Page last updated: August 22, 2024
We wanted to take a moment to discuss various scams, fraud, and other problems that can affect the vehicle buying/selling process, and help you understand how to avoid them.
Let’s cover some important basics about Find My Electric. Knowing these things can help keep you safe from various types of scams.
Find My Electric Is a Peer-to-Peer Marketplace
Similar to Craigslist (but honestly, way more awesome), Find My Electric is a peer-to-peer marketplace.
This means people and dealerships list their Teslas for sale here, but we are not a dealer—and we don’t own any of the Teslas for sale on this site.
So, when you contact someone about buying their car, it’s your responsibility to verify all details of the vehicle, ownership, etc.—the same way you would on Craigslist or any other classified site. We’re simply the marketplace that connects people—it’s up to you to do the rest.
We do have a partner service (KeySavvy), that can assist with secure payment and title transfer, which we highly recommend (scroll down for more info on this).
We Don’t Own Any of the Teslas Listed on This Site
We’re not a dealership or a seller. We’re a marketplace. This means that you need to do all of your own checking/inspecting/due diligence about the vehicle, the seller, and their ownership/history, the same way you would when buying a car that was advertised in a newspaper ad, or on another site like Craigslist.
We Don’t Store, Ship, or House Any of the Teslas Listed on This Site
Don’t fall for any scams claiming that we store, ship, or house any of the Teslas on this site. We don’t own any of them or provide any of these services. We don’t have a warehouse or any nonsense like that, so don’t fall for any emails claiming this is true.
If you’re planning on buying Tesla that is outside of your local area, you need to arrange for all shipping and transportation on your own—it’s not something we ever get involved with, and we don’t offer any services like that.
We Don’t Mediate or Get Involved in Transactions
All transactions are between the buyer and seller—we don’t get involved in any way, shape, or form.
However, if you notice a fraudulent ad, please reach out and contact us so we can take the appropriate corrective action. We have a zero tolerance policy for fraud, scams and other deception on our site.
We don’t have a “preapproved sellers list” or any other type of nonsense like this, so don’t believe it. If you see anyone claiming to have any type of special status like this, please report it to us immediately so we can take the appropriate corrective action.
We Highly Recommend Using KeySavvy for Secure Payment and Title Transfer
We have partnered with KeySavvy.com to provide a way for buyers and sellers to pay each other, and also transfer title securely.
This takes the risk out of the payment and title aspect of the buying process, and their fee is quite low and can be split between the buyer or seller.
We strongly recommend all transactions go through KeySavvy, and you can see the link for KeySavvy on any listing page under the contact form:
Another great thing about KeySavvy is that for electric vehicles under $25k (that also meet other qualifications), they can offer the point-of-sale (POS) $4k federal EV tax credit.
But just know that we’re here to help with every part of the buying/selling process.
We Don’t Verify Information About Teslas Listed Here
We have automated systems that check listings for completeness and other mistakes, and other proprietary checks to ensure uniformity, but we don’t verify or confirm that all vehicle details are accurate, true, honest, or correct.
This means that if you’re looking at a particular Tesla, you need to do your due diligence to ensure that all of the information is correct.
For example, if the person advertising the Tesla lists it as a clean titled vehicle, it’s your responsibility to verify this.
We Don’t Verify Ownership of Teslas Listed Here
We don’t verify ownership of the Teslas listed here, so before you buy a particular Tesla, it’s your responsibility to verify ownership, title status, and other important aspects of the vehicle.
However, if you use KeySavvy, they will verify this for you as part of the transaction.
We NEVER Ask You for Payment Information Via Email
We’ll NEVER ask you for payment information over email—EVER.
If you purchase a listing on Find My Electric, YOU enter your payment information at checkout. It’s transmitted via secure third parties like Stripe, and we never see or store this information. This is the only time you will ever input this information—we will never ask you for it directly.
Again, we will never directly ask you for this information ever—so don’t fall for any type of scam email claiming to be us and asking for it!
If you receive a scam email asking you to “complete your listing” or asking for payment information it’s completely fake. Some of these emails can be quite sophisticated, using our email or appearing to come from the FindMyElectric.com domain name. Just know that we NEVER ask for this information, so no matter how convincing an email may seem, it’s not authentic. Never give out your payment information to anyone via email claiming to be us. And please, report this to us immediately if you see a problem.
Don’t Fall for Vehicle History Report Scams
If at any time someone asks to purchase an “Auto Fisc” vehicle history report, that is a scam. They have attempted to scam used car websites across the web. DO NOT engage with any users mentioning Auto Fisc.
DO NOT let anyone posing as a buyer convince you to purchase an additional vehicle history report from any 3rd party website. This is also a scam.
If you have a Featured Listing package with us, we provide an Experian AutoCheck vehicle history report for free—this is ALL you need. Again, don’t let anyone posing as a buyer convince you otherwise.
We Have a ZERO Tolerance Policy for Fraud and Scams
Anyone found to be engaging in fraud or scams will receive a permanent lifetime ban from Find My Electric, and may also be reported to the authorities and face other legal consequences.
Please Report Fraud, Scams, and Fishy Activity to Us Immediately
We care about our users and the Tesla community—and one thing that sets us apart is we want to provide the best customer service humanly possible. Just like Elon says—it’s important to make “really outstanding” products.
So, if you see something fishy and need an immediate answer—feel free to call or text us at 800-560-4817.
You can also contact us by visiting our contact page or by email at contact[at]findmyelectric[dot]com too, for less important problems.
Important Links About Avoiding Scams and Fraud
To help you avoid fraud and scams, the following links provide excellent tips and information:
BBB Tips for Avoiding Scams – https://www.bbb.org/scamtips/
BBB Scam Tracker – https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker/
CFPB Fraud Tools – https://www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-tools/fraud/
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center – https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx
FTC Avoiding and Reporting Scams – https://consumer.ftc.gov/scams
BBB Avoiding Car Shipping Scams – https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/22961-bbb-investigation-vehicle-escrow-scams