No doubt, plenty of fraudulent activity is happening in automotive nowadays. Exposure is likely to surpass $10 billion this year, according to estimates from Point Predictive.

For example, fraudsters are generating invalid employment and income documents, or they’re creating synthetic IDs to be granted credit. But fraudsters are now increasingly targeting the vehicles themselves and weaseling their way into the transportation sector to commit their crimes.

To help with this specific part of the puzzle, Cherokee Media Group has organized the Fraud Forum for the opening day of the Used Car Industry Summit, which begins on April 13 in Miami.

Nine executives from the vehicle transport/logistics space have agreed to participate in an afternoon of dialogue meant to pinpoint specific fraud-related problems and create several recommendations to help curb losses. The executives include:

Casey Harmon of RunBuggy
Matt Bradley of Super Dispatch
Dana Randazzo of Auto Hauler Exchange
Alisha Buelt of ACERTUS
John Robertson of SYCN Auto Logistics
Jeremy Louisos of Pre-Owned Auto Logistics
Laney Sibble of Central Dispatch
Dave Sutton of Montway Auto Transport
Sam Goldenberg of AutoSled

And Cherokee Media Group also designed the Fraud Forum to be interactive, so Used Car Industry Summit attendees can join the conversation in a Phil Donahue-style scenario.

(If I’m again showing my age with the Phil Donahue reference and you are uncertain, please use the technology tool of your choice to quickly research his approach to panel-audience interactions.)

Why are we even doing this? Because transportation impacts the used-car industry in just about every way.

Dealers need to transport vehicles they acquired from an auction to enhance their inventory.

Consignors need to move off-lease and repossessed vehicles to complete the remarketing and recoveries processes.

Even consumers who might be relocating sometimes want transportation services to take their car hundreds of miles.

See the ways fraudsters can wiggle their way in the transportation system?

Will all the transportation industry’s fraud problems be solved on April 13 in south Florida? Perhaps not.

But if you have been impacted — or have strong opinions about how the sector could be improved — the Fraud Forum during the Used Car Industry Summit is your opportunity to join the solution-creating conversation.

Complete event details can be found at www.usedcarsummit.biz.

See you in Miami!

Nick Zulovich is senior editor with Cherokee Media Group and can be reached at [email protected].