Deciding to buy a new set of wheels for your everyday needs is always a big life decision. You are not only spending more money than you normally do on other things, but you are getting a whole new commitment that will be a part of your life for at least a few years. Modern humans can hardly operate optimally and be successful without a car. This is particularly true for the huge cities where everything is far. Cars are also crucial if you live far away from the nearest financial and social center, as most people living in the country side and on farms or ranches can confirm.
To put it simply, buying a new car is something you will do at least once in your lifetime. Most people do it at regular intervals like once every three or four years even. In any case, the approach to the whole purchase is largely the same. That is, if you are not buying a brand new vehicle. Rarely anyone does these days and in this economy, especially considering car depreciation and the fact that a new car loses around 40% of its value in the first year. It is said that the car loses around 10% of its value as soon as you drive it off the lot!
Because of this, and many other reasons, buying second-hand cars is the way to go. It is a whole industry and the common way people do business with their vehicles. In order to find a good car however you need to know a bunch of important info. On top of that, when you find the one you like and decide to check it out in person, there is a whole set of steps to take to ensure that it is a good deal and that you will not make a poor business decision. In this article we will focus on one of these steps and talk about vehicle history. Checking this is of the utmost importance because it tells you virtually everything the car has been true. Read on to find out more about it and be sure to check out revscheckregister.com.au for a quick and easy way to get a REV check report.
What is a History Report?
A vehicle history report is documentation regarding different aspects of its history. From who owned it and where to the damages and accidents, you are able to see and check every single detail the car has been through during its years on the road. It should be said right from the start that you should never trust the car seller and buy a car from them if they lack the vehicle history for that particular four wheeler. There is no saying what it may have been used for and who might have owned it. Stolen cars usually lack documentation too. So what does the vehicle history tell us?
The core parts of the documentation revolve around the ownership, accident(s), mileage, inspections, and lemon. It tells you how many people owned it, whether it was involved in accidents and how many of them, whether the odometer is showing the correct mileage, were the inspections up to date, and was the car ever a lemon (deemed unrepairable and then salvaged to be restored off a junkyard).
For those of you who care about details, you can virtually learn everything the car has been through including major and minor accidents, structural damages, changed parts, service history, leases, taxi or police use, flood and fire damage, airbag deployments, ownership length, yearly miles driven, and warranty and insurance information. Nobody should buy a car without knowing this information really.
How Much Does It Cost?
So how much do you need you need to pay to get this information, and do you need to pay at all? Well, the question itself is complex and so will the answer be. First of all, not every report is the same and it greatly matters what type of info you want. The prices typically range from $25 to $100 depending on the service you choose to get the report from and the plans they offer. Dealerships and auto marketplaces may also provide history reports free of charge for the used vehicles they have for sale. This would mean that you get it anyway if you buy a used car from their lot. If you are buying a car from an individual owner who has no ties to a larger organization though, you will have to pay.
To answer the titular question, the cheapest way to get it is to browse the cars that come with a free history check. The most expensive would be to pick a service that is a part of the car industry and ask them to give you a full report with every possible detail. Contacting national crime bureaus or visiting online services can also be a cheap or completely free way of obtaining certain info. For example, if you can get a complete VIN (vehicle identification number) for the car in question, you may be able to access its history in a database.
We told you that it is a complex question, remember? Basically, it really matters who you are buying the car from and what kind of information they can give you. Maybe they already have a complete history report at the ready. This would mean they are to be trusted as sellers and that you should have no problem completing the purchase without any sort of problems. Even if they have partial information you could be in for a treat.
Checking the rest with your local police station or the police station of the state or city where the car is registered should not cost that much. What you should absolutely never do is shake on it and complete the deal without having a look into the history. It exists for a reason, to protect you, the previous owners, and the future owners of the vehicle. It also serves for legal purposes and compiling databases of active vehicles on the roads.
