For £4.99 (half the RAC price), you get everything above plus 12 additional checks, all available free before you even pay:
Every MOT test since 2005 with advisories and repair cost estimates. A mileage timeline that catches clocking at a glance. A reliability score comparing this car to thousands of identical models. Annual running costs broken down by fuel, tax, insurance, and repairs. Known issues for this exact make, model, and year. Insurance group data. DVSA recall check. ULEZ compliance. And more.
The premium £4.99 tier adds the Experian provenance data on top of all the free checks. The £6.99 bundle adds a market valuation. At every price point, CarCostCheck provides more information for less money.
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The RAC's strongest offering is their in-person pre-purchase inspection from £149. A trained mechanic visits the car, checks the mechanical condition, bodywork, electrics, and takes it for a road test. They provide a detailed report with photographs.
This is a genuinely valuable service that we recommend for:
- Cars over £10,000 where the inspection cost is proportionate
- Cars with Cat S write-off history where structural repair quality matters
- Cars you are buying sight-unseen or from a distance
- Older cars with limited service history
However, the physical inspection and the online Car Passport are completely separate products. The smart strategy is to use CarCostCheck for the online data (£4.99, more comprehensive) and the RAC for the physical inspection (£149) when needed. This saves you £5 on the online check while getting the best of both worlds.
| Scenario | CarCostCheck | RAC |
|---|
| Screening 5 cars (free checks) | £0 | £49.95 (£9.99 x 5) |
| Premium check on your top pick | £4.99 | Already paid above |
| Add valuation for negotiation | £2.99 (or £6.99 bundle) | Not available |
| Total cost | £4.99-6.99 | £49.95 |
CarCostCheck is not just a cheaper version of HPI. It is a fundamentally better product that happens to cost 75% less. Here is what you get that HPI does not offer at any price:
- Real-time market valuation from £2.99, powered by over 650,000 live UK dealer listings. See what your car is actually worth in your local area, how quickly similar cars sell, and how the price compares nationally.
- Estimated vehicle lifespan: Our AI model analyses over 100 million data points to predict how many years the car has left and the probability of it being on the road in 12 months.
- Insurance costs by age: See estimated annual premiums for drivers aged 20, 30, 40, and 50. Budget before you buy.
- Running cost breakdown: Annual fuel, road tax, MOT, predicted repairs, and total cost per month. All calculated for this specific car.
- Health score (0-100): A single number that tells you the overall condition of the vehicle based on MOT history, advisory patterns, mileage consistency, and maintenance trends.
- Common faults: Known issues for this exact make and model, drawn from real MOT failure data across thousands of vehicles.
- 12 free checks: Full MOT history, mileage verification, reliability score, running costs, fuel costs, insurance group, red flag alerts, common faults, recall check, ULEZ compliance, and more. All before you pay a penny.
The premium history check (£4.99) uses the same Experian database as HPI, AA, and RAC. You get identical stolen, finance, and write-off data. The complete bundle (history + valuation) is £6.99, still 65% cheaper than HPI's basic check.
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12 checks included free. Premium stolen, finance, and write-off checks for just £4.99. Market valuation from £2.99.
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