These are the terms and conditions under which our Data Guarantee operates. This document sets out the entirety of our additional Data Guarantee and should be read together with our Terms and Conditions.
This Data Guarantee is offered by Vcheck Ltd. It is separate from, and does not affect, any statutory rights you may have as a consumer.
We already operate a money back guarantee, being a refund of the amount you paid to us for the report, where we report to you information which does not accurately reflect information available to us from the sources we use at the time the report was generated.
This additional Data Guarantee may provide protection to you up to the maximum sum of £40,000, but only where all applicable conditions, obligations and exclusions set out below are complied with fully.
The maximum amount payable under this Data Guarantee for any single claim, vehicle or series of related claims is £40,000 inclusive of all losses, costs and expenses.
Definitions
- "Us", "We" and "VCheck" means Vcheck Ltd.
- "You" means an individual consumer who purchased a VCheck report and subsequently purchased the vehicle primarily for personal use. Reports may be purchased by businesses, however this Data Guarantee applies only to eligible consumer purchases.
- "Report" means the vehicle data report purchased from VCheck in relation to the Designated Vehicle.
- "Designated Vehicle" means the UK registered vehicle identified by the registration mark and/or VIN you provided to us, for which you purchased a report from us and which you subsequently purchased.
- "Private Seller" means a person selling a vehicle owned by them who is not acting in the course of the motor trade.
- "Trade Seller" means a person or business operating as a genuine motor vehicle business.
- "Working Hours" means the hours between 9:00am and 4:00pm on Mondays to Fridays, excluding UK public holidays.
The Categories of Claims Applicable to this Data Guarantee
- Type A: Stolen Vehicle
- A claim under this section may be made if we stated in our report to you that the Designated Vehicle was not reported as stolen and it transpires that, before the report was generated, the Designated Vehicle had already been reported to the police and recorded on the Police National Computer as stolen.
- Type B: Insurance Write Off (Insurance Categories A, B, C, D, S and N)
- A claim under this section may be made if we stated in our report to you that the Designated Vehicle was not recorded on the MIAFTR database as an insurance write off category A, B, C, D, S or N, when it transpires that, before the report was generated, it had been recorded as such on MIAFTR by an insurer.
- A claim under this section may also be made if we stated in our report to you that the Designated Vehicle was recorded as a lower write off category than was in fact recorded on MIAFTR before the report was generated.
- For a claim to be made under this section, the relevant data must have been recorded on the MIAFTR database before the report was generated and must not have been accurately reported by us.
- Type C: DVLA and Mileage Data
- A claim under this section may be made if data obtained by us from DVLA was incorrectly provided to you in the report. For the avoidance of doubt, we do not guarantee the accuracy of DVLA data. Our guarantee is that the DVLA data reported to you accurately reflects the DVLA data available to us at the time the report was generated.
- A claim under this section may also be made if VCheck failed to report mileage information that was available to VCheck at the time the report was generated. This Data Guarantee does not extend to the accuracy of mileage records supplied by third parties.
- Type D: Finance
- A claim under this section may be made if we failed to report to you a recorded finance charge on the Experian Finance Register which existed before the report was generated.
- For the avoidance of doubt, it is not a legal requirement that all finance houses record their finance charges. This Data Guarantee only applies to finance charges which were recorded on the Experian Finance Register before the report was generated and which we failed to report.
Your Obligations in Order to Qualify for this Data Guarantee
- The report must have been purchased before the vehicle purchase was completed.
- You must retain a copy of the report, proof of payment for the report and any documentation relating to the vehicle purchase.
- You must have viewed and diligently inspected the whole of the V5C relating to the Designated Vehicle where it was reasonably available before purchase. You must make and retain a copy of the V5C where reasonably possible before you complete the purchase.
- You must keep safe a copy of any advert you have seen for the Designated Vehicle. If an internet based advert, you should either take screenshots and save them in a document or print out the advert in its entirety.
- You must receive and retain a signed and dated receipt or bill of sale from the seller.
- You must limit any cash transaction in respect of the Designated Vehicle to a maximum of either £500 or 10% of the sale price of the Designated Vehicle, whichever is lower.
- You must notify VCheck of any potential claim within 90 days of becoming aware of the issue giving rise to the claim.
- When purchasing from a private seller you must:
- take reasonable steps to verify the identity and address of the seller;
- take reasonable steps to verify that the seller is entitled to sell the vehicle;
- specifically ask the seller if the vehicle has been an insurance write off, has been stolen, or has any attaching finance charge; and
- decline to purchase the vehicle if information provided by the seller contradicts our report.
- When making payment you must use a traceable payment method which creates an auditable transaction record. Acceptable methods include bank transfer, debit card, credit card, finance agreement or other payment methods capable of independently verifying the transaction.
- When purchasing from a trade seller you must:
- take reasonable and prudent care to ensure you are purchasing from a genuine motor vehicle business;
- ensure the transaction is documented by invoice, receipt or other written purchase documentation; and
- specifically ask the seller if the vehicle has been an insurance write off, has been involved in an accident, has been stolen, or has any attaching finance charge. If this information contradicts our report you should decline to purchase the vehicle.
