eBay chop shops
Discussion
There is a guy in Twitter who seems to be pushing for something to be done but is getting no traction.
Take a look at Peter Anderson (@peterstopcrime): https://twitter.com/peterstopcrime?s=09
It doesn't take much time going through eBay to see what are some really dodgy accounts selling parts of what can only be stolen cars. Unless these people just break up cars when they get bored of them.
It feels like something the police should focus on as this isn't scrotes going for a joy ride, this is organised crime and likely to not be solely linked to cars.
How can we ensure the authorities listen?
Take a look at Peter Anderson (@peterstopcrime): https://twitter.com/peterstopcrime?s=09
It doesn't take much time going through eBay to see what are some really dodgy accounts selling parts of what can only be stolen cars. Unless these people just break up cars when they get bored of them.
It feels like something the police should focus on as this isn't scrotes going for a joy ride, this is organised crime and likely to not be solely linked to cars.
How can we ensure the authorities listen?
How do you know they are stolen? *know*?
I’m not being difficult, just that’s the issue here. Unless you’ve got some proof those specific parts are stolen what do you do?
eBay could demand a V5 for the car before you can sell bits for it - but what if you’re just a parts reseller not a breaker? An invoice for where you got them from? Who reads those? Who verifies those? How far down the chain do you go to make sure it wasn’t just printed off MS Word by the thieves?
I’m not being difficult, just that’s the issue here. Unless you’ve got some proof those specific parts are stolen what do you do?
eBay could demand a V5 for the car before you can sell bits for it - but what if you’re just a parts reseller not a breaker? An invoice for where you got them from? Who reads those? Who verifies those? How far down the chain do you go to make sure it wasn’t just printed off MS Word by the thieves?
Venturist said:
How do you know they are stolen? *know*?
I’m not being difficult, just that’s the issue here. Unless you’ve got some proof those specific parts are stolen what do you do?
eBay could demand a V5 for the car before you can sell bits for it - but what if you’re just a parts reseller not a breaker? An invoice for where you got them from? Who reads those? Who verifies those? How far down the chain do you go to make sure it wasn’t just printed off MS Word by the thieves?
This is all very valid. I’m not being difficult, just that’s the issue here. Unless you’ve got some proof those specific parts are stolen what do you do?
eBay could demand a V5 for the car before you can sell bits for it - but what if you’re just a parts reseller not a breaker? An invoice for where you got them from? Who reads those? Who verifies those? How far down the chain do you go to make sure it wasn’t just printed off MS Word by the thieves?
Having had two motor bikes stolen in the year I’ve been more wary, so many people on eBay selling bike parts, I’m always pretty sure when a person is selling multiple makes, the whole bike is being broken with no obvious sign of any damage to any parts, all the photos are taken in some scummy back garden and the parts are cheap.
There are laws in place for business sellers which has moved them to sell privately. Apply the same rules. Sellers address matching the v5 address would be a relatively simple first step. If they don't provide the info then eBay shouldn't list.
A bit of police time investigating could prove very valuable in shutting down some of these chop shops and therefore reducing thefts, car jacking etc.
A bit of police time investigating could prove very valuable in shutting down some of these chop shops and therefore reducing thefts, car jacking etc.
Spidersleg said:
I saw this guy from another thread on car crime. Should ebay also take some responsibility?
Should Auto Trader or Exchange & Mart take some responsibility for cloned/stolen cars being sold on their sites?Should facebook take some responsibility for stolen cars/parts/goods being sold on their site?
Should Gumtree take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should Craigslist take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should your local newspaper take some responsibility for stolen goods advertised in their classified section?
Should your local supermarket take some responsibility for stolen goods being advertised on their notice boards?
At the end of the day, despite the differing formats, they are all basically places for people to advertise and sell goods, and it's not really feasible for them to investigate every single seller, and where they get their goods from, nor is it really justifiable to make them responsible for the actions of "dubious" sellers.
The one thing ebay does do, is give members the opportunity to report possibly fraudulent/illegal activity on their site, but you really need to be able to prove any allegations, rather than just go with a vague, unprovable suspicion.
4rephill said:
Should Auto Trader or Exchange & Mart take some responsibility for cloned/stolen cars being sold on their sites?
Should facebook take some responsibility for stolen cars/parts/goods being sold on their site?
Should Gumtree take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should Craigslist take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should your local newspaper take some responsibility for stolen goods advertised in their classified section?
Should your local supermarket take some responsibility for stolen goods being advertised on their notice boards?
