You know that info has been available by law for many years now, right?
The National Motor Vehicle Title Information System is designed to protect consumers from fraud and unsafe vehicles and to keep stolen vehicles from being resold.
vehiclehistory.bja.ojp.gov
DMVs can choose to "strip" information they sell, but most don't. They just take the money and run.
Started out as a good idea, and like all good ideas, it got corrupted.
The National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) is an electronic system
that contains information on certain automobiles titled in the United States. NMVTIS is
intended to serve as a reliable source of title and brand history for automobiles, but it
does not contain detailed information regarding a vehicle’s repair history.
All states, insurance companies, and junk and salvage yards are required by federal law to
regularly report information to NMVTIS. However, NMVTIS does not contain
information on all motor vehicles in the United States because some states are not yet
providing their vehicle data to the system. Currently, the data provided to NMVTIS by
states is provided in a variety of time frames;
while some states report and update
NMVTIS data in “real-time” (as title transactions occur), other states send updates less
frequently, such as once every 24 hours or within a period of days.
Information on previous, significant vehicle damage may not be included in the system if
the vehicle was never determined by an insurance company (or other appropriate entity)
to be a “total loss” or branded by a state titling agency. Conversely, an insurance carrier
may be required to report a “total loss” even if the vehicle’s titling-state has not
determined the vehicle to be “salvage” or “junk.”
A vehicle history report is NOT a substitute for an independent vehicle inspection.
Before making a decision to purchase a vehicle, consumers are strongly encouraged to
also obtain an independent vehicle inspection to ensure the vehicle does not have
hidden damage. The Approved NMVTIS Data Providers (look for the NMVTIS logo)
can include vehicle condition data from sources other than NMVTIS.