The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning used equipment buyers nationwide about another sophisticated scam involving used farm equipment.
This particular grift, according to a press release from BBB, involved a fake online heavy equipment retailer impersonating a legitimate Missouri dealership, Cook Equipment & Trucking (Marble Hill, Mo.).
Buyers from across the U.S., some even from as far away as California and Arizona, reported losing a total of $223,000 after attempting to purchase heavy equipment and farm machinery through fraudulent websites and Facebook Marketplace ads.
Related: Essential Advice for Safely Buying Used Farm Machinery
Victims say they were “ghosted” after wiring money for equipment that never arrived. The BBB does not say whether the victims were able to dispute the fraudulent charges and claw back the proceeds from the scammers.
The reported fraudulent transactions include:
- $45,000 for a skid steer loader from a buyer in Oak Hills, Calif.
- $32,000 for an excavator from a buyer in Hancock, Mich.
- $29,500 for a trailer from a buyer in Amanda, Ohio
- $29,000 for a trailer from a buyer in Greenville, N.C.
- $28,000 for a skid steer loader from a buyer in Eastman, Wis.
- $31,000 for an excavator from a buyer in Des Moines, Iowa.
- $29,000 for a skid steer from a buyer in Blue, Ariz.
BBB says the real Cook Equipment & Trucking, a small business operating since 2010, confirmed it has no website and is not affiliated with any online sales. The impersonators registered three fake websites, the most recent on July 14, and continue to run deceptive ads on social media.
“Those shopping for heavy equipment and farm machinery online should do their due diligence so they don’t fall victim to a virtual vehicle vendor scam,” says Michelle L. Corey, president and CEO, BBB St. Louis. “If an item is priced well below market value, that’s a red flag.”
To avoid getting swept up in an online virtual vehicle vendor scam the Better Business Bureau offers these tips:
- Research the business at bbb.org or call 888-996-3887
- Be skeptical of deals that seem too good to be true
- Verify the website and contact the business directly
- Read all terms and understand refund policies
- Use a credit card for added protection
- Report scams to BBB Scam Tracker, your state attorney general, the FTC, and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, and notify the social media platform where the fraud was discovered
To learn more about how to avoid online fraud in the used equipment auction world, check out BBB’s 2024 study on virtual vehicle vendor scams.
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