What are the red flags of this scam?

The seller insists on a deposit via Interac e-Transfer before you can view the vehicle in person — legitimate private sellers do not require deposits to hold a vehicle • The listing price is significantly below market value for the make, model, and year — inflated urgency ('selling quickly') accompanies it • The seller claims the vehicle is currently in storage, with a friend, or available only after you pay a holding fee • A buyer sends a cheque for more than the agreed price and asks you to wire back the difference before the cheque clears — it will bounce • During a test drive, one of two buyers distracts you while the other spends time near the engine bay — engine trouble 'discovered' immediately after • A buyer's fake Interac e-Transfer confirmation email claims payment was sent, but no funds appear in your bank account

What should I do if this happened to me?

Never pay a deposit to hold a vehicle you have not seen in person — walk away from any listing that demands it • Verify funds have actually cleared in your bank account before handing over a title or key — an email or screenshot of a 'sent' transfer is not proof of cleared funds • During test drives, stay with your vehicle or choose a trusted mechanic's lot for inspections — do not let two strangers split your attention at once • If a buyer says the engine 'suddenly has a problem' and offers half your asking price, end the sale and inspect the engine yourself before agreeing • Meet in a designated Police Safe Trade Zone (many Ontario police stations have them) for all vehicle handoffs • Run a Carfax Canada check before buying used — title problems and odometer discrepancies appear before you pay • Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at https://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca or call 1-888-495-8501.

HIGH marketplace Last reported: Sep 24, 2026 Share

A Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji vehicle listing takes your deposit — or a test-drive buyer sabotages the engine to drop the price

Q: Is this a scam?

Yes. This is a documented scam pattern. Fake vehicle listings on Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji extract deposits before the seller vanishes, while "dirty oil" buyers secretly contaminate your engine during test drives to force a steep price cut. Both sides — buyers and sellers — are targeted.

Fake vehicle listings on Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji extract deposits before the seller vanishes, while "dirty oil" buyers secretly contaminate your engine during test drives to force a steep price cut. Both sides — buyers and sellers — are targeted.

Also known as: fake car listing Facebook Marketplace Canada, Kijiji vehicle deposit scam, dirty oil used car scam Canada, fake e-Transfer car sale Canada, non-existent vehicle deposit scam Canada, Facebook Marketplace car fraud Ontario

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.

What to do right now

1 Never pay a deposit to hold a vehicle you have not seen in person — walk away from any listing that demands it
2 Verify funds have actually cleared in your bank account before handing over a title or key — an email or screenshot of a 'sent' transfer is not proof of cleared funds
3 During test drives, stay with your vehicle or choose a trusted mechanic's lot for inspections — do not let two strangers split your attention at once
4 If a buyer says the engine 'suddenly has a problem' and offers half your asking price, end the sale and inspect the engine yourself before agreeing
5 Meet in a designated Police Safe Trade Zone (many Ontario police stations have them) for all vehicle handoffs
6 Run a Carfax Canada check before buying used — title problems and odometer discrepancies appear before you pay
7 Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at https://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca or call 1-888-495-8501.

Red flags

⚠ The seller insists on a deposit via Interac e-Transfer before you can view the vehicle in person — legitimate private sellers do not require deposits to hold a vehicle
⚠ The listing price is significantly below market value for the make, model, and year — inflated urgency ('selling quickly') accompanies it
⚠ The seller claims the vehicle is currently in storage, with a friend, or available only after you pay a holding fee
⚠ A buyer sends a cheque for more than the agreed price and asks you to wire back the difference before the cheque clears — it will bounce
⚠ During a test drive, one of two buyers distracts you while the other spends time near the engine bay — engine trouble 'discovered' immediately after
⚠ A buyer's fake Interac e-Transfer confirmation email claims payment was sent, but no funds appear in your bank account

Known variants

Hacked-account listing fraud: scammer takes over a dormant Facebook account with genuine post history, then creates vehicle listings across multiple buyer targets. Victims lose deposits for vehicles that do not exist. Durham Region police warned of this method in 2026.

Last seen: 9/24/2026

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

What to do right now

Red flags

Known variants

Sources