How we check and disclose commercial links
Last updated · OBDCode UK editorial
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this site are affiliate links. If you buy through them, we may earn a commission. We only enable a link after the shop has passed a current pathway and compliance check, regardless of whether we may earn from the sale. See the rest of this page for how we choose what to enable.
Some of the shops we link to are owned by the same team as OBDCode (RETRETO NEXT LIMITED, Company No. 15166864, VAT GB 493 7070 67). Those links are still commercial. They use rel="sponsored". We do not claim that a commercial relationship cannot affect price.
Commercial tool supplier links appear on the relevant Tools category pages, after the safety notes and the “you may not need to buy this” guidance. Sponsored breakdown-cover referrals may also appear after a successful registration lookup and beside the MOT lookup routes on /check/.
Before a link can be enabled, we require current evidence for the shop operator, the exact product page, the basket and checkout path, the final payable price, and material stock, delivery and origin claims. These are supplier and purchase-path checks, not independent product testing. A page that returns HTTP 200 is not treated as compliance evidence.
Every enabled commercial link must be labelled “Sponsored” before the link and identify the verified shop operator and whether a related business may benefit directly from the sale.
A commercial relationship does not change the order of Tools cards: the /tools/ category grid and the supplier cards on each category page follow fixed editorial lists, not payment, commission, or sponsored status.
Commercial links use rel="sponsored noopener noreferrer" and sit after the safety notes and the “you may not need to buy this” guidance.
Our commercial-link references do not contain number plates, VINs, lookup results or other vehicle details. We do not use localStorage for affiliate attribution. Commercial clicks on Tools category pages go through a first-party /go/{outlet_id} redirect. Each click writes one JSONL row kept for at most 30 days: UTC timestamp, outlet id, the path of the OBDCode page that referred the click (or “-” if that referer is missing or external), a 128-bit random hid that is meaningless across clicks, and a coarse agent class (human-like or bot-like). No IP address is written. After 30 days only aggregates remain. Exact hid matches and 7-day window estimates are reported separately and are never added together.
Motoring Assistance referrals through Awin
Motoring Assistance is an external breakdown-cover provider. OBDCode UK participates in its Awin affiliate programme and may earn a commission if a new customer buys online through a labelled Sponsored link. This is a commercial referral, not a comparison of every provider or a personalised cover recommendation.
These links go directly through Awin to Motoring Assistance. They contain our publisher identifier and a fixed placement reference, such as the homepage MOT result or the /check/ MOT entry. They do not send your registration, VIN, symptoms or lookup results. We add no Awin tracking script to OBDCode. When you follow a link, Awin and the provider may process the visit and use attribution cookies under their own policies; see Awin's privacy policy and the provider's privacy information.
The provider sets eligibility, start dates, waiting periods, exclusions and prices. Check its current terms before buying. If you are already broken down, contact your existing provider or arrange recovery. The sponsored referral is for planning future cover and is not a remedy for a current fault.
The shops that may currently appear, and the company that operates them, are listed on /about-our-shops/.