Insurance write offs: accidents and thefts

Insurers ‘write off’ cars and other vehicles for two reasons:

• Damage write offs: The insurer thinks it's uneconomic to repair the vehicle. Some classes of damage write offs can be made safe to drive again.
• Theft write offs: The insurance company has paid out a claim because the vehicle was stolen - which means the insurer is now the legal owner. It's unwise to buy a theft-related insurance write off as the insurer can repossess the car.

AutoCheck can tell you if a car is an insurance write off.

One in eight cars checked is a write off.

Why you need to know if it was a write off

Just because a car was written off, doesn't necessarily mean you shouldn't buy it. But there are checks to make when buying a write off to make sure it's safe - and is owned by the person selling it.