They got the accident history wrong AND the outstanding finance wrong.
HPI's mistakes cost me a great deal of money and they did not give me any compensation. Even a letter to their CEO highlighting their mistakes and NO compensation from HPI for their errors - hopeless - Avoid them

The report I have done shows outstanding finance and when I contact finance company provided in the report they say that they got no interest in the vehicle and that there was a finance on the vehicle that was cleared well over a year ago and such information sent to hpi usuall way...

Only found out after purchase that the car has a mileage discrepancy AND is a stolen recovered car, it was stolen and missing for 6 months!! Because of the lack of information held on this car we paid top price for a car that was worth about half.
Who knows what had happened to that car in the 6 months it was missing.

Very good, needs to be cheaper

Excellent service with immediate results; very reassuring and takes the risk out of buying a vehicle privately or through the trade

Very quick and easy and, when I called with an enquiry they were efficient & helpful

Very helpful when I needed extra help. Would highly recommend.

The service was excellent from when the call was answered until the problem was resolved. Delighted I used this company

Good service but not given option to check multiple cars by operator. If tender is unable to provide full service as advertised I think it only fair to reduce the charge for check. The insurance of £30000 does not apply to cars registered in N. Ireland.
If access is given to VOSA why not DVLNI.

Fast and comprehensive report

Rapid, accurate and informed.

Would use this service again and recomnd to others

After 3 searches now have found the right vehicle

Comprehensive report

Swift refund of over paid fee. Overall a very good service.

I applied for the HPI check for my car which i receieved
but I noticed that i payed twice for the service I then tex you to point out my error
but i stil am waiting for a reply ??

you dont get just details about the car - details about registration, financial info, etc but you also get a free valuation. included in the package are details about the engine, road tax and tons of other useful details that would otherwise take time.
beside the peace of mind of knowing what you are buying, you have the extra insurance that should anything be wrong with the vehicle (eg cloned or stolen) then you have it covered. a small price to pay for tons of benefits.

Having an HPI check when buying a car is essential, it tells you all the important factors that are required and could save you from the many pitfalls of a dodgy deal. I always do the HPI check for total peace of mind, it is a quick easy process and I highly recommend this.

I recently bought an old Mitsubishi Pajero and as it was an import, thought I'd run a check to make sure all was OK. Turned out it had been stolen just after import and was showing as an insurance theft on the report. I had traveled down to Wales to pick it up and was staying with relatives while I was wondering what to do. I ran the check on Friday night and was able to stay down on the Monday. HPI prioritized an investigation. By Monday afternoon I had a good idea what was going on and by 4.55 it was confirmed that the car was no longer listed as stolen and the report would be updated. I picked up the car that evening. They have since sent me an updated HPI report showing the car to be clear. Really helpful and very efficient! Strongly recommended!

great service

So easy and simple to use

I found the HPI check very useful, one of the cars I checked still had finance owed on it, also a reg change.

In Vehicle description quoted specifications were at odds with the actual specification of the vehicle. Emailed HPI about this no response after a week. Undermines what was otherwise n acceptable service

Thanks for response of 26/11/2013 and follow up response of 27/11/2013 sorry you could not find my original email of 8/11/13which I sent to [email protected]
I have forwarded the original email to this address but for information I will paste it into this report:
Dear Sir
Thanks for the above report,
I note on the Vehicle description and the potential issues and queries the gearbox is listed as 5 speed manual whereas it has 6 forward gears, 1 reverse and is manual.
I think this is a database error as the manufactures specification gives it as a 6 speed manual box or is their a real problem?

Peter D Stickler

It is bizarre that this correspondence has to be has to be played out through a third party (?) web site

I was feeling slightly uncomfortable with a potential purchase and thought it best to carry out an HPI check - all seemed ok until the seller advised at the last stage that he was not the registered keeper (despite originally telling me otherwise) and that he couldn’t meet me at his address and suggested I meet his father at another address to complete the cash transaction - I took the advice given on the HPI website not to purchase the car

I wouldn't buy a car without having an HPI check - would rather do it myself too. Gives you peace of mind re what you're buying, particularly with the car buying checklist and tips - great for if you're going to view a car alone as a woman - gave me confidence to ask the right questions and look for the right things.

