Checking the previous owners of a used car
Car ownership checks
Who owns a car registered with DVLA?
What owner checks should I make before buying a used car?
Running a car owner check could save you time, money and difficulties down the road. The results of your ownership check (before you purchase) may sway your decision to buy, or not.
A CarVeto report provides the nearest online data relating to car owner information.
Included in each report:
- Complete periods of ownership for all keepers since new
- Number of previous keepers
- Current keeper acquisition date
- Current keeper ownership period
- The previous keeper sold date
- The previous keeper acquired date
- Last V5C issue date
- Registration data
- DVLA record of registration, city or postcode AREA
(Full name/address NOT provided due to data protection)
Additional checks
CarVeto searches over 50 data points to provide a vast report on any UK vehicle:
- Mileage
- Theft
- Write off
- Colour changes
- MOT history
- Scrapped
- History of plate changes and dates of transfers
You are best off getting an instant CarVeto Car History Check for all the information about a used car.
What are the myths about car ownership?
Note that the registered keeper does not necessarily own the car.
From a legal stance, the owner is the person who paid for the vehicle.
The DVLA Logbook (registration document) holds personal details about the motorist responsible for safety and legal roadworthiness.
When looking at a V5 logbook and checking the number of previous owners (see image), notice that the car has one, two, three, or four previous owners.
Car ownership
Remember, this number is based on previous owners and does not account for who owns the car today.
Example:
You notice that the car you want to buy has had four previous owners since new. You need to include the existing owner in that tally. If you buy the vehicle, you are the sixth owner, not the fifth. When you come to sell the car, the new owner will be the seventh.
CarVeto Car Reg Check searches and returns information about previous ownership.
Do dealers advertise the wrong number of car owners?
Ever notice that a car is advertised online as one owner from new, only to find it is one previous owner? We now know that if you were to buy the car, you’d be the third owner.
Wow, it makes quite a difference.
If you encounter this mistake, apply some leverage and get a few more pounds from the screen price.
What is best practice when it comes to previous owners?
Excellent car buying involves more than buying a genuine car with good value for money. It’s also good to think about the car value when you want to sell, and any potential difficulties you might face should you wish to sell quickly for anything like the actual market value.
One element that car buyers look at is the number of previous owners. From our best car history check tests and experience, a car with more than four previous owners seems challenging to sell.
Four Owners or More? It’s a Tough Sell
We generally advise buyers to look for vehicles with no more than two previous owners. While factors like age, mileage, condition, and service history certainly matter, ownership history plays a significant role too, especially if the car has remained within the same family.
As a rule of thumb, a car with four owners is nearing its limit. Anyone buying it next would be the fifth owner, and that's where resale becomes tricky. Very few people want to be the sixth.
How to Run a Car Owner Check Investigation?
If you want to search the history of previous car ownership, you can do several things.
- Look at the previous and existing owners' names and addresses as printed on the V5C logbook. Write to the old owners and ask questions.
- Look through the service records and see if there are any old receipts or invoices for maintenance work. Check the names and addresses on those invoices. You can write to the old owners and ask your questions (e.g., when was the cam belt last changed, was the car reliable, etc.).
- To request information about a vehicle, complete a V888 form via the DVLA. The DVLA reserves the right to decline your request, but it is worth a try.
- CarVeto Car Checker. We search and return all available data on used cars in the UK, including a car owner check. We might hold some information that is otherwise unavailable to you. Our Gold check is just £8.90 and is an excellent asset for any used car.