Scam: Farmington Heavy Equipment Farmington MO: buyer wired $15,800 for C5309 not delivered

The 2014 COTTRELL C5309 as advertised

The site published a listing for a 2014 COTTRELL C5309 described as a 53-foot open car carrier trailer with tandem axles, air-ride suspension and an aluminum floor. The asking price on the listing is $15,800. The seller's own text states in part "This 2014 Cottrell C5309 is a 53-foot open car carrier trailer configured with tandem axles, air-ride suspension, and an aluminum floor" and lists recent maintenance including new air bags, new shocks, new slack adjusters, drums and shoes, new bearings on all four ends, and tires with more than 80% tread remaining. The listing also says the trailer has an automatic tire inflation system and aluminum wheels.

No hours, title information, VIN, photographs shown in the report, or run numbers are included in the evidence supplied to us.

What the buyer reports

According to the buyer's account, they sent $15,800 by bank wire to purchase the advertised 2014 COTTRELL C5309 and never received the trailer. The payment method as reported was a bank wire. The buyer's allegation is recorded here as supplied to this publication; we have not independently confirmed the transfer beyond the buyer's statement.

Checking a COTTRELL C5309 before you pay

Trailers of this class require a set of straightforward, verifiable checks before any funds change hands.

• Ask the seller for the trailer VIN and a clear photograph of the VIN plate on the trailer frame. The VIN should match the number on the bill of sale, any title paperwork, and the VIN visible in any listing photos. Do not accept a typed VIN without a matching plate photo from the actual trailer.
• Request a copy of the current title and a signed bill of sale. Confirm the seller name on those documents matches the person or business you are dealing with, and check whether the title shows any liens or endorsements.
• Get dated, high-resolution photos of the trailer's key components referenced in the listing text: the air bags and shock mounts; slack adjusters, drums and shoes; bearings and axle ends; the aluminum floor and wheel mounting areas; and the automatic tire inflation hardware. Assess whether the described wear and the claimed recent work are consistent with the condition shown in the photos.
• Ask for service records that support the maintenance claims. Verify service stamps or invoices that include dates and the servicing facility. If the seller claims work was done at a named shop, call that shop to confirm the invoice exists.
• If you can, inspect the trailer in person or hire a local, independent inspector to check frame integrity, floor wear, air-ride operation and the braking system. A professional inspection will also confirm whether the claimed parts and repairs are present and recent.
• Run a UCC lien search in the state the seller has listed as their base of operations to check for financing statements. Search national lien databases where available and include the seller business name exactly as published.
• Run a stolen-equipment check using the trailer VIN through national databases and law enforcement resources. Keep a written record of the searches you run and the results.
• If the seller claims dealer status, ask for the dealer license number and verify it with the issuing state agency. The site in this case publishes an address and phone number; treat those as the seller's own claims and verify them independently.

How the payment was taken

The buyer's account states funds were sent by bank wire. A settled bank wire is not reversible through a card network chargeback; banks can attempt a recall but recovery is not guaranteed. Wiring funds to a seller you have not physically verified or for whom you do not have confirmed title documentation increases the risk that the payment cannot be recovered.

What we have and have not verified

We have verified the following from the material supplied to us: the site published a listing for a 2014 COTTRELL C5309 with an asking price of $15,800 and the site shows the published business address and phone number as supplied. The domain registration record supplied shows the domain was created on 2026-09-28.

We have not verified the buyer's wiring beyond the buyer's statement, the existence or location of the advertised trailer, the VIN or title for the unit, whether any service records cited on the listing are genuine, whether the listed business details correspond to a licensed dealer, or whether any lien searches tied to the trailer have been completed. Those checks remain outstanding.

Farmington Heavy Equipment has an open right of reply and the listing will be updated if additional verification becomes available.

If you have already paid

If you have already sent funds by wire, contact your bank's fraud or wire department immediately and request a wire recall. File a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov and with your state attorney general. Preserve every message, invoice, receipt and bank record relating to the transaction, and provide those documents to your bank and any law enforcement contact you make.