BRITISH STANDARD AUTOMOBILE SERIES BS AU

1 75-4a:1 997
Incorp orating

Am endm ent No. 1

Vehicle identification
numbers (VIN) —

Part 4: Specification for a visible vehicle

identification number

IC S 43 . 02 0

12&23<,1*:,7+287%6,3(50,66,21(;&(37$63(50,77('%<&23<5,*+7/$:
Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 BS AU 1 75-4a:1 997

Committees responsible for this

British Standard

The preparation of this British Standard was entrusted to Technical

Committee AUE /1 7, Vehicle security, upon which the following bodies were
represented:

Automobile Association

Consumer Policy Committee of BSI

DfT – (DTLR – Central Transport Group)

Freight Transport Association

Home Office

ICE (Ergonomics)

Master Locksmiths Association

Metropolitan Police

MIRA Limited

Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre

Road Haulage Association Ltd

RAC – Royal Automobile Club

Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Limited

Co- Opted Members

This British Standard was

published under the authority
of the Standards Committee
and comes into effect on
1 5 D ecember 1 997

© BSI 2 April 2 004

Amendments issued since publication

Amd. No. Date Comments

1 491 5 2 April 2004 Revision of Clause 6

The following BSI references
relate to the work on this
British Standard:

Committee reference AUE/1 7

Draft for comment 96/71 41 34 DC

ISBN 0 5 80 2835 5 0

Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI

 BS AU 1 75 -4a:1 997

Foreword

This Part of BS AU 1 75 has been prepared by Technical Committee AUE/1 7.

The vehicle identification number (VIN) is used to identify road vehicles. At

present there is a legal requirement to mark the VIN indelibly on the car chassis,
frame or other similar structure and affix a plate bearing the VIN to a vehicle part
which is not normally subj ect to replacement. The location of these vary
considerably depending on the vehicle model and manufacturer. The vast
maj ority of people, including police officers, do not know where to find the VIN.

Therefore, to find these numbers it is necessary to search the vehicle. To do this

the police need to exercise a legal power under the Police and Criminal Evidence
Act 1 984 (PACE), for which they must already have reasonable suspicion that the
vehicle is stolen. PACE does not give police the power to simply check the VIN to
first establish the true identity of the vehicle.

Prior to 1 991 the police national computer (PNC) vehicle file could be searched by
the vehicle registration mark (VRM). Only then would the VIN be revealed,
enabling the VIN marked on the suspect vehicle to be checked. Since 1 991 it has
been possible to search the PNC directly by the VIN, and this is increasingly
being done. However, the maj ority of police checks are still only made on the VRM
because of the difficulty experienced locating the VIN. The detection of stolen
vehicles would therefore be made more straightforward by marking the VIN in a
common visible location.

Vehicle identification numbering requirements are also contained in Community

Directive 76/1 1 4/EEC, latest amendment 78/507/EEC.

Other Parts of BS AU 1 75 are:

— Part 1b : Specification for content and structure;

— Part 2b: Specification for world manufacturer identifier (WMI) codes;
— Part 3b: Specification for location and attachment.
This publication does not purport to include all the necessary provisions of a
contract. Users are responsible for its correct application.

Compliance with a British Standard does not of itself confer immunity

from legal obligations.

Summary of pages

This document comprises a front cover, an inside front cover, pages i and ii,
pages 1 to 3 and a back cover.

The BSI copyright notice displayed in this document indicates when the
document was last issued.

© BSI 2 April 2004

i
Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 ii blank
Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 BS AU 1 75-4a:1 997

1 Scope

This standard specifies requirements for the visibility and location of the visible vehicle identification
number (VIN) of motor vehicles. It applies to the following motor vehicles:

— those with at least four wheels used for the carriage of passengers and comprising no more than eight
seats in addition to the driver’s seat;

— those with at least four wheels used for the carriage of goods and with a maximum weight not
exceeding 3. 5 tonnes.

2 Normative references

This Part of BS AU 1 75 incorporates, by dated or undated reference, provisions from other publications.
These normative references are made at the appropriate places in the text and the cited publications are
listed on the inside back cover. For dated references, only the edition cited applies; any subsequent
amendments to or revisions of the cited publication apply to this Part of BS AU 1 75 only when incorporated
in the reference by amendment or revision. For undated references, the latest edition of the cited
publication applies, together with any amendments.

3 Definitions

For the purposes of this British Standard the following definitions apply.

