Car history check
The free check tells you what the public record knows about a car. The full car history check tells you what it does not: whether there is finance still owed on it, whether it is recorded as stolen, whether an insurer has written it off, how many keepers it has had and whether the identity on the plate matches the identity on the chassis. It costs £9.99, that is the whole price, and the report is yours to keep as a PDF.
What the full history check covers
Outstanding finance. Whether a lender holds an interest in the car under a hire purchase, PCP, lease or loan agreement, with the lender's name, the agreement type and the start date. A car with finance owing belongs to the lender until it is settled, whoever is holding the keys.
Stolen vehicle marker. Whether the car is recorded as stolen on the Police National Computer, and if so the reporting force and date. A stolen car cannot become yours however honestly you paid for it.
Insurance write-off. Whether an insurer has ever declared the car a total loss, the category (A, B, S or N), and the date. Cat A and B cars should not be on the road at all; Cat S and N can be, if properly repaired, but are worth less and must be declared when sold.
Keepers and plates. The number of previous keepers and the dates the car changed hands, and every registration the car has carried, so you can see a plate change that hides a past.
Identity. The last five characters of the VIN for you to match against the car and the V5C, plus import, export and scrapped markers.
Everything in the free check is included too: the full MOT history, the mileage chart and our reading of the record.
What it costs, and what it does not
£9.99, including VAT, for one car. There is no basic tier that leaves out the finance check, no add-on for the write-off record, no voucher to redeem and nothing that renews. We looked at what the established sites charge for the same data and found the single price was usually not the real price; ours is. If you are comparing several cars, run the free check on all of them first and pay only for the one you are about to buy.
How the check works
You run the free check, read it, and decide. If you want the full history you pay by card, and only then do we request the finance, police and insurance records for that registration, so the data in your report is as of the minute you bought it, never cached from an earlier customer. The report appears on screen within about a minute, a copy is emailed to you with a link that works for 30 days, and the PDF carries the registration, the time of the check and the sources of each section so a seller, a garage or a finance company can see exactly what was checked and when.
What a clean result means
Most cars come back clear, and that is the point of checking. A clean result means that on the day of the check no finance was registered against the car, no theft marker was held, no insurer had recorded a total loss and the identity matched. It is a result, not a non-event, and it is what you will want in your hand when you pay the seller. It is not a refund trigger: we charge for the search, not for finding something, and the pricing page says so before you pay. What the check cannot cover is anything that has not been reported to the registers: a crash repaired privately without a claim, or finance taken out yesterday that has not yet been recorded.
Car history check questions
What is a car history check?
A search of the finance, police and insurance registers, plus the DVLA and DVSA records, for one registration. It is the kind of check often called an HPI check after the company that first offered it; several providers now hold licences to the same registers.
How long does it take?
About a minute from payment to report. The registers answer in seconds; the rest is us building the PDF.
What if the report finds something?
It says what was found, from which register, and what it means for you as a buyer. Outstanding finance can be settled by the seller before you pay; a stolen marker means walk away and tell the police; a write-off is a price and insurance question rather than a reason not to buy, provided the repair was done properly.
Do you offer a data guarantee?
Not at launch. We would rather be clear about what the registers can and cannot know than sell insurance against it. If that changes we will say so here first.
Can I check a car I do not own?
Yes. You need the registration only, and no keeper names or addresses are held by any of the sources we use.
How long can I access my report?
On screen immediately, by emailed link for 30 days, and as a PDF for as long as you keep the file.
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: DVLA, DVSA, and licensed finance, police and insurance registers via our data supplier. For information only; not a substitute for inspection or professional advice.