RideSafely Reviews 68

I purchased a vehicle was viewed as 675.00 at 100,000 miles also stated the car ran/started with keys, once purchasing the total out of pocket was almost 2,000- once getting the vehicle had my mechanic come pick it up and the head gasket was blown, there was water in the engine, moral of the story don’t buy from any auction and also once you purchase the vehicle you have 2 days for pick up after paying for them to transport, they take 1-5 days to pick up the vehicle so after the 2 days grace period you are charge 50.00 to 100.00 days a day until the company that you paid through this company pick the vehicle up. Would not recommend this service to anyone

Date of experience: April 08, 2025

If I could give RideSafely zero stars, I absolutely would.

Back in June 2024, I purchased a 2011 Infiniti M56 through RideSafely. The listing said “runs and drives” with “minor dents and scratches,” and showed only around 50k miles. I even pulled a Carfax before buying, everything looked solid. The auction and delivery process went smoothly, and I received the car just four days after payment.

But from the moment the tow truck dropped it off, the red flags started. The ECM (engine control module) was literally hanging out of the glovebox — something not shown in the listing photos (I have proof). I didn’t think much of it at the time, but I really should’ve since that ended up being a major part of this nightmare.

After replacing the battery, the car started but it had all kinds of codes: misfires, lean condition, timing issues. I replaced spark plugs, coils, knock sensors, O2 sensors, all fluids, and still kept getting misfire codes. I brought in a reputable mechanic, and when he checked behind the glovebox, he found a second ECM still installed. Turns out, the ECM that was dangling out was for a Nissan Armada, not even my car.

Once we reprogrammed the correct ECM, the real codes started showing: P1078, P1071, and P0300. We fixed the timing issue and got the car running smoothly. Everything seemed on track to pass New York State salvage inspection so I could get it legally registered.

Fast forward to April 3, 2025 — I bring the car to the NY DMV salvage inspection, and everything looks good… until they open the hood. I’m told the engine, the same one I just spent months and over $2,000 working on, is flagged as stolen in the national database. The car was impounded on the spot.

The DMV told me the only way to recover it is to either remove the motor or replace it entirely, both options completely out of budget for me as a full-time college student. And again none of this was disclosed in the listing, the Carfax, or anywhere in the process.

Let me be clear:
This car was never going to pass inspection. The fact that it was sold with a stolen motor is not just a mechanical issue — it’s a legal one. Yet RideSafely has done nothing.

I’ve emailed support multiple times. No one replies. Their VP of Operations, Roman, has been completely unresponsive. No calls, no responses, no help.

RideSafely sold me a car that can’t be legally registered, left me with thousands in losses, and refuses to take accountability. This isn’t just bad customer service, it’s negligence.

Do not buy from RideSafely. You’re better off going through a reputable local auction or dealer. At least there, you know what you’re getting into.

Date of experience: April 02, 2025

Smooth and easy transactions with Great Customer Service, Thanks for the experience.

Date of experience: February 27, 2025

I would give zero stars if I could. I specialize in finding low-mileage, well-maintained vehicles that are just a few years old. After losing an auction, I was contacted by Ridesafely, who asked if I was still interested. I was misled into thinking I could make a good purchase, but now I'm facing a $10,000 loss on a vehicle I bought from them.
Ridesafely operates backup bid auctions with misrepresented listings. After the auction ends, the listing on Coparts website is completely removed. I also check the VIN but now I'll be sure to take screenshots. The only bids they approve are for cars that need engines or are obviously visually salvage. Winning bids on vehicles with resale value are not approved, as the cars are often already listed elsewhere or sold to dealerships. I won a bid for a 2021 F-Pace SVR. I could have made decent money on it. After the auction ended, it was listed on Honda of Lake City's website as coming soon. I then got the "declined" email from RideSafely. What's the point of winning an auction. They are basically just a broker and if they don't get approval for your win, you are just SOL. If, by rare chance, your bid is approved, be prepared for surprises like a major engine replacement. Doing extensive research won't help you because it will still look like a good deal.
In my experience, Ridesafely has not approved any winning bids on cars that could have been profitable. This is a strategic scam. Avoid Ridesafely and Copart. Stick to local auctions or those requiring a dealer license for legitimate opportunities.
I still don’t have the title for my vehicle, and I’m unsure if I ever will. I'm left with a useless brick on my driveway because I can’t title or register it, after spending another 17K on top of the purchase price to have a working engine. Cost now exceeds market value. Thanks for nothing, Ridesafely. I regret ever answering the phone and dealing with you.

