Auto experts warn odometer tampering is on the rise

Automobile consumer experts are warning potential used car buyers to beware – odometer tamping is on the rise and it’s becoming a big problem in the industry.
“One of the main reasons for the rise in odometer fraud is how easily digital odometers can be manipulated, even easier than the old analog odometers,” says Chris Basso with Carfax.
Carfax reports that 1.6 million cars on the road now show signs of odometer fraud – including 85,000 in New York and nearly 32,000 in New Jersey.
Basso showed News 12 how easily it can be done. It took a technician just over 30 seconds to roll back the odometer from 230,000 miles to 130,000 miles.
“It really is scary how quickly it can be done and the people who are doing this are doing dozens to hundreds of vehicles at a time,” says Basso.
Experts say that there are some ways for consumers to detect possible odometer tampering. Services like Carfax, Autocheck or Vincheck will compare reported mileage at each registration and service date and report potential rollbacks – but that information is only as good as the information that is reported to those services.
A mechanic should also check out a used car to look for any signs of tampering or other mechanical issues with the vehicle.