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COPS are probing a fake car dealership which claims to flog cut-price eco-friendly motors — from a showroom that doesn’t exist.
The scammers use the name of a legitimate company — Scot Auto Ltd — and have set up a website featuring stolen images from social media accounts.
They have even listed an address for the company at an industrial unit in Dunfermline, Fife.
But when our reporter attended last week, there was no sign of the garage and the unit was derelict.
It is understood police are now investigating after the real Scot Auto’s owners were contacted by lawyers acting on behalf of victims who had paid deposits.
More than a dozen people are believed to have turned up at the unit looking for the firm within days of the scam website going live last month.
A source claimed the fraudsters trawled Companies House to find a name to use.
Our insider said: “They use the names of real firms. This gives the impression everything is legit.
“They price the cars cheaply and claim they meet low emission zone targets so they can be used in town centres, making them popular.
“It’s unknown how many people have already paid deposits for cars that don’t exist.
“The real owners reported this to police as soon as it was brought to their attention.
“They’ve had someone arrive on the doorstep of their home wanting to view a car — and a legal letter from another person who’d been duped out of money.”
Posing as a customer, our reporter contacted email sales manager “Oscar Brown”, who replied with details of a car but ignored requests to arrange a test drive.
They said they would only speak on the phone once he had provided personal details.
Our source added: “If people are sharing personal details and copies of identity documents, they need to be really careful that they are not having credit accounts set up in their name.
“This is a common tactic of these scams. If they get a deposit, then that is a bonus.”
Images on the website of company directors and the sales manager have been stolen from social media profiles of unsuspecting people.
They’ve even given two of them the same names as directors of the legitimate firm.
We tracked down the person in the photo said to be “sales manager Oscar Brown”.
He is a health professional who lives in Slovakia.
The man said: “They’re using my picture but I don’t know the company and have no involvement with them. They are clearly a scam.”
Police Scotland said: “We warn the public to remain vigilant and take a few steps to protect themselves from fraudsters.
“A phone call, email or text may not be from the person or organisation it appears to come from. The same applies to websites.
