If you seek a free HPI Check, understand that HPI (Hire Purchase Investigation) Ltd. does not offer free car checks. They charge you a hefty £19.99 for a single car history check, which is by far the most expensive in the industry.
However, you should not be upset because you can get a cheapest HPI check for nearly half the price in the UK.
Most people believe that HPI check is the only genuine vehicle check in the UK, while the reality is totally opposite. To clear your all doubts, we would first explain the HPI, its history.
Table of contents
What is HPI Check?
A company in the UK HPI(Hire Purchase Investigation) is the first to provide a vehicle history check service to used car buyers. They started up with an outstanding finance check service at first, which now covering insurance written off, mileage discrepancy, stolen vehicle checks and more.
Hence the term HPI check which cost around £19.99 for checking a vehicle’s history.
Fast forward today, we have dozens of alternatives available in the UK: both free and paid options. We call them car history check which is 100% accurate, genuine, and are even better than the HPI check in terms of price.
What exactly HPI clear means?
Many sellers will mention that a car is HPI Clear. What does it means? Is it important to consider while buying a vehicle?
Yes.
An HPI clear refers to any cars, vans or bikes registered in the DVLA of UK that has passed the HPI check and shows no adverse hidden history recorded against it. A vehicle with HPI Clear stamp is sure a good buy.
In other words, a car with no outstanding finance, nor stolen or insurance written-off and has no mileage anomaly refers to an HPI clear label. It means the car is entirely safe to buy.
But you don’t need a hefty £19.99 to check if a car is HPI clear or not. The Auto experts’ premium car history check is the best and cheap alternative to an HPI clear check.
Can you get a free car HPI check?
The truth is, “There’s no such thing as a Free HPI Check.”. The HPI advises to be cautious of any service providers offering free hpi check.
Still, one of the best alternative car history provider for the free HPI check and HPI check is The Auto Experts. For just £9.99, you will get complete information about a vehicle’s adverse history and make sure your car is HPI clear or not. Below are the vehicle details you get..
- Outstanding finance on a car
- Mileage anomaly
- Insurance written-off status
- Scrapped status or Certificate of destruction check
- Number of plate and color changes
- Recorded as stolen in PNC
- Number of previous owners and date which first registered
- MOT history along with advisories and failure notices
- VIN or chassis number (last 5 digits)
- Imported or Exported check
Difference between HPI and other car history checks:
As stated earlier, a car check offered by auto data firms is as genuine as an HPI check. Both these data reports have a similar scope where the price is mostly the only differentiating element. Indeed, you can get specific vehicle check services for almost half the cost of an HPI Check.
Regarding the data set we get from HPI and other providers, they are almost the same. In fact, some car data firms give you more details than what HPI offers.
Speaking of the authenticity of the reports, both HPI and other car history check offers accurate information. The reason is all vehicle history providers fetch data from almost the same sources.
Why do they do that? Well, they are the most authentic and valid sources in the UK. Here are some of these:
- DVLA: It records a vehicle’s make, model, specifications, date of registration, MOT history, and road tax status.
- MIAFTR (Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud Theft Register): It notes insurance write-off and stolen car information.
- Experian and other linked companies: These financial firms document a vehicle’s finance information.
- The Police National Computer (PNC): It records stolen vehicles, so officers can catch the thieves whenever the patrolling system alerts them.
So, where does the difference lie? Well, the only distinguishing factor is the price (more on it later).
Which is the cheapest car history check in the UK?
Well, you can do your own search, but we found The Auto Experts are one of the most affordable car history providers in this field at £9.99. Here’s a quick comparison table for you (remember the prices are for a full car history report which includes all the information same as official HPI check).
When you are on the internet to find the cheapest HPI alternative, keep in mind a few other things. Compare the amount of data different platforms offer and their customer support.
For instance, a platform offering you a vehicle check for just £6 without telling you about its outstanding finance isn’t worth it. You need all the crucial information about the car you want to buy that could help you avoid a dud.
Secondly, the car data guarantee is crucial. A company offering no guarantee of the data they provide could cost you thousands of pounds in a dud car purchase.
We hope this post would have cleared your all doubts regarding the free HPI check. The HPI Check and HPI Clear are just two marketing terms most providers use for their car data check these days. In reality, these registered names belong to HPI Ltd.
On the other hand, we should understand an HPI Check isn’t the only genuine car history check in the UK. There are tens of other services, which come at half the price of an HPI Check. So, shop around for your vehicle history report and be easy on your pocket.
