampered meters is much more widespread in certain border countries. It is estimated that used cars from Germany are modified in between 50% and 80% of cases! So avoid transactions of this kind as much as possible. Why such a high figure? Quite simply because Germany is more flexible on this point, and it is permitted, for example, to lower the speedometer when replacing the engine. And of course, crooks take advantage of this.

Securing your transaction is simply essential

For any transaction between private individuals, it is important to use a secure payment method that can provide real traceability of the transaction and ensure the identity of the people involved. Use Obvy to make sure of all these points, and avoid any problems that could be linked to payment or identity fraud. In the event of an unpleasant surprise, you'll have all the information you need to take the necessary action and turn around rather than suffer the scam.