Fake Service History?
Discussion
Not really sure where I stand with this?
Treated myself to another car as a comfy runabout. It was some distance away at a small dealership / sales place, but I was attracted by the very low mileage, so paid maybe more than I should have.
Looking through the service and MOT history I saw the previous owner lived in Glasgow, had the car MOT’d in Glasgow, but the last 9 services were done in Peterborough.
The dates and mileages are the same. One or two are a day apart or a couple of miles apart.
I’ve contacted the garage regarding what I’ve found and they are very surprised and they don’t know what to do either. I have no reason not to believe them - but it is ironic this address that’s stamped up is just down the road from them.
The car itself is very clean, clean bodywork and underneath so I don’t think it’s been clocked as it looks a low miler. All visible fluids look very clean too, so it’s been well looked after.
Treated myself to another car as a comfy runabout. It was some distance away at a small dealership / sales place, but I was attracted by the very low mileage, so paid maybe more than I should have.
Looking through the service and MOT history I saw the previous owner lived in Glasgow, had the car MOT’d in Glasgow, but the last 9 services were done in Peterborough.
The dates and mileages are the same. One or two are a day apart or a couple of miles apart.
I’ve contacted the garage regarding what I’ve found and they are very surprised and they don’t know what to do either. I have no reason not to believe them - but it is ironic this address that’s stamped up is just down the road from them.
The car itself is very clean, clean bodywork and underneath so I don’t think it’s been clocked as it looks a low miler. All visible fluids look very clean too, so it’s been well looked after.
Well, in a case like this, you simply need to treat the car on its own merits, as objectively as possible. Presumably if you are a member of this forum you are somewhat ‘car wise’. Yes, there is skulduggery in the car trade and not just in certain suspect towns, but the majority of sellers are honest, otherwise no one would ever buy a used car.
blank said:
Peterborough is the Keighley of The Midlands when it comes to dodgy used cars, sounds like you've found one of the dodgy dealers.
Hopefully the car was serviced in Glasgow and they just never got the history.
How rude … it’s my area of the world.Hopefully the car was serviced in Glasgow and they just never got the history.
Oh and I would never buy a car from Peterborough
Always treat every car on its merits, even if the service history and the mileage are trying to convince you otherwise. If you had bought either of the first two cars I owned mileage and service history would've meant nothing as both were brand new, only serviced by the supplying dealer and ragged by me to within an inch of their lives when I wasn't even 20.
My first thought is there's some sort of address thing going on. Like the Peterborough address is a head-office for a company which as a few service centres dotted around the country and you're assuming the services were done in Peterborough when they were really done in Glasgow.
My first thought is there's some sort of address thing going on. Like the Peterborough address is a head-office for a company which as a few service centres dotted around the country and you're assuming the services were done in Peterborough when they were really done in Glasgow.
Very, very common, you can buy main dealer stamp replicas on eBay too if you want to offer "Full Main Dealer History". Many independent garage invoices all look like something you could knock up in Word too. Plenty of people don't keep invoices or get the book stamped, which immediately means loads of buyers won't look at a car, so it's no surprise really. These guys were just lazy f
kers not altering their bent invoice template to a garage in Glasgow though, poor form 
You have to buy based on the condition and how the car is running on the day, stamps are worthless, invoices can be but you need to exercise judgement, but current condition and signs it's been cared for and serviced are key.
kers not altering their bent invoice template to a garage in Glasgow though, poor form You have to buy based on the condition and how the car is running on the day, stamps are worthless, invoices can be but you need to exercise judgement, but current condition and signs it's been cared for and serviced are key.
Edited by GeniusOfLove on Monday 12th February 17:18
GeniusOfLove said:
Very, very common, you can buy main dealer stamp replicas on eBay too if you want to offer "Full Main Dealer History". Many independent garage invoices all look like something you could knock up in Word too.
Yep. I once owned / partially restored a Series 2 Escort RST in the late '00's - just as the classic car / RS scene was starting to attact the price rises and the various "traders" dealing in them from their bedrooms alongside the "specialist" traders. I bought the car with no service history, paperwork, etc, just the car & keys and then spent time running it / doing it up. I sold it to a guy on the RSOC club and provided all the invoices for the work i did including a mass of welding.18 months later the car turns up at some wannabe bedroom trader in the South West, only now it was being sold as an original car, "never welded", and at some point had miraculously gained not only the original service book that was stamped up, but also loads of "dealer invoices" to match the service book, plus a handful of MOT's. Bent as anything. Didn't take much to figure out how he'd ended up with all that fakery, as one of the friends on his facebook page was some graphic bloke offering "heritage reproductions" of paperwork for classic cars but sold as "for memorabilia only". This included providing aged look invoices, stamped service books, etc. Fairly obvious that same person had helped create the fake history for the car to warrant the stupid asking price it was listed at.
