Cat S Check
Was it a structural write-off? Enter the registration or VIN to uncover hidden Cat S history.
The basics
What is a Cat S Check?
A Cat S check identifies vehicles that have been written off due to structural damage. Unlike Category N, a Cat S vehicle has suffered damage to its 'skeleton', the chassis or crumple zones. For complete peace of mind, our comprehensive history report includes insurance write-off details, salvage records, and high-resolution damage photos where available.
Structural Integrity
Find out if the vehicle's frame, chassis, or structural pillars were compromised in a major accident.
Write-off Records
We query the MIAFTR database to confirm if an insurer declared the car a Category S total loss.
Resale Value Impact
A Cat S marker can reduce a car's value by 30-50%. Ensure you aren't paying full market price for a write-off.
Safety & Roadworthiness
Structural repairs must be professional. Our check helps you decide if a car is safe for you and your family.
Inside the report
Where a Cat S marker shows up
The write-off panel is open. Cat S means structural damage that has been repaired, and there is no obligation on a private seller to mention it, so looking is the only way to know.
Is the vehicle still on finance?
If a lender still has an interest in the vehicle, they can repossess it from your driveway. The seller keeps your money.
- Searched against
- The UK finance register
- Agreement types
- PCP, HP, lease, unit stocking
- Report shows
- Agreement type, date and status
- Recorded by
- The lender, not the seller
Source: UK Finance Register
Has it been written off?
Insurers record a category when a vehicle is damaged badly enough to be uneconomical to repair. Cat S and Cat N vehicles can legally return to the road.
- Searched against
- MIAFTR, the insurance loss register
- Categories covered
- A, B, C, D, S and N
- Report shows
- Category, and the date of loss
- Also covered
- Salvage and total-loss records
Source: MIAFTR
Does the mileage add up?
Every MOT reading is on record. A reading that goes down, or a jump that does not fit the pattern, is the clearest sign of a clocked vehicle.
- Readings used
- Every MOT reading on file
- Looking for
- Readings that fall, or jump
- Report shows
- The full run of readings, in order
- Also covered
- Average miles a year
Source: DVSA MOT history
Is it recorded as stolen?
A car reported stolen and never recovered stays flagged on the Police National Computer. Buying one means losing the vehicle and the money.
- Searched against
- The Police National Computer
- Marker covers
- Vehicles reported and not recovered
- Report shows
- Whether a theft marker is held
- Also covered
- The vehicle's registration status
Source: Police National Computer
How many hands has it passed through?
Frequent keeper changes can mean a problem car being passed along. The V5C record shows every change of keeper since first registration.
- Source record
- The DVLA keeper record
- Report shows
- How many keepers it has had
- Dates given
- First registration and last change
- Also covered
- How many V5Cs have been issued
Source: DVLA
Has it crossed a border?
An import can be fine, but it changes the history you should expect to find, and an exported marker on a vehicle still being sold here is a red flag.
- Markers checked
- Imported and exported
- Covers
- Vehicles first registered abroad
- Report shows
- Which marker is held, and when
- Also covered
- Whether UK history starts late
Source: DVLA
Has it been scrapped?
A certificate of destruction means the vehicle should not exist on the road. Vehicles with cloned plates borrow the identity of scrapped vehicles.
- Markers checked
- Scrapped, and destroyed
- Covers
- Certificates of destruction
- Report shows
- Whether the record was closed, and when
- Also covered
- Whether the VIN matches the record
Source: DVLA
Has the plate been changed?
Plate changes are legal and common, but they are also how a past identity gets buried. The full history lists every registration the vehicle has worn.
- Source record
- The DVLA registration record
- Report shows
- Every plate the vehicle has worn
- Dates given
- The date of each change
- Also covered
- Personalised plates added and removed
Source: DVLA
What does the MOT record say?
Every test, pass, failure and advisory since the vehicle's third year. Advisories are the useful part: they are a mechanic telling you what was already wearing out.
- Tests listed
- Every test on record
- Report shows
- Result, date and mileage for each
- Also covered
- Advisories and reasons for failure
- Goes back to
- The vehicle's third year
Source: DVSA MOT history
Is there an outstanding safety recall?
Manufacturers issue recalls when a fault could be dangerous. The work is free, but it only happens if somebody books it in, and a recall can sit unactioned for years.
- Searched against
- The DVSA recalls database
- Report shows
- Recalls affecting this vehicle
- Also covered
- Recall history for the model
- Cost to put right
- Free, at a franchised dealer
Source: DVSA recalls database
Has it been resprayed?
