BBB Scam Alert: Don't place that bid yet! Be sure it's not an auction scam – Better Business Bureau

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Auctions can be a good way to buy an expensive item at a significant discount. However, scammers know the promise of a “good deal” is an excellent way to lure unsuspecting victims. Even if an auction appears legitimate, potential bidders should be wary. BBB Scam Tracker has received several reports of fake auctions phishing for consumers’ personal information and money.
You see an ad for a website auctioning cars, motorhomes, boats and other big ticket items. You visit the website, and everything seems legitimate. The site might even claim to be affiliated with the government. You register to bid, which may include sending the auctioneer a copy of your driver’s license, along with other sensitive personal information.
After you register, you place a bid on an item. To your surprise, you win the item for a price that seems almost too good to be true. The auctioneer gives you instructions on how to transfer the money. Once you’ve paid, the auctioneer will likely disappear and become impossible to contact. The item you won is never delivered. Unfortunately, you just gave money and personal information to a scammer!
One consumer reported the following experience to BBB Scam Tracker: “I ended up bidding on a 2019 Nissan Titan pickup with 17,000 miles. Much to my surprise, I got a notice that I won. The next day, they sent to invoice so I could bank transfer the funds. What they sent looked like a person in GA and not a business in Oklahoma, so I called… I kept asking questions, and he at last said that they were going to cancel the sale and I said fine.”
 
See the BBB Tip: Smart shopping online for more ways to safely make online purchases. Review the information at BBB.org/AvoidScams regularly to stay alert to common scam tactics.
If you spot an auction website that appears to be a scam, report it at once to BBB.org/ScamTracker. Your report can help other consumers avoid falling prey to scammers’ tricks.
Subscribe to BBB’s weekly Scam Alerts. 
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