HPI App Comparison – Finding an HPI Service You Can Trust
There are a lot of instant HPI check apps on the market these days, but their prices vary and you could be caught out with a dodgy report or high price if you aren’t careful. Find out which apps you can trust and which ones to avoid in this blog.
What will we be reviewing?
We will be reviewing three HPI vehicle history checking mobile apps and their functionality, these apps are “MyCarCheck”, “Car Status Check” and “Instant Car Check” Please click on the name of the apps at the bottom of the page to go directly to that app’s review.
It’s getting easier and easier for developers to release apps for anyone with a mobile phone to download. Which unfortunately also means there’s more of a chance of running into an app that’s not up to scratch. This is especially dangerous when spending money within an app for a service in which you expect specific results. With more vehicle history checking apps now at your fingertips, it’s important to know which ones are giving you more bang for your buck.
We will only be reviewing unofficial vehicle check apps, as we know the information provided by HPI Check’s official app will be correct. Unofficial HPI check apps may boast about how cheap they are compared to others, but make sure you look out for what comes with that price. There are a few apps that don’t clearly state how much detail their report will go into, or whether you will be able to specifically check why the insurance might be outstanding.
We’re going to be reviewing the most popular HPI check apps on a basis of presentation, usability and most importantly, pricing. Firstly though, let’s get back to basics.
What is a HPI check?
HPI checks are most predominantly used to delve into the history of a second hand car and make sure that there are no skeletons in it’s closet such as outstanding finance or that it could be reported stolen on Police National Computer.What to expect from a HPI check
Vehicle ID – Most simple checks will provide basic information on the vehicle such as car make, model, colour, engine size, gearbox etc. This information is provided for free by most services.
Stolen – Up to 30 cars a day are identified and added to the Police National Computer’s list of stolen vehicles. HPI will check if the vehicle in question has been recorded stolen.
Outstanding Finance – Also including unpaid loans, HPI checks whether there are any outstanding payments on the chosen vehicle. As high as 24 of every 100 cars checked turn out to have outstanding finance on them. If you buy a car with an unpaid loan against it, you might be responsible for the payments or even lose the car all together.
Security Watch – This confirms if there is a security watch on a vehicle that has a high risk of fraud or theft. The motor trade, finance companies and the police mainly use them in order to trace a vehicle and prevent a potential fraudulent sale or theft. You should not purchase a vehicle with a recorded security watch.
Insurance Write Off – A vehicle history check will notify the consumer on whether a vehicle has been written off as a result of either theft or damage. Around 4 out of 100 vehicles that are checked come back as previously written off.
Condition Inspected – A car may have previous been labelled as unworthy to be on the road. This is checked to see if the vehicle has passed an independent examination so it can again be deemed as a roadworthy vehicle.
Plate Transfer – While one of the less crucial values that will be checked, but is still important as a changed number plate can be used to hide the vehicle’s history. As much as 20 out of 100 vehicles that are checked come back with the result of a changed number sometime in their past.
V5 Check – A check will be done to ensure that the V5 registration document (Logbook) is a vital document to every vehicle and is a clear indication to whether the vehicle is legitimate. This will check if the V5 document has been recorded as part of a stolen batch.
Mileage Check – Some vehicles may he a victim of “Clocking”, the practice of turning back the mileage counter to mislead the amount of miles a car has actually travelled. Currently a major problem in the UK, vehicle checks will use data from the National Mileage Register to ensure that there has been no tinkering of the mileage counter with the car in question.
For more information on what checks are carried out, the official HPI website has a full and comprehensive glossary of terms on exactly what is checked through their service.
So let’s get down to business and review our first app! Click the next button to continue reading, or click on the app names to read each of their reviews.
- HPI App Comparison
- MyCarCheck
- Car Status Check
- Instant Car Check
- Next