V5C logbook check

The V5C, usually called the logbook, is the DVLA's registration certificate for a vehicle. It records who the registered keeper is and the details the car was registered with: make, model, colour, engine size, VIN and engine number. When you're buying, it's the document that links the car in front of you to the record held by the DVLA, which is why fraudsters go to so much trouble to fake it.

Our free check shows the date the latest V5C was issued. Comparing that one date with the logbook the seller gives you is one of the quickest ways to catch a problem.

Check the date on the logbook

Every time something changes on the vehicle record, such as a new keeper, a new address or a new colour, the DVLA issues a fresh V5C and the old one stops being valid. The date it was issued is printed on the logbook.

1. Enter the registration above and note the V5C logbook date in the free check.
2. Ask the seller for the logbook and find the date of issue on it.
3. The two should match.

If the seller's logbook is older than the latest date we show, a newer V5C has been issued since, and the one you're holding is out of date. Sometimes there's an innocent reason, such as a lost logbook that was replaced and then found. But an out-of-date V5C is also exactly what you'd be shown for a stolen car, or a car that's been sold on while someone else holds the current logbook. Don't hand over money until the seller can show you the current one.

A V5C issued very recently deserves a question too. A new logbook a week before a sale can simply mean the seller has just bought the car, which is worth knowing if they describe it as a long-term family car.

Match the logbook to the car

A genuine V5C for a different car is no use to you. Check these against the car itself, not just the advert:

• VIN. The 17-character vehicle identification number is usually at the bottom of the windscreen, on the driver's door pillar and stamped into the body under the bonnet or carpet. All of them should match the V5C. Our Standard and Full checks let you type in the VIN from the car to confirm it matches our records.
• Engine number. It's stamped on the engine block. A different engine isn't always a problem, but the V5C should have been updated.
• Colour. If the car has been resprayed a different colour, the keeper should have told the DVLA. Our free check shows the colour on record.
• Registration and first registration date. These should agree with the plates and with the age of the car.
• The keeper's name and address. View the car at that address, and ask to see ID. A seller who wants to meet in a car park or at a motorway services is a warning sign.

How to spot a fake V5C

Real logbooks are printed on watermarked paper. Hold it up to the light and you should see the DVLA watermark. Then check:

• The serial number. Blank logbooks were stolen in large numbers in 2006, and many have been filled in since. Don't buy a car whose V5C serial number is between BG8229501 and BG9999030, or between BI2305501 and BI2800000.
• The colour of the document. The DVLA moved to the current red V5C after the 2006 thefts and finished replacing the old blue ones in 2012. A blue logbook today isn't automatically fake, but it is old, so make sure its date matches the latest V5C date in our check.
• Spelling, alignment and printing. Uneven text, spelling mistakes or anything that looks altered by hand.

The V5C isn't proof of ownership

The logbook names the registered keeper, the person responsible for taxing and insuring the car. That isn't always the owner. A car on a PCP or hire purchase agreement belongs to the finance company until it's paid off, even though the V5C is in the driver's name. If you buy it, the lender can take it back.

That's why a logbook check works best alongside a finance check. The Full check (£8.99) shows outstanding finance and log book loans, and the Standard check (£4.99) shows every date a V5C was issued, the number of previous keepers and any plate changes.

Buying and selling: what happens to the V5C

When a car changes hands, the seller tells the DVLA who the new keeper is, online or by filling in the logbook and posting it. The buyer gets the green new keeper slip (V5C/2), which lets them tax the car straight away. A new V5C in the buyer's name should then arrive by post. If it hasn't arrived within four weeks, contact the DVLA.

If you're selling, don't hand over the whole logbook, and don't post photos of it online. The 11-digit document reference number on it is what the DVLA's online services ask for.

Keepers must keep the V5C up to date when they move house, change the car's colour or modify it. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you don't.

Lost or missing logbook

A replacement V5C costs £25. Apply online or by phone and it usually arrives within five to seven working days. By post, on form V62, allow up to four weeks. A seller who has "lost" the logbook and can't wait for a replacement is a seller to walk away from.