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Caravan Buyers Guide

Below Are Some Simple Steps to Help You Be Safe.

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Basic used Caravan buyers guide

These are some basics pointers to look out for you when buying a used touring caravan.

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Main Things to Look Out For

Damp

One of the main things to look out for when buying a used caravan is damp! All caravans of any age can get damp & it doesn’t mean it’s a bad caravan nor had a bad life. It’s just the nature of the beast unfortunately.

  • If the caravan hasn’t recently had a damp check with sheet provided, you should either pay a company to do a damp check or at least check it yourself with a damp meter that can cost from only £20 that gives you some piece of mind. An owner of a caravan might say this caravan has no damp 100% but if they haven’t had a test done recently there is no way of knowing for sure! Although this doesn’t mean they are being dishonest.
  • What does damp look like? Very slight damp that still needs attention isn’t often noticeable by the eye & can only be picked up by a damp meter that again supports the need for a damp test. If the damp levels are high you might notice soft boards, a different colour in an area of the board, spikes sticking out from the boards & even the lack of rigidity in the wood frame.
  • Walk up & down the caravan & put weight down on your feet to feel if there is any soft area’s to the floor.
  • If you do notice anything or you are not sure about or find any faults, consult with the seller & maybe have the caravan inspected by a repairer.
Main Things to Look Out For

Interior Condition

Caravans don’t hide a hard life well & if a caravan has had a hard life it will usually be fairly noticeable with examples being; broken clips, blinds not fitting or broken, scratches & dents on furniture, stains on fabrics, broken switches etc. Also when you view the caravan you really want it to have been closed up for a good while so if there are any bad smells they will be apparent.

Exterior condition

Looks for dents, different shades or colour, cracked plastics, split windows, cracked windows etc. One thing that’s fairly common is if a front window has been replaced it will likely have a different tint colour or shade, this shouldn’t be looked upon as a negative automatically as it could have been completely innocent why it has been changed & if anything it shows an owner that’s prepared to spend money on maintenance.

Tyres

You might not think the age of caravan tyres are important! But it is & modern tyres crack more easily than tyres used to do, Most guides say you should change tyres after 5 to 8 years that is sensible but this is only a guide & you should inspect the tyres too, we had a twin axle in stock recently with 5 year old tyres & they were all cracked & had to be replaced.

Cris documents & Cris check

When buying a caravan you aren’t guaranteed to get a Cris document as it’s not a compulsory scheme & some owners don’t fully understand the Cris system or aren’t bothered about registering. Below are some simple steps to help you be safe, but remember it’s your money you are spending.
  • Mainly if you suspect anything bad or your gut is telling you something is wrong, walk away despite how cheap you think it is or how excited you are to buy the caravan.
  • Check all the numbers match on the windows & the chassis to the Cris document if you have one
  • In all cases even if the seller has a Cris document you need to be confident & sure the person you are handing your money over to is the rightful owner.
  • Don’t meet unless it’s a fixed location & best at the sellers home or business address.
  • Don’t hesitate to ask if you want to see a proof of a photo card id, like a driving licence
  • If you paying by cash, just remember this is less traceable
  • Do a Cris check every time it’s something we always do! Even if somebody was giving us a caravan for free we would do a Cris check. If you are buying from a dealer they would of most likely already done one, you could always ask them if they had carried one out & what was their policy.

Please remember this is only a guide & it is your responsibility as a buyer to make your own Judgement & decisions.

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