When it comes to buying a second-hand car, it’s important to check the history of the vehicle to make sure there are no red flags.
When it comes to buying a second-hand car, it’s important to check the history of the vehicle to make sure there are no red flags. One of the things to look out for when buying a car is its previous owner’s history as a long list of owners could be an indication of a problem.
The easiest way to find out how many previous owners the car has is to use our online vehicle report. It’ll give you a summary of key items such as when the MOT runs out, if it’s been stolen, financed, etc. But you’ll also be able to find out how many previous owners the vehicle has had. All you need is its vehicle registration number.
The other way is to physically check the V5C and go through the list of previously registered keepers.
There’s no real answer to ‘how many is too many’ when it comes to previous owners. However, we find that the fewer owners a vehicle has had, typically the better the condition it’s in.
If someone buys a new car and keeps onto it for 5-10 years and then sells it on, it’s likely it’s received the same maintenance and care throughout those years. Whereas if the vehicle was constantly swapping owners, it’s very likely that it’ll be in a worse-off condition.
If you’re buying a car and are on-site with the vehicle, you’ll first need to determine how many owners it’s had previously. You can look in the vehicles service book as it should mention the various owners it’s had.
It’ll give you a chance to look through the service record to see if there has been any glaring issues with the vehicle that could cause issues in the short term. Also taking a look at the MOT history is a good idea, as once again you’ll be able to see any issues that were found during the MOT and if it passed or failed.
There is a list of very few circumstances where you can request the details of a current owner, to do so you’d need to go through the official form on the gov.uk website.
Due to data protection laws we do not receive personal information from the DVLA. You will have to have to contact DVLA directly.
Request owner informationIf you’re looking to find the owner for any of the following reasons, then your request should be accepted:
For more information on the process of submitting an application, please follow the link below:
Request owner information from DVLA
To find the name and address of the previous owner of your car, you can follow these steps:
Remember, accessing personal information about previous owners is subject to privacy laws and regulations, and you may need a valid reason for obtaining such information.
To check the number of previous owners a car has had, you can follow these steps:
1. Check your vehicle documents: The registration certificate (V5C) or logbook of your car typically includes information about previous owners. Look for sections or fields that indicate previous owners. Depending on the country, this information may be listed as “previous keepers” or “previous registered keepers.”
2. Vehicle history report (This is the quickest option) Our online vehicle history report service can provide you with detailed information about a car’s past, including the number of previous owners.
3. Contact the previous owner(s): If you have contact information for the previous owner(s) of the car, you can reach out to them directly and inquire about the number of previous owners. However, this may not always be feasible or possible.
4. Contact the dealership or manufacturer: If the car was previously owned by a dealership or used as a fleet vehicle, they may have records indicating the number of previous owners. You can contact the dealership or manufacturer, provide them with the vehicle details, and request information about the ownership history.
By combining these methods, you should be able to gather information about the number of previous owners your car has had. Remember that some services may require a fee, and accessing personal information about previous owners is subject to privacy laws and regulations.
Yes, the V5C registration certificate (commonly referred to as V5) can provide information about the number of previous owners a car has had. The V5 document includes a section called “Registered Keeper(s) Details,” which lists the previous and current registered keepers of the vehicle. By examining this section, you can determine the number of previous owners indicated on the V5 document.
Each registered keeper represents a separate owner of the vehicle. However, it’s important to note that the V5 may not always provide the complete ownership history, especially if the vehicle has changed hands multiple times or if there were gaps in registration transfers. In such cases, obtaining a comprehensive vehicle history report or contacting the DVLA may provide a more accurate account of the ownership history.