Gone missing

As we’ve mentioned before, the crimes that are inflicted on classic machinery and its owners isn’t just limited to theft and theft only, as there are a number of scams around that can affect us in different ways, and part of this column’s reasoning is to make our readers aware of ways in which we may have the wool pulled over our eyes by nefarious ne’er-do-wells who have no place in polite society…

Last month, Richard Stafford placed an ad in our Parts Wanted section, and was pleased to have had a few good responses. And although one of them responded offering the exact parts that he wanted, this actually turned out to be a scam and, unfortunately, he fell for it.

Now, while there could very well be people who have exactly the parts that you may be searching for, it is worthwhile spending a bit of time asking some pertinent questions if you are told that somebody has just the parts you need. The reasoning is dual-fold – it could be that the parts that you want are being stolen to order, or the ‘seller’ in question just doesn’t have the parts at all. Always ask for pictures of the parts. Ask why the person has them – are they spares that they have acquired over time? Or are they from a bike that has been split into parts?

In an ideal world, you’d want to see and scrutinise the parts before handing over any cash, but (as was the case with Richard) the seller may not be local and claim that they will send the parts, asking for a bank transfer, or similar, for the money. Ask for the seller’s address (then check to see if it is real), and check to see if the bank account is in the same area (although this could, legitimately, not be local). If correspondence is by email, check to see if the email address and the name match the seller’s name, and check both with the bank account name. In short, ask questions and take nothing for granted.

The chances are that you’ll have absolutely no problem with anyone buying, or selling parts either on the internet or through magazine small ads, as by far the greater majority of people are honest and genuine. But it could pay to be careful. And if you do happen to find someone who is clearly ‘trying one on’, don’t entertain them, report it directly to the Fraud Action line and also inform your bank if there have been any transactions.

Be warned everyone, even though social distancing and the like may have curtailed our normal activities, the low lives are still as active as ever.