Car insurance check
Whether a vehicle is insured right now is held on the Motor Insurance Database. The official way to check it is askMID, and its check for your own vehicle is free.
askMID is the official service of the Motor Insurance Database, run by the Motor Insurers' Bureau. Checking your own vehicle is free. It is not a Carpeep service, and Carpeep has no access to insurance records.
On this page:
- Checking a car is insured
- Checking another vehicle
- Insurance groups explained
- History insurers ask about
- Insuring a car you buy
- Uninsured cars and SORN
Three different insurance questions.
People searching for a car insurance check usually want one of these. Each has a different answer, and a different place to find it.
Is it insured right now?
Live insurance status is on the Motor Insurance Database. Check it on askMID, the official service. Carpeep cannot see it.
Go to askMIDWhat is its insurance group?
A rating for the model, from 1 to 50, that insurers use in pricing. Insurers and price comparison sites show it. Carpeep does not.
Is its history a problem?
Write-offs, theft records and other history that insurers ask about. That is what a Carpeep report shows.
Car history checkHow to check if a car is insured.
UK insurers record every policy they write on the Motor Insurance Database, which the police use to spot uninsured vehicles. askMID is the public service for checking it, run by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.
The check for your own vehicle is free: enter the registration and askMID tells you whether it is recorded as insured. It is a quick way to confirm a new policy has gone through, or that a named driver's car is covered before you drive it.
For someone else's vehicle, askMID offers a paid one-off check for situations such as after a road traffic accident, when you need the other vehicle's insurance details to make a claim. Its site explains when you can use it.
Insurance groups, briefly.
Useful when you are choosing a car, but a different thing from whether a car is insured.
What an insurance group is
Every car model is given a group from 1 to 50 by an industry panel, based on things like repair costs, parts prices, performance and security. Group 1 is the cheapest to insure, group 50 the most expensive.
Where to find it
Insurers, price comparison sites and manufacturers publish groups by model and trim. Carpeep does not provide insurance groups.
What it does not tell you
The group is set for the model, not the individual car. It says nothing about whether this car is insured, or about a write-off or theft record against it.
Vehicle history that affects insurance.
These are recorded against the car itself. Insurers ask about some of them directly, and each one is in a Carpeep report.
Insurance write-offs
A Cat S or Cat N record is something insurers ask about. Some price a repaired write-off higher and some decline it.
Write-off checkTheft records
Whether the car is recorded as stolen. A stolen car can be taken back, whoever has insured it.
Stolen car checkOutstanding finance
Whether a lender still has an agreement on the car, which matters if it is ever written off and the payout is claimed.
Car finance checkMileage and plate history
Mileage readings and plate changes, so the car you describe to an insurer matches the one on the record.
Mileage checkInsurance when you buy a car.
The seller's policy covers the seller, not you.
- Arrange your own insurance before you drive a car you have just bought. Cover does not pass to you with the car.
- Get a quote before you commit if the car is a recorded write-off, so the premium is not a surprise.
- Tax the car as well: vehicle tax does not transfer to a new keeper either. See the car tax check.
- Tell your insurer about any modifications and any write-off record you know of. Missing information can affect a claim.
Uninsured cars and SORN.
Driving without insurance is an offence. Keeping a vehicle is not enough on its own either: if a vehicle is neither insured nor declared off the road with a SORN, the registered keeper can be fined, even if it is never driven.
If a car is off the road and not insured, it should be on a SORN. You can see whether a vehicle is currently declared SORN with our free SORN check.
Car insurance check FAQs
How can I check if a car is insured?
Use askMID, the official Motor Insurance Database service at <a href="https://www.askmid.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">askmid.com</a>. Checking your own vehicle is free and needs only the registration.
Can Carpeep tell me if a car is insured?
No. Carpeep has no access to the Motor Insurance Database and does not show insurance status. A Carpeep report covers the vehicle's history, such as write-offs, theft, finance and mileage.
Can I check if someone else's car is insured?
askMID offers a paid one-off check for situations such as after a road traffic accident, when you need the other vehicle's insurance details. Its free check is for your own vehicle.
Is the seller's insurance valid when I buy a car?
No. The seller's policy covers them, not you, and it does not pass with the car. Arrange your own insurance before you drive it away.
Does a write-off affect car insurance?
It can. Insurers ask about recorded write-offs, and some charge more for a repaired Cat S or Cat N car or decline it. Check the history, then get a quote before you buy. The <a href="/write-off-check">write-off check</a> shows any recorded category.
Can I find a car's insurance group on Carpeep?
No. Insurance groups are set for each model and published by insurers and price comparison sites. Carpeep does not provide them.
Buying a car?
Check the history an insurer will ask about.
Write-off, theft, finance and mileage records for any registration in one £15 report. This is a vehicle history report, not an insurance status check.
- Full vehicle history
- No account required
- £30,000 data guarantee