I decided to use the HPI check service because I had reservations about a car I was considering purchasing. The car looked perfect and seemed in good condition, but the owner was selling it after only owning it for 3 months and claimed that, as it was their second car they couldn't afford to keep it on the road. Though he claimed there was no outstanding finance on it I thought it best to check.

The check came back stating that there was an outstanding hire purchase finance agreement on the car and gave me the finance house details. However, it was weekend and I couldn't check this out immediately, and the finance house website made it clear that agreement details could not be discussed with third parties.

So, believing I was unable discuss the outstanding finance with the finance house I went back to the seller and informed him that because he hadn't disclosed the outstanding finance I couldn't trust him so would not be buying the car, which was a pity because it seemed a good deal. The owner said he was unaware of any outstanding finance. Two days later the owner sent me an email from the finance house confirming that there was in fact no outstanding finance owed on the car and that their records would be updated to reflect this immediately.

It goes to show that one should not rely on the information provided in a HPI check; it may not be correct. Which, for me at least, was annoying because I walked away from a car I wanted because I believed what the HPI check said. It seems to me that if the information can't be relied upon, as the terms and conditions of the HPI check service states, then why pay for what might be unreliable or incorrect information.

excellent and reliable service. a bit expensive at the cost of £ 19.99 but as the only service which will guarantee your peace of mind still worth it.

Never done an HPI check before and although some cheaper options on the market I went for HPI.
The car I looked at had just had a plate change which initially meant that it flashed as an issue.
Having spoken to customer services they guided me through what i needed to do and the car checked out fine.
Fantastic service. Thoroughly recommend.

Easy to follow even for a simpleton like me

All the relavent info is there

I used this service to check on a used car I was thinking of buying. After entering both the VIN and VRM numbers the check came back with a big green tick and "GOOD NEWS" next to it. The vehicle was confirmed in the check as being as follows…

Police stolenVRM and VIN not currently recorded by the police as stolen
Insurance theftVRM and VIN not currently recorded by insurers as a theft.

However, after doing some further research found that the car had infact been stolen and was classified by the insurance company as "STOLEN Recovered". The police markers had been removed from the car and thus was free to be sold in this case via an auction house… The car does not have a V5C reg document (which is quite a common thing I am informed) but it does have a hidden history. It was not a Cat A,B,C,D,or F car and there is no reason why this car should not be bought. However the HPI check does not always show up a cars history.

Was a pleasure to deal with, I made a mistake and it was dealt with quickly and without any problems

I'd like to note that I am not an avid user of HPI Check probably because I only purchase a car every 5 years and this is the first one from abroad. i was very disappointed that I got NO more information than was available on the free checks. I submitted an email to [email protected] but didn't get a reply.

I actually contributed more information than I received - I expected to get historical Mileage info but I entered my mileage and got nothing in return. It was actually a total waste of £20 in my opinion.

Not in the habit of negative reviews but did send an email to which I got no reply and also felt that service was a waste of money for me.

It's good policy to ensure the car one is trying to purchase is as advertised and free of accidents etc.

Excellent service, nice friendly people.
The postal code is a problem for Irish customers when it comes to payment!!
You don't accept Laser or Maestro cards?

Sadly there was no details held on the car as it had just had a recent number plate change so no details provided but still got charged!

Purchased an HPI Check for a Vehicle that I soon found out I couldn't have imported to Australia. Paid AUD34.60 to have this check completed. Having emailed this business several times letting them know that the check was ultimately of no use to me, they are constantly sending me emails with a massive number of excuses, when all I'm interested in is getting my money back for a service that's been of no use to me whatsoever. I am utterly shocked and dissatisfied with their level of customer service. Customers are entitled to a refund by law, if not satisfied with a service and especially, when a purchase is made online. This company's customer service representative, [Name], is utterly disgraceful and exceptionally stubborn when it comes to dealing with customers. Sorry, but I'm going to have to spread the word about your company to other customers !

