# Vehicle Identity Check

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The **Vehicle Identity Check** (VIC) was a regulation concerning car ownership that was in force in the UK between 2003 and 2015.

The VIC was introduced on 7 April 2003 and was created to prevent the illegal practice of [vehicle cloning](/source/VIN_cloning) and to keep track of scrapyard vehicles.[1] The scheme was run jointly by the [Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency](/source/Driver_and_Vehicle_Licensing_Agency) (DVLA) and the [Vehicle and Operator Services Agency](/source/Vehicle_and_Operator_Services_Agency) (VOSA).[2]

## Details

The VIC applied only to cars and was intended to ensure that the [vehicle registration certificate](/source/Vehicle_registration_certificate) (V5C) was not issued for stolen or cloned vehicles using the identity of a destroyed vehicle.[3] When a car was written off by an insurance company as "Category C" or higher, checking was required before the V5C could be issued.[4]

Vehicles in Category D did not require inspection. The test, carried out by VOSA, determined whether or not a car presented was the same one that was listed on DVLA records. To apply for a check, a VIC1 Form had to be completed and submitted to VOSA. A car bought with no V5C might also require a VIC even if there had been no insurance claim to confirm its identity before a new V5C was issued.

## Closure

Up to 2012, an estimated 900,000 vehicles had been tested under the scheme. However, only 38 "ringers" or cloned vehicles had been successfully identified.[5]

The VIC Scheme closed on 26 October 2015.[6] Since then, the conditions for issue of a V5C are that the vehicle has obtained an MoT Test Certificate, is roadworthy and has insurance.

## References

1. ["New checks to foil 'car ringing' rackets"](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/new-checks-to-foil-car-ringing-rackets-5362674.html). *independent.co.uk*. 28 January 2002. [Archived](https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220811/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/new-checks-to-foil-car-ringing-rackets-5362674.html) 11 August 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 18 November 2020.

1. ["The Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) Scheme"](http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/repository/Vehicle%20Identity%20Check%20Scheme%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf). *www.transportoffice.gov.uk*. VOSA. November 2005. Retrieved 28 May 2017.

1. ["Car ringing"](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2005/dec/14/8). *theguardian.com*. 14 December 2005. Retrieved 6 November 2020.

1. ["Code of Practice for the Disposal of Motor Vehicle Salvage"](https://web.archive.org/web/20180507221521/https://www.abi.org.uk/globalassets/sitecore/files/documents/publications/public/migrated/motor/code-of-practice-for-disposal-of-motor-vehicle-salvage.pdf). Association of British Insurers. 7 May 2018. Archived from [the original](https://www.abi.org.uk/globalassets/sitecore/files/documents/publications/public/migrated/motor/code-of-practice-for-disposal-of-motor-vehicle-salvage.pdf) on 7 May 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2020.

1. Sinclair, Julie (20 July 2012). ["Cloned car scheme wastes millions"](http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/consumer-news/59308/cloned-car-scheme-wastes-millions). *Auto Express*. Retrieved 28 May 2017.

1. ["Vehicle approval, alteration and identity check data for Great Britain"](https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/vehicle-approval-alteration-and-identity-check-data-for-great-britain). *www.gov.uk*. DVLC. 4 December 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2017.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Vehicle Identity Check](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Identity_Check) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_Identity_Check?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.