IMO if you're going to import cabs (or anything else for that matter) the RIGHT way to do it is to just bank-roll the whole thing up front yourself bring them in and don't accept a dime from anyone until you have physical possession of them and can determine what you're dealing with. And if you don't trust the source enough to put 100% of the money up front yourself, then you really shouldn't be doing it with other people's money either.
I agree. I actually have the same opinion on pre-orders for hardware. Man up, flex your bank account, or be a poser and rely on money from everyone else. It is interesting the things people try to do without a business plan, or the funding to do it. They want to use other people's money, and learn as they go instead. For some odd reason the demand of the thing people want causes them to lose sight of the risk that is building.
There really are two types of people doing this, those that are investors, and those that are not. It really is that simple.