Buying Advice Is this tractor stolen?

[Wise Old Man]

I am looking to buy a used compact tractor, and I've learned that the stolen farm/homestead equipment is quite the large industry. I saw on Craigslist a decently priced JD; just the size, price range, and condition I'm looking for. I phoned the seller. Not a dealership, he said; He just buys and sells tractors. He was vague about where HE purchased it. Concern is, the tractor is 7 to 11 years old and with just 94 hours! Really? QUESTION: How can I be assured the tractor was not stolen 7 or so years ago, been in a barn somewhere, and is now being sold? And if it IS stolen, how can the thief be brought to justice, and maybe the victim get return of his/her property?

 

[RobertBrown]

I am looking to buy a used compact tractor, and I've learned that the stolen farm/homestead equipment is quite the large industry. I saw on Craigslist a decently priced JD; just the size, price range, and condition I'm looking for. I phoned the seller. Not a dealership, he said; He just buys and sells tractors. He was vague about where HE purchased it. Concern is, the tractor is 7 to 11 years old and with just 94 hours! Really? QUESTION: How can I be assured the tractor was not stolen 7 or so years ago, been in a barn somewhere, and is now being sold? And if it IS stolen, how can the thief be brought to justice, and maybe the victim get return of his/her property?

All you can do is get the S/N and contact the local authority, tell him your concerns and give him the number. If he's not worried about it then I wouldn't either. I would consider that due diligence on your part

 

[texasjohn]

Beware...Craig's List has numerous people who scam and prey on folks looking for a great tractor an an unbelievable price with all the dandy features and low, low hours. I've seen dozens of these ads for tractors. Go see the tractor, see the person immediately. If there is any problem with either, or any excuse .... drop it like a hot potato. There is likely no tractor at all...often images are stolen from legitimate sources and used.

 

[Wise Old Man]

Robert, your reaponse appears to make good sense, and perhaps that is all I can really do. I'm wondering, if the local authorities have access to tracking S/Ns of stolen compact tractors? It seems from my readings that not much has been done (perhaps some more recently) on tracking numbers of this kind of equipment.

 

[MF1652]

Robert, your reaponse appears to make good sense, and perhaps that is all I can really do. I'm wondering, if the local authorities have access to tracking S/Ns of stolen compact tractors? It seems from my readings that not much has been done (perhaps some more recently) on tracking numbers of this kind of equipment.

Every LE agency in this country has access to NCIC. A national database of stolen property such as vehicles, boats, machinery, computers and anything else that has ever had a serial number stamped on it. Get the serial number on the tractor and ask your local LEO to run it for you. If it's stolen, they can find out where it was stolen from and get it back to them. If it's clean, then you may want to purchase it. Good luck.

 

[Wise Old Man]

Yes, TexasJohn, I too have seen some outrageous "deals" on Craiglist! Like prices of 25% of true value... "Just send a payment via this method and the equipment will be delivered to your address for free"! No need for me to drive to Northern Saskachtewan to view it! Ha ha ha! This is a local guy, so that is a plus. Just a bunch of compact tractors in his barn.

 

[Johnnyt321]

They can with the make/model/serial number, if the person it is stolen from gives all of this to the authorities so they can enter it into ncic database.

 

[Wise Old Man]

I think you guys have given me very good advice! Thanks! It does appear to be a reasonably good deal. I will check the VIN, pass it on to local PD, if all checks out okay, I just might buy it

 

[Wise Old Man]

I didn't know of this data "NCIC" data base. I'm glad it exists. What are the letters NCIC an acronym for?

 

[Wise Old Man]

MF1652, I'm also from New Hampshire. And, so is the tractor I had concern about. But, I'll take the good advice and new learning I just received here and use it. Thanks

 

[Marveltone]

NCIC = National Crime Information Center. NCIC is a computerized index of criminal justice information (i.e.- criminal record history information, fugitives, stolen properties, missing persons). It is available to Federal, state, and local law enforcement and other criminal justice agencies and is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It's a service of the FBI.

Joe

 

[bearcreek paul]

National crime information center.It is a database for law enforcement to check on for rap sheets and warrants.It also has a data base on anything stolen,if you run the serial no.

 

[George2615]

Craigslist does have its scams. I just saw a used, low hour, $50K machine. A 2007 Ditch Witch XT1600 track skid steer loader backhoe trying to be sold for $5800. The same ad was posted out of several cities. The ad was recently flagged.
If you are interested in the tractor I'd do like Robert said and get the vin and have the Police check it in the database.
A friend of mine had a New Holland skid steer he bought taken by the police because it turned out to be stolen. Turns out he was the 4th person to buy it after it was stolen. The first 3 must have had suspicions it was hot so got rid of it. The police tracked back through all the buyers and did get back to the original thief. I didn't hear how that turned out.

 

[crazyal]

The best CL ad I saw was for a 2 year old skid steer for $2k. The seller said once the payment went through he would send it FEDEX over night. :laughing:

 

[DarrylH20]

The best CL ad I saw was for a 2 year old skid steer for $2k. The seller said once the payment went through he would send it FEDEX over night. :laughing:

:laughing::laughing::laughing:That is a winner

 

[bluechip]

The sad thing is people must fall for it or they wouldn't keep doing it. Another thing to watch out for, especially with the recent economic adjustments many have faced, is if the tractor is paid for or if there is a UCC1 lein filed on it or the sellers assets... may not be such a concern on a 10 year old tractor but late model ones for sure. Its best to know your seller. I know I have a couple KIOTI tractors floating around out there somewher that are registered with the NCIC. Well I guess they belong to my insurance company now.

 

[2458n]

Watch the local news. There has been a big increase of crime recently with people running Craigslist ads for cheap used motorcycles,motors, tools and other desirable items. Dayton Ohio has people getting shot and robbed nightly when some buyer ends up in the wrong part of town. The tractor might be a great deal or you may walk home without your truck.

 

[vaskeet]

You may check with the local dealer of that brand tractor They may be able to give you info who bought the tractor or if it was financed they may be able to check for a lien Randy

 

[JEH412]

I didn't know of this data "NCIC" data base. I'm glad it exists. What are the letters NCIC an acronym for?

It stands for National Crime Information Center.

John

 

[RobertBrown]

I think you guys have given me very good advice! Thanks! It does appear to be a reasonably good deal. I will check the VIN, pass it on to local PD, if all checks out okay, I just might buy it

Reminds me to go out right now and write down the s/n off of my machine. I'm pretty sure it's on the bill of sale, (I bought it used) but I should make sure and have it recorded.