Mileage Correction

Mileage correction is something that a lot of car owners might be interested in, especially if they have purchased a used car. However, there is some confusion about whether or not it is legal to do this in the UK. Let’s clear up that confusion!

It is estimated that there are over 2.5 million clocked cars and vans on the road today, with the Citroen Dispatch more likely to be clocked than any other vehicle.

This means of the seven million cars that were subjected to a mileage check as part of a new study, 443,061 were found to have mileage discrepancies – this works out as 6.32%. As of September 2019, there were 38.9 million cars on British roads, which means an average of 2,458,480 of them have incorrect mileages recorded based on an extrapolation of these figures .

There were over 400,000 vehicles – 5.91 % – that were found to have had lower mileages recorded than in previous MoT tests. These instances could have occured due to deliberate clocking, or they could have a more innocent explanation, such as the MOT tester accidentally making a keying in error when recording a vehicle’s mileage.

The research, conducted by Rapid Car Check, found that the Citroen Dispatch was the most likely vehicle to be clocked – 2,448 of the 8,188 that were checked were found to have mileage discrepancies, working out at nearly 30%.

Second highest was – the Renault Scenic/Grand Scenic – with a discrepancy rate of 29.61 % it was followed closely by the Peugeot Expert – with 28.63&.

Previous analysis from Rapid Car Check backs up the latest findings, with between 2.3 and 2.5 million clocked cars thought to have been present on British roads.

Is it illegal?

It is illegal to sell a car without disclosing known mileage discrepancies, but it is NOT ILLEGAL to adjust a vehicle’s odometer mileage. The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, has previously called for a ban on DIY ‘mileage correction’ tools, which can be bought online from about £100. 

He advised buyers of used cars to “make thorough checks to ensure that the vehicle is showing its true mileage and that its service history and MOT certificate are accurate”.