Security Advice for Buyers and Sellers

A request for payment in advance generally always proves to be attempted fraud.Therefore, never transfer money in advance! This is true for both cash transfer payments (e.g. via Western Union, MoneyGram, Escrow) as well as for bank transfers. It is possible in both cases to cash the money by presenting false identity papers, and you are unable to claim your money back!

Remember: you are taking a large risk with this type of transaction as you do not know the recipient. Therefore cash payment transfers or bank transfers are generally not the appropriate form of payment when buying a vehicle!
Even if you intend to make the payment to an acquaintance or relative, this does not necessarily mean that will you not be the target of attempted fraud! A supposed seller with fraud in mind only needs to know a few details in order to cash your money using false papers. Therefore, never pay in advance.

mobile.de does not provide a trustee service nor does it offer any fiduciary accounts (or a so-called "Financial Department" etc.) for the use of buyers and sellers.
Further, mobile.de has not classified any salesmen as particularly safeworthy ("seal members" etc.) - neither dealers nor private persons.If you should, however, receive an eMail requesting that you use a trustee service or are guided to an apparent mobile.de webpage, this is undoubtedly a false eMail and webpage. If you are in doubt about the authenticity of an advert, please phone us on: +49 30 81097-530.

Paperwork sent by electronic means (registration certificates and logbooks etc. sent by eMail) can be falsified easily and does not offer any guarantee about the identity of the person selling the vehicle or that the documents are really proof of ownership of a certain vehicle.

As a seller, you must also guard against fraud: when selling vehicles, sellers are often given cheques which are not covered. Therefore, we would strongly advise you not to accept cheques as a means of payment!
If you – as the seller – receive a cheque (generally sent from abroad) where the amount is more than the agreed purchase price, then it is more than likely to be an attempted fraud. Do not, under any circumstances, transfer the difference back, as the cheque is most probably stolen or a false one – even if first enquiries do not arouse any concerns.

Unfortunarely, it is possible nowadays to falsify the sender's address of an eMail. This is used by fraudsters to obtain confidential data (credit card number, passwords etc.) or to make up false facts to a prospective buyer ("use our trust service" etc.).
mobile.de will only contact private customers in connection with an advertisement or a request.As an advertiser/seller you have given either your credit card number or your account number and sort code during the advertisement payment procedure. This data is used solely for the payment of your advertisement!mobile.de would never, at any stage, request this data again – neither by eMail nor by any other means!As a prospective buyer you will not receive any eMails from mobile.de without having been contacted beforehand (e.g. eMail search request, a concrete request). If, however, you do receive an eMail where the apparent sender is mobile.de, then it is undoubtedly a false eMail.

mobile.de is not involved at any stage in the purchase of the vehicle and does not know who buys which car from whom. mobile.de does not give any recommendation as to the use of various payment methods – all agreements concerning the sale are undertaken between the buyer and seller.
In this respect mobile.de is not able to provide any information concerning the creditworthiness of a buyer; we do not possess such information. If, however, you receive an eMail (where the apparent sender is mobile.de) with statements concerning the creditworthiness of a buyer, then this is undoubtedly a false eMail.