The Better Business Bureau is advising Southwest Louisiana residents to be mindful of a scam using the classified advertising website Craigslist to lure people to a fake version of the auction site eBay.

Buyers believe they are getting good deals on vehicles, but are actually getting scammed and paying for nothing, said Carmen Million, president of the Southwest Louisiana BBB.

She said the BBB has received several calls and complaints from people who have been scammed out of thousands of dollars.

“All the scenarios are the same. The caller tries to rush the customer to buy the car for a substantially low amount,” Million said Wednesday. “If you’re looking to purchase anything online, look at the full picture. Does what this person is promising sound fair?”

Million said some of the transactions are from across state lines but that most of the scammers are calling from another country. She said another warning signal is that they say they’re going to ship it for free.

“Phony sellers place Craigslist ads for vehicles at reasonably and extremely low prices. Appearing legitimate, sellers claim all transactions are insured through eBay, protecting both buyers and sellers,” Million said.

Once the buyer agrees, they’re informed “eBay Transaction Services” will email them to complete deals. The emails generally contain transaction ID numbers and payment instructions for Western Union or MoneyGram, Million said.

“Buyers are told they’ll be shipped the cars to inspect and test drive,” Million said in a news release. “They’re told the money will only be released to the sellers after the test drive’s completed satisfactorily. Unfortunately, the reality is once the money’s wired to the alleged escrow accounts, it’s long gone.”

For more information, visit www.bbb.org or call Million at 478-6253.

(mgnonline.com)