For dealers, inspectors, investigators, and the regulars on r/VINvestigators who already know the basics. This path is about patterns, evidence and obligations: what’s active now, what the prosecutions reveal about how schemes run, what the numbers say, and what the law requires of you.
1. What fraud patterns are active right now, and where?
How to Spot a Curbstoner Before You Hand Over Cash — unlicensed dealers posing as private sellers, the pattern that strips buyers of lemon-law protection. More patterns are added as our case files grow.
2. What do recent prosecutions and busts show about how these schemes run?
Coming soon. Case studies built from court records and enforcement actions: who did what, how it was structured, and how it was caught.
3. What does the data say — rollback rates, theft, title brand volumes, by state?
Coming soon. NHTSA, NICB and NMVTIS figures compiled and compared by state, updated as new data is released.
4. What are the disclosure and record-keeping obligations in a given state?
Coming soon. The state guides will cover disclosure rules, title brand recognition, and dealer obligations for all fifty states as they are published.
5. How does VIN cloning work end to end, and how is it caught?
Coming soon. From a stolen car and a donor VIN to a clean-looking registration, and the checks that break the chain.
6. Where do I report suspected fraud and what evidence is needed?
Coming soon. The right agency for each type of fraud, what to document before you report, and what happens after you do.
Seen something we should investigate? Post it on r/VINvestigators or send us a tip.