PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) – The Oregon Department of Motor Vehicle Services is warning Oregonians about new scams involving fake vehicle manufacturer documents and fraudulent dealerships.
In their warning, issued Monday, the Oregon DMV said scammers are using fake Manufacturer Certificates of Origin to obtain titles for stolen vehicles.
MCOs certify the original ownership of a vehicle and are issued by the vehicle manufacturer when a vehicle is produced and contains information such as the make, model, year, and vehicle identification number. But in some cases, scammers are creating fake VINs and adding them to counterfeit MCOs by altering information on a printed certificate or creating a fake version downloaded online, officials said.
Rescue team’s gear stolen hours after finding men who died Sasquatch hunting
Fake certificates often list the manufacturer’s name with an out-of-state dealer or distributor as the initial buyer, according to the Oregon DMV.
To determine if a VIN is legitimate, the DMV recommends running the VIN through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recall website, which can show if the VIN on the certificate is one issued by a manufacturer. If a VIN is not found, an error message will appear, meaning the number was not issued by that manufacturer.