Guide and tips
Speedometer fraud is a widespread problem on the used car market. Turning back the mileage not only causes buyers financial losses, but also poses safety risks. On this page you can find out how to recognise speedometer manipulation, how to protect yourself when buying a car and what the legal consequences of fraud are.
According to police figures, the mileage of around two million vehicles in Germany is manipulated every year in order to increase the sales value or to avoid leasing penalties for exceeding the agreed mileage. This means that the speedometer on every third used car sold in Germany has been manipulated.
By falsifying the mileage, an average of 3,000 euros higher sales price is achieved per vehicle. This results in a projected loss of over six billion euros every year. The victims are primarily private used car buyers.
Turning a speedometer "backwards" is child's play. Although it is prohibited by law, "service providers" offer speedometer manipulation for as little as 50 euros. The fraudsters use handy, easy-to-use manipulation devices that can be legally purchased for around 150 euros.
These devices have software that can set the speedometer to any kilometre reading within a few seconds. The speedometer does not even have to be removed for this. The tampering device is simply connected to the diagnostic plug, which has been mandatory since 2000.
As manipulation can be carried out on almost any vehicle, the only way to rule out a falsified mileage is to buy a car with a well-maintained service history. You can then use the history of the mileage entered during the inspections to check whether everything was above board or not - unless the fraudster manipulated the mileage before each inspection.
Another option is to contact the previous owners registered in the vehicle documents and ask them about the last odometer reading before the vehicle was sold on.
In addition, you can of course use the more than 80 test points of the TÜV NORD AutoKaufCheck can provide you with information on the extent to which the vehicle's condition and mileage correspond with each other.
In any case, insist that the mileage is recorded in writing in the purchase contract in case you only realise the speedometer fraud afterwards. A sample purchase agreement to download can also be found here.