Online Car Data Checks
Thinking of buying a used car? Then this is one of the most important and simple things you can do to protect yourself. IT will not stop the car from being stolen, but it could prevent you buying a car that has already been stolen, been involved in a serious accident, or a car with outstanding finance attached to it. you will need the registration and VIN number from the car you are thinking of purchasing, and do this before you commit to buying or pay for the car.
There are several different companies that will provide this service for a small fee, typically anywhere from 10 to 30 dollars, the data is usually sourced by the providing companies from a combination of the police databases and insurance companies, and it should cover as many of the following points as possible:
Firstly, if the car has ever been reported stolen to the police – the registration and chassis number will be recorded on the national and international stolen vehicle database, to see if it is currently reported as stolen or missing, or ever has been reported in the past.
Secondly, it should show if your intended purchase has any outstanding finance – if a previous owner has used credit to buy the car, and the loan agreement is tied to the car, then the finance will stay attached for the car, and the new owner – you, will be responsible for any outstanding finance payments. The report should tell you if there is outstanding debt owed, and if so, who with, you can then call the finance company to clarify the situation. Make sure the finance is settled before purchasing.
The report should show if the car you are buying has ever been involved in a total loss insurance claim, this could mean it was either stolen and recovered, or damaged in an accident and classed as beyond economical repair. This could mean the car is less safe in an accident as crumple zones cannot be restored fully to their original strength, it could also mean that if the car is involved in another claim, the insurance company may not value the car so highly.
Following from the above, it should also show if the car has been scrapped. A scrapped car should not be on the road , and this may show evidence of the car being ringed - which is where a stolen car is given the new identity (VIN number) taken from a scrapped car. If so the matter should immediately be reported to the police.
Some reports may also give the last recorded mileage at point of owner change, which if higher that the current displayed mileage on the car, could be a sign that the mileage has been tampered with or falsified to enhance the value of the car.
Some reports may also give details of things like number pf previous owners, and the full official specification of the car, and should also provide some sort of guarantee that if the data is found to be inaccurate and the car is actually stolen or a write off, but the data check did not indicate it as being so, then the data check company may pay you a set amount in compensation.
Finally a big thank you to the guys at Orangewheels.co.uk who supply new Toyota UK Cars who gave up their time for free to help us put together this information site.