A recorded colour change can be a personal choice. It can also be how accident repairs or a previous identity stop being obvious at a glance.
- Source record
- The DVLA vehicle record
- Report shows
- Every recorded colour change
- Dates given
- The date of each change
- Also covered
- The colour at first registration
Source: DVLA
Does the vehicle match its paperwork?
The VIN on the vehicle should match the one on the record. When it does not, you are looking at a cloned or altered identity, and everything else in the history belongs to a different car.
- Compared
- The VIN against the DVLA record
- Report shows
- Whether plate, VIN and record agree
- Catches
- Cloned and altered identities
- Also covered
- How many V5Cs have been issued
Source: DVLA
What will it cost to tax?
The rate depends on emissions and registration date, and the difference between bands is large enough to change which vehicle you should buy.
- Source record
- The DVLA tax record
- Report shows
- Tax status, and the date it runs out
- Rate given
- The annual rate for this vehicle
- Based on
- Emissions and registration date
Source: DVLA
What is actually under the bonnet?
Engine size, power, fuel type and economy, taken from the manufacturer record rather than the advert. Useful for checking a listing describes the vehicle it is actually selling.
- Taken from
- The manufacturer record
- Report shows
- Engine size, power and fuel type
- Also covered
- Economy, emissions and gearbox
- Useful for
- Checking the advert is accurate
Source: Manufacturer data
What will it cost to keep?
Fuel, servicing, insurance group and tax in one place, so the monthly cost of owning the vehicle is visible before you commit to it rather than after.
- Report shows
- Fuel, tax, insurance and servicing
- Fuel worked out from
- The vehicle's own economy figures
- Adjustable
- By the mileage you actually drive
- Also covered
- Typical service and MOT costs
Source: Car Owl running-cost model
What will it be worth later?
What the vehicle is worth now and what it is likely to be worth in three years. Depreciation is usually the largest single cost of owning a vehicle, and the easiest one to ignore.
- Report shows
- What the vehicle is worth today
- Ranges given
- Private sale and trade
- Projected to
- Three years ahead
- Based on
- Age, mileage and market data
Source: Car Owl valuation model
What has happened to this vehicle?
Keeper changes, MOT tests, mileage readings and plate changes on one timeline. Patterns that are invisible in a list of dates tend to be obvious once they are in order.
- Events shown
- Keepers, MOTs, mileage and plates
- Ordered by
- Date, from first registration
- Also covered
- Stretches with no record at all
- Drawn from
- DVLA and DVSA records
Source: DVLA and DVSA records
What should you check in person?
A checklist built around this specific car, including what its own MOT advisories say to look at. It turns a viewing into something you can work through rather than guess at.
- Built from
- This car's own MOT advisories
- Also built from
- Known faults for the model
- Report shows
- What to check, in viewing order
- Includes
- Questions to ask the seller
Source: Car Owl
Also in every full report: VIC marker · Unpaid loan records · Common faults and typical repair costs · Fuel cost calculator · Priority support · Money-back promise
Step by step
Why a Cat S Check is Essential
A Category S vehicle is one that an insurance company decided was too expensive to repair structurally. While these cars can return to the road, buying one without knowing its history is a massive financial and safety risk.
AA19 MOT
Volkswagen Golf
Overall outcome:
FAIL
All checks:
- Cat S Structural
- No Finance
- Not Stolen
- Not Imported
- Not Scrapped
- Mileage Verified
Identify Hidden Damage
Sellers often hide a car's 'S' status. Our report brings the truth to light using official insurance data.
Negotiate Better
If you choose to buy a Cat S car, use our report to negotiate a price that reflects its true history.
Salvage History
See where the damage occurred and whether the vehicle was sold through a salvage auction like Copart.
Compare the categories
How Cat S compares with the other categories
Cat S means structural damage that has been repaired. Tap across to see how that differs from Cat N below it, and from A and B, which can never return to the road.
Category A: scrap only
The most severe category there is. The damage is bad enough that nothing may be reused, not even a wing mirror or a set of wheels. The whole vehicle has to be crushed, frame and all.
- Damage
- Severe, beyond any repair
- What happens to it
- Crushed whole, no parts salvaged
- Effect on value
- None. It has no legal value as a vehicle
- If you are buying
- A Cat A vehicle cannot legally be sold to drive. If one is advertised, walk away and report it
Category B: break for parts
The body shell or frame must be crushed, but usable parts can be stripped and sold on. The vehicle itself can never go back on the road, though its components legally can.
