<P> A vehicle identification number (VIN) is a unique code, including a serial number, used by the automotive industry to identify individual motor vehicles, towed vehicles, motorcycles, scooters and mopeds, as defined in ISO 3779: 2009 . </P> <P> VINs were first used in 1954 in the United States . From 1954 to 1981, there was no accepted standard for these numbers, so different manufacturers used different formats . </P> <P> In 1981, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the United States standardized the format . It required all on - road vehicles sold to contain a 17 - character VIN, which does not include the letters I (i), O (o), and Q (q) (to avoid confusion with numerals 1 and 0). </P> <P> There are vehicle history services in several countries that help potential car owners use VINs to find vehicles that are defective or have been written off . See the Used car article for a list of countries where this service is available . </P>

When is a vin assigned to a car
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