Published November 2026. Facebook Marketplace is one of the easiest places to find a cheap car, and one of the easiest places for criminals to sell one that isn't theirs. Purchase scams hit a record £118 million in losses in 2025, and Lloyds Bank says vehicles were the most reported purchase scam that year, with … Continue reading Buying a Car on Facebook Marketplace: How to Avoid Scams
Published November 2026. A full service history is one of the best signs a used car has been looked after, and it adds real value. That's exactly why service histories are faked. This guide explains where to find a car's service records, how to check they're genuine, and what a missing history means. Paper books … Continue reading How to Check a Car’s Service History (and Spot Fake Stamps)
Published November 2026. Imported cars can be a great buy: Japanese models the UK never had, well-kept cars from drier climates, or a better specification for the money. But a car's history before it reached the UK is much harder to check, and that's where the risks lie. Here's how imports are registered, what can … Continue reading Buying an Imported or Grey Import Car: What to Check
Published November 2026. Ex-taxis and ex-private hire cars are common on the used market, and there's nothing wrong with buying one if the price reflects how hard it has worked. The problem is buying one without knowing. A five-year-old private hire car can easily have covered well over 100,000 miles, much of it in stop-start … Continue reading How to Tell if a Car Is an Ex-Taxi or Private Hire Car
A DVLA vehicle check tells you a car's tax and MOT status and its basic details, for free. What it won't tell you is whether the car has been written off, stolen, or still has finance owing, which are the problems that cost used car buyers the most. This guide explains exactly what the DVLA's … Continue reading DVLA Vehicle Check vs a Full Car History Check: What the DVLA Won’t Tell You
The global situation in Iran might feel far removed from the UK car market—but in reality, it’s already having a noticeable impact on used car prices across the country. From rising fuel costs to shifting buyer behaviour, the knock-on effects are changing what cars people want—and how much they’re willing to pay. Here’s what’s happening, … Continue reading How the Iran Crisis Is Affecting UK Used Car Prices in 2026
Updated 3 November 2026. Before you drive a car, it needs three things: vehicle tax, a valid MOT (once it's over three years old) and insurance. Two of the three can be checked by anyone, for free, from the registration number. Insurance is different: the public check, still widely known as askMID, only lets you … Continue reading Is a Car Taxed, MOT’d and Insured? How to Check All Three
Used car pricing can be confusing: you’ll see two cars that look identical — same make, model, year, engine and mileage — yet the prices can be miles apart. That’s because value isn’t just about specs. It’s shaped by pricing signals: condition, service history, demand, and (crucially) vehicle history. If you want to judge whether … Continue reading Why Are Two Identical Used Cars Priced Differently?
A vehicle history check is a report that brings together official and industry data to show a used car’s past, helping buyers identify hidden risks before they purchase. In simple terms, it answers one key question:“Is this car what the seller claims it is?” A proper check can reveal issues that aren’t visible during a … Continue reading What Is a Vehicle History Check?
At Total Car Check we receive a lot of questions about car history checks from users before and after they buy from us. After all, we run over 50 million checks every year. So we've put the most common into this FAQ Blog to help you the car buyer navigate how you can get the … Continue reading Car History Checks – Everything You Need to Know
