Checking a car’s history is one of the basic steps to ensure you’re getting what you’re paying for. Even when a car seems to be in excellent condition at first view, you may still run into issues if your car has underlying issues that the seller is not reporting and that are not obvious at first view. The best way to verify a car’s history is to obtain its VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) and then run a report. Companies such as Carfax allow you to enter a VIN number online and check if the car has ever been totaled in an accident, suffered flood damage, has any lien on it, had an odometer rollback, what it has been used for (was it always a private vehicle or was it ever rented out or used as a taxi?) as well as the repair history of the car.
Carfax and similar companies charge you a fee for the report, but this is well-worth it if you’re buying on your own and you want to make sure you’re getting a good deal.
Tags: buying a car, lemon, protecting yourself when buying a car