I had not ordered a VIN report on any vehicle in the last 15 years. A few days ago I tried Vinaudit on the Ford E350 I have owned for the last 17 years. Vinaudit cost only $9.99.... cheap! but it was worthless to me, a wasted effort.

It was a terrible result listing nothing other than the three states I've registered it in myself; yet no info for registered, when is which state?, nor to whom? (me). The report did not list the accident it, and I, were in. Nor did it list the body repair completed by a Ford dealer at my request and my good insurance paid for(well done front left repairs). It did not list anything; in any category, no dates, no names.... nothing.

Carfax is $44 or such. I imagine it better. I do not know? Wish I'd not sent my $10 to VinAudit.

 

My Fusion has been to Ford body shop 3 times for animal collisions.
Carfax shows it as Ford service, no accidents.

 

scam alert -- don't use vinhistoryus.com -- they promise a $1 search but once you register and pay then they make you pay extra to see what they found. this is a total scam. if you download the PDF of their useless report it is an additional charge.

 

The problem with Carfax and the like is they only know what is reported. My previous Sprinter w/200k and my current Transit w/75k have never been anywhere for warranty work or maintenance service that would be reported.
Dave

 

I think there are more fake VIN Report web sites than there are real ones. There is a common scam on Autotrader where someone says he wants your vehicle, will take it, is committing to the purchase, etc. and will be there tomorrow to look at it, but first you need to get a VIN report and send it to him to make sure there "are no issues". The reality is that they are getting your credit card and billing details. Once you buy this report, you will never hear from or even be able to reach the 'buyer'.

Even with the real ones, it's only as good as the data that was entered, if at all.

 

I wanted to be extra sure about accident history and how many owners it had. Someone in a different forum thread suggested I try searching https://detailedvehiclehistory.com — I didn’t expect much, but ended up finding more than just the sticker. They actually had ownership history, title checks, mileage records — the whole deal. It helped me spot a car that had a salvage title a seller didn’t mention. Might be worth checking out if you want something more detailed than the basic VIN reports.

 

I think there are more fake VIN Report web sites than there are real ones. There is a common scam on Autotrader where someone says he wants your vehicle, will take it, is committing to the purchase, etc. and will be there tomorrow to look at it, but first you need to get a VIN report and send it to him to make sure there "are no issues". The reality is that they are getting your credit card and billing details. Once you buy this report, you will never hear from or even be able to reach the 'buyer'.

Even with the real ones, it's only as good as the data that was entered, if at all.

I think there are probably more fake accounts shilling VIN Report web sites that there are real ones. Just a hunch tho:

I wanted to be extra sure about accident history and how many owners it had. Someone in a different forum thread suggested I try searching "Window Sticker by DVH" — I didn’t expect much, but ended up finding more than just the sticker. They actually had ownership history, title checks, mileage records — the whole deal. It helped me spot a car that had a salvage title a seller didn’t mention. Might be worth checking out if you want something more detailed than the basic VIN reports.