Do Comprehensive Insurance Claims Show Up on a Carfax Report?

When you make an insurance claim for damage to your vehicle, you may wonder if it will show up later on the vehicle history report from Carfax. Specifically, many people have questions around comprehensive claims and whether they get reported to Carfax.

This article provides an overview of how Carfax works, what comprehensive insurance is, and insight into what types of claims insurers report to Carfax.

What is a Carfax Report?

Carfax provides vehicle history reports that compile information from numerous sources on a particular car or truck’s background. Their reports can include:

• Title and registration history

• Accident indicators

• Mileage records

• Maintenance and repairs

• Insurance claims

• Rental vehicle history

• Open recalls and service bulletins

The report gives used car buyers insight into a vehicle’s condition, reliability, and past issues. Carfax obtains data from:

• State motor vehicle agencies

• Auto auctions

• Police reports

• Insurers

• Service shops

• Fleet management firms

They claim to have over 20 billion vehicle records across North America. However, there are gaps, as not all events get reported to Carfax.

What is Comprehensive Insurance?

Comprehensive insurance is an optional coverage on auto policies that pays to repair or replace a vehicle damaged by events other than a collision. Some examples of comprehensive claims include:

• Hail damage

• Flood damage

• Falling objects

• Fire

• Theft

• Vandalism

• Hitting an animal

So comprehensive claims result from non-crash incidents. Collision coverage pays for accident-related damage from hitting another car or object.

Comprehensive and collision are optional add-ons that supplement mandatory liability coverage.

Do Comprehensive Claims Get Reported to Carfax?

Whether comprehensive claims appear on a Carfax depends on several factors:

• Insurer Reporting – Some insurers routinely report claims to Carfax, others do not. There is no legal requirement to report comprehensive claims.

• Claim Size – Major claims, like those requiring vehicle replacement, are more likely to be reported versus minor damage claims.

• Shop Reporting – Even if the insurer doesn’t report it, the auto repair shop may send data to Carfax. Many shops report repair records.

• Policyholder Notification – Some insurers allow policyholders to request claims not be reported to preserve vehicle value. However, this is not universally offered.

• State Laws – A few states limit insurer claim reporting to Carfax unless required by law enforcement. This reduces appearances of minor comprehensive claims.

So there is no guarantee a comprehensive claim will show up on Carfax. But in many cases, especially major claims, they do get reported by either the insurer or repair facility. Policyholders have limited ability to prevent reporting, apart from using out-of-network shops in some cases.

Sample Carfax Comprehensive Claim Entries

To understand how comprehensive claims may appear on a report, here are some examples of real Carfax comprehensive claim entries:

• “Damage reported involving hail storm.”

• “Vehicle damaged by collision with a pole, claim filed with insurance company.”

• “Damage to front bumper and hood from hitting a deer.”

• “Rear passenger window shattered, police report filed. Insurance claim filed by owner.”

• “Vehice struck by falling tree branch. Damage to roof and rear window. Insurance claim paid for repairs.”

The language confirms the non-collision nature of the damage. Terms like “hail”, “deer”, “pole” indicate comprehensive instead of collision claims.

Effects of Comprehensive Claims on Carfax

While comprehensive claims help indicate prior vehicle damage, they are viewed as less negative than collision claims or major issues like lemon history. Still, comprehensive claims on a Carfax can:

• Lower Resale Value – Buyers may offer less for a car with unrepaired damage history.

• Increase Scrutiny – Buyers will inspect cars more thoroughly knowing prior damage occurred.

• Raise Questions – Buyers may inquire about the circumstances and repairs for old claims.

• Affect Insurability – Future insurers may view multiple comprehensive claims as higher risk.

However, isolated minor comprehensive claims are less impactful than collision history and typically don’t scare away buyers.

Ways to Minimize Carfax Comprehensive Claims

If you want to try keeping minor comprehensive claims off a Carfax report, here are some options to discuss with your insurer and repair shop:

• Request insurer not report certain claims

• Use out-of-network repair shops

• Pay out-of-pocket for small repairs

• Notify shop you don’t want repair on vehicle history

• Exclude claim from renewals or state reports

However, there is no guarantee of preventing reporting. Routine claimant requests to exclude claims from Carfax raise suspicion of fraud with some insurers.

Checking Your Carfax Report

Since not all insurers report comprehensive claims to Carfax, it is wise to check your vehicle history report periodically. This allows you to:

• Verify accuracy of information

• Notice any new claims appearing

• Review for errors that should be contested

• Provide future buyers a current report

You can purchase unlimited Carfax reports for covered vehicles from their website. Reviewing reports also informs you what exactly shows up from your insurance history.

Other Vehicle History Reports

While Carfax is the best-known vehicle history service, some alternatives include:

• AutoCheck

• VinAudit

• NMVTIS reports

• Insight Vehicle History

Each service offers slightly different information based on their data sources. Checking multiple services gives a broader view of a vehicle’s background.

The Bottom Line