Virginia license plate lookup

What you get from a Virginia lookup

Set the state to Virginia and enter the plate. A commercial vehicle-data provider supplies the VIN it is registered to, we decode it into year, make, model and engine, and we list any safety recalls still open. History reports on that VIN are one click further.

Names and addresses aren’t returned. The Driver’s Privacy Protection Act (18 U.S.C. § 2721) keeps personal information in motor vehicle records behind a list of permitted uses, and Virginia’s buyer-request law says outright that it doesn’t authorize releasing personal information.

Who issues plates and titles in Virginia

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles handles titles, registration and plates, at customer service centers, DMV Select offices or by mail.

• Front and rear plates. § 46.2-715 requires plates on the front and the rear of most vehicles. Motorcycles, mopeds, autocycles and trailers carry a rear plate only, and tractor trucks a front one.
• Plates come off before handover. The DMV says the seller should remove the plates before the buyer takes the car, and must notify DMV of the sale. As the buyer, you buy new plates or transfer plates from another vehicle of yours.

Virginia DMV records, including a buyer’s request

Owners request their own vehicle record online, in person or by mail on the Information Request, form CRD 93, giving the title number and VIN; the record covers only the time you have owned the car.

Virginia also has a request made for buyers. Under § 46.2-209.1, DMV may give vehicle information to a prospective purchaser who applies with the make, model, year and VIN. The form is CRD 1, Request for Vehicle Information by a Prospective Purchaser, and the fee is $12.00, in person or by check or money order by mail. The answer comes from Virginia DMV records and may draw on the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System. You certify that you are considering buying the car and won’t copy, distribute or sell what you receive.

Salvage, nonrepairable and rebuilt in Virginia

Most of Virginia’s rules apply to a late model vehicle: the current model year and the five before it, or any vehicle worth at least $10,000 before the damage (§ 46.2-1600). A salvage car is one an insurer acquired in a claim, or one whose repairs would cost more than its value minus its salvage value. A nonrepairable car is worth only parts and scrap metal.

A rebuilt car must pass a state safety inspection and then a DMV examination before it gets a title. The law calls that exam an antitheft and antifraud check and says it doesn’t certify the car’s safety or roadworthiness. The title is permanently branded as rebuilt, every later title keeps the brand, and a seller must disclose it to you in writing on a DMV form (§ 46.2-1602). The Virginia VIN check guide walks through each step.

Before you buy a car with Virginia plates

• Check that the VIN on the dash and door matches the title and our lookup; the VIN decoder shows the expected build.
• Ask a rebuilt-car seller for the written disclosure and the inspection paperwork, and get your own mechanic’s opinion on the repair.
• Consider filing a CRD 1 request with DMV, and run a salvage title check for brands and total losses in other states.
• Compare the odometer with earlier readings using an odometer rollback check.

With us, AutoCheck is $7.99 and CARFAX $8.99 per report.