How to check a V5C logbook when buying a car

The four checks

1. The watermark. A real V5C has a DVL watermark you can see when you hold it up to the light.
2. The serial number. GOV.UK lists two ranges to look out for: BG8229501 to BG9999030, and BI2305501 to BI2800000. If the number falls in either, the logbook might be stolen. Leave, and call the police when it's safe to.
3. The details. The registration, make, model and colour on the logbook should match the car and what the seller told you.
4. The VIN and engine number. Both are printed on the logbook. Both should match the car.

Finding the VIN on the car

The vehicle identification number is 17 characters long. It is usually visible at the bottom of the windscreen, printed on a plate inside a door opening or under the bonnet, and stamped into the body. Every place you find it should show the same number, and that number should be the one on the logbook.

Look at the plates as well as the digits. Scratches, fresh rivets or a sticker over the top are reasons to walk away.

Keeper is not owner

The logbook says so itself: it is not proof of ownership. The registered keeper is the person responsible for taxing and insuring the car. The owner can be someone else, most often a finance company.

The seller's name and address should match the logbook, and their ID should match both. View the car at that address. If the seller wants to meet in a car park, ask why.

What a recent logbook can mean

Every V5C carries its issue date. A recent date is often innocent: DVLA sends a new logbook when the keeper or the address changes, and when one is lost.

It is worth a question when the dates don't fit the story. A seller who says they've owned the car for six years, holding a logbook issued last month, has either moved house or asked for a duplicate. Ask which.

A Hindsight paid report shows the date the latest V5C was issued, each change of keeper and the last five digits of the VIN, so you can compare them with the document in your hand.

No logbook

Citizens Advice says never to buy a car without one. “It's in the post” means wait until it arrives.

After you buy

The seller tells DVLA about the sale and gives you the green new keeper slip from the logbook. Use it to tax the car straight away. The seller's tax doesn't transfer to you, so the car must be taxed in your name before you drive it.