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Motorhome and caravan FAQ

30 questions. Every price and rule checked on 15 September 2026.

CaravanCheck's motorhome history check costs £4.99 and covers UK-registered motorhomes, campervans and van conversions only; touring caravans have no registration and use the CRiS register (£17.95). Motorhome road tax is £230 or £375 a year up to 3,500 kg and £177 over; the MOT is class 4 at a maximum £54.85; a car licence covers 3,500 kg and C1 covers up to 7,500 kg. Every figure on this page was read on GOV.UK or the provider's own site on 15 September 2026.

Free DVLA summary · full motorhome history check £4.99 · UK-registered motorhomes and campervans only

The £4.99 motorhome history check

What does the CaravanCheck £4.99 motorhome history check show?

Whether the motorhome is recorded as stolen (Police National Computer feed), has outstanding finance (with the lender and agreement type), has been written off by an insurer (MIAFTR, with category and loss date), has been scrapped or marked for export, has been imported, carries high-risk markers, has changed plates or colour, how many previous keepers it has had, and how many times it has been history-checked before. It also includes the DVLA vehicle details and the full MOT history with recorded mileages, read for rollbacks. Data comes from Experian AutoCheck, DVLA and DVSA at the moment you order. The full list is on what a motorhome history check shows.

What does the check not show?

It cannot see the habitation body: damp, gas, electrics, delamination or how the van has been stored. It does not include recall status (check that free on DVSA's recall service by make and model), service history, the number of owners abroad on an import, or a valuation. It is a records check on a registered road vehicle, which is why our converter brand guides and damp guide exist alongside it.

Does the check cover touring caravans?

No, and no number-plate check can. Touring caravans are not registered with DVLA and do not appear in Experian, HPI or any vehicle-check database. The tourer register is CRiS (Central Registration and Identification Scheme, run by HPI for the National Caravan Council); a CRiS check costs £17.95 against the 17-digit CRiS number (cris.co.uk, 15 September 2026). Our touring caravan guide explains what CRiS covers and what to inspect in person.

Is there a guarantee with the CaravanCheck report?

No data guarantee. Our terms say we report what the sources hold at the moment of the check, cannot guarantee those sources are complete, and limit our liability to the price paid. If you want an insured guarantee, Auto Trader's vehicle check is £6.95 with a data guarantee of up to £30,000 (valid 24 months, T&Cs expressly include motorhomes), HPI's full check is £19.99 with a £30,000 guarantee, and Experian's own AutoCheck is £7.99 with a £30,000 guarantee. All read on the providers' sites on 15 September 2026. Where the guarantee matters to you, buy theirs; the comparison is on the cheapest motorhome history check.

How much does a motorhome history check cost in 2026?

On 15 September 2026: CaravanCheck £4.99 (no guarantee); Auto Trader £6.95 (£30,000 data guarantee, motorhomes included in its T&Cs); Experian AutoCheck £7.99, or five checks for £16.99 (£30,000 guarantee; its site names cars, motorcycles, caravans and trucks rather than motorhomes); HPI £19.99, three for £29.99, or a £9.99 Basic Check without the guarantee or write-off and mileage data. For a touring caravan the only option is a CRiS check at £17.95.

Can I check a motorhome for free?

Partly. DVLA vehicle details (make, colour, engine size, weight, tax and MOT status) and the full MOT history with mileages are free on GOV.UK, and we show them free when you enter a registration. Outstanding finance, insurance write-off and stolen data are commercially licensed registers, so nobody legitimate gives them away. Details on the free motorhome check.

Is CaravanCheck an HPI check?

No. HPI is a brand owned by Solera; its motorhome and towing page describes the MINDER identification scheme and checks from £9.99. CaravanCheck runs its check through Experian AutoCheck via One Auto, plus DVLA and DVSA data. The registers behind the two are largely the same (police, finance houses, MIAFTR), the price and the guarantee differ. See HPI check for motorhomes.

Can I check a campervan or a self-build van conversion?

Yes, if it has a UK registration, whatever the V5C body type says. The check runs on the registration, not on whether DVLA accepted a motor caravan reclassification. See campervan history check and, if you are converting, the DVLA reclassification rules.

Can I check an imported motorhome, for example a German Hymer?

Once it is UK-registered, yes, but the UK registers only hold its history from UK registration onward. Finance or a write-off recorded abroad will not appear. Ask for the foreign registration papers and any dealer import invoice. GOV.UK's import steps (tell HMRC within 14 days via NOVA, pay VAT and duty, get approval, register with DVLA for a £55 fee) are summarised on buying an imported motorhome.

How is the report delivered and do I get a PDF?

