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CROOKS are using newspapers and cyberspace to rob potential caravanners of tens of thousands of dollars, say police.

West Australian Police have issued a warning about scammers listing caravans at bargain-basement prices but who never deliver the goods.

One victim was said to have lost $12,000 after answering an advertisement for a Jayco caravan which would normally sell for $40,000.

Meanwhile, the police's Technology Crime Investigation Unit has revealed that the rogues are now using a variant to the advance fee fraud which has plagued newspaper and online advertising.

A spokesman explained: "Typically this type of scam preys on someone who wishes to buy or sell an item over the internet or through their local newspaper.

"The buyer locates the item they wish to buy at a very, very low price and purchases the item. It never arrives and the buyer loses their money. This scam is commonly used for caravans, trailers and motor vehicles.

"A common addition to this scam involves the scammer charging further fees on top of the purchase price for delivery of the item, and still the buyer fails to receive the item."

The spokesman said the advertiser was generally selling a high value item, such as a motor vehicle, and was contacted by the scammer who offers to pay the listed price without conducting an examination of the item.

"The seller will agree to this arrangement, only to be advised that due to their personal circumstances (working offshore or overseas) they can only collect the item via a delivery agent.

"They convince the seller to send money to this agent in order to organise collection of the item. The scammer states he will include this money in the purchase price to the seller and offers a vague reason as to why he cannot pay his agent directly.

"Once one payment is made the scammer continues to ask for more money for insurance and other costs. This continues until the seller realises they are the victim of a scam."

In all cases the victims are asked to transfer cash overseas using a money transfer service.

"If you choose to do this, be aware there is no prospect of having this money returned to you. Losses for these types of scams can range anywhere between $500 and $15,000," the spokesman said.

A recent incident involving this type of scam saw a victim answer an advert very similar to the one shown on this page depicting a Jayco caravan worth approximately $40,000 selling for a heavily reduced price.

"The victim was instructed that to complete the purchase of the caravan he was to transfer $12,000 to a foreign bank account via a money transfer agent and await further instructions.

"The victim transferred the money. However, the further instructions that followed required him to transfer more money at which point he became suspicious and reported the matter to police," the spokesman added.