Merriya Valleri

Expert Insurance Writer

Merriya Valleri is a skilled insurance writer with over a decade of professional writing experience. Merriya has a strong desire to make understanding insurance an easy task while providing readers with accurate and up-to-date information. Merriya has written articles focusing on health, life, and auto insurance. She enjoys working in the insurance field, and is constantly learning in order to ...

Expert Insurance Writer

Schimri Yoyo

Licensed Agent & Financial Advisor

Schimri Yoyo is a financial advisor with active insurance licenses in seven states and over 20 years of professional experience. During his career, he has held roles at Foresters Financial, Strayer University, Minnesota Life, Securian Financial Services, Delaware Valley Advisors, Bridgemark Wealth Management, and Fidelity.  Schimri is an educator eager to assist individuals and families in ach...

Licensed Agent & Financial Advisor

UPDATED: Jun 27, 2023

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UPDATED: Jun 27, 2023Fact Checked

If you want to find out if a car has a history of accidents or damage, one way to get this information is to find the previous insurance claims filed on the vehicle. This information may be very useful if you are trying to negotiate a price on a used vehicle; if you want to get the best price, it helps to know if the car has suffered any serious damage under prior owners. In fact, you might even decide you do not want a car after you find out about its history of accidents or damage. You may also be interested in seeing your own insurance record before you file a claim or apply for insurance with another company. You can find previous insurance claims in one of several ways.

All car insurance claims are recorded in a national database known as the CLUE™ files

CLUE™ is administered by ChoicePoint Asset Company and is a registered trademark of that company. The CLUE™ database is an exchange system used by all insurance companies to share information about homeowner and automobile insurance claims.

The purpose of the CLUE™ database is primarily to allow insurance companies to exchange information so that if you apply for coverage with another company that insurer will know about your claims history. Insurance companies use the CLUE™ database regularly, but you can also obtain your own CLUE™ report by contacting LexisNexis service through their phone or email contact information found on their website, personalreports.lexisnexis.com. You are entitled to one free CLUE™ report every 12 months, so you can check on your own CLUE™ report yearly if you choose.

What is a Carfax® report?

Of course, you do not always want to know about your own record. Sometimes, you want to know if insurance claims have been filed on a car you are interested in buying. The best way to find this information is to get a report such as those offered by Carfax®. A Carfax® report gives you a variety of information, including accidents which have been reported about the car and repairs performed.

Where do I find specific information about a car insurance claim?

If you require specific information about the type of insurance claims previously filed on the car, the information may be a bit harder to obtain. In order to know the specifics about claims, you must identify the previous owner or owners of the car and the insurance companies that covered the car during that ownership period. This information is not always easy to find, but it is possible with a bit of work.

You can start with your state’s Department of Motor Vehicles by requesting the name of the previous owner of the vehicle, using the VIN, or vehicle identification number, to narrow your search. For a small fee, you can request a copy of the title transfer in which the previous owner sold the car. If you bought the car in a private sale, you will already have this information.

Once you have found the previous owner’s name, you can contact your state’s Department of Insurance to find out information on the car owner’s insurance coverage for the car. You will be able to identify one or more companies which carried insurance on the vehicle, and you can contact these companies for a copy of all claims filed on that particular vehicle. Be sure that your request is limited only to claims filed on the car in question, as the owner may have had more than one vehicle insured with the company.

In order to avoid this complicated scenario, you can pay someone else to search for this information. Carfax® is one company that will provide a wide variety of information about specific cars for a fee. You can get a general report, including previous damage information which may lead you to specific insurance claims, for $34.99 for a single car or $49.99 for up to five cars.

Your reasons for wanting the insurance history of your car will determine the method you use to get this information. If you need insurance claim information to determine if the car has been wrecked because you have discovered a problem after purchase, it is best to let a professional lawyer handle the search for information, as you may need to compile it for legal purposes. On the other hand, if you simply want to know the history of the car to determine how much to pay for it, or if you want to know the insurance history to value the vehicle for resale, a very general method will probably be sufficient.

