Buying used caravan and servicing

Cavalier Caravaners
Cavalier Caravaners Forum Participant Posts: 88
edited April 2019 in Caravans #1

We are looking to change over caravan this year and buy a used caravan. We will.party exchange our van and are looking for a particular compass twin bed central bathroom lay out. My question is if we buy a van miles away so we don't want to return there for a service how do we get it serviced under the warranty locally? I've read a lot of stories that local dealerships won't service fans bought elsewhere as their customers come first.

 

Any advice?

 

Comments

  • Oneputt
    Oneputt Club Member Posts: 9,145 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #2

    We brought our present van 150 miles from home.  We had some warranty work carried out by local dealers to where we lived.  If we had to returned the van to the dealer we combined the trip with visiting family or POI’s

  • moulesy
    moulesy Forum Participant Posts: 9,402 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #3

    I've seen lots of posts mentioning this. How about visiting a local dealer and finding out if they will source the particular van you want. They might even tow it down for you and then you'd expect them to do the service work in subsequent years. Surely worth enquiring?

  • Tinwheeler
    Tinwheeler Forum Participant Posts: 23,146 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #4

    Perhaps part of the answer rests with what sort of warranty the used van carries. If it is the balance of a 'from new' warranty, then all the aforementioned points are valid.

    If, however, it is the dealer's own warranty provided specifically for his used sales, then it depends on the terms of that warranty as to where any work, or servicing, can be carried out. 

    It's also worth checking out mobile servicing technicians as they don’t generally turn work away.

  • commeyras
    commeyras Club Member Posts: 1,853 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #5

    Make sure any mobile service is NCC (or is it NCAundecided) approved as this should preserve a warranty.  The mobile  service I use gives excellent service but I am not near you.  Ensure you transfer any remaining manufacturers warranty over to yourself - I particularly have in mind water ingress warranty.  Some manufacturers charge a small fee but it could be a very worthwhile investment.  The caravan would have had to have been serviced annually by a NCC approved workshop for you to continue with a warranty.  

  • Cavalier Caravaners
    Cavalier Caravaners Forum Participant Posts: 88
    edited May 2019 #6

    Thanks for advice... I've found a van I want in Wales a  2018 compass I live in London-  so rang round to local caravan dealers, even compass approved one's,  to see if they would service and do warranty work- they would all service but not do any warranty work, as we will not have bought the van from them.

    I've not bought the van in Wales as it's too far to take for warranty  even if staying in a site, for warranty work it's too hard to manage. Anyone know how to get round this? I don't want to buy brand new, but within warranty would be nice, the model lay ours in looking for don't seem to be easy to find locally. If I go far I can't get warranty work done locally. Tricky? I've also struggled to.find local NCC mobile engineers... 

  • Amesford
    Amesford Club Member Posts: 685 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2019 #7

    We were lucky we found a nearby Swift dealership who would undertake  our warranty work and guess what we bought our present van off them. 

                  

  • DaveT
    DaveT Forum Participant Posts: 174
    100 Comments
    edited May 2019 #8

    This is a difficult one. I tend to agree with Tinwheeler regarding the use of a mobile and checking the Ts & Cs of the warranty.

    I discovered that Glossop caravans had a large network of servicing agents and reciporocal agreements with dealers in my area, many miles away, for warranty work for new vans. Might be worth exploring if there is something similar for used vans. It is painful, but, like you I wouldn't want to tow my van many miles to get the inevitable work done.

  • Cavalier Caravaners
    Cavalier Caravaners Forum Participant Posts: 88
    edited May 2019 #9

    thanks for the tips- is there an easy way of finding mobile engineers, is here a listing web site or similar?

  • Tinwheeler
    Tinwheeler Forum Participant Posts: 23,146 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2019 #10

    Google is your friend👍🏻

  • hitchglitch
    hitchglitch Forum Participant Posts: 3,007
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    edited May 2019 #11

    If you buy secondhand make sure the manufacturers warranty including extended damp warranty can be transferred to you. It’s a valuable asset. We traded our caravan in three years ago and the dealer did not explain to the ultimate buyer about the manufacturers warranty. My name was still on it and it cost the buyer £6000 for a damp repair.

    I have no problem with my AutoSleepers motorhome (purchased from new) using a different dealer/service engineer but from experience it is extra work for them chasing the manufacturer for approvals and parts for warranty work and some won’t do it.

    Try phoning some of the bigger dealers outside of London but also ask them if they know of any mobile service engineers.

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
    1000 Comments
    edited May 2019 #12

    Our Bailey/Coachman dealer will not take on warranty work on vans not purchased from them as in their opinion ,manufacturers  do not allow enough time for warranty work to be done, it seems the time given is computer generated which does not allow for any checking  or removalof the job i.e. cookers/fridges etc

  • Richard12
    Richard12 Forum Participant Posts: 112
    100 Comments
    edited May 2019 #13

    We use a Mobile Engineer who is AWS Approved.  He is based in Hampshire, you could try him, BC Caravans 01252 626156.

    He mainly covers Hampshire, Berkshire & Surrey.

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