How to Protect Yourself from Vehicle Cloning Scams
What is Vehicle Cloning? Vehicle cloning occurs when criminals steal the identity of a legally taxed vehicle. They swap the original registration plates with plates that belong to another car, often one of the same make, model, and colour. This trick helps them avoid detection by police systems, such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), and carry out illegal activities. Why Should You Be Concerned? Vehicle cloning can have serious consequences. If you buy a cloned vehicle, you might lose both your car and the money you spent on it. The police could seize the car once they discover it’s been cloned. Additionally, cloned vehicles may have hidden issues like altered mileage readings or a history of being written off after an accident, which could endanger your safety. How Do Criminals Get Cloned Plates? In the UK, you need a logbook, driver’s licence, and proof of address to buy a registration plate. However, criminals can purchase “show plates” online or over the phone with little documentation. These plates cost around £20 and are usually dispatched the same day. Once obtained, criminals can use them for illegal purposes on the road. How to Avoid Buying a Cloned Car To protect yourself from buying a cloned car, always carry out an HPI Check before making a purchase. The HPI Check will verify whether the car’s registration number, engine number, and Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) match official records held by the DVLA. This simple check can reveal if the car has been stolen, written off, or has any outstanding finance. Important Tips to Avoid Vehicle Cloning Scams Follow these simple steps to avoid falling victim to vehicle cloning scams: Why an HPI Check is Essential The HPI Check is the best way to confirm a car’s history before buying it. The check will tell you if the car has been stolen, written off, or has any outstanding finance. Plus, it includes a guarantee that offers financial protection if you unknowingly buy a cloned vehicle. Conclusion Taking a few extra steps to verify the history of a car can save you from serious financial and safety risks. By conducting an HPI Check, you ensure the car you’re buying is not a cloned vehicle and that it’s safe to drive. For more information, or to carry out an HPI Check, visit www.hpi.co.uk.
Used Car History: What to Check and How to Check It
Diligence is everything with a used car history. HPI’s guide explains how buyers can uncover them. A physical inspection will tell you a lot about a used car’s history – but it won’t tell you everything. Even what appears to be a pristine example can have a less-than-perfect back story, which could include elements that dent its value or worse. Used car histories are open books if you know where to look, though, and a few straightforward checks can clearly illustrate a vehicle’s past. hpi’s guide explains what to check, how to check it and how to get the best out of the information at hand. The basics They might be obvious, but the basics matter, and they are the best place to start. Check the car’s service history, MOT history, mileage, and number of owners. Do they match the advertisement and/or what the seller is saying? An MOT check is worthwhile because each test records the mileage, which is an important first step in ensuring the vehicle’s mileage hasn’t been altered. This helps to verify the car’s history, illustrates at least some of its mechanical past (whether it passed the first time, needed repairs, or had any advisories), and shows how regularly previous owners tested it. Additional checks can be made to check the accuracy of the stated mileage. Accident history It is the seller’s responsibility to tell potential buyers if a vehicle has been involved in an accident, and if it has, there should be documentary evidence. That obligation doesn’t extend to telling buyers about kerbing a wheel or scuffing a bumper against the garden fence (although a transparent service history detailing such incidents and repairs is good), but rather if the car was involved in a significant accident on the public highway and damaged to the point where its safety could be compromised. The severity of the accident determines whether a vehicle can be repaired to roadworthy standard, and if it has been categorised A or B by insurance assessors, it can’t be. Those letters mean it is a write-off – also known as a total loss – and cannot legally be repaired to a safe standard. Cars marked S or N have lighter damage and can be repaired. Insurers still class them as write-offs or total losses because they are not considered economical to repair, but they were involved in lower-level accidents and can be used on public roads again, providing they are safely repaired by a qualified engineer. Outstanding finance The seller is also responsible for settling any outstanding finance on the car before it is sold. For example, if they bought it with a finance package from a dealer, that must be paid off before they sell it. Even if you bought the vehicle in good faith, if the finance hasn’t been settled, then the lender could repossess it, meaning you could lose the car and the money you paid. Ask the seller if they bought the car with finance, when they paid it off, and if they have documents to support their claim. Stolen and recovered – or not? Once again, the seller must declare if a vehicle was stolen and recovered. Assuming a stolen vehicle was safely retrieved by the authorities and wasn’t damaged in the process (or if it was, it was well repaired), and the seller is clear and honest, there should be nothing wrong with it. However, as with accident damage, a theft can negatively affect a car’s value, so would-be buyers have a right to know its history. Worse, you really don’t want to buy a car that has been recently stolen, so always query rock-bottom prices that seem too good to be true and pause for thought if there’s pressure for a quick sale. Keep an eye out for signs of break-ins – forced damage to locks, door handles, windows boots and any other entry points – and