How can they be so cheap?

[Insider]

https://www.autc.co.uk/

Not looking to buy but every campervan on here is half the price it is on autotrader!!!

What's the catch?????

 

[Baggydave]

Scam. There are so many like this.

 

[rolosroller]

 

[DBK]

Seem a bonafide company from the stuff on gov.uk but the photos of the MHs all seem to be taken at private homes or somewhere in the country which is a bit odd. Are they brokers who don't have any stock themselves?

 

[pappajohn]

https://www.autc.co.uk/

Not looking to buy but every campervan on here is half the price it is on autotrader!!!

What's the catch?????

It's listed on companies house so is legit.

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[Lenny HB]

Scam, they register a limited company to look legit them fold it when people come after them.

 

[Soycd]

it's not possible to buy a motorhome for those sorts of prices. 15-20 years ago, yes, but it stinks of scam.

 

[pappajohn]

Scam, they register a limited company to look legit them fold it when people come after them.

It was registered in 2016 and annual tax forms have been submitted each year so I don't think that applies

 

[Lenny HB]

It was registered in 2016 and annual tax forms have been submitted each year so I don't think that applies

Just a front then.

 

[Insider]

Domain was only registered on 8th August 2023. Address shows police station. Perhaps this was created from a holding cell?

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[VXman]

Would someone with a bit of time on their hands make an enquiry about buying one? Ask to see it, test drive etc. It would be interesting to see how this scam is going to work.

This is their address - cannot see any motorhomes there.

Colchester, Essex, CO3 3BZ

 

[tacr2man]

Their grasp of English isn't the best "since" .

 

[coroner]

I have ordered 5 just waiting on the ship to arrive with them.Mr Akabuko assured me all is in order before I wired funds to his cousins account in Panama.

 

[Orion]

It's listed on companies house so is legit.

Scam, they register a limited company to look legit them fold it when people come after them.

It was registered in 2016 and annual tax forms have been submitted each year so I don't think that applies

Just a front then.

There’s a legit company in there that have had their details cloned by the scammers. All enquiries from the adverts etc. (plus any money from anyone unfortunate enough to be conned by them) will be funnelled through short term phone and email addresses that will disappear overnight when they have grabbed enough cash. Nobody will actually meet or come into contact with them directly.

 

[Insider]

BinL was wanting to buy a caravan from them. I might call them tomorrow to start the process on a camper to see how it progresses.

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[Cush]

Lots of reg plates on display in the photos. have Some fun sleuthing those. One is apparently a Jag Xj.

 

[FrankNicklin]

Found loads advertised locally a fraction of the true cost. Bit of sleuthing on my part by looking closely at the photos and found a street name. Google street view is your friend. These vehicles had been photographed in and around Barnsley 150 miles away.

Registrar of the domain in question is namescheap.com a company based in the USA. Not sure why a UK company would use a non UK based registrar for their domain. Other details have been redacted but certainly only registered in August this year.

 

[Captain Yoghurtpot]

They seem to have a high preference for LHD vehicles.
Checked 5 at random from 7k to 50k and all were listed as LHD.
Some seem to be UK plated, some not so?
Curious.

 

[DDJC]

Possibly they steal to order. You decide on a model and they then source it and steal it. A few days in a workshop to remove any identification.

So, worry if your exact model appears in the website!

 

[FrankNicklin]

They seem to have a high preference for LHD vehicles.
Checked 5 at random from 7k to 50k and all were listed as LHD.
Some seem to be UK plated, some not so?
Curious.

RHD shipped abroad to order and LHD shipped to UK to order.

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[Captain Yoghurtpot]

RHD shipped abroad to order and LHD shipped to UK to order.

Understood.
But my aim was at THEIR preference for holding and selling(?) LHD vehicles as a stock choice.
Strange limiting a target market?

 

[Itsmcb]

These scams have been around for so long now I'm surprised anyone is taken in by them still.
Take a legitimate company name, build a website, add vehicle photos from Facebook or wherever. Wait for the greedy and gullible to enquire. Take deposits and disappear. Easy, easy money.
Works for cars, vans, boats, diggers, generators, power tools etc. In fact anything with a decent price tag.
These days, if you can't see it in person it's almost definitely a scam.

 

[chaser]

The whole thing is so obvious, why do folks even have to ask the question?
Why would anyone be selling motorhomes or anything else at half price.

 

[VXman]

There’s a legit company in there that have had their details cloned by the scammers. All enquiries from the adverts etc. (plus any money from anyone unfortunate enough to be conned by them) will be funnelled through short term phone and email addresses that will disappear overnight when they have grabbed enough cash. Nobody will actually meet or come into contact with them directly.

To make any money from these scams it will require someone to transfer some money without seeing a motorhome in the flesh. Why would anyone do that? Having said that I'm amazed by the scams that do succeed. They wouldn't make this much effort if they caught some fish. There are some gullible people out there.

 

[Orion]

To make any money from these scams it will require someone to transfer some money without seeing a motorhome in the flesh. Why would anyone do that? Having said that I'm amazed by the scams that do succeed. They wouldn't make this much effort if they caught some fish. There are some gullible people out there.

Which is what we see popping up on the forum periodically. Sadly, judgement and common sense can go out the window when something is in short supply and an apparent bargain appears.

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[TDub49]

All together now "IF SOMETHING LOOKS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT PROBABLY IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE" Caveat emptor and all that . . .

 

[TDub49]

And another thing . . . for a "family run business" they are remarkably shy when it comes to identifying themselves, both on their website and on the limited information on Companies House - according to which it is one of 625 active companies operating from 47 Butts Road. Hardly reassuring is it?

 

[Janine]

Didn’t a similar thing happen to Oaktree Motorhomes last year? Someone hijacked their website. Don’t know what the outcome was.

 

[97243]

Buying without viewing is not uncommon in France because of the distances involved and the difficulty in crossing the country east to west.

We are in the mid west, but the couple we bought our Laika from (in the Vendée) had bought something blind from the north east near the German border and were hopping on a train to pick it up the following weekend.

We are now in the process of selling that Laika to someone 600kms away in Burgundy who has not viewed the van. He is arranging quotes for collection and delivery and we will finalise things in due course.

Selling through Leboncoin allows both sides to use their escrow service which adds a certain amount of security.

 

[Orion]

And another thing . . . for a "family run business" they are remarkably shy when it comes to identifying themselves, both on their website and on the limited information on Companies House - according to which it is one of 625 active companies operating from 47 Butts Road. Hardly reassuring is it?

That’s not unusual as many businesses will be registered at an accountant’s address, but despite that don’t forget that what you are seeing is scammers cloning a real company’s details.