Find car owner by registration number

Can you find a car owner by their registration number?

Obtaining the details of an unknown driver from a registration number isn’t as straightforward as you might think. Unfortunately, no free or premium ‘vehicle check’ service can tell you the personal details of a driver from their registration number alone.

However, in some limited circumstances, you may be able to find an owner’s details from their registration number.

Although it’s very likely that the DVLA hold the details you are looking for, they won’t provide personal information about a driver unless they agree that you have ‘reasonable cause’ to request this. Reasonable cause incorporates matters relating to road safety and events relating to vehicle use.

For more detailed information, please refer to the DVLA’s booklet, ‘Release of information from DVLA’s register’.

Requesting a driver’s details from the DVLA

If you believe that you have cause to request a driver’s details from the DVLA, you should complete a V888 form and post it (with a cheque or postal order for £2.50 made payable to ‘DVLA, Swansea’) to the following address:

Vehicle Record Enquiries, DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AJ.

What ownership details can you get from a car check tool?

You cannot find out the owner’s details by registration with any car check tool or service. The only ownership detail a car check will provide is the number of different owners a vehicle has had.

You will not be able to find out any further details about the current or previous owners using this method.

What is the best way to get car owner information?

Whilst online tools cannot assist with retrieving owner information from a registration number, there are several other methods at your disposal – and the correct process to follow depends on your reason for requesting the owner’s details:

Somebody has abandoned their vehicle outside my property – how can I contact the owner?

If someone has abandoned their vehicle outside your property, but you aren’t sure how to get in contact with them, simply report the vehicle to your local authority.

You could submit a V888 form to the DVLA and provide a ‘reasonable cause’ for obtaining their details, but it’s much easier to simply report the car rather than doing any investigative work yourself.

I’m not sure if I’m the owner of my car – how can I check?

You can contact the DVLA and fill in a V888 form to request information about the vehicle.

I want to buy my old car back – what should I do?

The first place to start is the Vehicle Enquiry Service, which is a branch of the DVLA.

From here, you can find out information about the car itself (e.g. its make, colour, registration date, fuel type etc.), but not the owner’s details.

You may have some success tracking down the new owner through social media – or by enquiring through an owner’s club (if the car is a ‘classic car’). You can also try asking at the relevant dealership if you traded in your car.

I was involved in a car accident and have the other car’s registration – what should I do?

In the event of an accident where the driver refused to provide their details (or failed to stop at all), you should contact the police, providing the driver’s registration, if possible, as they have powers to locate them.

However, if you do need to trace a driver who has failed to provide their details following an accident, the DVLA will likely honour your request for their details. You can request this information by submitting a V888 form to the DVLA.

What vehicle details can I find from an online registration checker?

There are many free and premium car check tools available online that can help you retrieve key information about a vehicle from its registration number. For instance, webuyanycar have several free tools available to help you find out more about a specific vehicle:

• Car check: This car check tool can confirm the make, model, registration date, transmission type, import status – and the number of previous keepers for any UK-registered vehicle.
• MOT check: This MOT check tool will generate a report that includes your vehicle’s MOT due date, current MOT status, annual mileage recordings, refusal notes and advisory notices.
• Car colour check: This car colour check tool will show you the current colour of your car.
• Car tax check: This car tax check tool will provide you with information on your vehicle’s tax status and tax due date.
• What year is my car?: This tool will tell you your car’s year and registration date.