I thought id make sure everything was kosher.so checked through hpi,well worth it.

It was quick and easy to supply all the required information with helpfully interaction and clear reporting, however please ensure Northern Ireland customers are aware they are getting a reduced service for the same fee.
I would probably still have used your service, but I wouldn't have taken the dearer option as it was also infected by this reduced service policy. As far as I'm aware there was no indication of this anywhere before purchase.

I am now Secure with the hpi and I bought my car with no worry.

I have used HPI in the past but this time I had a short timescale and simply wanted to get the paperwork to confirm what I already knew through my own research.

The car I wanted to buy had outstanding finance which had been cleared (confirmed this with the finance company) so I simply needed to get the paperwork to cover myself if anything did go wrong. I contacted HPI on the Saturday, understanding that it would not get processed whilst Monday at the latest. Monday came around and still no confirmation so I delayed the purchase until Tuesday to give them time to make the phone call to the finance company. Tuesday came around and still not cleared so I contacted the company used by the Seller (reputable company) and received a clear HPI check with protection within 5 minutes.

The HPI clearance came the next day to be fair but given that a 5 minute phone call was all that was required I could have lost out on a genuine car. Obviously its better to lose a car than end up losing your money but in this case there was nothing to suggest the car was anything but genuine.

I would use again as they are the most recognised HPI check company but if there are any outstanding issues that need updating I do not have faith in this being a quick process.

Many points does not have my car's info. They are asking me to fill the car's very important details like chassis no etc which I was expected to know by pay HPI. Most if the points in report are useless, just populating space and making it look like very thorough. Not value for money. Should be cheaper snd straight forward like if I want financial situation just charge me for that and answer accordingly.

I would always recommend using HPI when purchasing any vehicle. Just remember to make sure you give them all of the information required when viewing the vehicle ie V5 data and Vin number confirmation. They don't make this completely clear when you do the initial check and without this I doubt they would pay up if a problem later developed.

I would recommend hpi. On the spot results and great value for money.

I shop mostly by internet and have come unstuck here and there.
Now I am older and wiser I check, check and check again who I purchase from.

Staff very helpful.
1st stage straightforward.
Further stage not clear enough - there needs to be more help in explaining where to find the reg doc serial number and the required date. I suggest 'what is this' flags and a picture of the reg doc showing where the required information can be found.

very handy to know the background of a potential vehicle, the hpi check set my mind at easy for a low cost

Really helpful info. Makes you fully armed when dealing with the motor dealer. Provides really useful detail including mpg information.

Yes, very quick and presumably trustworthy and reliable information given about a vehicle...... but ouch.... at a price. HPI make it pretty obvious where they get the bulk of their business from with the much cheaper rates that they charge the motor trade

The staff were very helpful and my query was resolved very quickly.

HPI have been fantastic in consumer care, I made a mistake on my application regarding a check they came straight back and refunded my account with no quibble, I also had a classic Mercedes and the DVLA had entered the wrong mileage,HPI where great and adjusted it within 3 days!!!!! Well done HPI if only other company's where like you, your staff are wonderful thank you

Give us great peace of mind in an instant

Always use this service when buying a car from unknown sellers . It gives huge confidence .

When checking the documents at the vehicle I was told there was an issue with the supply date on the V5 document. No further information was given.
I checked with the owner and they could not remember any reason for requesting a new document.
I then contacted DVLA who told me that several batches of V5s were stolen 2 or 3 years ago and the new form was issued automatically to combat the theft.
Why wasn't this information available to your reps? Surely, in order to perform as a professional agency this info should be readily available and offered to customers as a possible explanation?
In my case, when presented with this information, the owner could remember receiving the new V5 and found it within a few minutes.
An unnecessary delay in an otherwise flawless experience.

When buying a vehicle aways ensure that you have an HPI check directly with HPI and you can buy with confidence every time.

well worth the money, always recommend the check

I wil recommend getting a HPI check before buying a new car, their customer service is excellent. You get good valuable information from them.

