Action News Jax Investigates: Odometer fraud is sweeping across Florida

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Buying a car is one of the biggest investments you’ll ever make. However, when buying a used vehicle, you could end up with someone else’s problems.

Kelsey Keller found a BMW coupe in pristine condition on Craigslist. The ad said it had 170,000 miles, but it had 204,000 miles before the odometer was rolled back.

“He said there had only been one owner for the past couple of years, and there actually had been 11 on that vehicle,” Keller said.

Keller caught the fraud before she paid, but one Jacksonville man did not.

"I wouldn't even consider buying a car with that many miles," Fariborz Sharigai said.

He purchased a 2007 Toyota Camry whose title showed 98,000 miles. It wasn’t until after he took the car home that he discovered that the Toyota had 275,000 miles on it.  The odometer had been rolled back 180,000 miles.

Action News Jax Paige Kelton searched hundreds of Craigslist ads and visited used car dealerships across Jacksonville and found that individual car buyers aren’t the only people being tricked. Kelton found a 2005 Subaru Forester for sale with 55,000 miles.

The car dealer had just purchased the Forester the day before at an auction in Atlanta. He showed us the paperwork and title, which clearly read 55,000 miles. But, according to a Carfax report, the mileage went from more than 78,000 miles to 23,000 in 2011.

"With an app, a computer system, a con man can hack into a computer, reprogram the dashboard odometer and can make 35,000 or 55,000 miles disappear in the blink of an eye," said Larry Gamache, communications director for Carfax.

Once the mileage is rolled back, the car is either sold to someone or traded to an unsuspecting dealership. It then heads to an auction house or wholesaler, a new title is cut with the new mileage and it’s passed on to a used car dealer, who sells it.

“Take it to a mechanic for a test drive. Use your due diligence. You will significantly reduce your chances of buying one of these unsafe, unreliable cars," Gamache said.

The Florida Highway Patrol told Action News Jax that in the last two years, it's investigated 104 cases of odometer fraud. The Florida attorney general investigated 36 cases.

People caught manipulating an odometer can be charged with fraud and face serious prison time.

Resources:

• Free CARFAX Odometer Check 
• How to Protect Yourself: Odometer Fraud  
• Report Fraud 
• Florida Consumer Complaints Guide 
• The Federal Odometer Tampering Statutes 

Cox Media Group