Checking a vehicles service history?

purpleroad

Want to buy a van, probably privately, how and where do you look to check its service history?


And what is 'service history'?

tacpot12

A Service history is a record of all the inspection and maintenance tasks carried out on a vehicle. Ideally it will show all the manufacturers recommended inspection and maintenance tasks, the recommended times or mileages at which the tasks should be carried out, and crucially which ones were performed and which we not, and the time/mileages they were carried out at.

A fleet vehicle may have the service history maintained on a computer system that has been programmed with the manufacturers schedule of inspection and maintenance tasks. If so, the vendor may be able to give you a print out showing all the work done vs. the manufacturers recommendations. Sometime you will get a print out of what has been done, but not the manufacturers recommendations. This is less valuable, but does allow you to see what has been done.

Normally though the service record is maintained in booklet that the vendor should give you. If there is no booklet and no print out then the vehicle has no service history. The booklets are usually stamped by the garage that carried out the work.

Look for regular servicing at or about the manufacturers recommended intervals, look at the mileages that the service history suggests vs. the mileages available from the MOT Test record. If the service history is in the booklet supplied by the manufacturer, look to see if the stamps tally with the known history of the vehicle.

I usually look at the V5, MOT Certificates and Service History first to build up a picture of the vehicle, then I look to see whether the vehicle matches the picture I have built up. Good luck

globalds

If you have the reg you can check how it did on it's MOT's

https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/?_ga=1.19196344.100001014.1474189517

Fat_Walt

purpleroad wrote: »

Want to buy a van, probably privately, how and where do you look to check its service history?


And what is 'service history'?

Are you for real?