3.1
vehicle identification number (VIN)
structured combination of characters assigned to a vehicle by the manufacturer for identification purposes

3.2
visible vehicle identification number
vehicle identification number placed in a secure location which can be read without access to the interior
of the vehicle

4 General

It shall be ensured that none of the security related aspects of the vehicle are compromised by applying the
visible VIN.

5 Markings

The visible VIN shall consist of 1 7 digits, as specified in BS AU 1 75- 1 b, and have a minimum height
of 4 mm.

The visible VIN shall be indelibly marked on the vehicle. Such marks or labels shall be designed to prevent
easy removal and indicate tampering. Any additional markings shall not affect its readability.

NOTE 1 The manufacturer’s logo should be included in order to minimize the ease of copying.

NOTE 2 For security reasons a vehicle not marked with a visible VIN during production should not have the marking added without
first contacting the manufacturer.

© BSI 2 April 2004

1
Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 BS AU 1 75-4a:1 997

6 Visibility/location

The visible VIN shall be installed inside the passenger compartment adj acent to the primary left hand
windscreen pillar, viewed from the normal driving position.

It shall be readable in daylight, without moving any part of the vehicle, through either the windscreen or
an adj acent window by an observer with 20/20 vision (corrected if necessary) standing adj acent to the
primary left hand windscreen pillar.

The visible VIN shall be in a location that avoids inadvertent obscuration.

7 Fixings

The visible VIN shall be firmly attached to the vehicle structure, but not the windscreen or any glazing.

The removal, replacement or remarking of the visible VIN shall not be possible with the use of low-cost,
easily concealable tools or equipment readily available to the public at large, without the prior removal of
maj or components or assemblies e. g. instrument panel, windscreen etc. Fixings shall be difficult to remove
and/or falsify e. g. bonding adhesives, non- standard headed rivets, etc.

2 © BSI 2 April 2004

Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 BS AU 1 75-4a:1 997

List of references (see Clause 2 )

Normative references

BSI publications

B RITISH S TANDARDS I NSTITUTIO N L ONDO N

BS AU 1 75, Vehicle identification numbers (VIN).

BS AU 1 75- 1 b: 1 983, Specification for content and structure.

© BSI 2 April 2004

3
Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI
 BS AU
1 75 -4a:1 997
BSI — British Standards Institution
BSI is the independent national body responsible for preparing
British Standards. It presents the UK view on standards in Europe and at the
international level. It is incorporated by Royal Charter.
Revisions

British Standards are updated by amendment or revision. Users of

British Standards should make sure that they possess the latest amendments or
editions.
It is the constant aim of BSI to improve the quality of our products and services.
We would be grateful if anyone finding an inaccuracy or ambiguity while using
this British Standard would inform the Secretary of the technical committee
responsible, the identity of which can be found on the inside front cover.
Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 9000. Fax: +44 (0)20 8996 7400.
BSI offers members an individual updating service called PLUS which ensures
that subscribers automatically receive the latest editions of standards.
Buying standards

Orders for all BSI, international and foreign standards publications should be
addressed to Customer Services. Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 9001.
Fax: +44 (0)20 8996 7001. Email: [email protected]. Standards are also
available from the BSI website at http://www.bsi-global.com.
In response to orders for international standards, it is BSI policy to supply the
BSI implementation of those that have been published as British Standards,
unless otherwise requested.
Information on standards

BSI provides a wide range of information on national, European and

international standards through its Library and its Technical Help to Exporters
Service. Various BSI electronic information services are also available which give
details on all its products and services. Contact the Information Centre.
Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 7111. Fax: +44 (0)20 8996 7048. Email: [email protected].
Subscribing members of BSI are kept up to date with standards developments
and receive substantial discounts on the purchase price of standards. For details
of these and other benefits contact Membership Administration.
Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 7002. Fax: +44 (0)20 8996 7001.
Email: [email protected].
Information regarding online access to British Standards via British Standards
Online can be found at http://www.bsi-global.com/bsonline.
Further information about BSI is available on the BSI website at
http://www.bsi-global.com.
C opyright

Copyright subsists in all BSI publications. BSI also holds the copyright, in the
UK, of the publications of the international standardization bodies. Except as
permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 no extract may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any
means – electronic, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without prior written
permission from BSI.
This does not preclude the free use, in the course of implementing the standard,
of necessary details such as symbols, and size, type or grade designations. If these
details are to be used for any other purpose than implementation then the prior
BSI written permission of BSI must be obtained.
389 Chiswick High Road Details and advice can be obtained from the Copyright & Licensing Manager.
London Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 7070. Fax: +44 (0)20 8996 7553.
Email: [email protected].
W4 4AL

Reproduced by IHS under license with BSI