Runs in your browser · NHTSA + EPA data · checked 2026-10-02

Free VIN Decoder and Recall Report

Enter a 17-character VIN. Your browser asks NHTSA and EPA directly and puts the answers on one page: what the VIN decodes to, the recalls NHTSA lists for that year, make and model with their remedies, crash-test stars, a summary of owner complaints and the official mpg — then fills in a bill of sale with the vehicle. Free, no signup, nothing stored.

What this report is not

It is not a vehicle history report: no title brands, accidents, odometer history, theft or total-loss records, and it cannot tell whether this particular vehicle’s recall was repaired. The report links the official places for each of those — NHTSA’s VIN recall search, NICB VINCheck and NMVTIS approved providers (paid). SealForms has no affiliate relationship with any of them.

Your vehicle report

Recalls for this model year

Asking NHTSA…

Is a recall still open on this vehicle? Only NHTSA’s VIN search answers that. Open it with this VIN ↗ It lists unrepaired recalls from participating manufacturers; repaired recalls, recalls over 15 years old and non-safety campaigns do not appear there.

Crash-test ratings, complaints and investigations

NHTSA files crash tests and owner complaints under its own model names. Looking up the name for this VIN…

Fuel economy (EPA)

Asking fueleconomy.gov…

Vehicle specs decoded from the VIN

This VIN, character by character

Position	Characters	What it encodes

Title, theft and accident history — check these separately

Theft and insurance total loss: NICB VINCheck ↗ — free; opens with this VIN filled in, you complete their check box. Five searches per IP address per 24 hours, insurer-reported records only.
Title brands, latest odometer, salvage: an NMVTIS report from an approved provider ↗ (paid; no affiliate links here).
Mechanical condition: an independent mechanic’s inspection — the FTC notes a history report typically will not list mechanical problems.

Free VIN check options compared

“Free VIN check” means different things on different sites. These are the official sources, what each one actually answers and what it costs — so you can tell a decoder from a history report.

Source	What it tells you	Cost	Limits
This decoder (NHTSA vPIC, recalls, NCAP, complaints; EPA)	Year, make, model, engine, plant and safety equipment from the VIN; recalls, crash-test stars, complaints and mpg for that model year	Free	Model-level data; nothing about this vehicle’s title, accidents, theft or repaired recalls
NHTSA recall search by VIN	Unrepaired safety recalls on this specific vehicle, from participating manufacturers	Free	Leaves out repaired recalls, recalls more than 15 years old (unless the manufacturer covers more), some small manufacturers, non-safety campaigns and some just-announced recalls
NICB VINCheck	Reported stolen and not recovered, or reported as salvage or flood-damaged, by participating NICB member insurers	Free	Five searches per IP address per 24 hours; insurer records only — NICB says it is not a comprehensive vehicle history report
NMVTIS report (approved providers)	Current and previous state of title, title issue date, latest odometer, theft history, brands such as junk, salvage or flood, and total-loss records	Paid — $8 to $12.99 per report as of May 2020, per the program	No repair history; only as complete as what states, insurers and salvage yards have reported
Independent mechanic	Mechanical problems a history report typically will not list	Inspection fee	You arrange it with the seller before paying

Sources: NHTSA recalls page (archived Sep 30, 2026), NICB VINCheck (archived Sep 29, 2026), NMVTIS FAQ (U.S. DOJ), FTC, Buying a Used Car From a Dealer — read 2026-10-02.

What the 17 characters of a VIN mean

Every car, truck, bus, motorcycle and trailer covered by federal safety standards carries a 17-character VIN laid out by 49 CFR Part 565, whose model-year codes start at 1980. The decoder reads it the same way, section by section:

1–3, world manufacturer identifier. Who built it and what type of vehicle it is. A “9” in position 3 means a small manufacturer whose identity continues in positions 12–14.
4–8, vehicle descriptor. For a passenger car: line, series, body type, engine type and every restraint device. Position 7 is a letter on cars, SUVs and trucks up to 10,000 lb built for 2010 and later — which is how the model-year code is told apart from the 1980s.
9, check digit. Calculated from the other 16 characters (letters converted to numbers, multiplied by fixed weights, divided by 11; a remainder of 10 is written “X”). One misread character almost always breaks it — the report shows the whole calculation for your VIN.
10, model year (table below). 11, assembly plant. 12–17, production sequence — the last five are always digits on light vehicles.
Letters I, O and Q are never used, so a VIN cannot be misread as 1 or 0 (§565.13(g)). If you typed one, the decoder points to the position.

Model-year code in position 10 (49 CFR §565.15 Table VII; §565.25 Table XIII for earlier years)
A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H	J	K
1980 2010	1981 2011	1982 2012	1983 2013	1984 2014	1985 2015	1986 2016	1987 2017	1988 2018	1989 2019
L	M	N	P	R	S	T	V	W	X
1990 2020	1991 2021	1992 2022	1993 2023	1994 2024	1995 2025	1996 2026	1997 2027	1998 2028	1999 2029
Y	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
2000 2030	2001 2031	2002 2032	2003 2033	2004 2034	2005 2035	2006 2036	2007 2037	2008 2038	2009 2039

The code repeats every 30 years. For cars, SUVs and trucks up to 10,000 lb, a digit in position 7 means the first year of each pair (1980–2009) and a letter means the second (2010–2039). For motorcycles, trailers and heavy trucks the code alone is ambiguous, so the decoder relies on NHTSA’s catalog.

