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Warning over fake checks

Buyer beware! That's the message from car history check firm HPI, which has launched an industry-wide crackdown on businesses which are exploiting its name.

By Richard Yarrow

14th March 2006

Bosses say used buyers are being ripped off by "a number of companies" who are fraudulently claiming to offer HPI checks. It seems the firm has become a victim of its own success, and the acronym has become a generic term among second-hand dealers and buyers for searching a car's past.

Managing director David Lundholm told Auto Express: "There are plenty of other excellent service providers on the market, but there are many which aren't. Not only are they conducting business illegitimately under the HPI name, but they rarely provide the same quality of data that we do."

His staff get as many as five calls every week from drivers who have bought a vehicle believing an HPI check has been carried out. "They contact us when there's subsequently a problem, but then we find out it wasn't an HPI investigation at all, but one from another firm," he explained.

A quick search on the Internet reveals various organisations claiming to offer HPI checks, many of which are not genuine. "They are trying to pass themselves off as us," said Lundholm. "The use of the term 'HPI' might be widespread, but that doesn't stop it from being a trademark."

He added that the firm's lawyers have been taking out adverts in the trade press to warn the used car industry that the company takes misuse of its name very seriously.

Meanwhile, auction website eBay has teamed up with HPI to provide Vehicle Status Reports online. With three million visitors every month and a model sold every two minutes, the tie-up should help sellers find a buyer. A spokeswoman for eBay said: "Consumers can now get a quick valuation, check the vehicle history to ensure it's genuine and buy with peace of mind."

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