Carfax, Credit Unions Team Up to Fight Odometer Fraud on Used Vehicles
14 November 1997
Carfax, Credit Unions Team Up to Fight Odometer Fraud on Used VehiclesFAIRFAX, Va., Nov. 14 -- Carfax, Inc., the country's only comprehensive, nationwide vehicle history service -- announced its exclusive agreement with CUNA Service Group, Inc., an affiliate of the Credit Union National Association. As a result of this new relationship, credit union members in the market for a used vehicle now have direct access, via their credit union, to a powerful, new tool to help them fight odometer fraud. "Because credit unions process over 20 percent of the used vehicle loans issued in the U.S., Carfax can help thousands of credit union members reduce their risk of buying a 'problem' vehicle," said Bill Goldstein, Chairman of Carfax. "Credit union members -- one out of every four Americans -- will now be able to purchase a report directly from their credit union during the loan application process." Carfax reports provide valuable information about problems that may be hidden in a vehicle's past -- problems including odometer rollbacks, salvage titles and flood damage. These problems can adversely affect the safety, performance and resale value of a used vehicle. "Our credit unions process over 1.5 million used vehicle loans every year," states Peg Nugent Rectanus, CUNA Service Group senior vice president. "We selected Carfax to help ensure that each member who takes out a loan has the best possible protection when buying a used vehicle. With the growing problems of odometer rollbacks, which can affect the value of the average used vehicle by $3,000 to $4,000, we want to give our credit unions and their members access to the best vehicle history service available on the market today." The Carfax computerized database contains more than 463 million vehicle records. These vehicle records are reported to Carfax by U.S. and Canadian motor vehicle agencies, auto auctions, emissions inspection stations and other sources. Using the vehicle identification number (VIN) -- the unique 17 digit vehicle code -- Carfax can produce a report on virtually every registered vehicle within seconds of entering the VIN. Carfax reports may be purchased directly from the Carfax Web site (http://www.carfax.com) or by calling 1-800-FIND VIN (1-800-346-3846). Carfax is headquartered in Fairfax, Va. The Credit Union National Association (http://www.cuna.com) serves state credit union leagues in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, and the nation's 11,800 credit unions. CUNA Service Group is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. SOURCE Carfax, Inc