A DISABLED man was conned out of £6,000 as he tried to buy an electric wheelchair online.

Diagnosed with MS six years ago, Michael Hawes, 62, attempted to buy a new electric wheelchair on the second- hand website, pre loved.co.uk Mr Hawes, who cannot walk and relies on carers to help him during the day, paid £3,000 for the electric wheelchair earlier this month.

Mr Hawes, of Link Road, Canvey, said: “It’s been a nightmare. It was a private seller, then they said they wanted to sort it through eBay.”

The sellers asked an increasingly worried Mr Hawes for another £3,000 before delivering the chair.

He said: “So I joined eBay, set up my PayPal account and it all looked right. It had the right logo and I sent an email to eBay chat to find out a bit more once the seller asked me for another £3,000.

“They replied saying I should pay for it.”

Mr Hawes’ daughter, Kerry Turner, 37, of West Crescent, Canvey said: “I said to him something is not right. I didn’t know he had already spent £3,000.

“They told my dad they wanted to sell through eBay, so my dad could have it for 30 days to see whether he liked it and if it was right for him.

“He never received the wheelchair and he only spoke to them via email and the message looked official.

“It all looked like the real deal, but when he clicked on to the live chat, he was talking to these people. It was a scam and he is left with no wheelchair and is £6,000 down. It’s knocked his confidence and it’s made him vulnerable.

He’s got an electric wheelchair, but it’s tatty and he needs a new one.”

The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau is dealing with Mr Hawes complaint. Preloved said the incident is a rare occurence on the site. A spokesman said: “While distressing, this kind of incident is thankfully very rare and, at Preloved, we operate robust procedures to ensure users’ experiences with us are legitimate.

“We encourage all messaging between parties to take place through our site so it can be monitored and it is regrettable that the conversation and transaction took place away from our site.”