Numbers of new LVs
Statistics for 2021 per 100,000 inhabitants for the European countries:
Belgium 72 – i.e. 61 motorcaravans – 11 caravans
Germany 126 – i.e. 97 motorcaravans - 29 caravans
France 56 – i.e. 45 motorcaravans – 11 caravans
Great Britain 47 – i.e. 20 motorcaravans - 27 caravans
Italy 13 – i.e. 12 motorcaravans - 1 caravan
Netherlands 66 – i.e. 18 motorcaravans – 48 caravans
Norway 106 – i.e. 57 motorcaravans – 49 caravans
Spain 17 – i.e. 13 motorcaravans – 4 caravans
Sweden 86 – i.e. 49 motorcaravans – 37 caravans
Switzerland 119 – i.e. 99 motorcaravans – 20 caravans
A further comments states:
Sales of new motorcaravans are at a standstill because of the lack of chips. In fact sales are downby 30% compared with 2021.
Source FICC
I wonder what the ratio in the Club is now? Caravan sales are the majority only in GB (not by much) and by quite a margin in the Netherlands.
peedee
Comments
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Interesting to see the ratios in different countries. Italy and Spain seem to have the lowest ratio per head of population. I wonder if that is because they are generally hotter counties and holidays tend towards more fixed accommodation? Ratio seems higher the colder the country! Netherlands is interesting as most Dutch seem to have quite small units compared to others and I think the vehicle tax might not encourage motorhome sized vehicles?
I am not sure the reduction in sales is anything to do with demand but as you say supply issues. Just observing the Bailey Motorhome Owners Facebook Group some seem to be waiting over a year for a new motorhome and prices have rocketed as well.
David
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We drove past Lady Bailey's dealership today and there were lots of both caravans and M/Hs on their forecourt for sale, which did not seem to be the case last year, and can't be down to supply issues as the units were there.
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As DK says, the tax on large vehicles in the Netherlands is huge so they tend to tow large caravans with tiny cars. I guess motorhomes are heavily taxed just like big diesel cars.
The stats bear out our own experience in Europe. Many Dutch caravans, lots of German and Belgian motorhomes and no Italians (well, some in Italy!).
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Nellie
I think they only deal with used motorhomes, the problem is with people trying to order new where there are lengthy delays. I don't know if its the same with caravans but motorhome prices have really shot up over the last couple of years.
David
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Great Britain 47 – i.e. 20 motorcaravans - 27 caravans
That's less than 1 LV in 200 - a lot less than I would have guessed. What also surprises me is that comparing ownership per capita between France and the UK (with roughly similar populations), the UKs MH ownership rate is 44% of that for France and yet their MH aire provision leaves ours way, way behind. We've got a lot of catching up to do !
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There's a new LV business just started up in Derby. They are still moving in by the look of it. The only LVs that they have there at the moment are second hand motorhomes, some look quite old. I'll have to keep an eye out to see what else they get there or how long they stay in business..
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Hardly surprising that lv ownership is much lower over here compared with some European countries. It’s almost impossible to tour in this country given that good sites are fully booked when the sun is out. OK if you want to spend two weeks in the rain in November staring out of the window.
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My goodness some people are easily put off! And with a M/H it is easy enough to move into an area where it's not raining. We have never, in over 50 yrs of regular caravanning, and for last 30 of those all year round, ever had to spend two weeks staring out of our caravan windows at the rain.
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Nor have we because we would be overseas and drive south but, yes, easily avoided in the UK by coming home! My point was specifically with regard to touring. If on impulse I want to spend a few weeks touring in the UK it would be extremely difficult to find sites even in the “shoulder” months. Good sites are booked months ahead and I have yet to hear of anybody turning up on spec at a Club site for example. Sure, you can usually find a few nights here and there by booking at short notice but that isn’t touring, it requires fixed plans. I have tried it - we could stay at so and so but have to arrive on Tuesday and leave Friday etc.etc.
At the beginning of September we crossed to France via the tunnel having decided about two weeks before that we would go away for three weeks. No sites booked, spent a few days in Normandy and the weather forecast was poor so went down to the Loire where the weather was excellent. Easy in France and other European countries (if you avoid the Med.etc.); impossible in the UK. So that’s why caravans and motorhomes are popular in Europe and the UK lags behind.0 -
There are thousands of sites throughout this country, Many of them open all year round, and we have friends with a motor home who tour here without any problems of finding a site at the shortest notice, and will just turn up on speck seeking a pitch. What is this desire to always use club sites, especially when one knows that the popular one might be full at a weekend? Therefore no need for the likes of us to go over there seeking sites when we have plenty here.
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That has limited appeal - retired couple who can go out of season and put up with occasional bad weather. What about families who have to stick to summer holidays? It’s impossible; hence less popular in this country.
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We never stay two weeks anywhere. The last time we had a really unrelentingly wet holiday was many years ago in Scotland, with a trailer tent. We upsticks and went to the Lake District, where it was fine and where obviously we hadn’t got anywhere booked. and it would have been school summer holidays!
For the very many years we took the caravan to different parts of Europe we never booked a site. We now seem to be staying in the uk, and we do feel the need to mostly book. We don’t want to wild camp but are happy to use britstops and aires. We don’t book far ahead on the whole, but we do not want to spent 2 weeks at the seaside in peak holiday time.
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Two weeks on the sa.e site is about the maximum for us... and that's only once during the main holiday. We tend not to stay any less than 4 nights, except on the very rare occasion when we use a site as an 'overnighter' on the way to somewhere else... and again only during the main holiday. We do a lot of 4 night stays - I reckon at leat once or twice a month. The only month we tend not to get away is December, and that's nothing to do with the weather.... it's just a busy/ manic month!
David
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JimE, The actual UK figure, end Sept 2021, is more like 1 in 100 There were then 40 million registered vehicles on the road of which 400,000 were regeistered motorcaravans with a further 200,000 registered vans with windows. It is not possible to say how many of the latter were conversions for camping.
its probable less than half of these are members of the C&MC?
peedee
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