Free Car VIN Check
Enter the 17-character Vehicle Identification Number from a listing or the car itself. See what the VIN says the car really is, whether the VIN is valid, and the official recalls and owner complaints for that model.
Is the VIN real?
North American VINs contain a check digit. A VIN that fails it was mistyped or made up, which is a classic sign of a fake listing.
Does it match the ad?
The VIN encodes the make, model, year, engine and factory. If the seller's ad says something different, walk away.
Recalls and complaints
Official NHTSA recalls, thousands of owner complaints and crash-test star ratings for the model.
How to use a VIN to avoid used-car scams
Every car built since 1981 has a unique 17-character VIN. It is stamped on a plate at the bottom of the windscreen on the driver's side, on a sticker in the driver's door frame, and printed on the registration and title documents. All three should match, and they should match the VIN in the advert.
Fake listings
The most common online car scam is a vehicle that does not exist: a below-market price, photos copied from a real listing, and a seller who is "deployed overseas" or "moving abroad" and wants a deposit by wire transfer, gift cards or a payment app, often through a fake escrow or shipping service. Asking for the VIN is a quick test. Scammers either refuse or send a VIN that decodes to a different car. Never pay a deposit for a car you have not seen in person.
VIN cloning
Stolen cars are given the VIN of a similar legal car, copied onto fake plates and stickers. Check that the VIN on the dashboard plate, the door sticker and the paperwork are identical and untampered, and that the decoded details (engine, body style, trim, factory) match the car in front of you.
What this check covers, and what it does not
We use the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): its VIN decoder, its recall database, the complaints owners file, and its crash-test ratings. Recalls are listed for the model and year. To see whether a recall was already fixed on this exact car, enter the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or ask a dealer. We do not have accident, mileage or title history. In the U.S., get a history report from an NMVTIS-approved provider and check for theft or salvage with the National Insurance Crime Bureau's free VINCheck.
More in our guide: Used-car scams and how a VIN check stops them.