Recently, second-hand car buyers from many places across the country reported that they had previously purchased a 90% new second-hand car at a low price and full price at a car sales company in Qinhuangdao, Hebei. In the end, I found out that what I got was a mortgage car that could not get property rights and was carrying a bank loan.

There are even new buyers who encounter cross-provincial trailers without knowing it. The car sales company is suspected of having the same car sold to the outside world while finding someone to borrow it, and then using the "old-for-new" subsidy to delay the transfer of the car. What are the facts?

In October 2025, Mr. Lu (pseudonym) from Tieling, Liaoning Province swiped a used car sales advertisement on a Short Video platform and established contact with a salesperson from Hebei Qinhuangdao Zhongdian Automobile Trading Co., Ltd. After that, he paid the company 66,000 yuan to purchase a used car in full.

Mr. Lu: The sales advertisement was broadcast live by the salesperson, saying that it was a 0-kilometer used car, so I added WeChat to understand. At that time, it was said that the car was not mortgaged, and the contract stated that the transfer would take place between 6 and 13 months. The salesperson said that if he didn't transfer the transfer, he would return the car to me. I signed the contract in person and paid the full amount.

In December last year, Mr. Lu is still driving the car normally after picking up the car in Qinhuangdao. He has been waiting for the automobile trading company to inform him that he can handle the transfer normally. It was not until September this year that he discovered that there was an outstanding bank loan under the car's name.

Mr. Lu: After I saw the company's notification letter on September 20, I checked the vehicle files, verified the financial institutions, and found that the car had a mortgage loan. At that time, this car was borrowed 80,000 yuan, but now it has been repaid in 11 installments, leaving more than 60,000 yuan in loan.

On December 5, 2025, the vehicle transfer agreement signed between Party B Mr. Lu and Party A Qinhuangdao Zhongdian Automobile Trading Co., Ltd. shows that both parties agreed that Party A should apply to the Vehicle Management Office for transfer registration before November 14, 2026., transfer the ownership of the vehicle to Party B.

Vehicle transfer agreement signed between the company involved and used car buyers (Photo provided by interviewees)

The reporter noticed that the terms of the agreement did not state that the transferred vehicles had no bank mortgage loans and other contents. However, the screenshots of his chat with the salesperson provided by Mr. Lu to reporters showed that the salesperson repeatedly guaranteed that the vehicle sold was not a mortgaged car and there was no loan. The original car owner is receiving new energy subsidies and must wait 6 months before the transfer can be transferred.

What happened to Mr. Lu is not an isolated case. Ms. Wang from Cangzhou, Hebei Province also told reporters that she also paid 78,000 yuan in December last year to purchase a 99 new used car from the company.

A few days ago, she saw a notification letter from the sales company from the salesperson. At this time, she learned that she had bought a mortgage car in someone else's name.

On September 20, 2026, Qinhuangdao Zhongdian Automobile Trading Co., Ltd. issued a notification letter to customers

Qinhuangdao Zhongdian Automobile Trading Co., Ltd. issued a notification letter to customers stating that the cost of collecting and holding vehicles in the early stage was seriously inverted from the current market price, operating losses have expanded, and the current capital chain has been broken. Affected by this, it has become difficult for the company to fulfill its unpaid monthly repayments, final payments, settlement payments and related cooperation obligations under the original contract on schedule. Payment of monthly contributions will be suspended from September 21, 2026, and the possibility of subsequently applying to the people's court for bankruptcy liquidation or reorganization in accordance with the law will not be ruled out.

In the recording of the call in which Ms. Wang questioned the salesperson, the salesperson also admitted that it was not explained to Ms. Wang that it was a scheduled ride.

At present, this car is still under the actual control of Ms. Wang, but she is worried that once the loan on this car is cut off, she may face the risk of running out of money and the car. Mr. Chen, a second-hand car buyer as far away as Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, only paid the full amount of 142,000 yuan for the second-hand car on August 1 this year. Without his knowledge, a few days ago, he was suddenly dragged from Harbin by the original owner back to Qinhuangdao.

Mr. Chen: The original car owner towed it away on the evening of September 22. I made the full payment, and the sales company promised to transfer the property one year later. What I told me at that time was that for some special reasons, the original car owners did not want the car to be practical. They bought the car and sold it directly in order to obtain national new energy subsidies.

On September 23, Mr. Chen reported the case to the Harbin Public Security Bureau that the vehicle was stolen, and the police station in the jurisdiction had issued him a receipt of acceptance of the case. The reporter contacted Mr. Liu, the original owner of the vehicle involved in Mr. Chen's case, by phone. The other party said that it was not convenient for interviews. The reporter also called Qinhuangdao Zhongdian Automobile Trading Co., Ltd. on the public phone number, but could not be connected.

An industry insider who has been engaged in used car buying and selling all year round said that under normal circumstances, the purchase and sale of used cars can be directly transferred. Most of the so-called "0-kilometer" used cars are quasi-new cars with shorter driving mileage. Trading of such vehicles in the industry is also relatively common.

Industry insiders: You can just go directly to the next household, so there is a price difference to have this market. It is 10,000 - 20,000 cheaper than going to a 4s store to buy a new car and pay insurance and purchase tax. There will be people who are greedy for cheap, and it is not uncommon in the industry. The main problem was that when he bought a car, he didn't even give him the registration certificate. You see, when we buy a car, we normally need a registration certificate and driving license. Under normal circumstances, if the procedures are incomplete, you cannot buy or trade.

Xie Shu, a professor at the School of Criminal Justice at China University of Political Science and Law, said that in the name of "exchanging old for new," he recruited nominal car owners, fabricated trading materials to obtain bank loans, and sold the same batch of mortgaged vehicles to car buyers and collected full money. If it was found that they had subjective illegal possession purposes, they were suspected of contract fraud and loan fraud. For car buyers, they should report the case to the public security organs as soon as possible, and simultaneously explain the actual possession of the vehicle to the lending bank, keep the contract, payment vouchers and communication records, and cooperate with the public security organs to investigate and recover stolen goods and damage. The sooner criminal intervention in such cases, the more conducive it will be to find out the flow of funds and prevent the loss of evidence.

Xue Yongkui, a legal person who was a former prosecutor, analyzed that in addition to the car sales company suspected of criminal crimes, the borrower (nominal car owner) may face both criminal and civil legal risks. Late repayments will also affect personal credit reporting.

Xue Yongkui: For the trader of the automobile trading company involved in the case, he has been suspected of loan fraud or contract fraud. If the borrower knows beforehand that he is just a "head" and colluded with the trader of the automobile trading company to assist in obtaining bank loans, he may be identified as an accomplice in the crime of loan fraud or loan defrauding, and he will bear corresponding criminal responsibilities.

Legal person Qiao Feng believes that the vehicles involved in the case are all in the names of others, so the "Vehicle Transfer Agreement" signed between the company involved in this case and the new owner is essentially a vehicle sales agreement. If the loan contract or mortgage contract was filled in by the original owner after selling the car, the new owner can apply as a third party to cancel the mortgage or loan contract.

Qiao Feng: If a used car company finds the original car owner to replace the car and then obtains money from the new car buyer to make up for the interest generated on the previous loan. Covering up illegal purposes in a legal form is suspected of a criminal offence.

The reporter learned that many victims have reported to the Economic Development District Branch of the Qinhuangdao City Public Security Bureau. Reporters from the headquarters learned from relevant departments that the public security organs have filed a case and the case is under investigation.

Source: Voice of China, Interface News

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