How Much Does it Cost For a Vehicle Lien Check in Canada?

Every used car has a story. Part of buying a secondhand vehicle is doing your due diligence, and that includes performing a vehicle lien check to make sure the seller owns the car free and clear. But how much does it cost for a vehicle lien check?

Finding out if there’s any money owed on a car before you buy it can save you a lot of headaches in the future. And the best way to do that is to take advantage of our free VIN check tool. Not only will this tell you if there are any liens issued against the car, but it will also tell you a ton of useful information about the car’s previous history so you can buy with confidence.

What Is A Lien?

A lien is a legal claim against a piece of property that someone else owns, such as a car. The most common type of liens are from creditors who have loaned money to the owner and used the car as collateral. If the owner fails to repay the debt, then the creditor can file for a lien on the vehicle and repossess it if needed. This is often how banks secure car loans, for instance.

Creditors such as banks can place a lien on a car to force the car’s owner to repay any loan they have issued. Some other businesses are also able to issue liens against the car, such as mechanics who can issue a lien against the car if the owner doesn’t pay them for work they have performed.

The idea behind a lien is to encourage the debtor to repay their loans by making it harder for them to sell their car without first settling the debt. Of course, that only works if potential buyers know how to check for liens. That’s why it’s so important to run a detailed VIN check on any car you’re thinking of buying so that you know there’s no money owed by the owner. In the worst case scenario, the creditor could repossess the car you’ve bought for the previous owners’ debt, and that’s a hassle you definitely want to avoid.

What Happens If I Buy A Car With A Lien On It?

Unfortunately, because liens are held against cars rather than their owners, you can be liable for somebody else’s debt if you buy a car with a lien on it. Registered car dealers are required by law to clear any liens on a car before they sell it on, but the same is not true of private sellers. Therefore, if you find out there is a lien issued on a car you bought after the purchase, it’s your responsibility to pay off that lien.

That’s why it’s so important to check for buying any car from a private seller. If you find a lien on a car you want to buy, you can walk away from the sale. Or you can use it to negotiate a lower price so that you have the money to pay off the lien yourself.

Finally, you can ask the seller to pay the lien. But if you go down that route, make sure you get proof. Any honest seller shouldn’t have a problem providing you with written proof that a lien on the car has been paid off in order to sell it to you. If in doubt, you can also call the creditor, whether it’s a bank or a garage, and check with them to make sure that the debt has been discharged.

How Can I Check For A Lien On A Car?

Every province has its own method of checking for liens on a car you wish to buy. Here are some links to the provincial services that can give you this information:

• Alberta
• British Columbia
• Manitoba
• New Brunswick
• Newfoundland and Labrador
• Northwest Territories
• Nova Scotia
• Nunavut
• Ontario
• Prince Edward Island
• Quebec
• Saskatchewan
• Yukon

Remember that cars can be registered in more than one province, and a lien held in one province may not show up on the records of another province. Therefore, if you have any reason to believe that a car you are interested in has been registered in more than one province, you should check with every province the car has been in to make sure there is no money owing on it.

Another way to avoid getting stuck paying someone else’s debt is to get a vehicle history report. These reports can tell you more about the car and whether there’s any money owed on it. They can also tell you information about the service history, any safety recalls, any damage claims, and lots of other useful information.

However, make sure that you know what will be covered by the report before you get it. Different service providers include different information; not all will give you information about liens on a car. Before you make any purchase decision on a used car, make sure to run the VIN through our VIN checker tool below. This will not only tell you about any liens on the car, but will also fill you in on the vehicle’s service history, registration history, any airbag deployments, any frame damage, odometer rollbacks, and service history, giving you everything you need to know to make a smart decision about buying a car.

What Does It Cost To Check For A Lien On A Car?

The cost of checking for a lien on a car varies from one province to the next. For example, a lien check in Ontario will cost you $8. In Saskatchewan, it costs $10, and it usually costs the same in Alberta. Given the amount of money it can save you, it’s well worth paying these relatively small fees to get a clearer picture of any money owed on the car.

Alternatively, you can buy a vehicle history report that will tell you about any liens on a car and a lot more useful information. A vehicle history report from Carfax costs $46.95, but if you also want to check for a lien on a car, you’ll have to pay $64.95.

A much cheaper option is to use our free VIN check tool. This will give you plenty of information about the car’s history, including any accidents it’s been in and any insurance claims, along with previous registration information. But, it will also include information on any liens that are held against the car. This means you can avoid getting saddled with someone else’s debt or use it to negotiate a better price for the car that will allow you to pay off the lien and own the car free and clear.

Always Check A Car’s History!

Finding out that the car you want to buy has a lien on it can be annoying. But it’s a lot better to find it out than to discover the previous seller never paid their debt on a car that you own. It’s quite possible for creditors to repossess your car if any debt secured against it is not paid, and not knowing about a lien on a car is no defense.

But an outstanding lien is just one of the things that can go wrong when purchasing a used car. You also want to know about the car’s history of accidents and its salvage status, as well as its service history, any safety recalls, and any odometer rollbacks. That’s why our free VIN check tool is such an important part of the used car buying process. Not only will it tell you about any liens issued against the car, but it will also tell you about these and lots of other maintenance issues so that you can decide if this is truly the car for you.

A vehicle lien check doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. And given how much it can save you down the line, it’s money well spent. Make sure you always get a full history report, including details of any liens, on any used car you’re thinking of buying. If you do find a lien on a car you want, make sure that you have a plan to get it paid off before any money changes hands between you and the seller. That way, you can avoid any nasty surprises and enjoy full ownership of your new car.