Complaint Review: Carfax - Fairfax Virginia

I purchased a used Mercedes-Benz 300E from a local used car dealer in 2000 which came with a Carfax "Certified History Guarantee". According to Carfax and the dealer the car had a clear title history which was one reason I felt confident in purchasing that particular vehicle. Last fall (2002) I was in the market for a new automobile and wanted to give any prospective purchasers of my used Mercedes-Benz the same benefit I had received previously. Imagine my horror when I purchased an updated report from Carfax that now showed the Mercedes had a "not actual mileage" branded title supposedly issued in 2001. I purchased this automobile with a clear title history (according to and guaranteed by Carfax) 2 years earlier. During the 3 years I have owned this vehicle (I currently have the original clear title issued at the original registration date) I never re-registered it or had any reason to report this vehicle as having an odometer problem and have in fact NOT had any problems with the odometer of this vehicle in the past or currently. After obtaining the updated Carfax report in 2002 I emailed Carfax through the website on at least two occasions in late 2002 and early 2003 to inquire as to the source of this erroneous information and to also request information on claiming my $2000.00 guarantee payment if the information was indeed proved to be correct. It has now been well over 6 months since my last inquiry to Carfax...I've yet to receive ANY response...email...telephone...or snail mail...and the report on my vehicle has not been updated...the erroneous information is still there...so my question to you Justin...do you REALLY respond to email...is my case an anomoly...I don't believe it is... I am now stuck with an automobile that is worth far less than it should be worth due to your company's failure to investigate or even respond to my inquiries...should I continue to suffer your stonewalling...or just hire a lawyer and pursue you in a legal forum for damages for destroying the value of my vehicle?

Hello Tod, et al, In a perfect world any information source would have all of the answers. In the real world, we must all work with what information is available. Carfax is the premier source of vehicle history information, and when used correctly if an invaluable tool in researching used vehicles. In your Peugeots case, the most likely reason your totaled car does not carry a salvage title is because the insurance company did not apply for one when they took possession of the vehicle. To be sure, you may wish to contact your auto insurance carrier. Accuracy is not the issue here -- Carfax is so confident of its reporting on branded titles (salvage, junk, flood, and so forth) that it offers the $5,000 Certified History Guarantee on all reports that apply. It is interesting that you did not choose to contact Carfax directly with your concerns (I found no signs of contact from you, at least via the email address used when you purchased from Carfax). As noted in our Help Center, customers will receive the best customer service from CARFAX by contacting us via e-mail using the Ask a Question function in our Help Center (www.carfax.com/help) rather than calling by phone. We respond to all e-mail inquiries promptly. Had the instructions on the telephone recording been heeded, you could have had answers to your questions within one hour when using our priority contact address. We could easily have replied within your stated timeframes and allayed any concerns that you had. - Carfax Consumer Affairs