Date of experience: December 11, 2024

I had a very disappointing experience with Ride Safely Auction. After purchasing a car, I was told that it would be transported with insurance coverage. However, upon receiving the car, it had noticeable damage. Despite the assurance that the car was covered, when I reached out to their claims department, they were unhelpful and dismissive. They continuously told me the car was sold "as is," even though I paid $299 in service fees and $150 in documentation fees. They also charged far higher transportation costs than other companies, yet the damage occurred on their watch.

When I tried to file a claim, I was met with resistance. Their claim department seemed intent on wearing me down until I either accepted a minimal payout (which didn’t even cover 25% of the damage) or gave up entirely. The whole process was frustrating and felt like a bait-and-switch. I was promised insurance coverage and protection during transportation, but the reality was far from it.

This company is not transparent and lacks accountability. They’ll gladly take your fees, but when it comes time to stand by their services, they shift the blame and make it nearly impossible to get any reasonable compensation. I would not recommend Ride Safely Auction to anyone looking for a reliable and trustworthy car-buying experience.

Date of experience: November 18, 2024

"I was unfairly charged a storage fee despite paying in full (including shipping) on the same day. Any delays were beyond my control and should have been the company’s responsibility. Extremely disappointed with this lack of accountability and poor customer service. This needs to be resolved immediately."

Date of experience: November 13, 2024

I purchased a “Run and Drive” vehicle on 10/21/24, using RideSafely.com. The car was delivered on 10/23/24. When the car arrived it sounded like it had an engine knock, and some type of grinding coming from under the hood. The car also had a coolant light on although there was coolant in the reservoir. I let the car idle for a few moments and noticed smoke coming from the tailpipes and under the hood. I quickly turned the car off. The car smelled like fire and I suspect it could have easily been a fire hazard. I can't link the video here but I did send it to Roman, the "VP" of RideSafely.com.

The coolant hose held together with black electrical tape, not something you could see from pictures or notice unless specifically looking for it. I scanned the car for codes and the car had the following 6 DTC codes;
P0299: Turbocharger/Supercharger Underboost
P0300: Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected
P0301: Cylinder 1 Misfire
P0302: Cylinder 2 Misfire
P0447: Evaporative Emission system vent Control Circuit open
P0304: Cylinder 4 Misfire Detected

Combined with the metal sound coming from the motor, I was not confident that this car could “Run & Drive”. Within a few hours of the car being delivered, I towed the car to a local mechanic and had the car looked at. They confirmed the following issues:

“Note: Vehicle presented with significant upper valve train noise. Broken coolant hose duct taped. Engine codes for misfires cylinder 1 2 and 4. Boost pressure code for turbocharger 1. Coolant level message on cluster. Various codes in other systems that do not affect drivability such as tailgate function and EVAP system codes. Engine sounds like it may have been run without oil. Recommend oil analysis for bearing material and proper type. Vehicle is not drivable. continued driving will damage the catalytic converter. We can quote you for repairs on any of these items but significant engine assessment is needed to determine if it is worth fixing or would need an engine replacement. Significant diet is needed to determine the failure mode on turbocharger 1.”

This vehicle will require hours of labor and thousands of dollars in diagnosis charges alone including engine disassembly and cylinder compression tests, and/or complete engine replacement. No where in the auction did it show engine issues. No mechanical issues were listed anywhere on Copart or RideSafely.com. Not these or any mechanical damages were disclosed in the listing. The car was listed as “Run & Drive”, Primary Damage: Minor Dent/Scratches. Nothing listed as mechanical damage. This car is mechanically totaled and was clearly staged. I ran a VinDoctor report and the previous 6 times this car ran through the auction, non listed mechanical damage. All listed “Minor Dent/Scratches. Again, giving me false confidence this car would not need extensive engine and transmission work. I purchased a car with dents and scratches and RideSafely sent me a car with extensive mechanical damage.

Taken directly from the RideSafely website: “The ‘MC – Mechanical’ code indicates the presence of mechanical issues in a vehicle. This can include a range of problems, from engine troubles to malfunctioning transmissions or other vital mechanical components. Mechanical damage or defects are defined as any harm to a vehicle’s parts that makes it unusable, except for issues related to routine maintenance items.”

