72 Bay with oval rear lights

[AGPlant]

Have you got any further with this? Hope they are taking some action!

 

[jamesabell1978]

All, thanks for your support, unfortunately it has been quiet apart from my action.

I reported this to Action Fraud on the 8th April on the advice of Sussex Police as it was not brought in their area, therefore they could not take any action themselves. I wrote a 3 page statement to provide further background information.

Nothing for a few weeks so I chased but as Action Fraud is a national service desk ran on behalf of the City of London Police they could not give me any further details. I rang the DVLA to seek their guidance and highlight the fact I never received a v5c and all I got was told to fill out another form to register it.

So last week, still having heard nothing but finally receiving a v5c against the fraudulent vin I thought I would push further.

I sent, special delivery, two letters, one to DVLA and one to Cambridgeshire Police, responsible for the village where I bought the vehicle with a cover letter, the 3 page statement and photographic evidence as seen in this thread. I have proof the letters have been received by both but still no response back.

Who would have thought it would be so difficult, several family members are in the force, unfortunately different area and have said I just need to keep pushing but I find the lack of response hard to take.

I am still loath to dig under the false plate as it is potential evidence of recent tampering with the sole yellow covering so will wait until I get some action.

In the meantime I am compiling a list of stuff I want to do with the van against my better halves advice, she thinks I should stay detached from the van just in case. JK insurance have told me I am still covered so trying to enjoy it as much as possible driving around.

All the best, James

 

[StuF]

Aside from the lack of response from the police and dvla what sort of a response have you had from the previous owner (you stated he was a known VW dealer?) I would have demanded my money back and let him deal with the police and fallout that would have come from owning a very possibly ringed bus.

Hope you get some form of conclusion soon

 

[jamesabell1978]

I have not heard from the previous owner for a while, he was a dealer / garage owner in the scene but I think the business closed and i bought the vehicle from him as a private sale.

He was supportive at the start speaking to the last guy that sold it to him who I was told was also a friend in the scene and had the interior out of it but both do not understand what happened or state they had any knowledge of the false number, I can only let the police deal with it now and certainly cant ignore the fact that the chassis number is not a part of the chassis. Hope they sort it out soon as it cannot be put through an MOT in it's current state as any MOT garage will refuse it time, I have until Feb next year but on current performance don't hold much hope.

In the meantime I am going to get a list of the previous owners of the VIN number i have from the DVLA and hope to get some more history. You never know hopefully some people on here may have known the bus or whatever vehicle it was before.

 

[jamesabell1978]

Oh yeah I did try hard for my money back but the money had been spent and I was left with little options to get it sorted out. One day I might find out want went on and be able to report back.

 

[jamesabell1978]

Well, time has moved on but nothing much has changed. After my letter to the DVLA and Cambridgeshire Police I finally got a call back. It seemed the letter had been floating around for a while with no one owning it but a DC from the Fraud and Money Laundering department finally got in touch. Unfortunately he advised me he could not take it forward as the report from Action Fraud had not been passed on. So I was advised to go back to Action Fraud to make a complaint.

So today, a call to Action Fraud resulting in me being advised to contact Crime Stoppers who told me to get back in touch with Action Fraud and the Police as I was the victim and had an existing reference number. Round in circles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, I have been back in touch with the DC as he has been the only contact to speak to me. Hopefully he is going to provide a sensible contact in the police for me to deal with but can't make any promises.

This is just so frustrating, what a pain it is to try and do the right thing!

 

[Trikky2]

Thanks for the update James.

Wow! I just find it incredible that you are not getting any help or action from the police. It just seems to confirm that the whole thing is apparently run by accountants in that they seem far more interested in getting fines off people for minor infringements and parking than in actually investigating fraud and a probable stolen vehicle. Its not like these buses are only worth a couple of hundred pounds.

Its all very dissapointing and goes a long to to explaining where all those stolen buses dissapear to.

Like you said earlier, it will be necessary to remove the fake plate to see if the original number is still underneath. Even if its been ground off the application of a particular acid will reveal the number due to the compression of the stamped areas of the metal but this should be inspected and/or removed by the investigating officer since it is evidence. I would have thought there is a local section of the police specialised in vehicle theft.

I admire your perseverance, many would have given up by now.

Do let us know how you get on.

 

[AndyO]

I have an idea for you, and I have heard where this has worked in the past.

