Consumer Protection

• Former Director fined $2,500 for unauthorised transfer of trust account funds
• Deposit from real estate sale contract transferred to agency operating account
• Funds then sent to two personal bank accounts

A former Director of an East Perth real estate agency has been ordered to pay a total of almost $4,000 by the Perth Magistrates Court for unlawfully transferring funds from the agency’s trust account that were later deposited into his personal accounts.

• $5,682 fine and costs for trading in motor vehicles without a licence
• 19 vehicles bought and 18 sold during an almost two year period
• Public urged to dob in unlicensed backyard dealers

The Perth Magistrates Court has imposed a $5,000 fine on a backyard motor vehicle dealer who operated without a licence for almost two years.

WA ScamNet has released a 2022 scam report, with 1,203 people reporting combined losses of $15,988,513 - a seven per cent increase on 2021’s recorded losses and recorded amount of victims.

The report reveals online shopping and classified scams claimed the most victims.

274 online shoppers lost a total of $876,774, with 270 buyers and sellers on classified sites losing a total of $564,680 - likely due to COVID-19 reaching its peak in WA and the need to isolate at home.

• 67 victims reported losing almost $3 million to romance scams in WA in 2022
• Don’t transfer money or give your bank account details to someone you haven’t met in person
• Assume people you speak with online are scammers 

This Valentine’s Day (14 February), don’t open your heart up to scammers targeting vulnerable victims looking for love online.

Romance and dating scams are on the rise, with scammers using a broader range of communication methods to lure victims in, including social media, dating sites and even over the phone.

• Guests claim the hotel incorrectly retains their security bonds
• 17 consumer complaints against the hotel and its proprietor remain unresolved
• Consumers advised to consider this alert before making a booking

Consumer Protection is raising a consumer alert about a Perth hotel proprietor who allegedly incorrectly retains security bond payments from guests, either wholly or partially.

• Real estate agent and his company fined a total of $6,500
• Multiple unauthorised withdrawals from trust account over four months
• The money of the agency’s clients put at risk by violations of the law

A Magistrate has told a former real estate agent that his clients’ money was put at risk by multiple unauthorised withdrawals from his agency’s trust account.

• Unlicensed motor vehicle dealer to pay $5,000 fine and $638 in costs
• 36 vehicles were sold between January and November 2021
• Consumers urged to report unlicensed motor vehicle dealers  

A Beechboro man has been fined $5,000 by the Perth Magistrates Court for buying and selling motor vehicles without a valid motor vehicle dealer licence.

Van Vinh Tran was also ordered to pay costs of $638 when convicted on 6 January 2023 of breaching the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA).

• Scammers have set up fake Instagram account leedal_foundation_limited
• The real Leedal Foundation Limited is raising funds for flood victims in Fitzoy Crossing on their Facebook fundraiser page
• Consumers urged to only donate to licensed charities or official fundraisers and not to respond to private messages  

Consumer Protection is warning consumers about scammers who are posing as a legitimate registered charity in Fitzroy Crossing, and using a fake Instagram account - leedal_foundation_limited - asking donors to buy Amazon ecards.

Cute photos of puppies and kittens have been used by scammers for years to dupe prospective pet buyers out of their hard-earned money and it’s only getting worse.

In Western Australia last year, our WA ScamNet team received 114 reports of pet scams, with 75 victims losing more than $216,000 – a three-fold increase on both the losses and victim numbers reported five years earlier in 2017.

• Record scam losses of $16 million in 2022 impact record number of victims
• Almost half of all WA scam victims last year fell for online shopping or trading scams
• People chasing high investment returns or looking for love lost the most money
• Western Australians urged to protect themselves from increasingly sophisticated scams

Scam losses and the number of reports and victims in Western Australia broke records in 2022, with 1,203 people losing a combined $15,988,513 - a seven per cent increase on 2021's record losses.