I attempted to work directly with the GM of the Copart yard but they could not assist me without RideSafely’s involvement, and RideSafely has no interest in helping me reverse this transaction.

The “VP” Roman, doesn’t return calls, is never “available” and takes 2 business weeks to reply to an email. If you don’t believe me, call and ask to speak with him. This whole company is a joke and borderline SCAM.

RideSafely will likely reply to this (like they usually do) and say I was wrong and I didn’t do my research (like they usually do). I know where I went wrong, it was trusting RideSafely. There is ZERO customer support after purchase. I wish I would have listened to the reviews, but here we are.

If you are considering purchasing a car via RideSafely.com or AutoMoto Deals LLC, you still have time to run as fast as possible in another direction.

PS: RideSafely, you have my telephone number if you want to make this right.
But if you want to just offer a generic apology for the internet, do what you usually do and reply below. I’ll keep posting this review on every site possible.

UPDATE AFTER RideSafely's REPLY:
"We are keen to resolve this situation to your satisfaction and will reach out directly to discuss potential resolutions"
You have already denied me any compensation or resolution over the phone 2 weeks ago. Not sure why you put this on your online response. #WeDontBelieveYou ;)

Date of experience: November 05, 2024

I called 4:30 Oct 22, 2024 I asked the women with a broken accent i am trying to bid on a boat she asked me the inventory # then rehearsed everything i read. "strange" Shen then said we need a $1000. deposit. I asked, i need to see pictures of the motors on the boat. She said -- cutting me short. What ever pictures are posted are all we have. I said again -- How could i see the motors? She then got rude and loud and nasty saying -- MR I CAN'T HELP YOU WHAT EVER PICTURES ARE ON THE SITE IS ALL WE HAVE. I then got annoyed and said a few choice words to her. What kind of place is this. Trying to buy inventory 2127738501 and she don't want to give me pictures of the motors! Hell with this nasty demanding women. I hope the owner fires her because they lost a sale.

Date of experience: October 22, 2024

I bought the car with a perfect front bumper.I paid Ridesafely to transport the car to Germany.The front bumper was missing in the photos from the port.After my complaint, it was delivered and loaded into the car, but totally destroyed, as you can see in the pictures delivered from the port.Everything was confirmed when the car was opened. The bumper was destroyed on purpose.I complained about this matter to Ridesafely -Transportation, but no one answers my emails...

Date of experience: September 14, 2024

Date of experience: September 12, 2024

Well, first of all let me be real honest as this company is anything but I bought a car through their site thinking it was third-party and they just host for auctions however, come to find out they own this car through a Copart auction site making you think you’re buying it from Copart, but you’re not Paid all the DOC fees transportation fees car gets here the transport driver says we might have to jerk it off with a tree because it won’t start or drive or do anything however Copart description says runs and drives. I could tell you for a fact this card did not run and drive it anytime at Copart. If it did, it would now I put a brand new battery in it had it coded by BMW diagnostics the mechanic said that there were so many codes coming up. He didn’t know what to do with it. The car would not crank start turnover. Nothing after it runs and drives pretty misleading as Copart at work ride safely whoever you wanna call it says they’re not responsible for this. It ran when it came. I almost 100% guarantee you if you look at all the reviews they’ve got on all these different sites. It never ran, that being said, I’ve been trying to fix it can’t get it done. Get the title in the mail today for the car. Remember, I paid DOC fees to these people there’s no date of sale on the title. There’s no amount the sale was. I called them. They tell me that I’ve gotta pay a five dollar fee to get the bill of sale notarized by them after I paid them the DOC fees and other fees that they got they tell me to write on the title Forge documents for them. After I paid those DOC fees, which was irresponsibility unbelievable I am now following class action lawsuit against Ridesafely buyer beware beware beware do not buy from this place

Date of experience: September 17, 2024

Truck was not a run and drive truck. I used Ride safely delivery and that costed me 4 days of storage fees. Never will I use them again. All lies.

Date of experience: August 01, 2024

The process is simple and straight forward. The problems are some niggling requirements that may be annoying. One of the managers was most annoying in her approach by being too repetitive and assuming that the person on the other end is daft. In addition, there is discrepancy between the sold price on the site and the price I paid!

