Report finds odometer rollbacks rising, costing used car buyers thousands
Houston - A record number of used car buyers are getting ripped off, according to a new CARFAX report.
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The company that provides vehicle history reports says that the number of vehicles on Texas roads with rolled-back odometers has increased by 277,000 in the last two years, a nearly 13% jump.
CARFAX made a video to show how easy it is to roll back a vehicle's odometer.
"I'm holding in my hand a device I purchased on the internet for $300. It plugs into your OBD2 port, the same port on your vehicle where your mechanic would plug in to get diagnostic information," explained Josh Ingle of Atlanta Speedometer.
"On the odometer right now, I’ve got 124,000 miles. So in my device, I’ve already put in 43,000 miles. So we can knock off 80 with just the flip of a switch basically," Ingle shows us.
CARFAX data reveals unsuspecting buyers are gauged an average of $4,000 on vehicles with tampered odometers. And there are now 2.1 million vehicles with them on U.S. roads.
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"That’s up 7% over last year, 14% over two years ago. I think what’s driving that is used car values are very high," said Patrick Olsen with CARFAX. "For scammers, that means there’s a whole lot of opportunity."
Not only are buyers overcharged, they can also get hit with expensive repairs and maintenance.
"Major work may already have been needed and not done and that can put your car, yourself and your family at risk," said Olsen.
Scammers can use devices, legally sold online, for auto diagnostics that also reset odometers, which is sometimes legitimately necessary.
"Like if a computer chip breaks and you’ve got to tell your car what your mileage is supposed to be," said Olsen.
We readily found how-to videos on YouTube, making it easy for scammers to take a car buyer for an expensive ride.
This crime is hard to detect, but you can protect yourself.
Before you buy a used vehicle, you can go to the free CARFAX Odometer Fraud Check, type in the VIN and it will show you if the odometer has been rolled back. You can check for free, or you can purchase a vehicle history report.
Another way to check is to look at the vehicle's title or state inspection records, and compare the mileage listed on them to the odometer.
One more tip off will be a vehicle showing low mileage, but the gas and brake pedals show the wear and tear of one with high mileage.
If you suspect fraud, contact the NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1 (888) 327-4236.