A man has revealed that he unknowingly bought a “cloned” car on Facebook Marketplace and has been left paying £236-per-month for nothing.
Sevak Maljian had dreamed of owning a Kia EV6 for years.
And so, when he was in a position to snap up the vehicle, he scoured for the best deal.
He then came across what he believed to be a “genuine” advert on Facebook Marketplace, listing the 2022 car for £17,000.
As it was out of Sevak’s budget, he asked if there was any discount that could be made, as it would be used for work purposes.
The seller agreed to drop the price to £13,500 if he paid in cash.
All went smoothly until the physiotherapist noticed that a button was faulty on the key fob, which he took to his local Kia dealership to investigate.
And it was found that his car had been “cloned” and all the paperwork given actually belonged to another vehicle.
“I feel unprotected that such a thing has happened,” the 36-year-old, from Cardiff, told Need To Know.
“It’s not my fault, yet I’m dealing with the repercussions.
“I didn’t commit any crime.
“I simply bought a secondhand car without knowing it was stolen, and had no idea what havoc it would bring to my life.”
Sevak had checked the likes of Autotrader and other local dealerships before landing on this particular vehicle.
In October 2025, he travelled to London via train to pick up the car, meeting the seller outside Putney train station.
He purchased car insurance and subsequently drove to the address noted on the V5C logbook, which was complete with watermarks and a matching ID.
Sevak matched the VIN number mentioned in the logbook to that on the front windshield and also paid £8 to check how many previous owners there had been, the mileage and the car’s history.
He claims all looked “legit”.
When he took the car to Kia, though, they instantly realised the key had been forged and that the VIN number on the chassis didn’t match the one on the windscreen or door.
Sevak said: “They were shocked as to how I was able to access the car.
“It was such a gut-churning moment.
“All that excitement had gone.
“I did everything I could and it wasn’t enough.”
After reporting it to the police, the vehicle was seized and found that it had been stolen in Kent.
He also filed a case with Report Fraud, though on 9 December 2025, the decision was made not to further allocate this for further investigation due to ‘insufficient viable lines of enquiry’.
Sevak has been left paying £236 monthly for the loan he took out, with nothing to show for it.
He added: “I’m having to sell my current car to help pay off some of the loan.
“Even then, I’ll still be in debt.
“I didn’t need to have this hanging over my head.
“It’s such a drastic change to my life.
“I’m having to recalculate my finances and put my house renovation on hold, which I had only finally started after years of waiting.
“I don’t know what to do anymore.”
A DVLA spokesperson said: “We understand how distressing vehicle crime can be.
“To help reduce the risk of fraud, we encourage buyers to follow the guidance on GOV.UK such as checking VIN details and confirming the seller’s identity.
“Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of fraud should contact the police straight away.”
A spokesperson for Kia said: “We are saddened to hear about this customer’s experience, and we extend our sympathy to them.
“They have been in direct contact with our customer contact centre and we have advised them to continue liaising with the police, their insurance provider and the DVLA, as they are best positioned to support the customer in this situation.”
A Report Fraud spokesperson said: “Report Fraud can confirm that it received NFRC251007683380 on 13 October 2025.
“It was assessed by the Report Fraud Analysis Service at the City of London Police but has not been passed to a police force for investigation at this time.
“Over 850,000 reports are made every year.
“These reports are assessed against several criteria, unfortunately not every case will be sent to law enforcement for investigative opportunities.
“There are different ways a report can be dealt with when it isn’t passed to a police force.
“These include the Report Fraud Victim Services supporting victims of cyber crime and fraud with specialist advice and helping victims to recover losses.
“Every report helps the police develop an accurate intelligence picture and take disruptive activity like working to take down websites, telephone numbers and email addresses linked to fraud, preventing others from becoming victims.”
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