The process of getting a potential car I was going to buy HPI checked was no problem at all. I HPI checked the car and came back with clear! I then proceeded to buy this car; it stated no accidents and HP checked clear! Once we bought the car, we soon found out this car had been in an accident at the front and back and had airbags missing! DO NOT TRUST HPI CHECKS! It would have cost us over £2,000 to make the car safe and as a result meant we had to sell it for scrap! I would like to know why the HPI check came back clear??!!

Most of the infomation i got it was from me typing in all the numbers spent £25 but was not satisfied on the check as i before spent only £5 on a another site an they provided the same information on the vehicle not happy from HPI check never gonna use them again

Hpi staff are always very helpful

I saw a car advertised that was in a colour not listed for that model. An HPI check confirmed that it was in fact the original colour and I subsequently bought the car.

A good service offering some reassurance when buying an 'unknown' vehicle from a stranger.

They allow only 4 weeks to provide V5C number in order to obtain 'full' protection.

That may seem a reasonable time but, depending on circumstances it can, perfectly legitimately, be exceeded and then you lose out. Following my recent (fully clear) HPI check I purchased a car. Then due to my daughter's and the vendor's ill health, it took me 5 weeks to obtain this information and I thus lost out.

I rang HPI, prior to submitting this review to ask if there was any flexibility in this 'cut-off' time and was told that: "In extreme circumstances there 'might' be, but NOT if you have already purchased the vehicle".

So I feel that I got 60% of the service for 100% of the price!

This is a good idea and works well but it is far to expensive for private users as the trade only pay £1.95 per check

Used HPI twice now and find it very simple to use. Certainly gives peace of mind when buying a car

Deffinately recommend

I found hpi quick and easy to use, although they might appear a little more expensive than the competitors it's worth it for that piece of mind and reassurance when buying a used vehicle on the Internet even if its been hpi checked before..

As a trader I always use HPI because their reports are complete and easy to read by potential buyers.
However this comes at a price there are competitors who offer the same sort of report at a lower price, this might give HPI some piece of mind and reconsider the prices they charge.

HPI is the best among the companies who give the car check service. It is not the cheapest but you get what you pay for it.

Excellent customer service - even on a weekend. Really put my mind at ease when buying a car. Most definitely recommend.

I purchased 3 HPI checks as it was cheaper than buying three seperate checks. First check was a VW R32 car which came back as having had three number plate changes. Thats ok as I now know what to check. One thing was wrong on the check - it showed the car as an automatic gearbox. I phoned VW and they told me that that car was never made with an auto box. The one I test drove was a six speed manual which was what was on the logbook. Second car I thought about buying was checked by the dealer while I was there and the HPI check showed the vehicle as engine number not known. This was really useful. In the end I asked the police for advise about this and they went and checked the vehicle on the dealers site. I walked away from this one. I phoned HPI and said I had no confidence in their checks now and would like a refund on the two remaining checks I had. Not a chance - emails with a load of excuses. Don't rely on this company, I will certainly never use them again.
UPDATED 27 November 2013
Well it has been over 5 weeks since HPI replied to my feedback.
HPI replied "as a gesture of goodwill, we have refunded the full cost of your check which will be with you shortly."
I have received nothing from HPI. I emailed them and asked where my refund was and got no reply.
Good idea by HPI, just reply with a message saying that they will refund the cost so that anyone reading my feedback will think that I got a refund so everything turned out OK.
Do not trust this company!
UPDATED 11/12/13
I have now been given a full refund. I am happy now but this should not have taken so long.
Don't forget, "If we don't complain then nothing will ever improve"

The check flagged up some issues and they were very helpful over the phone as well. Very comprehensive and useful.

I am very happy with your service

I needed a check on a vehicle that I was considering buying. This service gave me exactly what I needed, when I needed it. Outstanding

Gave me quite a lot of confidence in buying my bike. Really easy to use and anybody not using the system deserves to be done. Not expensive and very quick. Thanks

Definitely a must use service if you are buying a used car.

first time i have used the service, i really resent having to spend money to find out if the seller is honest, i just got a feeling that i should check it out.

