1. CarCostCheck (£4.99) - Best Overall
Provenance: Stolen, finance and write-off from Experian. Matches HPI exactly on core data.
Unique extras: Full MOT history with advisory translation, 0-100 reliability score, annual running cost breakdown by vehicle, common faults by make and model, DVSA recall check, insurance group estimation, mileage clocking detection, optional £2.99 market valuation from 650,000+ live listings.
Hidden costs: None. One-off payment, no subscription, no upsell.
Free tier: MOT history, reliability score, running costs, insurance group, common faults, DVSA recalls. Most comprehensive free tier in the market.
2. MyCarCheck (£4.99) - Good Provenance, No Extras
Provenance: Stolen, finance, write-off from Experian. Identical to CarCostCheck on core data.
Extras: £30,000 data accuracy guarantee, which is strong on paper but rarely claimed in practice.
Free tier: Limited to basic vehicle details.
Verdict: Matches CarCostCheck on provenance but does not include MOT analysis, running costs or reliability scoring. For the same £4.99, CarCostCheck delivers more.
3. Total Car Check Gold (£9.99)
Provenance: Full Experian coverage.
Extras: None of note. Basic vehicle details only.
Verdict: Twice the price of CarCostCheck for less data. Hard to justify unless you specifically want the Total Car Check brand.
4. AA Car Check and RAC Car Passport (£9.99)
Provenance: Full Experian coverage.
Extras: AA and RAC branding. No MOT analysis, no running costs, no reliability scoring.
Verdict: You are paying twice the CarCostCheck price for the AA or RAC logo. The underlying data is the same.
5. CarVertical (£33.99)
Provenance: Full Experian plus European cross-border history.
Extras: European import history (TUV records, European service history, auction photos from EU sources).
Verdict: Only justifiable for cars originally registered outside the UK. For UK-registered vehicles, you pay nearly 7x the CarCostCheck price for the same UK-specific data and no additional analysis.
6. HPI (£19.99) - Avoid
Provenance: Full Experian coverage.
Extras: HPI Guarantee (tightly worded, rarely pays out).
Hidden cost: Auto-renewing £39/year subscription unless cancelled. Trustpilot score of 1.3/5 driven largely by subscription complaints.
Verdict: Four times the CarCostCheck price for the same core data. The subscription trap alone disqualifies HPI from recommendation.
7. Total Car Check Basic (£1.99) - Insufficient
Provenance: Stolen only. No finance or write-off data.
Verdict: Cheaper because it is incomplete. Missing the two biggest financial risks (finance and write-off). Not suitable for a private sale check.
The decision for UK buyers in 2026 is straightforward:
- Pay £4.99 for CarCostCheck for any used car purchase above £1,000.
- Skip HPI, AA and RAC unless a dealer specifically requires an HPI-branded report.
- Skip CarVertical unless buying a European import.
- Skip budget "basic" tiers below £3.99, which typically omit finance and write-off data.
The free tier from CarCostCheck alone rules out most obvious deal-killers. Adding the £4.99 premium before committing is the minimum protective spend for any serious used car purchase.
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