check the Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) to make sure they match. These are often found under the bonnet, behind the front doors and sometimes in the footwells. HPI Check: the one-stop shop for car history checks A HPI Check will shine a light on all the above and more. It checks multiple sources of information from the DVLA, the police, the National Mileage Register, insurance and finance providers and other industry bodies to generate a clear and definitive history about any motorised vehicle, including cars, vans and motorcycles. Unscrupulous sellers or owners may seek to alter a vehicle’s mileage through clocking or blocking technology to increase its value. An HPI Check uses data from the National Mileage Register and many other sources to better understand a vehicle’s history. A HPI Check will tell you: A HPI Check will also verify the VIN number, provide a guide valuation and estimated fuel costs, and include an MOT history check. Many dealers include HPI checks as part of their used car sales, and it’s always worth asking to see the digital certificate and querying how recently the check was done. Click here to see a sample hpi check report so you know what a genuine one looks like. If you’re buying from private sellers on eBay or Gumtree, running an HPI Check yourself is worth it. Single checks cost £19.99, and be wary of anyone offering a free check—there is no such thing. Believe your eyes You won’t find it in the service history, but good, old-fashioned common sense never goes amiss when you’re checking a used car. Ask yourself: does the car’s real-world condition match its alleged history? Seeing it in the metal is the final piece of the puzzle, and – as long as you’ve done your homework – if the degree of wear and tear is commensurate with its age, mileage and documentation, then you’re likely onto a winner. However, if it’s advertised as a low-mileage car, but its real-world condition doesn’t tally with the description, ask the seller why and, if you can, interrogate further. For all the tricks of the trade,
March registrations – bag a bargain
Brits love their cars and they love to show them off – especially if it’s a new one with the latest registration plate. It’s a tradition that stretches back to 1963, when the original ‘suffix’ plates were introduced. Ever since then we’ve had a ‘year identifier’ that marks out when a car was first registered. Until 2001 we got one identifier per year, but when the current registration system was introduced we got two for each year; one for March and the other for September. As a result the previous single spike in new car sales became two, the March one being the bigger (and more popular) of the pair. With that in mind, we’ve just had the biggest spike in new car sales that we’ll see this year, so from here on until early 2017, dealers are going to have to work harder for your money. Which is why now is a great time to go shopping for that new car. Manufacturers have to keep churning out cars even if the demand isn’t really there for them; it’s no good running a factory at a fraction of capacity. To move those cars on, dealers are given targets and quotas, with plenty of incentives to keep shifting metal. Some marques have to work harder than others to shift stock, but even the premium brands have to try harder than you might think. When shopping for your new car, your mission is to secure the best discount you can, which means haggling hard and not being taken in by the salesman’s sob stories about how tight his margins are. But be realistic, as dealers generally make most of their profits from selling used cars and doing servicing. With most cheaper cars the margins are unbelievably small, which is why the bigger the car, the bigger the discounts available.
To buy or not to buy? : The answer could be in the paperwork
HPI’s Guide to Helping Used Car Buyers Avoid the Paperwork Pitfall www.hpicarbuyersguide.co.uk After searching for that dream car, many buyers are all too eager to seal the deal and hand over their hard earned money. But, says vehicle history check expert HPI, it’s vital to look beyond the shiny paintwork and high spec interior to avoid being caught out. Having the correct paperwork present when looking at the car will provide buyers with peace of mind, but it’s crucial to know exactly what to look for. HPI, provider of the HPI Check®, is helping buyers spot any early warning signs that the car may be a lemon in disguise, with its Paperwork Checklist. V5C (Logbook) HPI warns consumers not to buy a car without a V5C – otherwise known as a logbook – and make sure it’s genuine by looking for the DVLA watermark which can be seen when holding it up to the light. If there’s no V5C to hand, a new one can be applied for, but buyers should ask themselves and the seller why it isn’t available. If it’s been mislaid, ideally the vendor should have applied for a replacement before selling. Whilst the V5C tells buyers how many owners the car has had and who it’s registered to, it’s important to note that the person listed isn’t necessarily the legal owner of the car, simply the person to whom any fines will be sent. Buyers and sellers alike are also warned that not telling the DVLA of a change in vehicle ownership is an offence. MoT From three years after the date of first registration, all cars need an MoT roadworthiness check. It’s important to check the historical mileage reading for each year of its MOT test, not just the current reading, as this should paint a consistent picture of the vehicle’s increasing mileage over the car’s life. In addition, an MOT certificate will only tell buyers that the car met the test requirements on the particular day when the test was done, so it’s important buyers don’t rely on the MOT as an indicator of the vehicle’s current general mechanical condition. With all information now logged centrally, buyers can easily check if a vehicle’s MoT is valid by entering the vehicle registration and make online at www.vehicleenquiry.service.gov.uk. Without a valid MoT, a car can’t be taxed – and therefore can’t be insured.
