Buying a car that has a VIC

sarahmtly

Well I have booked it in for a VIC at my nearest VOSA centre, apparently they take about 3 days to get back in touch to make an appointment which is ok. Thanks all for your advise but I think I'm going to take the risk. Thanks for all the info though.

ibrooks

sarahmtly wrote: »

Thanks for advice all. I did an extensive HPI check as molerat advised and it seems it is a Cat C Write Off. It said its not been stolen and as it has a MOT it should be pretty safe to buy then right ?

Others have said it but maybe not so clearly. NO!

The car that was written off has not been stolen. IF the car you are loking to buy is the same one that has been repaired then there should be no problem with the VIC and since it's had an MOT test and passed then it "should" be roadworthy (some things that can be missed or just aren't covered by an MOT are downright scary though).

However it's possible that someone bought the written off Fiesta that you have done the HPI check on, stole another one the same age and colour and transferred the reg plates and or VIN tags and maybe even the part of the body that the chassis number is stamped into. You then buy (in good faith) a stolen vehicle and when it is discovered you have no right to keep it. This is what the VIC is designed to stop.

The VIC marker is put on damaged but repairable cars to make sure that once it is repaired it is inspected to make sure that it really is the original car that has been repaired and not a similar vehicle that has been stolen and given the damaged car's identity.

If you part with money then you run the risk that when you take it to the VIC they will discover that it's a stolen car and you won't be taking it home again - the car you have paid for is a pile of bits somewhere and it's down to you to chase the seller for your money back. They might be selling the car cheap without the check because it's hassle for them to take it and pay the fee but there might be something more sinister going on. Be very careful as it smells to me - surely they would be better getting the check sorted and then selling the car at a higher price?

Iain

hartcjhart

I have recently sold a car that has had the VIC done,why did it need it?
because it was an old banger that had minor damage(wing and bumper)BUT was classed as a write off due to age/value,
OP if you have done a full hpi and it is not stolen etc just write off then go ahead and buy it,BUT I would get the garage to do an mot BEFORE you pay any money

ibrooks

You're still not getting at the point of how little defence the HPI check is giving the OP. In your case you obviously know exactly what happened to your car. In the OP's case this history isn't there (which smells in itself). When doing the HPI check you give them the reg and possibly VIN number - what guarantee is there that these numbers belong to the car sat in front of you? It takes maybe two screws at the front and another two at the rear to swap a registration plate and two maybe four pop rivets to swap the VIN tag. The chassis number stamped into the body isn't that much harder to disguise and that's assuming the OP has actually checked it. People tend to assume that pond-life wouldn't go to this sort of trouble for a cheaper car - in reality the smaller operators will happily do it with cheaper cars as they know buyers spending a few hundred pounds are less likely to check as carefully as those spending a few thousand.

Crashed car £50? (if it's not a high value model that's worth repairing), stolen car £0, screws and pop rivets £pence faking chassis number materials £10? plus a couple of hours. Total cost to the pond-life under £100. Sell to unsuspecting buyer for a good price so they don't ask questions = £300 profit.

The VIC is to check that this isn't what the seller has done and that the car that the HPI check verifies isn't stolen is the one that you want to put back on the road.

OP - no offence but you clearly don't know much about cars and what all this stuff means. This car might well be a bargain and perfectly above board but from what you've said it just doesn't "feel" right to me. Just to summarise (and please correct me if I'm wrong).

The garage don't know much about the car - so they bought a car with no registration document and didn't ask any questions? I don't believe this for one second. They might well have bought it from an owner who had crashed it and repaired it themselves and when they have applied for the V5 they-ve been told they can't have it until the car has a VIC and therefore been stung themselves. To play dumb about it and try to pass the problem on to an unsuspecting customer is wrong.

The garage are selling the car cheap (more so than other similar cars in the area you say) - why? if it's "right" then the VIC will be just a formality and then they can ask for more money for it.

In your defence you are looking to buy from a business so there is less chance of them simply disappearing with the money if you take it to the VIC check and find out it's not what it's pretending to be. Ideally get someone who does know what they are doing to cast an eye over the car and ask the questions - I know that ths can add a significant percentage to the cost of this car but compare it to a possible 100% loss. If you decide to go for it make sure you get a proper receipt from the garage and that it is from the garage so you are buying from the business (not just the mechanic who is running a sideline) as you are far better defended in law if you buy from a dealer than an individual.

Iain

EcoR1

vaio wrote: »

if that was true they would call it a "make sure that it has been repaired correctly and that it is roadworthy enough to have a V5 issued" check rather than a Vehicle Identity Check which, as you might guess from the name, is to do with identity only and nothing at all to do with repairs or safety

That would be a really difficult acronym to pronounce though ;-)

EcoR1

sarahmtly wrote: »

Well I have booked it in for a VIC at my nearest VOSA centre, apparently they take about 3 days to get back in touch to make an appointment which is ok. Thanks all for your advise but I think I'm going to take the risk. Thanks for all the info though.

3 days to give you an appointment. That appointment could, and probably will, be at least 6 weeks away. Oh and it's £40 odd quid as well.

hartcjhart

Ibrooks I think you are being a 'drama llama'
the garage wont spend time bothering with a vic check as that takes time and time is money

Cash-Strapped.T32

molerat wrote: »

Tell the garage owner you will buy it when it has a V5. As for him "not knowing much about it", load of !!!!!!!! !!

+1. If it's in good nick, everyone's always an expert, & can give you it's full life story down to the day.

If it's not, then they never seem to know a bean about it, the bloke selling it didn't tell them anything & anyway, it only came in yesterday as if brought in by the fairies in the night, or they got it as part of a job-lot of magic beans.. :mad:

sarahmtly

ibrooks wrote: »

OP - no offence but you clearly don't know much about cars and what all this stuff means.

Thats very true, I had never even heard of a VIC check, thats why I came here to ask advise. This forum has helped me a couple of times in the past also so I knew there would be someone to help :beer:

ibrooks wrote: »

If you decide to go for it make sure you get a proper receipt from the garage and that it is from the garage so you are buying from the business (not just the mechanic who is running a sideline) as you are far better defended in law if you buy from a dealer than an individual.

Iain

Yes I went ahead and got it today and took your advice and got a proper receipt. Apparently this other guy at the garage today knows a lot more about it. Apparently it went through the MOT ok and he just didnt want all the hassel and waiting around for a VIC check.

I made sure I saw the MOT before parting with my money and also there was a receipt from a scrap dealer selling it to the person who sold it to the garage. On that receipt it said it was written off but repairable and also showed a photograph of the car. It wasn't a very clear photo but you could make out damage to the passanger side light and wing which seems to be repaired now apart from a couple of hardly noiticable scratches.

Anyway I will let you know how the VIC goes. If it fails I'll be sure to come back to warn others.

Thanks again for all the help

By the way EcoR1, apparently it does only take 3 days to get back to me with an appointment time, thats what was stated on the website anyway, and also I can get the fee refunded if its a Cat C so I wont need to pay for that

vaio

how or who is going to refund you?