Despite making people aware of it via the RSOC, someone from there still went out and bought it anyway - and 4 years later the car appeared for sale with that same buyer - with the entire fake history still present - knowing full well what they were doing
Hugo Stiglitz said:
It might have been serviced once or not at all. Personally I'd take it back. When you sell it on a buyer may come back to you claiming fraudulent history.
Agreed.This car is worth less than you paid for it. You are a victim of fraud / misrepresentation.
You cannot sell it with its “history” unless you want to commit fraud.
You are the injured party and entitled to compensation.
AlvinSultana said:
Hugo Stiglitz said:
It might have been serviced once or not at all. Personally I'd take it back. When you sell it on a buyer may come back to you claiming fraudulent history.
Agreed.This car is worth less than you paid for it. You are a victim of fraud / misrepresentation.
You cannot sell it with its “history” unless you want to commit fraud.
You are the injured party and entitled to compensation.
I bought a car from an independent dealer once, had full genuine history. Asked if it had the cambelt done, answer was yes.
Turned out he just ticked the box in the book and threw away the corresponding receipt. It snapped a couple of 1000 miles later. Previous owner confirmed never done when I wrote to her.
Separately a friend of mine worked in a small garage, went to visit him once - he had a draw full of stamps for every brand / random garages. That was a semi reputable garage too.
So, I would absolutely verify any receipts and ignore any stamps on a used history.
Turned out he just ticked the box in the book and threw away the corresponding receipt. It snapped a couple of 1000 miles later. Previous owner confirmed never done when I wrote to her.
Separately a friend of mine worked in a small garage, went to visit him once - he had a draw full of stamps for every brand / random garages. That was a semi reputable garage too.
So, I would absolutely verify any receipts and ignore any stamps on a used history.
Sounds like the OP has done good investigation but it will be difficult if not impossible to do anything about it.
Helpful that he's shared it here though to make the rest of us more wary when buying.
Unless it's a premium car, I'd probably not worry too much about it now that it's at this stage but if he is worried, he needs to take it up with the dealer.
Helpful that he's shared it here though to make the rest of us more wary when buying.
Unless it's a premium car, I'd probably not worry too much about it now that it's at this stage but if he is worried, he needs to take it up with the dealer.
Thanks for advice guys.
It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
How much is the car?
Looks like that's how he deals with anyone wanting money back or any of his obligations.
I'd let the local trading standards know, they may also already have him on their radar. Ask them if they'd investigate?
If it is really more than a few grand (3k) I'd personally go after him and send a letter of rejection recorded.
Speak to whoever funded the car - however its down too if you can be arsed v just how much it was.
I bought a great mondeo not so long ago privately for 5k. If it turned out to have fake history, 5k is alot of money in my books and the principle is someone having me for 2k more than what it should have been with sparse history so I'd be a dog with a bone.
However if it was a 3k car, alot less so. I'd just chalk it up to can't be arsed and just let trading standards know (if it was a trader).
Looks like that's how he deals with anyone wanting money back or any of his obligations.
I'd let the local trading standards know, they may also already have him on their radar. Ask them if they'd investigate?
If it is really more than a few grand (3k) I'd personally go after him and send a letter of rejection recorded.
Speak to whoever funded the car - however its down too if you can be arsed v just how much it was.
I bought a great mondeo not so long ago privately for 5k. If it turned out to have fake history, 5k is alot of money in my books and the principle is someone having me for 2k more than what it should have been with sparse history so I'd be a dog with a bone.
However if it was a 3k car, alot less so. I'd just chalk it up to can't be arsed and just let trading standards know (if it was a trader).
Edited by Hugo Stiglitz on Tuesday 13th February 08:29
Chedders said:
Thanks for advice guys.
It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
I really wish we could name and shame.It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
A review bomb from the PH community would quickly make him more cooperative.
What a nightmare OP.
Chedders said:
Thanks for advice guys.
It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
Contact trading standards. On principle don't let the scumbag get away with it. It’s been an absolute nightmare.
I thought I was getting somewhere - after a few phone calls back and forth the bloke I’ve been talking to turned very aggressive. He told me to leave it with a small car sales place on the other end of my town, he said they own that. Went there last night with the car and they were thoroughly confused and had no connection with him.
Really struggled to get into contact with him whilst there, so left the premises of this place as it wasn’t fair me hanging about. This place really tried to help me in fairness.
He then rang me in the evening with an upheld number, shouting down the phone at me, apparently he can’t be arsed with me, I’m a waste of space, it’s only a few grand and he couldn’t give the slightest care if I was to go down the legal route, repeatedly shouting ‘go on then sue me’ and eventually hung up.
I’m not a push over, but blimey this is hard work to sort out.
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