10:33 am, May 4, 2011
A CAR dealer who was the victim of a car jacking last week has issued advice to warn other dealers.
Last Friday, a thief posing as a legitimate buyer of the dealer’s very own BMW X5 high-jacked the car during a viewing.
‘I had actually withdrawn the X5 for sale the day before,’ said the dealer, who wishes to remain anonymous. ‘But this man phoned up about the car on Friday, and I took the car to a nearby hotel car park for him to view it.
‘The thief appeared to be completely legitimate, looking over the car with a fine tooth-comb for at least an hour before he stole it off me.
‘He said he wanted to try out the air-con and jumped into the driving seat. Before I knew what had happened he had driven off.’
The dealer has been selling cars for more than 35 years, but admitted that a momentary lack of concentration resulted in the car being stolen.
‘I kept the keys on me for most of the viewing, but just before he stole it I left the keys in the ignition.
‘I had a lucky escape, though. The police later phoned me saying that they had found the thief’s phone at a nearby Honda dealer, and my name was in the phone. They wanted to know why my name was in his phone. That’s when I said I had been a victim too, and the police told me the thief stabbed two sales people at the Honda dealer.’
To warn other dealers of his experiences, the dealer has issued some advice: ‘When customers now phone up wanting to book a viewing, I now say that they need to email, fax, or bring with them a copy of both parts of their driving licence and a utility bill.
‘Independent dealers should learn from what happened to me. Never agree to meet a buyer somewhere other than your own forecourt. These people are canny – I’ve been in the business for more than 35 years and I was fooled.’
