CarFax--Where unlimited does not equal unlimited

[downeasteralexa]

Just in case anyone is planning on getting CarFax to search for a bunch of vehicles, I thought they might want to know this.

I got the following error message last night when I tried logging into CarFax:

"Your account was temporarily paused due to an unusual volume of activity. To ensure proper usage and security of your account, please inquire with us by email at accountinvestigations@carfax.com. Please contact us from the email address matching this account.

Your cooperation in this request is appreciated."

I immediately e-mailed them and was sent a standard form e-mail back giving their Monday-Friday business hours, which was problematic, as this occurred on Saturday afternoon.

I paid for a 30-day unlimited account, which I am 23 days into, and have run an average of 3 VINs per day. I've been doing a lot of searching at used car lots, eBay and receive auction lists from a neighbor once a week. From other experiences I've seen, CarFax has no way of identifying whether or not someone is a personal or commercial user, so when you hit their "It's only unlimited until you hit OUR secret limit", they apparently will block your account, then send you a message with several VINS and make you provide them with listings of where those VINS came from.

Thanks to this nonsense, I have now lost an entire weekend of car searching and my CarFax membership is nearly up. I'm definitely not renewing my account when this month is finished.

[coriolis]

CarProof is better anyways, more precise.

[downeasteralexa]

I definitely was planning on using CarProof as a second check on the next vehicle I actually want to make an offer on. CarFax, when it was working, has been a great way of weeding through vehicles, but if I am going to plunk down a good chunk of money, I definitely think it's worth paying for every resource that is available before buying.

[001Stunna]

I remember same thing happened to me a couple of years back when i was car shopping, and after i found my car i decided to help out the RFD community lol.

I called and talked to them and it was like a 1 min conversation. The lady even extended my account for an extra 3 days(it was only paused for like 3 hours).:D

[downeasteralexa]

I told them that I was sharing my experience on a couple of websites and would be filing a report with my credit card company if my account wasn't reinstated by noon. It was up and running by mid-morning with an additional 3 days.

[TT333]

I told them that I was sharing my experience on a couple of websites and would be filing a report with my credit card company if my account wasn't reinstated by noon. It was up and running by mid-morning with an additional 3 days.

Well that's good to hear. If they hadn't extended it, I probably would have been pretty mad but it sounds like you achieved a good resolution now?

I would actually be kinda happy with them after that, although the account pausing is pretty stupid lol.

[Anonymouse]

I need a carfax run. Please PM me; I'll compensate you.

[Capt.]

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[souledge]

If anyone could help me out with a carfax, that would be very much appreciated.