Motoring terms explained
Modern life is full of jargon which often serves only to confuse. Nowhere is this more evident than in the world of used cars, where misunderstanding an acronym or technical term could land you with a whole heap of trouble. That’s why it’s so important to understand the terminology that’s bandied about. Here at HPI we have to use all sorts of terms that you might not understand. But read on and you’ll soon see there’s nothing to fear – we’ll soon have you talking like a seasoned car trader.
IT’S A FLOODY WRITE-OFF
hpi warns used car buyers to beware of water damaged vehicles hiding behind a temptingly low price tag www.hpicheck.com A staggering 237 thousand written off cars are uncovered every year by hpi, provider of the hpi check®, as being offered for sale by sellers who won’t always declare to buyers that they are insurance write-offs. However, warns hpi, with the used car market anticipated to be swamped with flood damaged cars in the coming months, the risk of purchasing a write-off could significantly be on the rise and buyers are being urged to take the necessary precautions. Whilst it’s not illegal to professionally repair and sell Category C and D insurance write-off cars, those that have been declared a Category A and B write-off are only good for the scrap heap or should be broken down for spare parts; they should never be returned to the roads. Unfortunately, there are fraudsters willing to patch up and disguise written off vehicles and sell them on to unsuspecting buyers for a quick profit.
Car clocking – don’t get caught out
It’s easy to think of clocked cars as a problem of yesteryear. One that’s been tackled so you no longer need to worry about it. But sadly, nothing could be further from the truth, as one in every 20 cars subjected to an HPI check is found to have been clocked. Where there’s easy money to be made, crooks will always strike – and with clocking so easy and the rewards potentially so great, it’s no wonder clocking is still such a big issue. So big in fact, that according to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), clocked cars cost the motor industry and consumers more than £100 million each year. According to used car valuation experts Glass’s, if you’re lucky enough to own a 12-plate BMW 530d SE Touring it’s worth little more than £15,000 with 150,000 miles on the clock. But halve this mileage and the car’s value jumps to just under £20,000. Cut the mileage to just 30,000 and the BMW is worth a whopping £23,000 – a 53 per cent (and £8000) increase over the 150,000-mile car. No wonder clocking is rife. Last year, one gang of criminals was imprisoned for clocking at least 255 cars, with four million miles being lost in the process. In 2013, a Nottingham-based dealer pocketed over £130,000 by wiping six million miles off 74 used cars that he sold online . With these scams far from unusual, you really need to have your wits about you.
Used Car Scams
Buying a used car can be stressful enough, without having to worry about whether or not the vendor is trying to rip you off. Unfortunately there’s a high chance of this, as one in every three HPI checks flags up some sort of problem. It could be that the car is subject to outstanding finance, it may have been clocked or it could have been involved in an insurance claim at some point. Alternatively it could be stolen, or there’s an array of other ways you could get caught out – so here’s how to protect yourself.
Top 10 car accessories
We love our cars and we also love to personalise them, whether that’s to make them more distinctive, safer or more comfortable. So if you’re putting together your Christmas list, these are the top 10 car accessories that should be on it. Sat-nav When sat-navs came out they allowed to navigate from one place to another – and for that alone they’re incredibly useful. But they’ve grown up since then to the point where they now do so much more. They’ll route you round jams, find specific points of interest, allow you to have a phone conversation via bluetooth, can be voice-controlled and you can stream music or even television through them too. Prices start at just £50 for an entry-level unit and go up to £300 for something with plenty of bells and whistles. Dash cam If you’re involved in a crash that’s not your fault, having footage of what happened can save you a huge amount of hassle and grief. With the rise of no-win no-fee lawyers, you need something to protect yourself if somebody tries to take action against you when you’ve done nothing wrong. No wonder dash cams have become so popular. Prices start at £50 and run to £300 or so, the posher models featuring dual lenses plus an ability to record your time and location via GPS. Action camera You probably don’t have any great desire to capture your crawl around the M25, but if you’re undertaking a more aspirational trip an action camera could be just what you need. The best known is the GoPro and thanks to the huge range of available accessories it’s easy to recommend. But much cheaper alternatives can be picked up for well under £50 and while the image quality might not be quite the same, you can still record some spectacular footage of those mountain passes or coastal drives on your holidays.
Buying a pre-registered car
How would you like to buy a brand new car at a hefty saving – perhaps as much as 25 per cent off? Of course you would! And there needn’t be a catch – it just depends on how much you value being able to choose the exact spec and colour of your ‘new’ car. That term ‘brand new’ is open to interpretation though, because while the cars we’re talking about have never been used and will have covered only a delivery mileage, they’ll already be registered to someone else. Specifically the dealer that’s selling the car. If this is sounding less appealing by the minute, don’t be put off by our slight lack of transparency, because these ‘pre-registered’ cars can be some of the best motoring bargains out there. You really are getting an unused car for much less than the new list price. It’s just that on paper, it’s a used car – which is why you can make a hefty saving.