Ontraz.co.uk Help Section
Some Tips for using our site
Ontraz.co.uk
If you are having technical problems with our site – please
contact
Our software dept. Where our staff will be available and
happy to help
Emails to admin@Ontraz.com
We are currently working on our Frequently Asked
Questions and the Answers section and in the coming weeks we will be have that addition
in this section
Please note
1......After uploading your ad you can edit it then or
anytime while your ad is alive on our system
2......You can see all your ads you have uploaded in the
MY ads section
3......you may also upgrade your free ad to a
featured ad for the cost of a featured Ad – it is done by what the site calls Bump
up your ad, featured Ads are placed at the top of the category you have selected
with up to 10 Photos and because of that feature they get better results
Dating – top tips for staying safe
For all personal encounters with people
you are not familiar with, we stress that you MUST TAKE CARE! Here are our top tips
for staying safe:
- If you do decide to meet someone through
Ontraz.co.uk,
for your own personal peace of mind and safety, we suggest that you meet in a very
public place and if possible take someone along with you when you first meet the
person. If you do not have a friend with you, then ensure that you tell someone
exactly what you are doing, where you are going, when you are expected back, and
give contact numbers, etc.
- Once at your rendezvous, if you feel
at all uncomfortable with the situation, then we suggest you politely excuse yourself
and leave. Do not feel obliged at any time during the encounter to do anything you
are uncomfortable with.
Guaranteed Sale Scam
How to Recognize This Scam
- Never trust anyone offering
a 'guaranteed' sale.
How Does it Work?
- Someone contacts you about
your advertised goods on Ontraz.co.uk,
claiming to have buyers interested in your item.
- For a fee they will help you
sell your item. Sometimes the person claims to be calling from Ontraz.co.uk, sometimes they tell you another company name.
- The company may be called
Vehicle Center, MotorHelp, or something else. They use many different names.
- You pay them for their services,
but they never get back to you with any buyers. The reason for this is that they
have no Buyers, they are only interested in getting your money.
In our experience, anyone contacting
our users offering extra services is a fraud. You will only be wasting both your
money and time.
How to Avoid Scams
99.9% of all transactions on Ontraz.co.uk are genuine and leave
both the buyer and the seller happy with the outcome. But as always when there is
money involved there always are a few chancers who will try various frauds. Unfortunately
Ontraz.co.uk is no exception.
By informing our users about various known scams they can easily be avoided.
Please note that these scams are
not unique to Ontraz.co.uk, but
happen in all forums for classified ads, including eBay®, Buy & Sell™, Trading
Sites etc.
How to Avoid the Scams
It is easy to avoid the scams
by using common sense. By avoiding the following you stay clear of the most common
scams:
There is no 'guaranteed' sale
Never use Western Union or MoneyGram
It is never safe to use Western
Union®, MoneyGram® or other similar money transfer companies to pay for goods, regardless
of what the other person says.
Never buy or sell to a foreign country
Buying or selling to a foreign
country involves a shipping company or foreign money transfer, and is a common approach
used by scammers.
Golden Rule: If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is
Common sense is the best way to
avoid scams. If an offer sounds too good, then it is probably not a genuine offer.
Buying Goods or Services
Always use common sense when buying
or selling or employing a company or tradesman. Below are some guidelines that may
help when buying goods or services through an Auction or Classified Ads site
- When employing a company or tradesman to carry
our work for you – you should ask them to show you a tax clearance cert, and also
any licence that relates to the type of work that they do – ie electricians cert,
gasfitters cert,
- Also ask them to supply you with at least
3 references and then it would be an advantage to follow up these references by
at least making a phone call to the people concerned, ontraz gives you this information
to help you stay safe and have a successful contract completed
- Do not pay in advance for
goods or a service.
- Beware if the goods are cheaper
than normal, or if the seller is pressing you to buy quickly.
- When purchasing tickets etc.
always verify the authenticity of the goods by verifying the serial number with
the original publisher.
- Please beware of brand goods
and multimedia products that are not originals.
- Always get a signed proof
of purchase.
- If the seller has a mobile
phone number, also ask for the home phone number, so you can contact the seller
if there is a problem with the product.
- Please note that onTraz cannot
give out any contact details of deleted ads in line with the Data Protection Acts
Payment
- Use cash or bank drafts when
paying for goods.
- Never pay for goods through
Western Union or other similar money transfer services.
Buying a Vehicle?
- Always check with the Hire
Purchase Register http://www.hpicheck.com/ that the car is not under a Hire
Purchase agreement.
- Get a trusted mechanic to
do a check up on the vehicle before handing over the money
Selling Goods or Services by a Classified Ad
Always use common sense when buying
or selling. Below are some guidelines that may help when selling goods through auction
or classified ads.
- Do not hand over goods until
having received full payment.
- Never trust an unknown person
who contacts you and claims to put you in touch with interested buyers for an advance
fee.
Payment
- Cash is the easiest payment
method, but unsuitable for large amounts.
- Use a bank draft for large
amounts. Always verify the bank draft with the issuing bank before handing over
the goods. Either call the bank, or go in to one of their branches.
- Never accept foreign cheques
or bank drafts as payment.
Selling a Vehicle?
When you sell a vehicle you must
register the change of ownership to http://www.dft.gov.uk/dvla/vehicles.aspx website has all the information
you need.
UK Car sales Scam
How to Recognize This Scam
- You have advertised a car
for sale.
- Someone contacts you (often
by phone or email) and wants you to pay a fee, and they will put you in touch with
a number of 'genuinely interested' buyers.
How Does it Work?
- Someone contacts you from
a company that claims to have lots of buyers interested in exactly your type of
car, and for that price.
- For a fee they claim they
will sell your item.
- You pay them for their services,
but they never get back to you with any buyers. The reason for this is that they
have no buyers, they are only interested in robbing your money.
Note that there are a number of
companies and individuals doing this scam. The most notorious is a UK company called
Vehicle Center (sometimes they call themselves MotorHelp). This type of company
is a total waste of your time, and money.
Vehicle Center, and other similar
companies, are currently under investigation of the Irish and UK consumer enforcers
and the Garda fraud squad.
Please contact the
comsumers office for the UK if you have a complaint about this type of company,
they co-ordinate the cross-European investigations of these companies with the local
police.