Why Manitoba’s chasing curbside car sellers

Illegal car dealers, called ‘curbers’ — who pretend to be selling vehicles privately but in fact make a business of it — have caught the attention of Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI).

MPI is cracking down on these sellers “to help maintain the trust and integrity of the dealer network in the province and protect Manitobans from losing money to criminal operators,” according to a press release.

The public insurer defines curbers as people who sell more than four vehicles over a 12-month period but do not have dealer permits. MPI adds such sellers often have links to “wider fraud networks.”

Legitimate auto dealers are legally bound to keep records of every vehicle they buy and sell. Curbers, meanwhile, aren’t monitored and have been known to engage in practices such as selling vehicles with rolled-back odometers, undisclosed prior collisions or cloned vehicle identification numbers (VINs). Such issues are hidden from buyers, and costs related to any problems are sometimes borne by unsuspecting purchasers.

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To combat the problem, MPI’s vehicle safety department launched a framework for auditing dealers. The framework will increase audit frequency and have the vehicle safety department collaborate with MPI’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU) and law enforcement. Further, MPI vehicle safety officers now have peace officer status under the province’s Drivers and Vehicles Act and can issue Provincial Offence Notices.

“The ability to issue Provincial Offence Notices to unpermitted dealers goes hand-in-hand with sanctions for dealers,” Dana Frazer, MPI’s vice president and COO, says.

“Suspended dealers are monitored, and if found to be still operating as a dealer, a notice is issued. With this increased oversight over curbers and suspended dealers, we now have increased awareness of fraud networks. Our vehicle safety team is looking at all the connections and involving the SIU and law enforcement to protect Manitobans from vehicle fraud.”

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MPI’s vehicle safety department contacted known curbers in 2024 “to educate them as to what was required if selling more than four vehicles in a year,” says the press release. Two curb sellers obtained permits in response to the letters, another two ceased their illegal sales, and two more were issued Provincial Offence Notices.

One of those notices went to a curber selling high-end vehicles who was later investigated by the Winnipeg Police Service and other law enforcement in an operation called Buyer Bee Aware.

That seller was arrested on 68 charges related to fraud. According to police reports, some of the vehicles sold had originally been stolen in Ontario and had been given new VIN numbers. The sales schemes outlined are similar to those uncovered in Ontario by a series of police investigations, including Project Myra, Project Spectre, and Project Paranoid.

In February of this year, MPI’s vehicle safety team sent an additional 30 letters to suspected curbers, and 30 more have been identified to receive letters this month, according to MPI’s press release. Four Provincial Offence Notices have been issued to date, each carrying a fine of more than $2,500.

MPI also lists sanctioned sellers on its website and suggests people shopping for used vehicles review those postings.

Phil Porado

Phil, an award-winning journalist with over 30 years of experience in financial topics, has been managing editor of Canadian Underwriter for more than three years.