Was this a scam or not?

[MyFlabberIsAghast]

Had a call from a mobile number earlier from some Italian guy claiming that he'd bought my old car but was having trouble getting it taxed because the DVLA was claiming it had been scrapped. He was asking me to phone the DVLA to tell them that I hadn't scrapped the car.

My mum basically grabbed the phone off me, told him I couldn't help him and hung up on him, saying it sounded suspicious. But if it was a scam what were they hoping to achieve? Should I have called the DVLA? To be honest I dogs know if the guy I sold it to was scrapping it or not-I just wanted to get rid of it because it had failed its MOT spectacularly.

How did he get your number and why would what you say make a blind but of difference to the dvla if you didn’t sell it to him? They certainly didn’t give him your details.
Your mum has her wits about her.

I've got no idea how he got my mobile number. But I don't understand what he would achieve. He didn't ask for any of my details.

It does sound dodgy, but I don't think it's a scam.

I had a call from someone who was considering buying the used car I'd recently part-exchanged. The garage had sent it for auction, along with all the paperwork (invoices, MOT certificates etc.) and this potential buyer had obtained my phone number from that paperwork. I was happy to answer his questions.

Maybe he was going to give you a number to call DVLA that was actually a dodgy premium line, which would have cost £££.

He hadn't got round to asking your details yet. Look up the dvla number on a different phone (not yours) and phone them to see what they say.

What did you do with the V5 document when you sold it to the guy? There's a section to fill in if selling, and one if scrapping. Which did you keep and send to DVLA?

I can't remember, I sold it in April/May time. It just seems odd as I can't see what he could possibly gain from this.

OP, what did you say when you sent your part of the form back to the DVLA? Did you sell it to someone else or a breaker/scrap dealer?

Was there any documentation with the car? Service records or anything? Did the guy you sold it to have your number?

I'd guess has been registered as scrapped, and guy has sold it on to Italian guy. He can't get it registered to him as registered scrapped, so trying to get it sorted. Not sure how got number, but if from other guy or maybe any paperwork, then could make sense. No scam in you anyway.

I’ve had this, guy bought my car at auction, it had actually been written off my my insurance company and sold at auction sight unseen. The guy who bought it got my number of paperwork and called to see what the history of the car was. He was gutted when I told him it had been stolen, joyrides to within and inch of its life and the quote for fixing in from the garage was more than he’d paid for it
Wasn’t a scam in my instance.