Do I need a VIN to order a report?

No, you do not require a VIN at time of placing your order, though you will need to enter a valid VIN for your order within 180 days of your purchase to obtain a Vehicle History Report for a vehicle.


If entering a VIN after purchase: from your order confirmation email, click "Access Your Order" and then enter a valid VIN to redeem your report.


Lost or can't find your order confirmation email? Please see: How do I find my order confirmation email?


Just make sure you redeem your report(s) with a VIN within 180 days of purchase of your order will expire. We will send you a friendly email reminder when you have 30 days and 7 days remaining to run and un-redeemed report(s).


For more information on supported/invalid VINs, please see: What does the "We couldn't verify your VIN" message mean?


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Do I need to order a lien check?

CARFAX Canada recommends including a lien check with your order when you are purchasing or selling a used vehicle through a private sale.


Licensed vehicle retailers in Canada are not permitted to sell a vehicle that still has an active lien against it, and many provinces have consumer protections in place to protect consumers should a licensed retailer sell a vehicle with a lien on it.


Licensed retailers take many steps to confirm and when applicable, clear a vehicle's lien status prior to selling a vehicle. Many licensed retailers will have documentation to confirm there is no lien on the vehicle (such as a CARFAX Canada Vehicle History Report + Lien Check and/or other documentation from a provincial lien registry or from a lender). If your vehicle retailer has documentation confirming no lien against a vehicle, you would not require a lien check.


If you require additional peace of mind regarding the lien status of a vehicle you intend to purchase from a licensed retailer, then we would recommend ordering a CARFAX Canada Vehicle History Report + Lien Check from www.carfax.ca/order.


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Do I need to own the vehicle to order a CARFAX Canada report?

No, anyone can order a CARFAX Canada report.


To order a report, you'll need a valid email address and a credit card or PayPal account. A VIN will be required to generate a report but you can place an order prior to having the VIN and then add the VIN at a later date (within 180 days).



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Do I need to upgrade to a Vehicle History Report (BC) to get a valuation for a vehicle registered in British Columbia?

We highly recommend upgrading your Vehicle History Report to include an ICBC check for any vehicles registered in British Columbia, past or present. This will ensure that your vehicle history and valuation are as accurate as possible. To ensure ICBC data is included in your VHR, follow the prompts to include ICBC when our system flags that your vehicle has been registered in BC or if you know your vehicle is or was registered in the province of BC.


If you decide not to add ICBC at the time of purchase, you can still buy the ICBC report directly through ICBC, here. Please note that if you purchase ICBC directly from ICBC, the data in your VHR (and your complementary History-Based Value report, if eligible) will not update.



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Do orders expire?

Yes, you have 180 days from date of purchase to redeem your report. We will send you a friendly email reminder when you have 30 days and 7 days remaining to run any un-redeemed report(s).


Once a report is redeemed, you report data is available for 180 days.


Should you need a copy of your vehicle history report, we recommend saving a copy to your computer and/or printing a copy for your records.


If you have questions related to an order that is now expired, please see: My order has expired. What do I do?


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How are these values calculated?

The CARFAX Canada Value Range calculation is based on what others paid for similar vehicles, not just the asking price. It also adjusts for odometer, real-time market fluctuations and location to generate a realistic price range.


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How does damage affect my History-Based Value?

History-Based Value adjusts for damage in two ways. When pulling claims data from the Vehicle History Report (VHR), we are often able to calculate an estimate of the total monetary value of the historical damage that has occurred. That number is then used as an input into our model.


Secondly, the number of damage incidents also impacts the value of the vehicle. When we know the number of incidents, as well as the total damage amount, we are able to make the best possible adjustment for that damage.


When we only see that a damage event has occurred, but there is no monetary damage total data, our model will make an adjustment but it won't be as refined compared to if we had the full incident information.


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How do I access my 3 Vehicle History Reports + 1 Lien Check order?

Once you've completed your order, you will be able to access it directly after purchase through the order confirmation page.


If you need to access your 3 Vehicle History Reports + 1 Lien Check order to view your report(s) or to redeem another report, please refer to your order confirmation email and click on "Access Your Order."


Lost or can't find your order confirmation email? Please see: How do I find my order confirmation email?


Reports are accessible for 180 days from date of purchase or redemption. Your dashboard will be available to you for 180 days from date of purchase or for 180 days from the date of your most recent report redemption (whichever is longer).


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How do I find my order confirmation email?

If you can't find your order confirmation email:


  • Check your junk or spam folder
  • Visit www.carfax.ca, click "Lost your order?" and follow the instructions to have your order re-sent to you by email
    • Please allow up to 10 minutes for your email to arrive, and please also check your junk/spam folder
  • Return to support.carfax.ca, click on "Contact Us" and include the following information to request your order be re-sent to you:
    • VIN
    • Email address associated with the order

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How do I add ICBC to my Vehicle History Report?

ICBC should be added to a Vehicle History Report (VHR) for any vehicles that are registered in BC, past or present. To ensure ICBC data is included in your VHR, follow the prompts to include ICBC when our system flags that your vehicle has been registered in BC or if you know your vehicle is or was registered in the province of BC.


If you decide not to add ICBC after receiving these prompts at the time of purchase, you can still buy the ICBC report directly through ICBC, here. Please note that if you purchase ICBC directly from ICBC, the data in your VHR (and your complementary History-Based Value report, if eligible) will not update.


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