arr0gant

Here is a thread from my old Cadillac V forum. http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums...at-should.html That is a MODERATOR suggesting the OP give out the VIN and someone will Carfax it for him.

Whenever someone needs a car checked out, they don't get the old "Your ripping off Carfax blah blah", like you get here. Not only that, when I asked for the VIN to be checked, a Caddy DEALER, on the V forum was more than happy to do it for me.

I have never seen anyone on the V forum, which I consider to be the best, most professional auto forum on the net (it should be for $50 per year) , give anyone grief about it.

I think helping people out with Carfax reports is something we should not frown upon so much. It seems overly ****, to me.

Anyhow, I think it's a misnomer, that its against Carfax rules to get someone to run a car. Can anyone show me different?
Thoughts? Anyone?

carpundit

I am not weighing in on the issue except to say that I would bet Carfax's terms of service include language restricting use to personal use, or some similar phrase. Unless that language is tight and specific, there may be room to argue that running VINs for your forum buddies falls within personal use.

I was unable to find the language, or any language about service terms, on their site. I suggest anyone curious should email their customer service.

CP

HD911

Maybe approach this differently, what if you owned Carfax would you still feel the same way? Some people consider it stealing and I guess thats why certain types get upset about it.
Personally I think if you want a Car-fax then you should pay.....just my $0.02

Wellardmac

http://carfax.com/cfm/legal_disclaimer.cfm

2. Restrictions on Use. The Site contains copyrighted material, trademarks, and other proprietary information, including, without limitation, text, software, photos, graphics (the "Content"). The Content of the Site, as well as the organization, layout, arrangement and design elements of the Site and each individual page of the Site, are the property of CARFAX and its affiliates and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark and other applicable intellectual property laws. You may not modify, publish, transmit, display, participate in the transfer or sale, create derivative works, or in any way exploit any of the Content, in whole or in part. Except as otherwise expressly permitted under copyright law, no copying, redistribution, retransmission, publication or commercial exploitation of downloaded material will be permitted without the express written permission of CARFAX or the copyright owner. In the event of any permitted copying, redistribution, or publication of copyrighted material, no changes in or deletion of author attribution, trademark legend, or copyright notice shall be made. You acknowledge that you do not acquire any ownership rights by downloading or printing the copyrighted material, or by using the Site.

Just an FYI

It's legally and morally wrong.

As has been discussed previously, any site that permits this to happen is left open to letters from lawyers and getting tied up in conduct that they have inadvertently sanctioned by virtue of not stopping it. They (although I'm not a lawyer) are as legally liable for the copyright infringement as the persons that participated on the infringement.

We all value this site and don't want it to get tied up in expensive lawsuits or get it shut down, so we don't engage in conduct that we know will get Rennlist into trouble.

Steven C.

Oh Boy Now you have gone and done it. Just wait til Dell gets a hold of this one Stand back everyone

carpundit

Oreganet's point is well-taken, but I'm not sure the copyright language is the final answer. I believe there's caselaw holding forum operators responsible for what happens on their site (the original Napster, for example), but it's by no means clear that Rennlist would be "publishing" anything if one member asked another -on Rennlist- to run a carfax, the second member doid so as a favor, and emailed the result to the first member.

Maybe the "participate in the transfer" language would operate as a ban, but I'm not sure. I am neither schooled nor experienced in copyright law (criminal procedure being my forte) and I defer to the experts.

Wellardmac

yeah, I have no legal opinions, I just slept at a Holiday Inn last night.

arr0gant

:rofl:

C4CRNA

I think everone here knows that a carfax report is a bunch of crap!! There are many ways to prevent carfax from getting the info on a car that has been wrecked or abused. A clean carfax report is of NO value. The dealers will be the first ones to wave a clean carfax report and say this car is A-OK. They often know otherwise but tout the carfax report as the gold standard.

Wellardmac

Absolutely true, Gant knows that better than anyone, due to his submariner experiences.... wonder whatever happened to the RMS Titanic.

gota911

'Gant bought it for weekend drives in the country!

Patrick

I've posted this opinion before, and will keep doing so until it sinks in for some of you thicker folks. Most of us do not care about carfax, their policies, products, or profits. We do care about this forum. If you share your carfax here, and the forum appears to support it, it puts John D. and our forum at risk. So if you ask, or share carfax, you will likely get flamed. Don't risk our forum because you are too tight to spend twenty bucks.

arr0gant

I'm just not so sure it puts anyone, or anything at risk. As I said before, my old Caddy-V forum was run tightly, like a ship. No cussing, no flaming and very by-th-book. They moderate everything VERY Closely and are sticklers @ everything. Carfax help was never an issue. I think we make way to much of it.

CosmosC4S

If one pays more for a year of unlimited carfax checks, (compared to a single report)
then I don't see why not make full use of it, even if it means sharing and helping friends.

I don't see a big deal here.
If someone asks, and someone is willing to help, email the report and it's all done.

I always get my carfax done thru' a friend working at a BMW dealership,
the heck with morals or what is legally right, the heck with whoever thinks it's cheap.
It's called "Beating the system"! Everybody does it, maybe not carfax, but something else.
If you drive over the speed limit, that is also legally wrong!
If you use a radar/laser detector, that is morally wrong! You are trying to beat the system.

vove

Carfax sucks....and so does people..lol.