Free & Cheap Car History Checks
Six points seemed to be the deduction for having a salvage title, but the numbers weren't clearly explained. In the past, AutoCheck charged that for unlimited reports. Our opinion: Although it doesn't quite have the name recognition of Carfax, AutoCheck is worth a look. It's a less expensive alternative for shoppers who plan on running numerous reports. The vehicle score is nice as a quick reference, but don't put too much stock in it.
Run by the federal Department of Justice, the system is the only one that's publicly available in the U. It is a less expensive alternative, but based on our experience, you get what you pay for. You won't find any fancy scores or detailed entries of any type in these history reports. These sites should only be used to determine when and where the vehicle was registered and to find out if a branded title was issued.
Our opinion: We would only recommend using this resource to determine if the car you're interested in has a branded title. And even then, it is best used as a secondary check. Save your money for a report from AutoCheck or Carfax. We tested more than a dozen vehicles to see if we could spot any differences and comment on which was the easiest to use. Here's what we found: In our checks, AutoCheck's data was less comprehensive and detailed than Carfax's.
Buying Used American Cars?
For example: We ran a report on a Kia Optima with a salvage title. AutoCheck showed that it had two owners. Carfax listed three owners and caught an accident that hadn't appeared on the AutoCheck report. In comparing the two reports side by side, the AutoCheck report did record the DMV event that began the third owner's tenure, but the report hadn't yet factored that into its at-a-glance owner count. We found it difficult to determine when and for how long each person owned the vehicle on the AutoCheck report.
We also ran a report on a Infiniti QX56 that spent most of its life in Florida. Carfax had 10 service reports, including one to replace the drive belts. That's an expensive repair and good to know about. AutoCheck did not have that information. And thanks to the fact that Carfax shows maintenance records, its report indicated approximately when the car arrived in California. AutoCheck's last recorded incident was from Florida in If you were only going by the AutoCheck report, you wouldn't know where the car had been over the past three years.
These reports do little to flesh out the actual backstory of a car. A vehicle history report isn't going to guarantee you're getting a good used car. A mechanical inspection is still a good idea.
What’s on the report?
And if you suspect structural damage, a body shop visit could save you from making an expensive mistake. But running a report is a valuable first step that will save you time and money. It could also protect you from buying a car with a checkered past. Yes, but it depends on the information you're looking for. If you're simply looking to find out where your vehicle was made and other pieces of trivia, look for a free "VIN decoder" online.
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However, if you need a full vehicle history report, you'll have to either find a used car on a dealership website or pay for the report yourself. As a senior consumer advice editor, Ron helps shoppers navigate car buying. He has plenty of firsthand knowledge since he buys and sells the cars in the Edmunds long-term test fleet. Popular searches. My Account. Carfax Carfax is the most well-known provider of vehicle history reports, dating back to the late s, when it faxed reports to its customers.
AutoCheck AutoCheck, owned by Experian, is notable for providing a vehicle "score" — a number and a range — such as 85 out of a range of Test-Driving the Reports We tested more than a dozen vehicles to see if we could spot any differences and comment on which was the easiest to use. FAQs How can I check a car's history for free? Most major dealerships will offer either a Carfax or AutoCheck report on their website. Go to the detail page of the vehicle you're interested in and there should be a link to the report.
You can also ask the dealer to give you a copy of the report for free. If they aren't willing to help, it could be a red flag. Learn more. If you specifically want a Carfax report for free, you'll have to find a dealership that both offers free reports on its site and also happens to be Carfax branded.
It shouldn't be too hard since it tends to be the most popular. If you're already on the dealer lot, ask the salesperson to show you the report. The vehicle history will contain items such as where the vehicle was sold and registered, service history, accident history, potential mileage rollback issues, and whether it was issued a salvage or junk title.
Free reports often tell only basic facts which you can see in the ad. Meanwhile, paid vehicle history reports can provide with the full available data which might be crucial for your decision whether to buy this vehicle. There can be two answers, and both are YES! VIN checks often offer special conditions for B2B clients. On the other hand, if you are a car seller, showing a vehicle history report builds trust in potential buyers eyes. A very promising market player carVertical brings fresh ideas and new dynamics to the world of VIN decoders.
Like all other major decoders, the platform provides full-scale vehicle history reports , including genuine mileage, accidents or robbery history, NMVTIS data and other crucial information from the U.
Free Car Check • ᐅ Full vehicle history checks
Moreover, carVertical walks an extra mile implementing the newest technologies to gather, process, and verify data. The company uses artificial intelligence to evaluate the quality of the data and blockchain to prevent faking the reports. Also, the platform has developed the universal car data standard for the whole industry.
In comparison with four decades old Carfax, carVertical might not prevail in USA data quantity, but their provided report could be more accurate and up-to-date, especially in Europe. From our point of view, carVertical meets all the major consumer needs and is perhaps the most progressive VIN decoder at the moment. Indeed, Carfax relies on one of the most comprehensive databases that include over 22 billion records. Not only it provides extensive data based on many sources, but it also receives data that is typically hidden — from provincial car agencies, police and fire agencies, collision repair services, car auctions and other.
What else? Carfax draws the records about vehicles that have been manufactured after , so the reporting digs deep and covers not only cars from the U. Naturally, you have to pay for this. But the information provided is well marked and structured. However, when checking out a used vehicle, car buyers should not depend on Carfax alone.
What’s a Lemon Car?
Carfax only lists data reported to them, so consumers should not consider this report as a full accident history. Neither Carfax nor any other source is able to detect unreported accidents or show how well the vehicle was kept. Consumers can only rely on facts that were recorded and make their own conclusions. In our opinion, Carfax is a well-developed tool that can help you receive all important information using many different sources. Thus, if the car you are looking at had a reported accident or visited a car repair center, Carfax is most likely the one not to miss it.
The site began its operation in , thus claims to know the exact needs of used car buyers. Interestingly, the reports of cars from the US and Canada are run through Autocheck , which is among the leading VIN checking platforms. However, from here comes the drawback, because autoDNA often splits car history data into several paid reports based on the country from which the car was imported. This often results in inconvenience and additional costs for website users.