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Vehicles (VIN/Plates): Search Guides
Check a car's history and recalls, and learn when the law lets you identify its owner. Owner details are protected in the US, Canada and the UK. What you can check for free is the car itself: recalls, theft reports and history.
In the US, Canada and the UK, the owner details held by licensing authorities aren't public. In the US, the Driver's Privacy Protection Act limits DMV records to permissible purposes, and in the UK you have to apply to the DVLA with a reason, on form V888. So these guides focus on the car itself, which you can check freely, and on the proper channels when you have a legitimate reason to reach the owner.
Guides
What to try first
- Get the VIN. It's on the dashboard by the windscreen, on the driver's door frame and on the registration document. Make sure all three match.
- Run the free official recall check for the VIN.
- Check theft and write-off status before you pay, especially for a private sale.
- If you need to contact an owner, for example after a collision or about an abandoned car, go through the police, your insurer or the licensing authority.
Which guide do I need?
- You're about to buy a used car: How to Check If a Used Car Is Stolen or Written Off. Stolen, written-off and recall checks, step by step, with what to ask the seller.
- A car hit yours and drove off, or is blocking your property: How to Find Out Who Owns a Car (VIN & Plate Lookup). Explains why owner details aren't public and who can request them for you.
- You want to know a car's history from its plate: How to Find Out Who Owns a Car (VIN & Plate Lookup). What a plate or VIN lookup can and can't tell you in each country.
- You think a car you own was sold to you stolen: How to Check If a Used Car Is Stolen or Written Off. What to do next, and why you should talk to the police before the seller.