Anyone who has bought or sold a used car over the last decade is familiar with the Car-Pass. This document given by the technical control is obligatory during the transfer of a vehicle. It certifies the actual mileage thanks to the data recorded each time it passes through the control station, but also in the workshop.
This did not prevent 1,578 cases of fraud detected last year. In question in particular, imported vehicles, therefore not having a Car-Pass since it is only a purely Belgian obligation.
Thus, 672 cases concerned foreign vehicles, or 1.2% of total imports. This proportion was only 0.13% on “Belgian” vehicles, proof of the effectiveness of the precious sesame.
Brands don’t always play the game
Car-Pass is well aware of this and calls for closer cooperation with European countries on data sharing, which is a legal obligation: “Declining new car registrations caused a shortage in the second-hand market and prompted an increase in imports. 14% of Car-Passes were issued for an imported vehicle. Given this growth, it is very important that Car-Pass has access to foreign vehicle histories, otherwise the door would be wide open to fraud. Two years following the introduction of the legal obligation, the communication of this data with most brands is at a standstill”, deplores the association. With all the same a positive note: for 48.5% of imported vehicles, foreign odometer readings appeared on the Car-Pass, which is double compared to last year.
Half a million difference!
In 2021, the largest differential was recorded by a Renault Kangoo, whose last mileage indicated 157,736 km, while the previous reading reported 643,976 km. That’s a difference of 486,240 km! More than ten vehicles also showed a difference of more than 300,000 km between reality and the display on the odometer.