Free Car Check
Instant UK Vehicle History Report
Check any UK number plate for MOT status, tax expiry, mileage verification, and more.
Free and verified against DVLA and trusted sources. No signup or payment required.
🔍 Enter Registration Number
What Is a Free Car Check?
A car history check, also known as a free reg lookup, is a fast, no-cost way to assess a UK vehicle’s identity, legal status and condition, using official records.
Entering a number plate gives instant access to key information like MOT status, road tax validity, vehicle age, CO₂ emissions, and mileage verification.
Car data is pulled from trusted sources like the DVLA, police, and insurance databases.
You'll see:
✅ Vehicle details — brand, manufacturer, model, body style, colour, transmission type, year of manufacture, first registration date, and vehicle age
✅ MOT status — current MOT result, expiry date, and summary of the last test result
✅ Road tax confirmation — current tax status, renewal due date, and DVLA cost bands (6 and 12 months)
✅ V5C logbook issue date — confirmation of the most recent DVLA logbook record
✅ Engine size & fuel type — including engine capacity (CC) and DVLA fuel classification
✅ Euro emissions rating — official Euro standard, CO₂ marker, and tax band category
✅ ULEZ & congestion charge compliance — check if the car meets UK low-emission standards
✅ Insurance group — risk classification band used by UK insurers
✅ Performance snapshot — top speed and 0–60 acceleration figures from manufacturer data
✅ Fuel economy — combined MPG rating (urban/extra-urban data available on full check)
✅ Safety recalls — alerts for outstanding manufacturer or DVSA safety recalls
✅ SORN status — whether the vehicle is declared off-road with DVLA
✅ Export status — confirmation if the vehicle has been registered or exported abroad
This free vehicle check is ideal for UK motorists looking to quickly verify a vehicle before taking the next step, whether buying, selling, or researching. Scroll down for a sample CarVeto report.
How to Check a Car’s History Online (UK)
Here's how it works:
Step 1
Enter the registration number: Submit the vehicle registration number of any UK-registered car into our tool.
Step 2
We fetch official data: We instantly pull verified records from DVLA, MOT, and tax databases, including the V5C issue date, engine performance data, and CO₂ emissions rating.
Step 3
View your report summary: See your vehicle’s ownership status, MOT and tax validity, and engine and emissions profile. Need deeper insights? Upgrade to unlock checks on finance agreements, write-off history, and theft risk alerts.
What’s Included in a Car History Check?
A full car history check reveals vital legal, financial, identity, and technical details from DVLA, police, and finance providers, helping you avoid costly surprises when buying used.
Your car option list uncovers:
1. Legal & Risk Checks
✅ Stolen Vehicle Check – Theft alerts from UK police and insurer databases
✅ Outstanding Finance Check – Detect active finance agreements that must be settled before sale
✅ Write-Off Status – Discover if the car has been written off (Cat A–S register) and its insurance classification and damage position
✅ Salvage Check – Insurer and auction records confirming salvage status with pictures of damage or repair
✅ Scrapped Car Check – DVLA confirmation of vehicles marked as scrapped
2. Legal & Compliance
✅ MOT History – Full history of MOT results, including expiry, advisories, failures, and mileage records
View MOT Check
✅ Car Tax Check – DVLA tax status with backdated records, renewal due dates, and CO₂-based banding
Check Check Road Tax
3. Identity & Ownership Checks
✅ Registration Verification – Confirm number plate legitimacy against DVLA records
Initiate a Reg Lookup
✅ VIN, Engine & Chassis Match – Ensure all identifiers align with DVLA and manufacturer records
Learn about a VIN Check
✅ Previous Keepers – Verified count of registered keepers since first registration
✅ Keeper Timeline – Dates of ownership changes and keeper duration (where available)
✅ Number Plate Changes – Full history of plate transfers and dates of change
✅ Vehicle Registration Verification – Confirm DVLA registration to prevent cloned or misregistered vehicles
Verify a DVLA Check
✅ Import & Export Status – Check if a vehicle was previously imported or exported
4. Technical & Usage Checks
✅ Mileage Verification – Detect odometer fraud with cross-checks from MOT, RMI, and BVRLA databases
✅ Vehicle Specification Check – Extended DVLA specification covering brand, manufacturer, model, trim, body style, engine size (CC power), torque, engine capacity, cylinders, fuel type, Euro emissions rating, V5C logbook history, structural dimensions (length, width, wheelbase, kerb weight, track width), axle and storage space
✅ Performance Data – Highlight detailed manufacturer performance metrics: BHP, torque, acceleration times, and top speed
✅ Fuel Economy – Official DVLA fuel consumption figures: urban, extra-urban, and combined MPG
✅ ULEZ & Emissions Compliance – Euro 1–6 classification plus London Congestion Charge status
✅ Safety Recall Check – Manufacturer and DVSA recall alerts with unresolved safety notices
👉 Start with a Free Car Check to see the essential option list, then upgrade to recover a complete car history report.
