PRELOVED PITFALLS TO AVOID If you decide to start your campervan lifestyle by buying a preloved campervan privately through small classified adverts, you are entering the realm of “Buyer beware” and “Sold as seen” - there will not be a warranty available from a private seller. Most people do plenty of online research before viewing any campervans. Vehicle expert Honest John says, “If the price looks too good to be true, it probably is. Some criminals will advertise a camper van that doesn’t exist to collect deposits and then disappear. Vans priced below the market value may also be stolen or ‘cloned’ where they are given the identity of another vehicle that’s legitimate.” Before viewing a vehicle it’s helpful if you can get the registration number plate and do your own HPI check online to make sure the vehicle is not stolen or written off and has no outstanding finance on it. The AA, RAC and other breakdown services also do these online vehicle history checks for a fee. If you can see a photo of the registration document, this allows you to check that the seller’s address matches the one on the document. Your insurance - or the seller’s - may cover you if you do a test drive with the owner’s permission. If not, it’s possible to arrange a single day’s insurance cover. When you go to view a used campervan, Honest John says, “First and foremost, is it used regularly? Campervans are based on commercial vehicles, which are designed to clock up 200,000 miles in a few years, before being sold on or scrapped. They aren’t designed to sit unused for eight months of the year. Vehicles that sit around, can be prone to age-related chassis, suspension and mechanical problems.” Low mileage is not always best, he adds. “You should be looking for a vehicle as new as possible for your money regardless of mileage. A four-year-old camper with 100,000 miles is a far better buy than a 10-year-old van with 50,000 miles.” Here are some more things to consider when buying a used campervan privately: • •
Ask an expert (a mechanic friend, or the AA or RAC) to do an actual vehicle inspection with you and tell you about any mechanical problems they can identify. Honest John says, “Visit in daylight, rather than at night when you might
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