If you've looked at car history checks in the UK, you've seen the big badge: £30,000 Data Guarantee. But here's the uncomfortable truth: these guarantees are almost never used, rarely claimable, and largely theoretical.
If you've looked at car history checks in the UK, you've seen it everywhere.
Big badge. Big number.
"£30,000 Data Guarantee."
It's meant to make you feel safe.
It's meant to signal confidence.
It's meant to justify paying more.
But here's the uncomfortable truth most sites won't tell you:
These guarantees are almost never used, rarely claimable, and largely theoretical.
Not because people are getting paid quietly. But because the structure of these guarantees makes successful claims extremely unlikely in the first place.
Let's unpack what's really going on.
Car history reports themselves are highly accurate. They pull from established industry databases and are trusted across the motor trade. Incorrect data is rare.
The issue isn't accuracy. It's how guarantees are marketed and how they change buyer behaviour.
Most UK car history companies say their paid reports come with a "data guarantee" covering major issues such as:
On paper, this sounds reassuring.
In reality, it's far more limited than most consumers realise.
These guarantees do not cover:
A car history report is a snapshot in time. As vehicles change, records update. That doesn't make the data unreliable, it simply reflects how the real world works.
Even if a claim were valid (which is rare), payouts are typically:
But more importantly, this framing misses the real point:
Large data guarantees don't make reports better. They make people pay less attention. When buyers believe a headline promise protects them, they're more likely to gloss over the details that actually matter.
To even be considered, buyers usually must prove all of the following:
Miss any one of these steps and the guarantee can be void.
Most buyers don't even know these conditions exist.
They're buried in long terms pages that almost no one reads.
This isn't accidental.
If these guarantees were genuinely useful, you would expect:
Instead, what you find is silence.
Even long-standing industry players rarely mention actual outcomes.
That tells you everything you need to know.
Guarantees encourage people to skim. They shift focus from reading details to chasing a headline number. That's the marketing trick, not protection.
At Carpeep, we deliberately chose not to compete on flashy guarantees.
Not because data accuracy doesn't matter.
But because confidence should come from clarity, not fine print.
Our focus is on:
We'd rather help you walk away from a risky car than sell you a promise you'll probably never be able to use.
Most "data guarantees" fail all three.
They're not there to protect you.
They're there to reassure you just long enough to click "Buy".
The real protection isn't a number on a webpage.
It's accurate data.
Clear signals.
And knowing when to walk away.
The smartest approach is balance. Use a car history report to reveal what can't be seen, and your own judgment to assess what can. One complements the other. Neither replaces common sense.
At Carpeep, we believe the best guarantee isn't £30,000 written in bold.
It's not needing one at all.
Instantly uncover any hidden finance, write-off history, theft markers, or mileage issues. All in one clear report.
Get Your Vehicle Report – £12Swipe to explore more
