Free car check
Check any UK car by registration — make, model, tax, MOT and MOT history, free. Then unlock finance, write-off, stolen and mileage in one report.
What's the history on this car?
Enter a reg for the free basics — then unlock the full history for that exact vehicle.
Free basics — £4.99 unlocks finance, write-off, stolen & mileage.
What is a free car check?
A free car check uses a vehicle's registration to confirm its official basics — make, model, colour, fuel type, tax status and MOT status — from DVLA and DVSA data, at no cost. It is the quickest way to confirm a car matches its advert before you go any further.
Every UK vehicle has a public registration record held by the DVLA and an MOT test history held by the DVSA. A free car check surfaces those facts in seconds, so you can sanity-check a listing before spending anything — no account needed, just the reg.
What does a free car check show?
A free car check shows the car's make, model, colour, fuel type, engine size and CO2 band, its current tax status and expiry, whether it is SORN, and its MOT status and full MOT test history — including advisories and the mileage recorded at each test.
That is enough to catch obvious mismatches and get a feel for how a car has been looked after:
- Make, model, colour and fuel type — does the car match the advert and the V5C?
- Tax status and due date, plus whether it is declared SORN.
- MOT status, expiry and the full MOT history — every pass, fail and advisory.
- The mileage recorded at each MOT — a first hint of possible clocking.
Is a free car check really free?
Yes. The DVLA and DVSA basics — make, model, tax, MOT and MOT history — are genuinely free and need only the registration. The records that cost money to check are the commercial ones: outstanding finance, insurance write-offs, stolen markers and verified mileage.
There is no catch on the basics. But a truly free check can only ever show what the government databases hold — and the data that protects your money when buying a used car is not in them.
What does a free car check NOT show?
A free car check does not reveal outstanding finance, insurance write-offs, stolen markers, verified mileage discrepancies or the number of previous keepers — the highest-stakes risks when buying a used car.
These come from commercial datasets — Experian for finance, MIAFTR for write-offs, and the Police National Computer for stolen vehicles — not the DVLA. A free check tells you what a car is; it cannot tell you whether it is safe to buy.
Free car check vs full car check
A free check covers identity, tax and MOT. A full check adds the risk data — finance, write-off, stolen and mileage — that the free databases do not hold. Use the free check as a first filter, and a full check before you pay.
See everything that is included in the full car check.
| Check | Free | Full report |
|---|---|---|
| Make, model, colour & fuel | Yes | Yes |
| Tax & SORN status | Yes | Yes |
| MOT status & history | Yes | Yes |
| Outstanding finance | No | Yes |
| Insurance write-off (Cat A/B/S/N) | No | Yes |
| Stolen marker (PNC) | No | Yes |
| Mileage anomaly check | No | Yes |
How to do a free car check
To run a free car check, enter the registration number and review the make, model, tax and MOT data returned instantly. You can then unlock the finance, write-off, stolen and mileage checks for the full picture.
You can also use the official free government tools directly: GOV.UK to check a car's tax and MOT status, and the DVSA service for the full MOT history (both linked in the sources below).
- Enter the car's registration in the box above.
- Confirm the make, model, colour and fuel type match the advert and the V5C logbook.
- Check the tax status and the MOT history for advisories or failures.
- Unlock the full history — finance, write-off, stolen and mileage — before you pay.
Why a free car check is not enough on its own
Because the costliest problems — money still owed on the car, a hidden write-off, a wound-back odometer or a stolen marker — are invisible to a free check. Buying on the free basics alone leaves those risks unchecked.
A used car is one of the biggest purchases most people make privately, and the most serious risks do not show on a test drive or a free lookup. For a few pounds, a full check turns those hidden risks into facts before you hand over any money.
Where the free data comes from
The free basics come from DVLA and DVSA — the full history adds the commercial risk checks.
Why you can trust this check
Every CarVerify report is built from official UK data sources — not estimates. We cross-reference the records below and stand behind the result with our £30k data guarantee. Reports are compiled and reviewed by CarVerify Vehicle Data Team, UK vehicle data specialists.
£30k data guarantee
Backed if our data is wrong. See terms.
Official sources
Direct from DVLA, DVSA, Experian, MIAFTR & the PNC.
Private & secure
256-bit SSL. The seller is never notified.
“Quick, cheap and showed exactly what I needed before buying. Recommended.”
Laura B.
“Full report in seconds and far cheaper than the big-name checks.”
Mo A.
“Caught something the free checks completely missed. Worth every penny.”
Geoff R.
Simple pricing
CarVerify+
£4.99 to get started
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Single Check
£9.99 one-off
One full premium report. No subscription.
- Full vehicle history report
- Finance, write-off, stolen & mileage
- £30k data guarantee
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