To SORN or not to SORN

[kelly58]

During the last two winters our motorhome never turned a wheel from end of October to end March but it was kept taxed up which seems a waste of money, so this year I am thinking of surrendering the tax disc and declaring the vehicle off road although as per the change in the law it must still remain insured thats ok with me. Is this normal practice with other motorhomers who hibernate over winter ? The RFL is due for renewal on 1st April 2012.

[Derek Uzzell]

kelly58 - 2011-10-10 9:01 AM

 

During the last two winters our motorhome never turned a wheel from end of October to end March but it was kept taxed up which seems a waste of money, so this year I am thinking of surrendering the tax disc and declaring the vehicle off road although as per the change in the law it must still remain insured thats ok with me. Is this normal practice with other motorhomers who hibernate over winter ? The RFL is due for renewal on 1st April 2012.

 

I believe you'll find that, if you have SORNed your motorhome, then you are not legally required to insure it. See:

 

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/Motorinsurance/DG_186696

 

Not insuring your motorhome while it is SORNed does, of course, have non-legal implications should it be damaged, stolen, etc.

[Caddies104]

The answer is can you afford it , if the van either gets stolen, damaged or catches fire as if it's not taxed I think it's not insured !! :-(

 

[kelly58]

Caddies104 - 2011-10-10 4:32 PMThe answer is can you afford it , if the van either gets stolen, damaged or catches fire as if it's not taxed I think it's not insured !! :-(

As I stated I will keep it insured that go's without question only an idiot would have a 50k motorhome stood on their drive uninsured.

[Rayjsj]

Caddies104 - 2011-10-10 4:32 PM

 

The answer is can you afford it , if the van either gets stolen, damaged or catches fire as if it's not taxed I think it's not insured !! :-(

 

Sorry but that's Bulls**t ! if the vehicle is stored 'off'' of the public highway then you can 'Sorn' it and and re-tax it when you want to use it on the road again. During that period it need not be insured either.(but I think you would be very unwise not to keep it insured). BUT, as long as it IS 'Sorned' your Insurance is unaffected and IS still valid. Obviously if you then take it onto the Road and use it, with no Tax, your insurance would 'probably' (depending on the insurer) be invalid as well. That's my understanding of the new laws anyway. Ray

 

Mind you it's a shame to leave a van standing idle all winter, we get some nice weather spells in winter,

when you could just 'Take off' if the mood takes you, part of the joy of a Motorvan. ;-)

[vindiboy]

well, we are all different, I use my van all the year, Winter in Spain ,Portugal, Morocco, or where ever, seems a total waste of money to have a Motorhome and not use it , as you do, so I guess you may as well SORN it, you only get a refund on tax for complete months , have you thought of doing a New Year Rally with one of the clubs, great fun and lots to choose from in England I mean, plenty of Winter Rallies in Europe too, or go it alone as we and lots of others do. A Motorhome just left standing for Winter is not a good idea either as things like wheel bearings ,brake discs , Engines , Exhausts etc Rust and deteriorate if left standing for long periods in our climate. I SORN my old car whilst away on our travels, it's only a Banger so I am not bothered about it falling to bits, but my HYMER, never. :-o :-o

[vindiboy]

DELETED, NO PHOTO.

[terryW]

Yes we do this with both the MH and the family car. We tax for 12 months so that when we apply for a refund we get the full amount for the outstanding months. We also do it with the car if we are away for a month or more.

 

As we will this year, leaving the UK in May and returning in July, we apply for a refund on the car and re-tax when we return. If we decide to take the MH out in the Winter we just tax it and then apply for a refund when we return. They don't charge an admin fee so why tax it for any month you don't intend to use it. :-D

[HymerVan]

Under recent changes in legislation the need to SORN your vehicles arises :-

1. If it is road taxed but NOTinsured and/or

2. If it is not road taxed. (In which case it should only be SORNed if it is not on a public road).

If your vehicle is not on a public road (and I wont attempt to define "public road" because it can have a wide meaning) then it is your choice whether to insure or not however as others have alreadypointed out it may be a false economy not to insure.

