Investigating Vehicle Accident History: What You Need to Know

Vehicle accidents occur every day and the aftermath can be very upsetting and confusing. It is important to understand the history of a vehicle before making a purchase, as it could have been in a major accident or had other problems that could affect its safety and performance. This article will provide insight into what you need to know about investigating a vehicle's accident history including what tools to use to evaluate vehicles condition and long-term cost of ownership.

In order to check vehicle accident history it is impartative that you first locate the Vehicle Identification Number, commonly referred to as VIN. This is a unique 17 digit number can commenly be found on the vehicles documents such as title, registration and insurance policy. However, it is impartative to crossreferance the vin number with the vin number permenently etched on multiple sections of the vehicle. Most commonly the VIN can be located directly on the dashboard visible from the lower driver side of the windshield. You may also find it in the driver's or passanger's door jams. 

Once you have your VIN you can then check vehicle accident history by using a vin check service such as VinCheckUp. The VinCheckUp vehicle history report will uncover a wealth of information as reported previously to the insurance company. Beyond displaying details about the vehicle accident history you will be able to uncover details such as previous flood damage, motor vehicle accident details, water damage, title brand, market value and much more... 

Your VinCheckUp vehicle history report will also provide a more detailed view into the vehicle history. You may be able to assess if the vehicle was owned by multiple owners, had ever been purchased back under lemon law or branded as a salvage vehicle even if the vehicle does not currently have a  salvage title as reported by NMVTIS (national motor vehicle title information system). 

Beyond the obvious advantages of running a vehicle history report before you make the purchase decision a VinCheckUp Vehicle History Reports may also help you assess rough ownership costs by providing vehicle reviews and ratings submitted by actual vehicle owners directly in the vin check report. For example, if you see multiple reports of premature transmission failure on certain year, make and model vehicle you will be able to access and better evaluate your car purchasing decision.