With the cost of auto parts and repairs for modern vehicles only going up in recent years, it’s not surprising that car owners are looking everywhere to hopefully save some money when it comes time for repair. When an expensive part like a transmission fails, it only makes sense to look at your options and see what the most cost-effective repair strategy might be. 

In some situations, buying a lightly used version of the part you need can potentially save you a lot of money over either buying new or having your old part rebuilt. There can also be risks with buying used, though — not just with the condition of the actual part you receive — but whether the company you are buying from is legitimate, and not a scam operation looking to steal your money.

It’s that latter situation that a number of vehicle owners across the United States are dealing with, losing thousands of dollars after sending money to what they thought was a reputable used parts dealer in Florida. In this case, it wasn’t that the parts were bad or misrepresented; it was that both the parts and the company selling them never actually existed. Though the business website has since been closed and the buyers are working on getting restitution, the situation highlights just how risky the online parts business can be, and how diligent today’s consumer needs to be. 

Consumers have to be wary of scams when buying anything these days, but shopping for cars and auto parts always seems to be especially rife with scams. Not only do consumers have to worry about a whole list of possible scams when buying a car itself, but buying parts for your car can be just as troublesome. News 6 out of Orlando, Florida, has led the charge in reporting on the shady used parts seller, which led consumers to believe it was a legit auto salvage business based in Orlando, but likely never existed at all.

The seller, which used the name Affordable Quality Used Car & Truck Parts, ran advertising on Facebook to market what seemed like reasonably priced used auto parts to buyers from around the country. Online scams have been around for a long time, and in a lot of cases, lazy scammers are pretty easy to identify. In this case, though, Affordable Quality Used Car & Truck Parts took extra steps to make its business look more legit– including using the physical address of an actual Orlando salvage yard on its website. 

Along with that, the business also had positive reviews posted online, which gave buyers extra peace of mind. However, the customers, including one man who sent the company $2,400 for a used Ford F-150 transmission, received no parts and no response from anyone at the business.

With complaints growing around the business, News 6 launched an investigation into the seller. The address on the website turned out to be a salvage yard, but one that had no relation to or knowledge of a business called Affordable Quality Used Car & Truck Parts. News 6 then used state records to track down the supposed business owner at his home, who explained he only handled the money wiring and had no knowledge of the fraudulent parts sales. Another man associated with the business claimed someone had been impersonating the name to scam customers, but when pressed, he provided no evidence of that. 

The business website has since been removed, while customers, depending on how they paid, have had to seek refunds from their credit card companies. There hasn’t been any word if law enforcement action will be taken, but for now, the Better Business Bureau points out extra steps buyers can take in vetting these businesses, including checking when customer reviews were posted, how the business asks for payment, and whether there are BBB complaints against that business. 

Whether it’s the car purchase itself, buying replacement parts, or trying to find a reputable auto mechanic, the growing number of scams out there certainly isn’t making car ownership any easier. As these customers learned, you simply can never do too much vetting when buying online, and doing just a little extra research can potentially save you thousands of dollars.