▸ Classification · Finance & Write-Off
Data sourced from DVLA, MIAFTR, contracted stolen-vehicle data and the UK lender register at lookup time.
Typical lookup completes in under one second from the UK.
Built and supported in the UK as part of the consumer side of the network.
A clean check confirms that, at the moment of lookup, no UK insurer has filed a total-loss marker, no lender has registered an open agreement and no police force has reported the vehicle stolen. It does not confirm mechanical condition, repair quality, or work carried out in cash and never declared to an insurer. Treat the report as the legal and financial backstop to an in-person inspection, not a replacement for one.
An important limit: finance arranged as a personal loan and used to buy a vehicle is not registered against the vehicle, so it doesn't appear on any vehicle history check on any service. The seller may have a balance owed to a personal lender that they're solely liable for — but that doesn't affect the buyer's title.
When a UK lender funds a vehicle on HP or PCP, the lender registers the agreement against the vehicle's identification on a central register. The agreement legally follows the car. If you buy a vehicle under an open agreement without the lender's settlement, the lender retains the right to repossess the car from you and pursue the previous owner for the debt separately.
/ Brand consolidation
carstolencheck.com is now part of Expert Car Check — the consolidated UK vehicle-data platform that several of these older brands have joined. The data sources are unchanged: DVLA's vehicle record, DVSA's MOT history, MIAFTR for write-offs, contracted UK data providers for stolen-vehicle markers and the UK lender register for outstanding finance. The team and the support contact are the same. What's changed is that the work that was previously spread across several smaller brands now sits in one place, which keeps response times tight and the underlying registers maintained against current DVLA schemas. Bookmarks and historic links to carstolencheck.com continue to resolve here. If you were referred to carstolencheck.com by a previous report, broker or print listing, this is the right page — there is no further redirect to chase.
Visit expertcarcheck.com →/ Common questions
Compare all four: dashboard VIN, door-pillar VIN sticker, chassis-stamped VIN and V5C. Ringers commonly miss one. The check provides the DVLA-recorded VIN to compare against in advance.
A: vehicle must be crushed entirely. B: bodyshell destroyed, mechanical parts may be reused. S: structural damage, repaired. N: non-structural damage, repaired. S and N are legally insurable and roadworthy once repaired.
Yes. Cat S and N vehicles typically attract a 20-40% premium loading. The category marker is permanent and declaration is mandatory at every renewal.
A UK lender has an open agreement against the vehicle. The agreement legally follows the car, not the seller. Buying under outstanding finance can leave the new owner liable to repossession even if they bought in good faith.
/ Also in finance & write-off
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See what crashed before.
Check for outstanding finance on any UK vehicle
Free stolen vehicle check for any UK car
Write-off categories, explained.
Check for outstanding finance registered against any UK vehicle
/ Begin
One field. A typical lookup completes in under a second, using the same UK vehicle records relied on by trade buyers and insurers.