Vehicle Identity Check
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The Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) was a regulation concerning car ownership that was in force in the UK between 2003 and 2015.
The VIC was introduced on 7 April 2003 and was created to prevent the illegal practice of vehicle cloning and to keep track of scrapyard vehicles.{{cite web|title=New checks to foil 'car ringing' rackets|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/new-checks-to-foil-car-ringing-rackets-5362674.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220811/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/new-checks-to-foil-car-ringing-rackets-5362674.html |archive-date=11 August 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|website=independent.co.uk|date=28 January 2002|accessdate=18 November 2020}} The scheme was run jointly by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA).{{cite web|title=The Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) Scheme|url=http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/repository/Vehicle%20Identity%20Check%20Scheme%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf|date=November 2005|accessdate=28 May 2017|website=www.transportoffice.gov.uk|publisher=VOSA|language=en}}
Details
The VIC applied only to cars and was intended to ensure that the vehicle registration certificate (V5C) was not issued for stolen or cloned vehicles using the identity of a destroyed vehicle.{{cite web|title=Car ringing|url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2005/dec/14/8|website=theguardian.com|date=14 December 2005|accessdate=6 November 2020}} When a car was written off by an insurance company as "Category C" or higher, checking was required before the V5C could be issued.{{cite web|title=Code of Practice for the Disposal of Motor Vehicle Salvage|url=https://www.abi.org.uk/globalassets/sitecore/files/documents/publications/public/migrated/motor/code-of-practice-for-disposal-of-motor-vehicle-salvage.pdf|publisher=Association of British Insurers|accessdate=6 November 2020|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180507221521/https://www.abi.org.uk/globalassets/sitecore/files/documents/publications/public/migrated/motor/code-of-practice-for-disposal-of-motor-vehicle-salvage.pdf|archivedate=7 May 2018|date=7 May 2018|url-status=dead}}
Vehicles in Category D did not require inspection. The test, carried out by VOSA, determined whether or not a car presented was the same one that was listed on DVLA records. To apply for a check, a VIC1 Form had to be completed and submitted to VOSA. A car bought with no V5C might also require a VIC even if there had been no insurance claim to confirm its identity before a new V5C was issued.
Closure
Up to 2012, an estimated 900,000 vehicles had been tested under the scheme. However, only 38 "ringers" or cloned vehicles had been successfully identified.{{cite news|last1=Sinclair|first1=Julie|title=Cloned car scheme wastes millions|url=http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/consumer-news/59308/cloned-car-scheme-wastes-millions|work=Auto Express|date=20 July 2012|accessdate=28 May 2017|language=en}}
The VIC Scheme closed on 26 October 2015.{{cite web|title=Vehicle approval, alteration and identity check data for Great Britain|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/vehicle-approval-alteration-and-identity-check-data-for-great-britain|website=www.gov.uk|publisher=DVLC|date=4 December 2015|accessdate=28 May 2017}} Since then, the conditions for issue of a V5C are that the vehicle has obtained an MoT Test Certificate, is roadworthy and has insurance.