The report is emailed within minutes, normally, as a web-page report with a link to view it online; we do not attach a PDF, but the online report prints or saves to PDF from your browser. If it has not arrived within 15 minutes, check spam, then reply to any of our emails and a person will sort it the same day. If we cannot complete a report the same day we refund in full; if you typed the wrong registration we re-run the right one free, once per order.

Tax, MOT and licence

How much is road tax on a motorhome?

GOV.UK (rates for motorhomes, read 15 September 2026) bases it on revenue weight. Up to 3,500 kg the motorhome is private or light goods (TC11): £230 a year for engines not over 1549 cc, £375 over 1549 cc, or £241.50 and £393.75 by monthly Direct Debit. Over 3,500 kg it is private heavy goods (TC10): £177 a year. A motorhome registered between 1 April 2017 and 11 March 2020 that is M1SP with a CO2 figure on its type approval pays the car-style CO2 rate instead (£200 standard rate from the second year, plus £440 a year for five years if the list price was over £40,000). Enter a registration on the motorhome road tax checker to see which applies.

Do motorhomes need an MOT, and which class?

Yes, from the third anniversary of first registration and every year after. GOV.UK's MOT fees table lists "Motor caravans" as class 4 with a maximum fee of £54.85 and no weight qualifier; the class 7 fee (£58.60) is for goods vehicles of 3,000 to 3,500 kg, not motor caravans. Forums often say a heavy motorhome is class 7; GOV.UK does not. Driving without a valid MOT can be fined up to £1,000. See do motorhomes need an MOT and how to check a motorhome MOT history.

Can I drive a motorhome on a car licence?

Category B (a car licence passed on or after 1 January 1997) covers a motorhome up to 3,500 kg maximum authorised mass (4,250 kg if zero-emission), towing a trailer up to 3,500 kg with a combined limit of 7,000 kg. Between 3,500 and 7,500 kg you need C1; over 7,500 kg you need C. If you passed before 1 January 1997 you usually hold C1 and can drive a vehicle-and-trailer combination up to 8,250 kg. GOV.UK, read 15 September 2026. The weight that counts is the plated MAM, not what the van weighs empty. GOV.UK also says you cannot register a motorhome over 12 metres long or 2.55 metres wide, and over 3 metres tall you must display the height in the cab. Check a specific motorhome against your licence.

Do touring caravans need an MOT or tax?

No. A touring caravan is a trailer with no registration, so there is no MOT, no tax and no V5C; the towing vehicle carries all of that. GOV.UK's exempt-vehicles page says lorries, buses and trailers have annual tests instead of an MOT, but that regime is for heavy goods trailers, not caravans. The sibling page do caravans need an MOT covers it in one word and the checks that replace it.

Do caravans have a logbook?

Not a V5C. The equivalent is the CRiS registration document, issued when the caravan is registered on CRiS (a one-off £20.95; replacement documents £15.95, cris.co.uk, 15 September 2026). A seller who cannot produce it, or whose window etchings do not match the paperwork, is the classic warning sign. See do caravans have a logbook and CRiS check explained.

Habitation, damp and servicing

What is a habitation check and is it a legal requirement?

A professional inspection of the living area: gas system and appliances, 230 V and 12 V electrics, water system, heating and ventilation, seals and damp readings, smoke and CO alarms. The Approved Workshop Scheme and the Caravan and Motorhome Club both state it is not a legal requirement; the MOT covers roadworthiness. Most manufacturers require an annual habitation service to keep the water-ingress warranty (Auto-Trail within 30 days of the anniversary, Swift 90 days before or 60 after, Bailey with a moisture survey, Hymer an annual leak inspection). Read on 15 September 2026.

How much does a habitation check cost?

Providers' own prices on 15 September 2026: Habcheck (national mobile) £249 members, £269 non-members; Happy Camper Group (North West and North Wales, mobile) from £179.95 plus VAT; Mobile Leisure Vehicle Services (North West) £250; Southern Motorhomes workshop from £240 (van conversion) to £336 (A-class) plus VAT; Brownhills from £315 members, £350 non-members. The dated table is on motorhome habitation check cost; how to find one is on habitation check near me.

How much damp is too much?

We do not print a percentage because meter readings vary by instrument, material and temperature, and no manufacturer or the Approved Workshop Scheme publishes a single threshold we could verify on 15 September 2026. What matters is the trend across annual reports and where the reading is: owner reports on our brand guides describe warranty repairs following readings in the 25 to 50 percent range, and readings of 80 to 90 percent alongside replaced walls and floors. Ask the engineer to explain each reading against the maker's tolerance and get it in writing. Where to probe is on motorhome damp: what to look for.

Which motorhome brands have the most damp reports?