Tweet this thread. Name and shame the departments involved, will soon get them into action.

Not on twitter? im sure there are many on here that are, that would oblidge.

Good luck!

 

[jacks906]

I remember when my landy went missing 10k worth of land rover dissappears and I didn't even get to see or speak to a police officer...... now I'm sure the same would happen if someone stole 10k from a bank :roll:

Soon changed when it pooped up on ebay n I told them I wss off to sort it myself if they didn't do something....

But you really have to keep mithering till they do something its a ball ache an id of given up myself if I was in your position

Fingers crossed that something happens soon and you eventually get it sorted n get to keep the van

Dave

 

[Hadders]

As others have said, I admire your perseverance - I'm sure many others would never have started never mind stuck with it for so long.

These days, there's almost nothing that worries me more than someone telling me that they're 'in the scene'. Aside from this forum, where everyone I've spoken to and met seems more than genuine, the most reliable traders have been those that operate below the radar, if they advertise, it's subtle, and there is no jumping on the bandwagon. I know it's not as simple as that, just my experience.

I suppose same rules apply as in any other purchase - be careful, check it out etc etc

Hope it gets sorted, though it looks unlikely given the lack of engagement so far

 

[jamesabell1978]

Hopefully, all will be revealed this Friday. I had a bit of a result with my direct letter and have an appointment with a vehicle inspector. So we may be able to see if anything exists under the suspect plate!

I am planning for the worse and hoping for the best, may get the van seized but at least I will have an answer and way forward.

 

[aspro]

Great result. Keep on fighting till this gets sorted mate. It will make other scum think twice before trying the same.

Bet my arse the guilty party/ies are reading this thread and shitting their pants right now. Hope they pay. :x

 

[Trikky2]

Well done, looking forward to your next update.

 

[jacks906]

Got me fingers crossed for you dude hopefully its a positive experience outcome

Dave

 

[paul_f]

How did it go?

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

 

[TRADESIZE]

OK I'm going to chuck a thought into the mix.
If you phoned your insurer and asked them to make a scammed claim.
You state exactly whats happened and ask them if they can class the claim as theft of funds for purchase of van and pay you the pre accident value, as clearly you were scammed in a way. If they agree they'll pay you out and they'll collect the van and dispose of it via their salvage agents. Just to make you aware HIC aren't your insurer, they're just a broker, your insurer is the co that are the underwriters.
I do not know if you will be covered for this. They may tell you to bugger off, I'll guess they will, but if they do register an official complaint and take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).
Failing that you could just call the FOS consumer helpline and ask if you submitted a claim and the insurer said no, and you took your complaint to them would they tell the insurer to pay you!
FOS consumer helpline -
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/contact/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I have almost a decade of experience of dealing with the FOS. they take a long time to sort things but are extremely helpful.
Its a possible legitimate way of getting your moneyback?
Let us know if this works
Good luck.
Details of how to register a complaint here:
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/default.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[faux]

This is an absolute nightmare and I really feel for you.

It isnt just your bus that has been changed, I was camping at llangenith last week and the was a 73/74 on a J plate. I asked the owner how he got away with the J plate and he laughed and said he has friends in the scrap business. Not great if he sells it on !!!!

Good luck with your fight.

 

[rickyrooo1]

This is an absolute nightmare and I really feel for you.

It isnt just your bus that has been changed, I was camping at llangenith last week and the was a 73/74 on a J plate. I asked the owner how he got away with the J plate and he laughed and said he has friends in the scrap business. Not great if he sells it on !!!!

Good luck with your fight.

The ironic thing here is 73/4 will be tax free from next year anyway.... it's amazing how many people - plod and mot testers included don't know the real ages of some vehicles with just a basic look, being an enthusiast of certain marques does help though spotting hooky landrovers is always fun.

 

[AndyO]

Saw this just down the road from me, thought it was the bus from this thread...not the case but the same issue it would seem, M Reg circa 1974?!??

 

[rickyrooo1]

Saw this just down the road from me, thought it was the bus from this thread...not the case but the same issue it would seem, M Reg circa 1974?!??

strange one that, deffo a late bay - the hinges on the engine bay suggest later than 75...... of course the plate "could" be correct, the engine hatch "could" be a replacement, the owner "could" prefer earlier lights..... it "could" be a wrongun.... would like to see the tax disc.