If the fee was much lower i would use more often(£5-£8)

Colin

web page is easy to use, guides you where to find the information! you get a quick response which covers all areas that cause yoy cocern when your buying a new car

Even though its pricey its worth using this service if your planning on buying a vehicle especially private sales make sure u use this service. There are some dodgy people about who will do anything to sell you their dodgy vehicle. There was a car I had my eye on but after doing the checks found out it had a finance agreement recently taken out. So it's really important to do all checks before buying.

Quick reply to request. Price of service could be said to be quite high but, worth every penny for peace of mind.

...what about this £20,000 guarantee? You have to supply the V5C number before you purchase the vehicle. isnt this a bit akward? You make up your mind you want the vehicle but before you hand over the dosh you have to ask for sight of the V5c and then contact and register tyhe vehicle beforehand. How many people do this?

hpi is the only one that I trust compleatly to carry out a thorough check, there are cheaper services but when thousands of pounds are at stake why risk using a cheaper second rate service

Saved me from buying a car from a private vendor that had been a write off. No need to say anymore.

Without running this check I may well have bought a clocked car.

I paid extra for the valuation service, didn't receive a valuation with my report, and when I inquired, I was told that they aren't available with all vehicles.
i asked for a partial refund and was told it was stated in the T&C's and I should have read them, nice!

I wanted to verify the mileage, nothing else concerned me, I know the mileage is wrong, but the HPI didn't pick up on it, so waste of money, all it told me was data from the log book I already knew all that !

As a market leader in this area I was very disappointed with the level of disclosure received from HPI for the search I did.
The search result failed to disclose that the car was actually registered on a personalised number rather the original number that I had entered. Therefore, the search came back as unable to identify the vehicle. Surely such a well appointed company should be able to provide details that the vehicle had since been registered on a personalised registration. I feel total ripped off of the £25 fee I paid and resulted to another search with a different company that provided me with the respective details at a cheaper cost.

Used HPi, not for the first time. Excellent. How do they know all that stuff?
No major concerns, but 10 owners! & probably been clocked. That said, I think I'd worked that out for myself.

Would recommend to anyone. Essential service in today's uncertain world

Hpi told me about the outstanding finance so it put me off buying the car , that was a good thing but at £25 a shot plus £3 for the paperwork it's to expensive to use more than once , and if you are looking at more than one car like I was there is cheaper firms out there an the info you get is the same but saying that hpi do give a guarantee .

I think it is a great service but on ebay it was cheaper ?

Used to work in motor trade so I know the value of checking history of vehicles. Don't want to find out the hard way!

Had a question, phoned and spoke to customer service who were so helpfull, pointed me in the right direction quickly and without fuss, would not hesitate to use HPI again as and when required. Thank you HPI.

I had put in the wrong reg. number without realising until too late and had paid. This was the one thing I couldn't edit online, so phoned up customer services who said to do another check with the correct reg, send an email to customer services explaining and they would refund me. The refund came in within one working day. Excellent service!

I want my money back, this hpi showed half the things were incorrect, i found this out by past MOT papers so i used this service for no reason and even if so it was all incorrect, i missed the deal of the centuary because of this. Really annoyed!

I have used this service for several years, whenever buying a used car for the household.
Always worth the check.

HI. Yes I would recommend you to do an HPI check for peace of mind
before buying in case it was stolen or have outstanding finance
Norman

I fully enjoyed speaking with the person on the other of the line as they were very helpful and informed me of what I needed to do and the information they required . They also clarified everything for me which made it easier for me to understand and know what i was getting. They were not put off by the fact I had to phone back a cuople of times.
Many thanks

quick and easy, simple interface and clearly identifies any problems/issues.

The V5 isssue date didn't match the data held at DVLA. This was because the DVLA system wasn't reflecting a recent plate change (and therefore a recent change to the issue date). Resolved in a speedy and friendly manner over the phone. Great service.

On ome thing i would change is if a mistake is made when entering a reg number dont allow a move to the next page.

I would defiantly recommend this service as it does everything it says and is well priced for peace off mind