Date of experience: June 28, 2024

Great company to do business with no problem

Date of experience: April 25, 2024

Horrible experience I put in a bid for today.

Then attempt to head to Copart who is there partner. Copart tells me I can't preinspect vehicle of I'm not a Copart member. So you can't see car until after you win bid. COPART wants $100 membership for a year just to inspect vehicles. So unless you're good with a sight unseen buy. Avoid on top of that they RideSafely charges you a fee + Copart fees + documentation. I quickly retracted my bid. Will go to a public auction instead.

Date of experience: April 23, 2024

Great company. Easy to work with . Great customer service.

Date of experience: March 01, 2024

I found a great vehicle (2019 Yukon) theft recovery! After careful research I made my purchase and RideSafely made an easy hassle free purchase. All I had to do was basic maintenance oil change, brake check, etc. I saved around 15k on a great vehicle. Do your due diligence and research your investment. If vehicle is being sold by an insurance company you’re likely to have a good experience. If a dealer is selling you should wonder why they’re selling at auction rather than on the lot. Just my two cents. Happy bidding and good luck!

Date of experience: February 12, 2024

Sadly That Is no zero rating options to give to them,😕!,Buy now means you don't actually bought the car so you have to make a deposit for what? I click on to buy now and I make a deposit it was Friday afternoon round 4:00 PM and I get a call saying we sent you an invoice and agreement and you have to make a payment first come first serve so I don't understand why they asking for deposit?! I told her that I'm going to make the transfer Monday morning, after I make the transfer it was round 9:15 AM I called to let them know that I make the transfer and she told me the car it been sold to someone else what?! Yes it sold on Saturday, so what about my 💰 you can call back to speak with my manager no I'm not going to call back transfer me oh she is busy no transfer me okay wait so the manager told me the insurance company bought the car so what about my 💰 oh you can request a refund what? So at this point I feel like I get scammed for 13600+my deposit so I went back to my bank and I was able to cancel the payment and get my cashier's check back and I received an email from them it says the sealer doesn't approve your bids hello it wasn't a bid it was buy now! They are very rued and unproffecional going back to salvage bid

Date of experience: February 20, 2024

Editing my review to downgrade it to one star for continuously trying to misrepresent my words and facts. I needed no research after receiving the car because I could see it with my own eyes. I sent the carfax report to Ramon before the car was even shipped and he dismissed my claims.
Car wheels were removed during loading into the container and a forklift used so the undercarriage has scratches and damages all over the place. I contacted customer service several times to clarify why wasn’t a single container used and still no feedback from anyone. So, I do not know which company they hired for the transport or where to complain.

February 9, is the last communication I had with customer service and not the experience date. Ever since, I have been trying to get into contact with them but no one responds.

Buying process and support was okay. Stan was also very helpful during transport. However, the support after the purchase was not okay after mentioning additional damages which were not reported or advertised in the listing.

First, Ramon claimed as a usual procedure of phototaking to make the car more attractive. I emphasized multiple times that the hidden damages could lead to more serious damages not seen on the pictures. However my concerned were dismissed and Roman tried really hard to justify the damages and refused to accept any potential scam.

Upon receiving the car I noticed that the car had been involved in a serious crash resulting in structural damages to the engine frame. Also, upper side airbags were both deployed and upholstery was fit back in to hide the actual condition so it is not visible on the photos. Car runs with a hybrid battery which costs thousands of dollars which was dismantled and removed from the car, along with trunk and engine covers.

When I complained about this over the email, I was told that it was all my fault and responsibility. Ma claim is only regarding hidden damages that were not visible online. Please note that primary damage of the car is described as dents and scratches but there are at least two accidents reported for the car which result in need of full body work and painting on top of replacing all the missing parts. The repair cost upon inspection was estimated at around 38000 Euros or $40 000 while the car was listed only with dents and scratches.

The worst part is that ever since, I have been completely ignored and no one answers my follow-up emails.

Date of experience: February 09, 2024

As a first time buyer I am truly and totally unsatisfied with this auction site. I purchased a truck in Nov and still have not received the title. Every time I call its next week and again next week. I've looked up every legal way possible and nothing says they can sell a car without a title to someone unknown to the customer. I was told the title will be sent but so far nothing. I've good things about this site but I guess they decided not all customers are treated fairly. ai just want the title if not, please refund all money spent.

Date of experience: November 10, 2023