Carfax (company) - Information Sources

Information Sources

Carfax has access to ten billion records from more than 34,000 sources, including motor vehicle departments for all 50 U.S. states and all 10 Canadian provinces. The company's information sources include U.S. state title and registration records, auto and salvage auctions, Canadian motor vehicle records, rental and fleet vehicle companies, consumer protection agencies, state inspection stations, extended warranty companies, insurance companies, fire and police departments, manufacturers, inspection companies, service and repair facilities, dealers and import/export companies. CARFAX lists only information that is reported to them and consumers should not take this report to a be complete accident history. Not all accidents are disclosed and CARFAX uses the language "no accidents have been reported to CARFAX, the emphasis being on "reported". Consumers should not rely on CARFAX alone when checking out a used vehicle.

Although Carfax continuously expands its database and resources, some information is not allowed to be provided. Under the 1994 U.S. Drivers Privacy Protection Act, personal information such as names, telephone numbers and addresses of current or previous owners are neither collected nor reported. Carfax does not have access to every facility and mistakes are sometimes made by those who input data. In the event information is disputed but cannot be verified, Carfax allows consumers and dealerships to add information to its reports.