Case Studies: Finding Previous Car Insurance Claims

Case Study 1: John’s Used Car Purchase

John is interested in buying a used car and wants to know if any insurance claims have been filed on the vehicle. He decides to obtain a Carfax® report, which provides detailed information about the car’s history, including reported accidents and repairs.

By reviewing the Carfax® report, John can make an informed decision about whether to proceed with the purchase.

Case Study 2: Sarah’s Personal Insurance Record

Sarah wants to review her own insurance record before filing a claim or applying for insurance with another company. She contacts LexisNexis, the administrator of the CLUE™ database, and requests her CLUE™ report.

As a consumer, she is entitled to one free CLUE™ report every 12 months. By reviewing her report, Sarah can ensure the accuracy of her insurance history and make informed decisions regarding her coverage.

Case Study 3: Mark’s Research on a Specific Car

Mark is interested in a particular car and wants to find specific information about its previous insurance claims. He starts by contacting his state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to obtain the name of the car’s previous owner.

With this information, he contacts his state’s Department of Insurance to identify the insurance companies that covered the car during the previous ownership period. Mark then contacts these companies to request copies of all claims filed on the vehicle. By conducting this thorough research, Mark can gain a comprehensive understanding of the car’s insurance history.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I find previous car insurance claims?

If you have previously made a car insurance claim, you can typically find information about it in several ways:

  • Check your policy documents: Your insurance policy documents will usually contain information about any claims you have made. You can review the declarations page, which is usually the first page of your policy, to see if there are any details about previous claims.
  • Contact your insurance provider: If you cannot find information about your previous claims in your policy documents, you can contact your insurance provider. They will be able to provide you with information about your previous claims and any other policy-related details.
  • Check your claim history report: You can also obtain a claim history report from CLUE (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange). This report will provide information on any previous claims you have made.
  • Check your credit report: In some cases, insurance companies may report claims to credit bureaus. You can check your credit report to see if any claims have been reported.

It’s important to note that some insurance companies may only keep claims records for a certain period of time, so it may not always be possible to access information about older claims.

Why do I need to find previous car insurance claims?

You may want to find previous car insurance claims to see if the car has a history of accidents or damage before you decide to purchase it.

How can I find previous car insurance claims?

You can find previous car insurance claims by checking the CLUE™ database or by obtaining a Carfax® report on the vehicle.

What is the CLUE™ database?

The CLUE™ database is a national database that records all insurance claims filed on a vehicle. It is administered by ChoicePoint Asset Company and is used by insurance companies to share information about homeowner and automobile insurance claims.

Can I obtain my own CLUE™ report?

Yes, you can obtain your own CLUE™ report by contacting LexisNexis service through their phone or email contact information found on their website, personalreports.lexisnexis.com. You are entitled to one free CLUE™ report every 12 months.

What is a Carfax® report?

A Carfax® report is a vehicle history report that provides information about the car’s previous owners, accidents, and other important details. You can obtain a Carfax® report by purchasing it online or through a dealership.

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Merriya Valleri

Expert Insurance Writer

Merriya Valleri is a skilled insurance writer with over a decade of professional writing experience. Merriya has a strong desire to make understanding insurance an easy task while providing readers with accurate and up-to-date information. Merriya has written articles focusing on health, life, and auto insurance. She enjoys working in the insurance field, and is constantly learning in order to ...

Expert Insurance Writer

Schimri Yoyo

Licensed Agent & Financial Advisor

Schimri Yoyo is a financial advisor with active insurance licenses in seven states and over 20 years of professional experience. During his career, he has held roles at Foresters Financial, Strayer University, Minnesota Life, Securian Financial Services, Delaware Valley Advisors, Bridgemark Wealth Management, and Fidelity.  Schimri is an educator eager to assist individuals and families in ach...

Licensed Agent & Financial Advisor

Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about car insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything car insurance-related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by car insurance experts.