The Odometer Disclosure Statement for title transfers

NHTSA estimates that more than 450,000 vehicles are sold annually with false odometer readings. This crime costs American car buyers more than $1 billion annually. Odometer fraud is an illegal practice of rolling back an odometer to make it appear that a vehicle has lower mileage than it really does, or replacing an odometer without providing a notice with the intention to overstate its actual price. Historically, it has been considered an important problem and one of the most common types of fraud, not only for American consumers but for vehicle sales worldwide.

Regarding the existing problem, nowadays, everyone must fill out an Odometer Disclosure Statement. It’s a special form issued by the State DMV during ownership transfer to deliver a vehicle’s mileage and overall condition. This document is a required attachment to the Vehicle Bill of Sale at the time of purchase. Basically, it is aimed to protect used car consumers. Both odometer altering and tampering are prohibited by the law. If a person gives false mileage information in the Odometer Disclosure Statement, it can result in high fines or even imprisonment.

Even though Odometer Disclosure Statement forms vary from state to state, they generally provide similar data like both seller and buyer information. Typically, it’s some basic vehicle specs by VIN, and the most important – a current odometer reading. According to government requirements, an odometer must be accurate and represent the actual mileage of a vehicle, otherwise, the seller must indicate odometer discrepancy. Basically, there are 4 ways to define the validity of the odometer figures:

·      Actual

It means that a reported odometer reading is true and accurate.

·      Not Actual 

Such odometer reading is imprecise due to mechanical error or tampering.

·      Exceeds Mechanical Limitations 

Since older vehicles may have a physical or mechanical limitation on how high their odometer can go, it may not be required to report an actual reading of such vehicles.

·      Exempt

According to some state laws, the owners might not be required to report odometer reading on vehicles of some specified type, age, or damage. As a rule, the note appears on cars that are more than 10 years old. It also can be issued for some specific heavy-duty trucks and equipment.

The Odometer Disclosure Statement enables state DMVs to obtain relevant data about each sold vehicle and counteract fraudulent sales. ClearVin is an authorized NMVTIS data provider, the most reliable data source based on federal legal requirements. NMVTIS consolidates data directly from the DMVs all over the country. Therefore, the odometer reading in our vehicle history reports is always accurate and solid. Also ClearVin offers fast and easy access to the original Ford Window Sticker by VIN. Moreover, it contains a separate record in case of an odometer replacement. Car history check for dealers including actual mileage check is vital for car dealers and can significantly affect the business. Get the odometer reading and much more about the history of your car with the ClearVin car VIN number lookup!