00:01Leanne Roney remembers the moment she learned the vehicle she'd just bought was stolen.
00:08Look, honestly, my heart dropped to my feet.
00:10Ms Roney found the Fiat Ducato van on Facebook Marketplace in April.
00:15She contacted the seller, Michael Bowerman, and took it for a test run.
00:20He had the registration papers in his name, everything looked legit.
00:26So I went ahead with the sale.
00:30But a few days later, repossession agents turned up and told her the van still belonged to a company that
00:36leased it to Bowerman on a rent to buy scheme.
00:40In June, Bowerman pleaded guilty in the Launceston Magistrates Court to dishonestly acquiring a financial advantage.
00:47He was given a six-week suspended prison sentence, a 12-month community correction order, and was ordered to pay
00:55$97 in costs and $24 in levies.
00:58He was not ordered to repay Ms Roney.
01:01Consumer advocates say digital platforms like Facebook Marketplace should do more to prevent users getting ripped off.
01:10They've got the resources, they've got the technology to be able to do this.
01:15It's just there isn't the will.
01:17New national scam laws will come into force next year, but at least initially Facebook Marketplace will be excluded.
01:25Which is a huge, huge gap for what we see for ordinary people every day on our front lines.
01:32Ms Roney says she asked police multiple times why they didn't apply for a restitution order.
01:38He gets a $90 fine and I lose $10,000.
01:43The day the ABC contacted police, they applied for one.
01:47But Ms Roney fears Bowerman may no longer have the money to pay her back.
01:51fuse this week.
01:52That means the
01:52That means the
01:53The
01:5324.
01:53The
01:5324.
01:53The
01:5324.
01:53You
Comments