US salvage Auto Company cautions vehicle buyers

Prospective vehicle buyers in Ghana have been cautioned against taking delivery of vehicles imported from scrap yards in Europe and other economies.

An authorized representative of leading US salvage auto auction company, Insurance Auto Auctions (IAA), says repairing and accessing spare parts for such vehicles may be challenging for buyers.


“Some people get the cars from the junkyard, scrap yards; they are not safe getting into the country to be reused because in the countries of origin, they have already been written off to be trashed. We should not get those cars on our roads”, warned Kofi Anokye Boateng, Chief Executive Officer of Anoboat Company Limited.


He added that other vehicles imported without genuine spare parts also put motorists at risk.


“People buy the cars to Ghana and because they don’t get the parts, and since they are expensive also, they try to do some alterations and get them out for sale; so if they do that, then they are putting the drivers at risk”, Mr. Boateng said.


IAA specializes in selling lightly damaged and repairable vehicles to buyers all over the world through competitive bidding. Through the internet, prospective buyers in Ghana participate in the live auction process and bid in real time for the thousands of vehicles auctioned across the US and Canada.

Support services are offered for the local market under the partnership with the local representative.


The firm is consolidating inroads made on the Ghanaian automobile industry, three years after venturing the local market, through the Anoboat partnership.


“The people in Ghana are looking for affordable transportation and the vehicles that come from Insurance Auto Auctions are providing an affordable solution for people who are looking for second-hand cars”, said Dan Oscarson, IAA Vice President, Global Buyer Marketing.


According to him, there has been “a steady and dramatic increase in the number of [vehicle] units sold to buyers based in Ghana” whilst the number of Ghanaian visitors to the company’s website has also shot up. Officials have been holding presentations for Ghanaian automobile companies and individuals interested in making money from importing cars from the US.