Where our data comes from.
We don't guess. Every field we return is sourced from an official register or a licensed data partner, normalised into one schema, and refreshed on a defined schedule.
United Kingdom
Full coverage of vehicles registered in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, keyed on the UK registration mark (VRM).
Official registers
Vehicle and MOT records come from the DVLA and DVSA. Valuation, provenance and specification data comes from licensed automotive data partners.
Freshness you can reason about
Each source has a defined freshness window, so you always know how current the data is and when it will next be refreshed from the source.
Sources & refresh windows
How long a result stays fresh before we refresh it from the source.
| Data set | Source | Covers | Freshness window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle details | DVLA Vehicle Enquiry Service | Registration, tax, MOT status, make, colour, fuel, CO₂ | 1 days |
| MOT history | DVSA MOT History | Every test, result, mileage reading and advisory | 7 days |
| Valuation | Licensed valuation partner | Trade, retail and private values | 1 days |
| Spec & options | Licensed data partner | Factory specification and fitted options | 30 days |
| Provenance | Licensed provenance partner | Write-off, finance, stolen and scrapped markers | 1 days |
| Tyre data | Licensed data partner | Sizes, pressures, speed and load ratings | 30 days |
| Battery & EV | Licensed data partner | Battery capacity, range and charging | 30 days |
| Insurance | Licensed data partner | — | 1 hours |
| Vehicle images | Licensed imagery partner | Studio-style vehicle imagery | 30 days |
Every lookup is billed the same whether the data is fetched fresh or served from our own recent records: you always receive the most up-to-date data we hold for the vehicle.
What each check tells you
In the trade's own language, and the field it arrives in. These aren't separate products, they're what's inside the checks below.
| What you get | Trade term | Comes from | Field |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latest keeper change date and the number of previous keepers | Keeper change | Provenance Check | provenance.keeper |
| Every recorded odometer reading, with an inconsistency flag | Clocking | Provenance Check | provenance.mileage |
| Insurance write-off category and the date it was recorded | Written off (Cat A/B/S/N) | Provenance Check | provenance.write_off_category |
| Outstanding finance agreements recorded against the vehicle | Outstanding finance | Provenance Check | provenance.outstanding_finance |
| Scrappage and Certificate of Destruction markers | Scrapped | Provenance Check | provenance.scrapped |
| Registration transfers, with the previous mark | Plate change | Provenance Check | provenance.plate_changes |
| Import and export records, including non-EU imports | Imported / exported | Provenance Check | provenance.imported |
| Last five characters of the VIN, to check against the vehicle | VIN check | Provenance Check | provenance.vin_last_5 |
| Tax status and expiry: whether it is on or off the road | Tax status / SORN | Vehicle Details | tax_status |
| Outstanding DVSA safety recall flag | Recall | MOT History | mot_summary.has_outstanding_recall |
| When the next MOT is due | MOT expiry | MOT History | mot_summary.next_due_date |
What we don't do
We cover the United Kingdom only, and we key on the registration mark rather than the VIN. If you're working from a VIN alone, we can't help you yet.
We don't currently supply Republic of Ireland or Spanish vehicle data, PNC checks, ABI insurance codes, Royal Mail address data, fuel prices, or bulk registration cleansing. Other suppliers do, and if that's what you need we'd rather tell you now than take the lookup.
Valuations and provenance come from a licensed data partner, not from us directly. Every field has a freshness window, listed above: none of it is real-time.
Using this data lawfully
VehicleMatic is operated by MATIC AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED, registered in England & Wales. We process personal data in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018: see our Privacy Policy.
Where the data we return is personal data, you act as controller and we act as processor for its delivery. You must have a lawful basis and the necessary permissions for the purpose you're using it for. Our Terms set out the restrictions that apply, including that the data must not be used for direct marketing or for tracing individuals.
API keys are hashed at rest, every request is logged against your account, and keys can be scoped to specific products so an integration only reaches the data it needs.
Need a data-processing agreement?
We'll walk through sourcing, retention and your lawful basis.