Warning to drivers after man’s £9k BMW was ‘stolen to order’ off his drive a week after it was put on Facebook Marketplace… and the red flags to look out for

• Nyal Ryatt’s BMW 3 Series stolen from his driveway ‘to order’ after Facebook ad 

Drivers have been warned after a man’s £9,000 BMW was ‘stolen to order’ off his driveway just one week after it was put up for sale on Facebook Marketplace. 

Nyle Ryatt, 29, put his BMW 3 Series 335i – a rare version of the car with an N55 engine – on the online marketplace and a ‘very interested’ buyer contacted him about it.

The potential buyer planned to visit to inspect the car at Mr Ryatt’s home in Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield on Saturday, March 9, but he did not show up. The man then phoned and pleaded with him to see the car the next day, so he reluctantly agreed to let him come over at 1pm. 

Mr Ryatt told MailOnline: ‘Sunday came and I was laying in bed. I messaged if he was still coming and he said ‘Yes I’ll see you in a couple of hours’.’ 

But that afternoon he received his phone call from his brother who had popped over for Mother’s Day, who told him that his car was missing from the driveway.

The delivery driver said: ‘My younger brother rang me and said the car was gone. There was glass on the floor and I just froze. 

‘My mum heard me shout. I phoned the police and they asked me all the details. I told them I had this chap who I gave my address to.’

The driver had failed to turn up on Sunday, even though he was unaware the car had been stolen, which has led Mr Ryatt to suspect the car had been ‘stolen to order’ by the potential buyer. Police are investigating.

The engine of his stolen BMW can sell for around £6,000 alone on the black market.

Mr Ryatt initially thought the buyer was ‘legit’ as because of the questions he was asking. ‘He was asking how long I’ve had it, the mileage, if I’ve had full service history, if I’ve had problems. Nothing about security.’ 

‘We arranged for him to come and see the car on Saturday, I think it was 11pm. I asked if he was still coming and he said yes.

‘I hoovered the car and took all my stuff out. 12 o’clock came and it was morning wasted. I messaged him and said the car would be going back up for sale.

‘I gave him my number and address. I had a phone call two hours after he was supposed to come, he said “I’m really sorry, I was supposed to come to work”.

‘He said he was interested and wanted the car. I reluctantly said come and he said 1pm Sunday.’ Sunday came and I was laying in bed. I messaged if he was still coming and he said ‘Yes I’ll see you in a couple of hours’. 

When asked about the possibility that his car was ‘stolen to order’, Mr Ryatt said: ‘It could be that I’ve put this advert on, someone has seen it and gone to a known car thief and said I want that. He’s not a first-time crook, he’s done this before.

‘I’ve not had it long, I bought it last June. I saw it on Autotrader and I picked it up last June.

‘They’ve obviously scanned the key to turn the alarm off. Then when they were struggling with the crook lock that’s when they smashed the window.

‘I was outside hoovering the car the day before but I wasn’t paying much attention to the car. It seemed very calculated.

‘My interpretation of stolen to order is they’ve seen what the cars are about. I had it on sale for a week. I put a lock on the wheel. Someone wanted that car, I had a crook lock on it. The car was alarmed as well.’ 

Mr Ryatt issued a warning to other sellers on Facebook marketplace, saying that the three red flags you should look out for are:

1. Be careful who you share your details and the car’s location with.
2. Poor communication from the potential buyer and changes of the viewing time.

Mr Ryatt said: ‘I want to warn people to be careful who you are sharing your details with. They can clone your plates on there (Facebook). It was a sought after car.

‘On the BMW forum where I posted it, someone privately messaged me of another E series BMW that had been stolen. E90’s get stolen and end up in Dudley.

‘We tried some of the supermarkets in case it had been stolen. My youngest brother came back at 12.30am and saw the car on the driveway.

‘It could be on a ship somewhere. Trying to find a manual one, it’s hard. They’re really hard to find. I waited a while to get one.

‘I had it up for £9,000 with 85,000 miles on it and full service history. I’ve lost my seven year no claim now, now I’ve got four left, but now it’s going to go up.

‘I’ve got a clean licence and never made a claim. It’s like I’m penalised for having my car stolen.

‘In my area, there have been a lot of car thefts. Especially with new cars, they steal the front ends off of cars. You can walk down the street and see the front of cars missing.

‘I would say to people to get maximum security but if they want it, they’ll have it. They could’ve broken into the house.

‘And it was on mother’s day. This guy hadn’t messaged me or anything.

‘People say it’s insured but it’s the headache and i’ve lost out on money. I’ve got to start again. I’m not doing anything flash again, it’s cheaper, I’m only doing bangers.

‘You just become a target.

‘On the day it happened, I kept going up the road while having a smoke. I’ve calmed down now.’

A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said: ‘We’re investigating after a BMW 3 series was stolen from Bickley Avenue on March 9 to 10. Enquiries are ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to get in touch quoting crime reference 20/307824/24.’