- You must register the Designated Vehicle in your name, insure it and tax it as soon as reasonably practicable after purchase. A vehicle without a current MOT at the time of your purchase is excluded from this Data Guarantee unless the report expressly stated that the vehicle had a current MOT.
- When accepting payment or other settlement from us under this Data Guarantee, you irrevocably transfer to us any and all rights you may have to pursue compensation or other value from the person or organisation you purchased the Designated Vehicle from, to the extent permitted by law. You agree to provide us with any evidence reasonably necessary for us to pursue that claim.
Making a Claim
- You must notify VCheck in writing within 90 days of becoming aware of the issue giving rise to the claim.
- You must provide the report reference number, proof of purchase of the report, proof of purchase of the vehicle and any supporting evidence reasonably requested by VCheck.
- VCheck may request additional information and documentation in order to assess the claim.
- You must not dispose of, sell, transfer, dismantle or materially alter the Designated Vehicle before our investigation is complete without our prior written consent.
- No payment will be made until VCheck has completed its investigation and approved the claim.
How We Handle Claims
Should your claim be approved by us, we will make payment to you as follows, subject always to the £40,000 maximum limit and the exclusions in this Data Guarantee:
- Claims Type A: Stolen Vehicle
- We will pay you the amount you paid for the vehicle, or the reasonable open market value of the vehicle at the time of purchase, whichever is lower, if the vehicle has been impounded by the police and the police have either returned the vehicle to another person or are in the process of doing so.
- Claims Type B: Insurance Write Off
- We may pay you an amount equal to the reasonable diminution in value of the Designated Vehicle attributable solely to the incorrect or missing insurance write off classification, assessed at the time of the claim.
- Where the correct classification means the vehicle should not lawfully or reasonably remain in use, we may pay the amount you paid for the vehicle, or the reasonable open market value of the vehicle at the time of purchase, whichever is lower.
- Claims Type C: DVLA and Mileage Data
- We may pay you compensation equal to the reasonable diminution in value of the Designated Vehicle attributable solely to the incorrect data supplied by us or data available to us which we failed to report.
- Claims Type D: Finance
- You will grant us your full authority to contact and negotiate with the finance company involved. We may attempt to settle the finance charge in order to allow you to obtain clear title to the Designated Vehicle. If we achieve this, your claim is settled in full.
- If an agreement cannot be reached with the finance company, we may pay you an amount equal to the reasonable private sale value of the Designated Vehicle at the time of the claim, or the amount you paid for the vehicle, whichever is lower.
General Exclusions - When No Payment Will Be Made Under this Data Guarantee
- If you knew, reasonably should have known, or had reasonable cause to suspect that the data we provided in the report was incorrect before you purchased the Designated Vehicle.
- If the report was purchased after the vehicle purchase was completed.
- If you are involved with the motor trade and purchased the vehicle for business, trade, resale, stock, repair, dismantling, export or commercial purposes.
- If you fail to provide timely, accurate and complete information to us when making a claim.
- If you willingly dispose of, sell, transfer, dismantle or materially alter the Designated Vehicle before our investigation into your claim is complete without our prior written consent.
- If you misrepresent any facts to us at any time.
- If you failed to take reasonable and prudent care when purchasing the Designated Vehicle.
- If any data printed on the V5C which you either saw or reasonably should have seen before purchase of the Designated Vehicle contradicts any data from our report.
- Where the registration mark, VIN, chassis number or other identifiers supplied to VCheck relate to a different vehicle than the one purchased, no claim may be made under this Data Guarantee. This includes cloned, ringed, misrepresented or otherwise falsely identified vehicles.
- This Data Guarantee does not apply to ex-taxi, ex-police, ex-ambulance, ex-NHS, commercial usage indicators or similar vehicle usage markers.
- This Data Guarantee does not cover vehicle condition, mechanical faults, roadworthiness, service history, maintenance history or cosmetic condition.
- This Data Guarantee does not cover vehicle valuation, market value estimates or future resale value.
- This Data Guarantee does not cover information relating to a vehicle's history outside the United Kingdom unless expressly stated within the report.
- This Data Guarantee does not cover loss of profit, loss of business, loss of opportunity, loss of use, travel costs, recovery costs, storage costs, repair costs, inspection costs or any other indirect or consequential loss.
- This Data Guarantee does not cover any amount or value in excess of the guarantee limit provided to you.
- This Data Guarantee does not apply if you have failed to follow your obligations or meet the definitions and conditions detailed in this document.
- This Data Guarantee is not transferable to any person, business or organisation.
General
- This Data Guarantee is provided in addition to your statutory rights and does not exclude or restrict any rights which cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted.
- Any payment made under this Data Guarantee will be made in full and final settlement of the relevant claim.
- We may amend, withdraw or replace this Data Guarantee from time to time. The version applicable to your claim will be the version published at the time you purchased the report.
Version: 202606.0101