Used car buying checklist: VIN, recalls, title, inspection

Read the VIN on the car, then on the paperwork. It has to be visible through the windshield on the driver’s side (49 CFR §565.13(f)); NHTSA notes it is also on the registration card and may be on the insurance card. All of them must match the title.
Decode it. Year, make, model, engine and body should match the listing. A failed check digit means re-read the VIN before anything else.
Check recalls twice. The report lists the model year’s recalls and their remedies; NHTSA’s VIN search tells you if one is still open on this car. Dealers repair safety recalls free, unless the vehicle was first sold more than 15 calendar years before the recall notice (49 U.S.C. §30120(g)).
Rule out theft and salvage. Run NICB VINCheck (free) and, for title brands and the last recorded odometer, an NMVTIS report (paid).
Have it inspected. The FTC recommends an independent mechanic: history reports typically do not list mechanical problems.
Put it in writing. A bill of sale with the VIN, price, date and odometer; the federal odometer disclosure (49 CFR Part 580), usually on the title; then the title transfer before your state’s deadline.

How the report is built — and where your VIN goes

When you press Decode VIN, this page (running in your browser) calls five public U.S. government services and assembles the answers. Nothing is cached or pre-written by us, so the report is as current as the agencies’ own data at that moment.

NHTSA vPIC decodes the VIN from the data manufacturers file under Part 565.
NHTSA’s recalls, complaints and NCAP APIs return the recalls, owner complaints and 5-Star Safety Ratings for that year, make and model.
fueleconomy.gov web services (DOE/EPA) return the city, highway and combined mpg and the annual fuel cost, which EPA bases on 15,000 miles a year, 55% of them in the city.

One trap the report handles openly: the agencies name the same vehicle differently. The decoder says “F-150”; NHTSA files crash tests and complaints for that truck as “F-150 SUPER CREW” (asking for “F-150” returns zero complaints), and EPA calls it “F150 Pickup 4WD”. The report picks the most likely name from the cab, fuel and drive type in the VIN, shows which name it used, and lets you switch — rather than showing a silent “no complaints”.

Privacy. Only NHTSA’s VIN decoder (vPIC) receives the VIN; the recall, complaint, crash-test and EPA services receive just the year, make and model, and NHTSA’s VIN recall search and NICB VINCheck see it only if you open those links. SealForms’ servers never see it, it is not saved, and it is not put in this page’s address. The bill of sale handoff carries the vehicle details after the “#” of the link, a part browsers never send to a server, and the form clears it from the address bar once read.

Frequently asked questions

Is this a free vehicle history report?

No. It decodes the VIN and lists what NHTSA and EPA publish about that model year — recalls, crash-test ratings, owner complaints and fuel economy. Title brands (junk, salvage, flood), the latest odometer reading on record and theft history come from NMVTIS, the federal title system, which is sold through approved providers; the NMVTIS program reported fees of $8 to $12.99 per report as of May 2020. NICB’s free VINCheck shows whether participating insurers reported the vehicle stolen and not recovered, or as salvage or flood-damaged.

Does this tell me whether the recall on this exact car was fixed?

No. The recall list covers the model year. Whether this specific vehicle still has an unrepaired recall only shows in NHTSA’s VIN search, which the report opens with your VIN filled in. NHTSA says that search does not show recalls already repaired, recalls more than 15 years old (unless the manufacturer covers more), recalls by some small manufacturers, non-safety campaigns, and some recently announced recalls whose VINs are still being added.

Can a private seller sell a car with an open recall?

The federal restriction in 49 U.S.C. §30120(i) applies to dealers holding new vehicles and to rental companies once the manufacturer has notified them; its text does not cover a private sale of a used car. Check your state’s rules as well. The recall remedy is free at a dealer, but the free-remedy duty does not apply when the vehicle was first sold more than 15 calendar years before the recall notice (§30120(g)(1)).

Where do I find the VIN?

On cars, SUVs, vans and light trucks the VIN has to be readable through the windshield from outside, next to the driver-side (left) windshield pillar, under 49 CFR §565.13(f). NHTSA adds that it is printed on the registration card and may be on the insurance card. Before you buy, make sure every copy matches the title.

What if the check digit does not match?

Position 9 is a check digit calculated from the other 16 characters with the formula in 49 CFR §565.15(c). If it does not match, the most likely cause is a misread character — re-read the VIN on the vehicle itself, not on a listing. Vehicles built for the U.S. market must carry a valid check digit, so a VIN on the car that fails the formula is worth asking the seller about.

Is my VIN saved or sent to SealForms?

No. Only NHTSA’s VIN decoder (vPIC) receives the VIN; the recall, complaint, crash-test and EPA services receive just the year, make and model. Your browser sends those requests directly, so SealForms never receives the VIN and nothing is stored. NHTSA’s VIN recall search and NICB VINCheck see it only if you open those links. When you hand the vehicle to the bill of sale, the details travel in the part of the link after “#”, which browsers do not send to any server.