VehicleScore research
Insurance write-offs on vehicles checked through VehicleScore
11,156 of 82,073 vehicles with a known write-off result had at least one CAT marker. That is 13.6%, with a Wilson 95% interval of 13.4%–13.8%. It is the rate among VehicleScore paid history checks, not the rate among UK cars.
The scan covered 88,517 reports. Each registration is counted once, using the latest report. A vehicle is in this denominator only when that report contained a known write-off result. A marker means one or more of CAT A, B, C, D, S or N was returned. It is a record of a category, not a measurement of how the car is driven.
The rate is not a straight line with age
Vehicles aged 3–5 when they were checked had the lowest marker rate in the table, 8.7% of 9,624. Ages 0–2 were higher, at 12.9% of 2,236. The rate then sits around 15% from ages 9–11 through 12–15, and is 12.2% at 16 or over.
Write-off marker rate by age at check
Age at the check, from the manufacture year on the report. One vehicle, one age band.
| Age at check | Vehicles | With a CAT marker | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 years | 2,236 | 289 | 12.9% |
| 3–5 years | 9,624 | 834 | 8.7% |
| 6–8 years | 17,184 | 2,279 | 13.3% |
| 9–11 years | 21,666 | 3,340 | 15.4% |
| 12–15 years | 18,544 | 2,878 | 15.5% |
| 16 or over years | 12,541 | 1,525 | 12.2% |
We have not invented a story for the dip at ages 3–5. The cell is large, and the intervals around 8.7% and the neighbouring bands do not suggest a rounding accident. The dataset records the marker. It does not record when the car was damaged, or whether it was repaired and sold on.
Checking one car for a write-off record?
These rates are the checked sample. The free VehicleScore lookup identifies the car and shows the MOT. Write-off categories are in the paid Hidden History check, with finance and stolen markers. Enter the registration to start with that vehicle.
CAT N and CAT S account for most of the markers
Among the 11,156 vehicles with a CAT marker, 5,433 had a CAT N record (48.7%) and 5,034 had a CAT S record (45.1%). CAT D and CAT C, the older labels, are 6.7% and 3.4%. CAT B is 41 vehicles and CAT A is 8.
A vehicle can carry more than one category, so the category counts sum to more than 11,156. The shares can sum past 100%. What the letters mean, and how they differ from a salvage-auction flag, is on CAT S and CAT N.
A few models sit away from their age band. That is not an accident rate.
Comparing a model with every car of any age would mix young and old stock. The cells below each have at least 200 vehicles and a Wilson interval that does not overlap the rest of the age band. They are examples, not a league of cars to avoid.
Model marker rate against the rate for all checked vehicles in the same age band. Not a measure of how often the model is involved in a collision.
| Model | Age at check | Vehicles | CAT markers | Rate | Age-band rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vauxhall Corsa | 6–8 | 299 | 81 | 27.1% | 13.3% |
| Fiat 500 | 9–11 | 301 | 77 | 25.6% | 15.4% |
| Ford Fiesta | 9–11 | 796 | 183 | 23.0% | 15.4% |
| Volkswagen Polo | 12–15 | 514 | 133 | 25.9% | 15.5% |
| Honda CR-V | 9–11 | 314 | 25 | 8.0% | 15.4% |
| Honda CR-V | 12–15 | 277 | 27 | 9.7% | 15.5% |
The Vauxhall Corsa at ages 6–8, the Fiat 500 and Ford Fiesta at 9–11, and the Volkswagen Polo at 12–15 sit above their bands. The Honda CR-V sits below its band at both 9–11 and 12–15. VehicleScore has not investigated why. A write-off marker can reflect repair cost against value, which is a different thing from how often a model is hit. Speculating model by model would pretend the file contains a cause.
Salvage-auction records are counted separately: 7,079 of 83,712 vehicles with a known salvage flag, 8.5%. The overlap with CAT markers is on the category page. A clear write-off result does not clear finance. That analysis is outstanding finance on used cars.
Related VehicleScore research
Methodology
Snapshot 27 September 2026, job 2026-09-27.1. Latest paid VehicleScore history report per registration. Known write-off result only. The marker rate is vehicles with at least one category divided by vehicles with a known result. Age bands are 0–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–11, 12–15 and 16 or over, using age at the check. Model cells need at least 200 vehicles. “Separated” in the source file means the Wilson 95% intervals do not overlap.
No registration, VIN or insurer detail is published. People who buy a VehicleScore history check are not a random sample of keepers.