Help and questions

1. Enter the car's registration.
2. We show you its make, model, colour, year, fuel and engine for free, so you can make sure it's the car you're looking at.
3. Choose your report, sign in or create an account, and pay.
4. We start preparing your report straight away and it opens in your account.

Confirming the car is free: the make, model, colour, year of manufacture, fuel type and engine size from the DVLA. The history itself (MOT history, mileage, finance, write-offs and the rest) is in the paid reports.

The MOT and tax check (£2.99) covers the DVLA record, the full MOT history, a mileage check, plate and keeper changes, the specification and the safety rating.

The full history check (£9.99) adds outstanding finance, stolen and write-off records, safety recalls, taxi use and a valuation. If you're buying, it's the one to get.

No. You only need the registration, and nobody is told about your check.

Cars registered in the UK. We can't check vans, motorbikes, lorries or other vehicles, and the check page will tell you if the registration belongs to one.

Very occasionally our data provider holds no history for a car. We'll tell you before you pay, and you won't be able to buy a report for it.

The full history check includes a valuation, and the mileage makes it more accurate. We fill in the reading from the car's last MOT, so change it to what the car shows now if you know it. If you leave it blank, the valuation uses an estimate.

Enter it in the voucher box on the check page and choose Apply. The discount shows in the total before you pay. A voucher may only work for one type of report, or for a limited time.

Yes. Your report is saved to your account so you can come back to it, so you'll be asked to sign in or create an account before you pay. Your choices on the check page are kept while you do.

By card, through Stripe's secure payment page. We never see or store your card details. If a voucher covers the whole price, there's nothing to pay.

Yes. Every purchase has a VAT invoice in your account under Payments and invoices, and we email you a confirmation with a link to it. To show a company name on future invoices, add it in Account settings.

Your report starts as soon as you've paid, and you agree to that before paying, so the usual right to cancel doesn't apply once it has started.

Our report promise: if your report doesn't complete, or it shows the wrong car, we'll put it right or refund you. Send us a message with the registration. Our terms explain the details.

We start preparing it as soon as you've paid, and it's usually ready in moments. It opens in your account under Your reports.

Occasionally one of the record holders doesn't answer. The report then shows as incomplete, and you can choose Try again now on the report. You won't be charged again. If it still doesn't complete, send us a message and we'll put it right.

From the DVLA, the DVSA's MOT history, the Police National Computer, the insurance industry's write-off register (MIAFTR) and UK finance lenders, through our licensed data provider.

We can't change these records. If you think one is wrong, tell us and we'll check it with our data provider.

Green means the check is clear. Orange means something is worth a closer look, such as a gap in the MOT history. Red means a problem was found, such as outstanding finance or a mileage reading lower than an earlier one. Grey means the information isn't available, or isn't included in the report you chose.

Our licence doesn't allow us to show the full VIN (vehicle identification number). Compare the last 3 characters with the VIN on the car and its V5C logbook: if they don't match, don't buy it.

Finance is recorded against the registration. If the plate has been moved between cars, an agreement may be for a car that had this plate before. The report shows the vehicle on the agreement and warns you when its make doesn't match. Ask the seller, or contact the lender, before you buy.

No. It's an estimate from the car's age, mileage and the market, as a guide to what to pay. Condition, service history and extras all make a difference. Most full reports include a valuation, but there isn't one for every car.

Not necessarily. Standard equipment was fitted to every car of that version. Options available when new could be added at extra cost, so check the car itself for those.

Road tax uses the current rates for the car's age and emissions. Fuel costs use the car's official economy and this week's UK average fuel prices, for the mileage you enter. London ULEZ shows whether the car is likely to meet the standard: check with TfL's checker to be sure. These are estimates.

Yes. Choose Download PDF at the top of the report for a copy you can keep or print.

Your report stays in your account for 2 years from when you bought it. Download a PDF if you'd like to keep it for longer.

• Your reports: every report you've bought.
• Payments and invoices: your payments, VAT invoices and any credit notes.
• Support: your messages to us and our replies.
• Account settings: your name, company name, email address, password and email choices.

Go to Account settings. You can change your name, company name and email address, and set a new password. You'll need your current password to change it.

Choose Forgotten your password? on the sign in page and enter the email address on your account. We'll email you a link to choose a new password. It works once, for an hour, so use the latest email if you ask more than once.

Nothing arrived? Check your junk or spam folder, or send us a message.

Only if you've chosen to get them, and only about Car History's own services. Turn them on or off at any time with Send me emails in Account settings. We never sell your details.

Send us a message from the email address on your account and we'll take care of it. Our privacy policy explains what we keep and for how long.

Send us a message from our contact page. If you're signed in, you can also use Support in your account, where you'll see our replies too. We reply by email, and you can answer that email directly.

Yes, from Support in your account, or by replying to one of our emails. Photos and PDFs can be added, up to 10 MB each and 5 at a time.