Carfax, Inc.
CARFAX, INC. is a commercial web-based service that supplies vehicle history reports to individuals and car dealerships on used cars and light trucks for the American and Canadian marketplaces.
Working closely with the Missouri Automobile Dealers Association, CARFAX first offered the early version CARFAX Vehicle History Report to the dealer market in 1986. These reports were developed with a database of just 10,000 vehicle records and were distributed via fax machine. By the end of 1993, CARFAX obtained title information from nearly all fifty states.
In December of 1996, CARFAX.com launched offering consumers the same instant access to vehicle history reports already available to used car dealers. In 2007 a web site was added for Banking and Insurance Companies at carfaxbig.com.
In the fall of 1999 CARFAX became a wholly owned subsidiary of the R.L. Polk Company.
Obtaining a Report
At no cost, one may perform a Lemon Check and/or Recall Check. These reports do not contain all of the information that is contained on a full history report.
Otherwise, one may purchase a single report or purchase an account which allows unlimited reports for a period of time. Most car dealers are also happy to run reports for free on vehicles they have for sale. Thousands of dealers buy the report and then make them available for free to potential car buyers on sites like Cars.com and AutoTrader.com.
Users enter the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) into the website to receive a report. The service will not work for any vehicle that has a VIN of less (or more) than 17 digits, primarily vehicles that are older than model year 1981.
What's On a Report
CARFAX reports contain information which provides a history of ownership (how many, where, when), usage (odometer readings, maintenance/repair events, registration type), title brands (salvage, junk, fire, flood, etc.), and miscellaneous events (accidents, recalls, certifications). In aggregate this information provides one perspective for analyzing the quality and value of a vehicle.
- Accidents - Not all accidents are reported and not all reported accidents are included, but a substantial number are listed
- Advisories - CARFAX aggregates enough data on most vehicles to infer certain events. When the inference is sufficiently strong CARFAX will provide an advisory explaining the inference.
- Airbag Deployment
- Auto Auction - Many vehicles are sold at auction and CARFAX reports on these sales
- Certified Pre-Owned Status - Many manufacturers report the cars they certify to CARFAX
- Dates of activity - Most events shown on the report include a date of the event
- Emission Test Results
- Frame Damage - In addition to reporting accidents, frequently frame damage is reported
- Lease / Lien events
- Location - Most records include some indication of the city and state of origin for the event
- Maintenance and Service Events - Like accidents, not all are reported, but a significant number are
- Non-Branded Lemon - The manufacturer bought back the vehicle as a courtesy instead of due to legal requirement
- Odometer Readings - These may include readings or title designations that the readings are not reliable
- Odometer Rollbacks - Some rollbacks are certified while other irregular readings are highlighted with suggestion for careful review
- Open Recalls - Many manufacturers report their open recalls to CARFAX
- Ownership Transfers
- Repairs - Like accidents, not all are reported, but a significant number are, particularly when paid by an extended warranty company
- Stolen Vehicles
- Title Brands - Official state designations found on the title such as Salvage, Flood, Lemon, and Junk
- Title Numbers
- Titling Activity - Transfers, renewals, etc.
- Vehicle Use - Taxi, Fleet, Commercial, Personal, Rental car, and other uses are reported
What's Not On a Report
- Personal information such as names, telephone numbers, and addresses of owners are neither collected nor reported.
- Events in a vehicle's history that have never been reported (unreported accidents, owner performed maintenance, etc.)
What's a record?
A record is not automatically something bad. So a car with 6 records could show
1. When the car was built
2. When and where the car was 1st registered
3. When the first annual inspection was done
4. When the 2nd annual inspection was done
5. When the car was registered in a new state
6. When the car was offered for sale
Of course, records can also be things you might be concerned about - accidents, inspection failures and the like.
The number of records on a Carfax report is neither good nor bad.
Where the Information Comes From
The CARFAX database contains over four-billion records that have been collected over time from a variety of sources.
These sources include, but are not limited to:
- Auto auctions
- Canadian Motor Vehicle Departments
- Consumer Protection Agencies
- Dealer Inventory
- Extended Warranty Companies
- Fire Departments
- Import/Export Companies
- Inspection Companies
- Law Enforcement Agencies
- Manufacturers
- Rental/Fleet Vehicle Companies
- Salvage auctions
- Service and Repair Facilities
- State Inspection Stations
- State registration records
- State title records
- U.S. Customs
- U.S. Department of Transportation
The CARFAX vehicle history database contains over four-billion records collected from more than 20,000 public and private sources. Mistakes and errors, although uncommon, can and do occur. Common causes for report errors include incorrect mileage readings by emissions technicians, owners estimating miles on registration forms, and dealer inventory labels keyed incorrectly.
Additional Services
- CARFAX Hot Listings - Used vehicle listings and locator
- Safety and Reliability Reports - Historical safety and reliability information by make and model
- Safe Teen Drivers Program - Safe Teen Drivers Program
West vs Carfax
In a class action lawsuit, (West v. Carfax, Inc.) the plaintiff claimed that Carfax violated consumer protection laws by not disclosing the limitations of their service, specifically their inability to check accident records in 23 states. Carfax has settled this lawsuit, and persons taking part in the settlement can get a voucher for $20 off a third party vehicle inspection and a 50% for Carfax services. Claims can be made at [1]