Mumbai Sees Surge In Car-Related Frauds: Owners Cheated While Renting, Selling Or Buying Vehicles

Mumbai: Incidents of car-related fraud are on the rise in Mumbai, prompting concerns among vehicle owners and buyers alike. Are you lending your expensive car to someone? Have you rented out your vehicle or sold it, did you receive the full payment? And while buying a car, did you take possession before making payment? These questions have become increasingly relevant as several fraud cases involving cars have been reported across the city.

Multiple Police Stations Report Fraud Cases Across the City

Police stations in areas such as Powai, Amboli, R. A. Kidwai Marg, MHB Colony, Malvani, and others have registered multiple cases related to vehicle fraud. In many instances, cars taken on rent are not returned, while in others, vehicles are sold without paying the agreed amount to the owner.

In one such case from Malad, a young man rented out his car through the Zoomcar application. The vehicle was booked by Mohammad Qais Tade from Raigad, allegedly for a wedding. However, Tade failed to return the car. Upon follow-up, it was revealed that he had sold the car to another person, who in turn sold it to a third party. Realizing he had been cheated, the car owner lodged a complaint at the Malvani police station.

In another incident in Nalasopara, a second-hand car dealer was shown a Thar vehicle by a man who claimed he wanted to sell it. After finalizing the deal, the dealer paid ₹4.5 lakh in advance, but the car was never delivered. Further investigation revealed that the seller was not the actual owner of the vehicle.

Turning the Tables on the Victims : Ashish Jadhav, a resident of Satara, rented four cars from four different individuals engaged in the car rental business. Initially, he returned two cars after extending the rental period several times, but continued to use all four vehicles for nearly two years. Over the past few months, he stopped paying rent altogether. When the owners approached him for payment, he allegedly threatened them, saying they would get nothing and warned them against visiting his house again, threatening false cases.

Mother Files Complaint Against Son :

In a rare case, a woman from Vakola filed a police complaint against her own son. Following her husband’s death, the son had been demanding his share of the property and frequently quarreled with her. A few days ago, the son, who lives in Pune, came to Mumbai and took away his mother’s car. When he failed to return it despite repeated requests, he allegedly told her that the car would be returned only after he received his share of the property. Left with no option, the woman approached the police.

Truck Sold Without Owner’s Consent :

A young man from Parel had purchased a truck on loan for business purposes. However, due to family issues, he was unable to operate the business and decided to sell the truck to Nazir Sheikh for ₹27 lakh. As per their agreement, Sheikh paid ₹2 lakh upfront and was supposed to pay the remaining ₹25 lakh by clearing the loan installments. Instead, Sheikh neither paid the installments nor the balance amount and allegedly sold the truck to another person without the owner’s consent.

More Cases of Vehicle Fraud :

Bhoiwada: A driver residing in the Naigaon area of Dadar was cheated of ₹1.5 lakh after being promised an Ertiga car at a low price.

Borivali: A teacher couple was duped of ₹9 lakh after being promised an Ertiga and later an Innova at a reasonable rate.

Kandivali: A businessman took ₹3.25 lakh from a young man after promising to sell him an Innova, which later turned out to be a rented vehicle.

Police have urged citizens to exercise caution while renting, buying, or selling vehicles and to ensure proper documentation and verification to avoid falling victim to such frauds.

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