Several Authorized Vehicle Treatment Centers (ATCs), commonly known as scrapyards and members of the main Spanish Association of Automobile Dismantling and Recycling (AEDRA), are reporting a new wave of fraud. The ROCA team of the Civil Guard is already investigating the scheme, which primarily targets individual consumers.
This scam, apparently orchestrated by criminal organizations, often from Eastern Europe, operates in three main ways and largely exploits online platforms for second-hand goods such as Wallapop and Milanuncios:
1. Illegal Sales of Individual Parts
Criminals advertise auto parts for private sale, even though only ATCs are legally authorized to handle and sell components from permanently decommissioned vehicles (VFVUs). Buyers engaging in these deals not only risk purchasing stolen or unverified parts but also unwittingly participate in an illegal act. The parts, often from questionable or even stolen sources, come with no guarantee. This is explained by Javier Goñi, head of Desguaces y Recuperaciones Valdizarbe:
“Despite demands from the sector, Wallapop doesn’t require a CAT license to launch a sales profile. Furthermore, when paying for the defrauded part via credit card, which is the norm, there’s no turning back. By the end of June, we’ve received hundreds of calls from affected parties.”
Jorge Salamanca, Desguaces y Reciclajes Villanueva, warns:
“Whoever answers the interested parties, on the other end of the phone, in the chat, or wherever, knows what they’re talking about, knows the material, which reinforces the deception. We’re talking about substantial scams: 700, 2,700, 3,200 euros… often from people who, out of necessity, have borrowed money from family or friends to repair an urgent breakdown in a car or business vehicle. We’ve been warning other CATs for some time to warn them.”
2. Fake Listings with Stolen Photos
Scammers post listings for in-demand parts at prices that seem too good to be true, using images and details stolen from legitimate scrapyard websites. Communication is conducted through fake emails, phone numbers, WhatsApp, or SMS, and victims are asked to transfer money to a bank account. In return, they receive a convincing, but fake, pro forma invoice, complete with the Tax Identification Number of a real CAT (Certified Automobile Taxpayer Service).
After payment, when the part never arrives, victims try to follow up through the same channels, only to find them inactive. Eventually, they contact or visit the real CAT, only to realize they’ve been scammed.
3. Full Website Cloning of Certified ATCs
In what may be the most advanced method, scammers fully replicate the websites of legitimate scrapyards, including their design, content, and branding. Similar to the previous tactic, the process begins with initial contact via chat or messaging apps, followed by a fake invoice and a bank transfer request.
“The reputational damage is enormous,” explains Jon Vidaurrieta of Desguaces Vidaurreta. “We don’t even advertise on Wallapop, and there are even people, sometimes private clients, who have notified us when they’ve found these ads.”
The affected ATCs have reported the fraud to Wallapop, Milanuncios, and the Civil Guard. While both platforms take action to remove fake listings and profiles, by the time this happens, the scammers have typically vanished, and the bank accounts used, often opened with stolen IDs or those belonging to vulnerable individuals, are already closed.
AEDRA advises all buyers to verify that they are dealing with a certified CAT and to remain cautious of offers that seem unusually cheap or involve rare parts. Scams involving VFVU components are becoming more sophisticated, and consumer vigilance is critical.
Sources aedra.org murciaplaza.com
