Soaring demand for caravans and campervans has created the perfect storm for scammers and thieves to make an easy buck.
Now caravan scam victims and regulators are speaking out to warn other buyers about how to spot a fake website or invoices and how to avoid buying a stolen van.
“If it’s too good to be true, don’t go ahead with it,” scam victim Allen Wehrmann told A Current Affair.
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At the age of 74, Mr Wehrmann and his wife were looking to upgrade their caravan to a newer model that was more practical.
Friends told them about Cracking Campers, a website which appeared to sell a range of caravans and campervans.
But when Mr Wehrmann tried calling the company, no one answered.
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Instead, he emailed and quickly received a reply saying a van was available for $26,900, including delivery to his home in Adelaide.
“We checked out their ABN and a few other things in the company listed they’d been in the business for 10 years — reliable and money-back guarantee if we weren’t happy with what we received when it was delivered,” Mr Wehrmann…
