You know what make and model you want, you’ve set your budget, and you’ve scoured the classifieds in search of your next new-to-you car. You’ve found a few suitable-looking examples within a reasonable distance of you, and you’ve assembled a shortlist. So, it’s now just a case of going along to the dealers and kicking the tyres, right?
Well, hold your horses a minute. Even if your shortlist is indeed short, going to see all the cars on it in person is likely to take a considerable investment in time, money and metaphorical shoe-leather. To save yourself some hassle, there are several checks you can make on a car for sale from the comfort of your own home, potentially ruling out any duds without the bother of a viewing. All you need is the car’s registration, which will usually be available somewhere in the advert.
Here’s our guide to the research you might want to do before leaving the house, and the various tools available to you.
Checks to Make Before Viewing a Potential Used Car Purchase
- DVLA vehicle information checker
- MOT History Checker
- Recalls Checker
- Vehicle History Check
- General search for common issues
DVLA vehicle information checker
As the name suggests, the DVLA vehicle information checker gives you a rundown on what information is held by the DVLA on the vehicle in question. It’s free, and all you have to do is enter the car’s registration. The information on offer includes:
- VED road tax - the current rate payable and when it expires
- SORN status
- When the MOT expires
- Date of first registration
- Last log book (V5C) issue date
- Year of manufacture
- Type approval category
- Weight
- Engine size
- Fuel type
- Export status
We wouldn’t say that this isn’t an essential check to carry out, but it’s worth doing because any big discrepancies between the information held by the DVLA and the information stated in the car’s advert could be an early warning sign of something untoward.
MOT History Checker
The gov.uk MOT History Checker is an invaluable service and it’s absolutely free. If you enter a car’s registration, you can get a complete rundown of its MOT history: this includes the date it’s been tested, the mileage at which it’s been tested, whether it's passed or failed, and most importantly, what defects it failed on, and any advisories of minor defects that might cause trouble in the future. This can give you valuable insight. Don’t be too alarmed by having the odd failure on the car’s record - especially if it’s getting on a bit - but look out for patterns, such as whether it’s failed on the same thing more than once, which might indicate an inherent weakness with this part. Also look for significant passages of time between tests, which would signify that the vehicle has been SORNed for a period. Not a huge worry in itself if the time period isn’t massive, but handy to know about so you can ask the seller about the reason it was off the road.
One word of warning, though: don’t place absolute faith in the advisories part. Yes, it’s very handy to know what recent advisories a car has, but while test centres are legally obliged to register the defects that a car has failed an MOT on, it’s not legally obliged to register advisories, so if there aren’t any logged on the car’s MOT record, it doesn’t necessarily mean that there weren’t any thrown up by the test.
Recalls Checker
The gov.uk Recalls Checker is another handy tool that lets you know if a particular car - using its registration - has been subject to any safety recalls, and whether the car has been checked and cleared, or been fixed. Recalls happen all the time, so having your potential purchase be affected by one isn’t a problem, but you do want to make sure that any necessary work has been carried out. You can also check with the seller on that to make absolutely sure.
Vehicle History Check
A variety of providers offer these online. Some are free, but these only really tell you the same stuff as the DVLA database and MOT history checks we’ve already mentioned. Most providers will ask you to pay more for a more detailed report, often with varying levels of detail for a variety of prices. The parameters of these checks can include damage checks, outstanding finance checks, and checks on whether the car has been recorded as written-off or scrapped, or reported stolen.
Prices can vary greatly, so it’s up to you whether you consider it a price worth paying. If you’re buying from a dealer, though, some will often stump up for a history check themselves.
General search for common issues
A quick Google search of the make and model of car you’re considering can inform you of common issues with the model, which are worth knowing about in advance as you can either look for evidence of trouble yourself, or ask the seller if any issues in that area have been experienced. It’s also something to look out for when perusing the car’s service history.
Once you’ve carried out all your home-based online checks and whittled-down your shortlist to a preferred few, it’s time to visit the seller and inspect the car. Learn how to go about that here.