We do not rank brands: nobody publishes fault rates, and forum volume follows sales volume and how active the owners are online. What we do publish is every owner report we could open, dated and linked, for Auto-Trail, Swift, Bailey, Hymer and Elddis, with each maker's warranty terms and DVSA recalls, and where on that brand's body to put the meter.

Touring caravans and CRiS

What is CRiS and how much is a CRiS check?

CRiS is the UK touring caravan register, run by HPI for the National Caravan Council since 1992. A CRiS check costs £17.95 (cris.co.uk, 15 September 2026) and reports whether the caravan has been reported stolen to the police, has outstanding finance recorded by specialist finance houses, has been written off by an insurer registered with the scheme, and whether it is registered to a named keeper. Registration as keeper is a one-off £20.95. The check runs on the 17-digit CRiS number etched into the windows and stamped on the chassis; mismatched or ground-out etchings are the sign of a stolen caravan wearing another identity, see how to check if a caravan is stolen.

Can I HPI check a caravan?

No. HPI, Experian and every number-plate service check DVLA-registered vehicles; a tourer has no registration. Sites offering a cheap caravan reg check are checking the tow car. Use CRiS. See can you HPI check a caravan and, for the build year, the caravan age checker.

How do I check if a caravan has finance owing?

Only through CRiS: its check includes finance recorded by specialist caravan finance houses. There is no reg-based route because there is no reg. If the seller still owes money, the finance company can repossess the caravan from you. See caravan finance check.

Buying, imports and scams

What is the best age to buy a used motorhome?

Published depreciation puts the biggest loss in year one (15 to 20 percent) and a slowing curve after, so a three-to-five-year-old van has shed the steepest part while most makers' water-ingress warranties (five to ten years) still run, if the service record is unbroken. The reasoning, with the warranty transfer catches, is on the best age to buy a used motorhome; the numbers are on the depreciation calculator.

What should I check on the V5C of a motorhome?

That the keeper name and address match the seller and the viewing address, the VIN on the document matches the plate on the vehicle, the body type (motor caravan, van with side windows or panel van) and revenue weight are what you expect, and the number of previous keepers matches the story. Never accept a photo of the V5C as proof. Full walk-through on checking a motorhome V5C logbook and where to find your motorhome VIN.

Is a Cat S or Cat N motorhome worth buying?

GOV.UK defines Cat S as repairable structural damage and Cat N as repairable non-structural damage; both can return to the road once repaired to a roadworthy condition, while Cat A and B must be crushed in whole or in part. A recorded category cuts the resale price and can complicate insurance and warranty claims, so the discount has to be large and the repair documented. See buying a Cat S or Cat N motorhome and the write-off check.

What are the common motorhome scams?

Deposit scams for vans that do not exist, fake shipping or escrow agents, cloned identities (a stolen van wearing a legitimate van's plates and VIN), and sellers who will not meet at the registered address. The defences are a history check on the registration, matching the VIN to the V5C in person, and never paying a deposit before viewing. See how to avoid motorhome scams. Sellers are targeted too: best way to sell a motorhome covers the paperwork that protects you.

About CaravanCheck

What is CaravanCheck?

A UK motorhome and campervan history check service. Enter a registration for a free DVLA and MOT summary; the full £4.99 check adds Experian AutoCheck's stolen, finance, write-off, plate, colour, keeper and high-risk data, emailed within minutes. Beside the check we publish sourced guides on buying, tax, MOT, licence, habitation and the converter brands, each with the date its facts were checked. We are an information aggregation service, not a dealer, broker, insurer or inspection company.

What is CaravanCheck not?

Not the HPI brand or any other branded guarantee product, not a guarantee, not a valuation service, not a physical or habitation inspection, and not a touring caravan check (tourers have no registration; CRiS is the register). Our reports are not legal advice and must not be the sole basis for a purchase. Our liability is limited to the price paid. If you want an insured data guarantee, Auto Trader, HPI and Experian sell one for £6.95 to £19.99 (15 September 2026).

Is CaravanCheck legit and who runs it?

CaravanCheck is run from the UK by a small team; data is bought per check from Experian AutoCheck through One Auto, with DVLA and DVSA data under the Open Government Licence. Payment is by Stripe, reports come from reports@caravancheck.co.uk, and a person answers replies. If a report cannot be completed the same day it is refunded in full.

Do I need both a history check and a habitation check?

For a used motorhome, yes, they answer different questions. The £4.99 history check tells you whether the registered vehicle is clean on the registers; a habitation check (roughly £180 to £350 on the providers' pages above) tells you whether the body is dry and the gas and electrics are safe. Neither replaces the other, and the cheaper one goes first: there is no point paying for an inspection of a van that turns out to be on finance.

Sources, checked 15 September 2026

Check a motorhome before you buy

Enter the registration for a free DVLA and MOT summary. Full history check £4.99.