Comparisons · prices seen 26 Aug 2026
Which car check, and when?
There are two settled ways to check a used car in the UK: a history check at £5.95–£19.99 that reads the registers, and an engineer’s inspection at £110–£340 that reads the car. AutoSpect’s £29.99 Decision Report sits between them. These pages say plainly what each option covers, with every competitor price dated and linked, including the cases where the competitor is the right choice.
- Is an HPI check worth it? Yes, for the register questions. When the £19.99 is well spent, when a £5.95 check does the same job, and what it can’t tell you.
- Car history check vs pre-purchase inspection: two different questions The register answers one question, the engineer answers another. Which to do first, and the step between them.
- AA vs RAC vehicle inspection: which one, and do you need either yet? Both send an engineer and neither includes the history check. What each covers, and the £29.99 step before booking either.
- AutoSpect vs carVertical: which UK car check is worth paying for? International photos and damage records versus the UK record explained, the known faults and a price to offer.
- HPI check alternatives: cheaper history checks, and what they don’t tell you Five history checks from £5.95 to £19.99, what the £30,000 guarantee actually covers, and the question none of them answer.
Competitor figures on these pages are as published on the dates shown and may have changed since. AutoSpect is not affiliated with any company named.