Beware of scams when you buy a used car. Most people are wary of the idea of buying a used car and don’t know how to protect themselves from scammers. With your purchase, you may get something that does not work, or worse yet, it could have been in an accident.
Steps to Protect Yourself From Scammers
Buying used cars in chicago is a big risk that most people are not willing to take. Scam artists are waiting to come knocking on your door or hang up on you. However, if you take precautions and adopt the following steps, you can protect yourself from this unpleasant situation.
Check out the Carfax Vehicle History Reports
This is the best way to protect yourself from buying a vehicle with a bad history, like an accident or one that has been involved in illegal activity. It is possible that you can purchase this report for about $30. This report will give you information about the vehicle’s title and where, when, and how many times it has been rebuilt.
Check the VIN
There have been cases of people buying a car with a different VIN (vehicle identification number) than it should be. You will want to check the VIN of your used car before you pay for it. The VIN will provide you with the vehicle’s true make, model, year, engine size and more.
Look for Carfax Reviews
Another way to protect yourself from purchasing a bad used car is to take a look at the reviews of other customers. If you find that there are too many bad reviews about a vehicle, then chances are that it was in an accident and may not have been repaired correctly.
Ask for a Reverse Look Up
If your vehicle’s VIN appears to be in the lower 200s, you can contact the manufacturer and ask to do a reverse lookup on their VIN. If there is information located, then you can see whether or not that information corresponds to your used car.
Do some research
There are many free websites that will allow you to search for your used car from anywhere in the world. Search used car sales, and you can find out what your vehicle is worth, if it has been in an accident and if it is a rebuilt vehicle.
Check out the Engine
When you check the engine, be sure to check all of the parts: hoses, belts and more. You want to make sure that everything is working properly because if they are not, then your vehicle may overheat or even get into an accident.