At the end of the day, despite the differing formats, they are all basically places for people to advertise and sell goods, and it's not really feasible for them to investigate every single seller, and where they get their goods from, nor is it really justifiable to make them responsible for the actions of "dubious" sellers.
The one thing ebay does do, is give members the opportunity to report possibly fraudulent/illegal activity on their site, but you really need to be able to prove any allegations, rather than just go with a vague, unprovable suspicion.
yes they should. Should facebook take some responsibility for stolen cars/parts/goods being sold on their site?
Should Gumtree take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should Craigslist take some responsibility for stolen goods sold on their site?
Should your local newspaper take some responsibility for stolen goods advertised in their classified section?
Should your local supermarket take some responsibility for stolen goods being advertised on their notice boards?
At the end of the day, despite the differing formats, they are all basically places for people to advertise and sell goods, and it's not really feasible for them to investigate every single seller, and where they get their goods from, nor is it really justifiable to make them responsible for the actions of "dubious" sellers.
The one thing ebay does do, is give members the opportunity to report possibly fraudulent/illegal activity on their site, but you really need to be able to prove any allegations, rather than just go with a vague, unprovable suspicion.
The vendors in the money world have all had to take on more responsibility with Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, where they have to ask where the money has come from, and get proof of identity etc. I know PayPal does do this to an extent but not sure how robust they are.
If all the online sellers are validating the sellers ID it at least gives a real person responsible at the end if the police do investigate, without having to chase the money trail through PayPal, banks etc.
Obviously someone could go the extra mile to spoof the checks but makes it harder, more time consuming for the villains and push them towards less reputable platforms. For genuine individuals it's not much extra as you only ever really need to do this once.
If all the online sellers are validating the sellers ID it at least gives a real person responsible at the end if the police do investigate, without having to chase the money trail through PayPal, banks etc.
Obviously someone could go the extra mile to spoof the checks but makes it harder, more time consuming for the villains and push them towards less reputable platforms. For genuine individuals it's not much extra as you only ever really need to do this once.
Petrolsniffed said:
rscott said:
His tweets claim the cars are all stolen. Does he have any proof of that?
A fair few say check out.... They could be legit. I bet a fair amount are not though. Surely the legit sellers would like a fairer playing field when selling too- chopshops @PoliceChiefs Check out TWO different STOLEN VOLKSWAGEN GOLF MK7 7.5 SILVER WHITE COMPLETE FRONT END WINGS BUMPERS RAD PACK https://t.co/jU7HlmQlo1 @eBay
rscott said:
https://twitter.com/peterstopcrime/status/11909103...
Yeah I appreciate some do, It was the all bit of your comment I was suggesting was not correct.- chopshops ?@PoliceChiefs Check out TWO different STOLEN VOLKSWAGEN GOLF MK7 7.5 SILVER WHITE COMPLETE FRONT END WINGS BUMPERS RAD PACK https://t.co/jU7HlmQlo1 @eBay
We've done lots of jobs on moody chop shops over the last 12 months as our force is running an operation on them.
The issue is getting warrants as simply stating stuff on eBay looks stolen isn't enough. We did get plenty though and recovered a lot of stolen dismantled cars. I think most of the jobs are still going though and not at court but we only scratched the surface.
The issue is getting warrants as simply stating stuff on eBay looks stolen isn't enough. We did get plenty though and recovered a lot of stolen dismantled cars. I think most of the jobs are still going though and not at court but we only scratched the surface.
rscott said:
https://twitter.com/peterstopcrime/status/11909103...
Birmingham yes definitely stolen- chopshops ?@PoliceChiefs Check out TWO different STOLEN VOLKSWAGEN GOLF MK7 7.5 SILVER WHITE COMPLETE FRONT END WINGS BUMPERS RAD PACK https://t.co/jU7HlmQlo1 @eBay
bluezedd said:
If I listed the front end of my parts car for sale, I'd bet that Peter Anderson guy would post about it being stolen goods. Seems he just searches for "complete front end" on ebay and posts them to his twitter. What a sad act.
My thoughts exactly, I'm all for people helping out with the problems of stolen stuff on ebay, (see liquid knights thread on here, he does a cracking job) but this guy just seems bored to be honest.There's plenty on FB market place round here. In what possible legitimate circumstances would you break a 6 month old Golf R or Audi S3 with zero body damage and full engine available. I suspect the only thing not available would be chassis numbers.
Edited by 0ddball on Tuesday 5th November 17:52
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