Compare Free and Full Car History Checks
Not all vehicle checks are created equal. Here's how our free report compares to the full car option list:
Feature | Free Car Check ✅ | Full Car Check 🔒 |
|---|---|---|
MOT Status & Expiry | ✅ | ✅ |
Road Tax Status | ✅ | ✅ |
Vehicle Age & CO₂ Data | ✅ | ✅ |
VIN & Engine Match | ❌ | ✅ |
Number Plate History | ❌ | ✅ |
Mileage History | ❌ | ✅ |
Insurance Write-Offs | ❌ | ✅ |
Outstanding Finance | ❌ | ✅ |
Stolen Vehicle Alerts | ❌ | ✅ |
Ownership Changes | ❌ | ✅ |
Wondering how our car checks compare to trusted industry benchmarks like HPI Ltd? Our HPI Check breaks down the essential differences, including data coverage, update frequency, and depth of finance verification.
Would you like to download the complete inspection report with all checks? Run a Full Car History Check now.
Free
What's Included
- Basic information
- Outstanding finance
- Stolen
- Write-off
- £30,000 data guarantee
Check your vehicle now for FREE
Platinum
What's Included
- Outstanding finance
- Stolen
- Write-off
- Import/export
- Scrapped/unscrapped
- Plate changes
- Colour changes
- Mileage problems
- BVRLA & RMI search
- Registered near
- £30,000 data guarantee
Check your vehicle now for £12.90
Gold
What's Included
- Stolen
- Write-off
- Mileage problems
- Export
- Registered near
- Outstanding finance
- £30,000 data guarantee
Check your vehicle now for £8.90
Why Choose Our UK Car Checker?
With over 5.4 million checks completed, CarVeto is one of the UK’s most trusted vehicle data services.
Whether you’re checking a car before purchase or validating a seller’s claims, we deliver the facts — fast.
✔️ Trusted DVLA & insurer sources
✔️ Used by over 5.4 million UK motorists
✔️ Instant results in seconds
✔️ Download information as PDF
✔️ No signup or payment needed for free checks
✔️ Supports full and partial plate searches
Choose the smarter way to verify a vehicle before you buy. Start a Registration Plate Check now.
Number Plate and Registration Checker Tool
Instantly verify a vehicle’s registration number against official DVLA records to ensure it’s legitimate and unaltered.
Enter any UK number plate to access MOT status, tax details, CO₂ label, and vehicle age, instantly.
Our checker connects directly with national databases for reliable, up-to-date notifications.
✅ Supports UK and Northern Ireland registrations
✅ Fast, free, and secure — no sign-up needed
FAQs – Car History, Registration & Check Info
A reg checker lets you look up a car’s MOT, tax, and registration info using its number plate. It’s the fastest way to confirm a vehicle’s identity.
Try our registration checker →
Yes, our basic vehicle check is 100% free. Just enter a UK number plate to get MOT status, tax details, and retrieve DVLA records instantly.
No login, no card, no hassle. Learn more →
Yes, your free vehicle report will include whether the car is currently taxed, the expiry date, and whether it has been declared SORN.
Yes, our reg verification tool checks for number plate replacement against DVLA records and online advertisements to confirm that it matches the best official registration data, helping prevent fraud or cloned vehicles.
Yes, but stolen vehicle checks are part of the full car history report. We cross-reference police and insurer records to flag stolen vehicles.
Run a Stolen Vehicle Check →
Only the full check includes finance records. This reveals if the car is still under finance, a major risk for buyers.
Conduct an Outstanding Car Finance Check now →
In addition to garage MOT and tax, the full check covers:
- Outstanding finance
- Insurance write-offs
- Stolen status
- VIN mismatch
- Ownership changes
A vehicle enquiry means checking a car’s legal and technical status using its number plate.
This includes MOT, tax, spec, service dates, service mileages and ownership data.
Yes, our car history checks fully support Northern Ireland number plates, just like GB plates.
You’ll get MOT, tax, and registration info instantly.
Trusted by 5.4 Million UK Drivers
⭐ Rated 4.9/5 on Trustpilot
✔️ Secure, DVLA-approved vehicle data
✔️ Fast, private, and used nationwide
Brilliant company
Roger Robbins
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Can't fault this company managed to get a marker off my Matchless bike. Michelle went above and beyond what I expected from them.
If I could give them 10 star review I would.
Thank you.
Read review on Trustpilot
Easy
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Delan Mosti
Easy, and quick to use. Detailed report in minutes.
Read review on Trustpilot
Simply brilliant!!
Syed Hussain
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I was shocked at how quickly the data from CarVeto was updated! I came across CarVeto's service and coincidently having done just the basic free search initially, the MOT on the vehicle that had been completed an hour ago, was already listed!!
Read review on Trustpilot
Ready to Check a Vehicle?
Enter your registration and check a free report in seconds.
No sign-up. No payment. Just verified UK vehicle data, instantly.
