Reader Question: Car Fax

After my post Don't Blindly Trust CarFax I received the following email from a reader.

Hello,
I enjoy your blog! I am wondering though how you learned "Carfax only shows accidents over 25% of the value of the car at the time of accident." I can't seem to find this information anywhere else.
Thanks,
Jon

I went back and checked my sources for the info that Jon questioned. The sites where I gathered this information were from various types of associated content resources. Basically these articles are sourced out to various informational websites.

I'm glad Jon raised the question and so I contacted CarFax to check the claim that they only report accidents over 25% of the value of the car.

"If any accident is reported to Carfax, it will show on the Carfax Vehicle History Report," says Chris Basso, representative for CarFax. "We also back the major incidents that result in a branded title being issued by a DMV with our Buyback Guarantee."

The key here is that not all accidents are reported to CarFax. Of course, that is of no fault of CarFax. The company is not clairvoyant, they just report what they know. The reason an accident may not be reported is if it was not reported to an insurance company. The repairs may still be done, just not under an insurance claim.

Another key piece of knowledge--mostly for me--is not to trust associated content sites. Thanks to Jon for this lesson.