Dealing with canvassers
Friday 16 July 2010
Occasionally sellers are contacted by canvassers trying to encourage them to advertise elsewhere. There are ways to avoid them.
Canvassers have been known to contact car sellers in order to persuade them to pay to advertise elsewhere.
Typically, canvassers will:
• Call or email car sellers with the promise of dozens of buyers looking for a car matching the one advertised
• Offer a refund on the advertising fee if the car doesn’t sell – these rarely materialise
• Contact sellers repeatedly
• Be difficult to contact to lodge complaints
Auto Trader does not work with these companies and does not pass information to them
How to avoid canvassers
Telesafe is a system introduced by Auto Trader to block known canvassers. Tick the option when you sell a car
Why use Telesafe?
• By ticking the Telesafe box when placing an advert your ‘phone number will be replaced by a Telesafe number for no additional cost
• The system blocks known canvassers from contacting you
• Your advert can be removed by calling your own Telesafe number
• When the car is sold sellers can turn off their number and provide a message for potential buyers
• It protects you from posting your personal number on the internet
How much does Telesafe cost?
Telesafe is free to sellers. A small charge to buyers calling the number to cover costs.
A 0870 Telesafe number will be allocated to landline destination numbers and a 070 Telesafe number will be allocated to mobile destination numbers.
Pricing:
Number range Day Evening Weekend
087 5.67p 3.02p 0.93p
070 37.50p 25.00p 12.50p
Please note, you are not able to send text messages to a Telesafe number.
What if I’m contacted by a canvasser?
Telesafe protects sellers from unwanted calls from known canvassers and while we keep our database of numbers up to date, occasionally a new number may slip through the net.
In this happens, please report the details of the call so we can block them from contacting you in the future on 0845 345 3450 or enquiries@autotrader.co.uk with the following information:
• Your advert reference number or your car’s registration number
• Time and date you were called
• The number you were called from
• Name of the organisation that contacted you
More in-depth selling advice:
Setting the price | Writing a car advert | Taking great photos
Preparing your car for sale | Dealing with buyers
Dealing with canvassers
Closing the deal | Doing the paperwork
How Auto Trader can help:
• Closing the deal
• Sell your car