- Damage
- Extensive structural damage
- What happens to it
- Shell or frame crushed, parts recycled
- Effect on value
- Only the value of the parts on it
- If you are buying
- Never roadworthy again. A Cat B on anything being sold to drive is a serious red flag
Category S: structural damage
Structural damage serious enough for the insurer to write the vehicle off, but which can be professionally repaired. Cat S vehicles are legal to repair, re-register and sell, and plenty are on the road right now.
- Damage
- Structural, to the chassis, frame or subframe
- What happens to it
- Repairable, and legal to sell once repaired
- Effect on value
- Typically 20 to 40 percent below an unrecorded equivalent
- If you are buying
- Ask for the repair invoices and an independent inspection. A good repair is fine, a cheap one is not
Category N: non-structural damage
The least severe of the modern categories. The damage did not affect the chassis or frame, but repairing it cost more than the insurer thought the vehicle was worth. That can mean cosmetic damage on an older van, or electrical and safety component faults on anything.
- Damage
- Non-structural: cosmetic, electrical or safety components
- What happens to it
- Repairable, and legal to sell once repaired
- Effect on value
- Typically 10 to 25 percent below an unrecorded equivalent
- If you are buying
- Check what was actually damaged. Non-structural still covers brakes, steering and airbags
These four categories apply to any vehicle an insurer writes off, cars, vans, motorbikes and motorhomes alike. They replaced the older C and D markers in October 2017, and anything written off before then still carries its original category, so both sets turn up on a history check.
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Cat S vs Cat N: What You Need to Know
Understanding the severity of a 'Cat S' marker is vital for any used car buyer. It is significantly more serious than a non-structural Cat N marker.
Is it legal to drive a Cat S car?
Yes, it is legal to drive a Cat S car on UK roads once it has been repaired and the DVLA has been notified. However, you must ensure the repairs were carried out to a professional standard, as the structural integrity was once compromised.
Does a Cat S check show photos of the damage?
Our premium Cat S reports often include salvage auction photos. This allows you to see the actual extent of the structural damage before it was repaired, giving you a better idea of the car's 'before' state.
Will Cat S affect my insurance premiums?
Most insurance companies will cover a Cat S vehicle, but your premiums may be higher. Some niche insurers may refuse cover entirely. Always run a Cat S check before buying to get an insurance quote first.
Why it matters
Protect Your Investment with a Cat S Lookup
Don't take a seller's word for it. A Cat S marker stays with the vehicle for life. Our industry-leading data ensures you have the facts before you part with your cash.
Official MIAFTR Data
Write-off data sourced directly from the Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud and Theft Register.
DVLA Records
We sync with DVLA records to ensure the vehicle has been correctly re-registered after a write-off.
Instant Delivery
Get your Cat S report delivered to your screen and email in under 60 seconds.
At a glance
Professional Cat S Check Online
Structural Integrity Decoded
Our Cat S check sets out a vehicle's recorded structural write-off history in detail, so you know what has been reported before you buy.
Reliable Write-off Data
Our Cat S check surfaces recorded structural write-offs, the damage category that can affect the safety and balance of your car.
Comprehensive Car History
Beyond Category S, we check for outstanding finance, mileage anomalies, and theft status to provide a 360-degree view.
Perform a Cat S Check Before You Buy
A structural write-off is a serious matter. Use our Cat S lookup tool today to ensure the car you're interested in hasn't been written off by an insurer.
Still unsure?
Frequently Asked Questions about Cat S Checks
What does Cat S stand for?
Cat S stands for 'Category S' (Structural). It is a category of insurance write-off where the vehicle has sustained structural damage but is deemed repairable.
How do I know if a car is Cat S?
The most reliable way is to perform a Cat S check using the vehicle's registration. This queries insurance databases that record every structural write-off in the UK.
Is Cat S worse than Cat N?
Yes. Cat S involves structural damage (chassis, pillars, etc.), whereas Cat N is non-structural (cosmetic or electrical). Structural damage is more expensive and difficult to repair correctly.
Can a Cat S car be put back on the road?
Yes, if it is repaired to a professional standard. However, the Cat S marker will remain on the vehicle's record for life.
Does a Cat S check provide photos of the vehicle damage?
While our Cat S check does not include salvage auction photos, it provides the most critical information: the official insurance write-off category and the date it was recorded. This data is pulled directly from the MIAFTR (Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud and Theft Register) to confirm the vehicle has been legally classified as having structural damage.