Updated May 2026
Which MOT check service should I use?
The right MOT check depends on what you're actually trying to find out. Three questions get you to the answer in under thirty seconds: how quick is the check, what's the car worth, and do you need finance/stolen/write-off cover on top of the MOT history? Below is the decision tree, then the four services we recommend routing to.
TL;DR
- Quick check before a viewing: MOT Checkup free tier.
- Buying a £10k+ used car: Total Car Check (£7.95) or HPI/RAC (£19.99) for finance/stolen/write-off cover.
- Need only the raw DVSA record: GOV.UK MOT history service.
- Brand specifically matters: HPI Check or RAC Vehicle Check at £19.99.
The three-question decision tree
Answer the first question that fits. The first match wins — don't read further once you've found yourself.
- Are you just doing a quick check before viewing a car (or curious about your own vehicle)? Use MOT Checkup's free tier. Full MOT history, mileage anomaly flag and AI reliability score in seconds, no sign-up.
- Are you buying a used car worth £10,000 or more (or any car bought sight-unseen)? Use Total Car Check (£7.95) or HPI/RAC (£19.99). You need the paid layers — outstanding finance, write-off category, stolen markers, keeper history — to protect that level of spend. MOT Checkup does not currently surface those licensed layers.
- Do you specifically need a recognised brand name (HPI or RAC) on the report cover — for a finance dispute, court case, or boss-pleasing audit trail? Use HPI Check or RAC Vehicle Check (£19.99). Same underlying data, but the brand matters for your specific use case.
If none of those fits, default to MOT Checkup's free tier — it is the deepest no-cost option in the UK and adds analysis layers (mileage anomaly detection, AI reliability scoring) that no other free service offers.
Where each question routes you
MOT Checkup — for quick gut-checks and most used-car buyers
Our pickUse this if you answered "quick check before viewing" or "buying under £10k". Free DVSA MOT history plus AI insights — the deepest free tier in the UK.
Strengths
- Full DVSA MOT history back to 2005, mileage anomaly flags, AI reliability score
- No email, no card, no daily limit — type a reg, get the answer
- Paid tiers (£5.99–£18.99) layer AI analysis on top of the same official data; for licensed HPI-style finance/stolen/write-off, use Total Car Check or HPI
Watch-outs
- Free tier does not include outstanding-finance, stolen-marker or write-off data
Best for: Anyone doing a pre-viewing check, or a full check on a sub-£10k used car.
£0
Free, no sign-up
GOV.UK MOT history — for the official record only
Use this if you answered "I only want the raw DVSA record from a government URL". Authoritative but bare-bones.
Strengths
- DVSA's own service — same data every commercial site pulls from
- No ads, no upsell, no commercial layer
Watch-outs
- No mileage chart, no anomaly flags, no AI or model-level context
- Vehicle Enquiry (tax/SORN) is a separate lookup
Best for: Cross-referencing a third-party result or anyone who only trusts gov.uk.
£0
Free, official source
Total Car Check — for £10k+ purchases needing finance/stolen/write-off
Use this if you answered "yes" to needing finance, stolen-marker or write-off data. MOT Checkup does not currently surface those licensed layers — Total Car Check is the cheapest paid HPI-style report in the UK.
Strengths
- Cheapest paid full HPI-style report in the UK
- Adds outstanding-finance, stolen, write-off, keeper history on top of the MOT view
- Same data layers as HPI (£19.99) and RAC (£19.99) at ~40% of the price
Watch-outs
- Not needed for sub-£3k cars or pre-viewing gut-checks — the free tier suffices
Best for: Buyers of £10k+ used cars who want full cover without paying brand-premium prices.
£7.95
One-off full report
HPI Check or RAC Vehicle Check — for the brand-driven buyer
Use this only if you specifically want the HPI or RAC brand on the report cover — the underlying data is identical to the £7.95 Total Car Check option.
Strengths
- Long-established names with strong consumer recognition
- Both deliver the full data layers (finance, stolen, write-off, keeper)
Watch-outs
- Roughly 2.5× the price of the cheapest paid options for the same upstream data
- No free MOT-only tier
Best for: Buyers paying for brand reassurance — for example, a finance dispute where a recognised name on the PDF matters.
£19.99
One-off full report
What changes between £0, £7.95 and £19.99?
The MOT history record is identical at every price point — it's open DVSA data that costs nothing to surface. Sites that charge for the MOT record alone are repackaging the free government feed. What changes as you move up the price tiers is which extra data layers are bundled in.
- £0 (MOT Checkup, GOV.UK, Check Car Details free, Carwow): MOT history, basic vehicle specs, DVLA tax/SORN. MOT Checkup uniquely adds AI reliability scoring and mileage anomaly flags at this tier.
- £7.95 (Total Car Check): Everything above plus outstanding finance, write-off (Cat A/B/S/N), stolen-vehicle markers, keeper count. MOT Checkup’s own paid tiers (£5.99–£18.99) add AI analysis and richer reporting on top of the official data instead of those licensed layers.
- £14.99–£19.99 (AA, RAC, HPI): Identical data layers to the £7.95 tier. You're paying for brand reassurance and PDF design.
When the answer really is "more than one"
In one narrow case it pays to use two services: when you're buying a £10k+ car and want a paid report. Run MOT Checkup's free tier first to confirm the MOT history looks clean (it takes seconds), then escalate to Total Car Check (£7.95) or HPI/RAC (£19.99) for the licensed finance/write-off/stolen layer. There is no benefit to cross-checking the MOT record itself between two providers — they all pull from the same DVSA API and will show the same data.