My own view is that it is as well to take the vehicle for a decent run not less often than once a month.

If you do that it will need to be taxed anyway.

[colin]

If you have no intention of using the van then Sorn it, but personaly I would leave it road legal for days out.

[lennyhb]

You appear to have a fairly new van, you really should be taking it out for a 10-20 mile drive every 2-3 weeks 4 weeks at the most to get everything up to operating temperature to prevent the dreaded sleepy van syndrome.

[mirage]

Lenny hb nailed it "use it or lose it"

[Mel B]

You can do what you want regarding your motorhome, that's you're preogative, but I certainly would NOT stand mine up for 5 months, it is worth keeping it taxed (and insured obviously) even if you only end up using it once a month for a run out - having had a van that was stood up for a couple of months at a dealership due to it waiting for work to be done on it (it had to have a Corgi, as it was then, inspection carried out first, hence the delay) and then getting a bill later on for having the brake slave cylinders replaced due to them sticking from it being stood (which the dealership paid half towards), the amount you'll save could very well end up being only a small contribution to putting right anything that occurs due to it sitting idle.

 

For the sake of less than £18 a month to me it doesn't make sense to have it sitting around ... use the flipping thing and enjoy it - there's nothing like a nice bright day in the middle of winter sitting overlooking a beach and sipping hot soup and watching the world go by. Or even better, if the sea is rough ... what a sight ... much nicer than doing it in a car.

[lennyhb]

It's not just brakes that seize, it is quite common for clutches, thrust release bearings, water pumps, alternators to seize when left idle for long periods. It not uncommon for cam belts to go after a long lay up often caused by a partly seize water pump putting extra strain on them.

Left for five months the oil film on the bores camshaft etc., will have drained off & when you start it you will be starting a dry engine which will shorten it's life considerably.

 

Only a man easily parted from his money leaves a van standing for five months (lol). What you save in VED could be a very small fraction of what it could cost in repairs.

[pepe63xnotuse]

Mel B - 2011-10-10 8:58 PM

....For the sake of less than £18 a month to me it doesn't make sense to have it sitting around ... use the flipping thing and enjoy it.....

 

My thoughts exactly!... ;-)

 

..even if it was just taken for a "Sunday drive" once a month,as has been said,at least that would help keep things in "working order" and give it an "airing"..

 

(Sorry Kelly58...but I can't see the reasoning behind having a "50k motorhome" and then trying to save 80-90odd quid by surrendering the tax disc?... :-S )

[Guest 1footinthegrave]

I'm with everyone else here, the potential damage caused by leaving it so long will far out-way any VED duty savings, leaving it in one position for so long will affect so many things, batteries, tyres, brakes, the list is endless. I stress if mine is left more than two weeks at a time. I guess however if you had the facilities to get it off the suspension, spray all the discs with WD40 that I'm informed is not a lubricant, so is safe to do, remove the leisure batteries / engine batteries, or keep it hooked up with some low level heat / and or dehumidifier, but to save how much exactly, sounds like a no brainer load of hassle to me to me. Get out in it more would also be my advice.................there's loads of stuff to do, places to visit even in the depths of winter with a decent van ;-)

[stantheman]

Unless your house is guarded by SO19 or armed SAS troopers, it pays to keep the 'van insured, SORN or no SORN. However the current law, recently changed, states:-

 

"If you're the registered keeper of a vehicle, it must be insured at all times.

 

The exceptions are:

 

if you have made a SORN for the vehicle

if your vehicle has been kept off-road since before SORN came into force on 31 January 1998 – unless it was brought back into use

if your vehicle is recorded as stolen, passed or sold to the motor trade or between registered keepers

if your vehicle is recorded scrapped or permanently exported by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing (DVLA)

 

But in answer to the question, yes, we only tax for 6 months but insure for 12. As for laying up, I jack the thing up, spray the discs with CarPlan protector, leave the brakes off and periodically run it up and down the drive (all of 12 yards!) just to try and keep things lubricaled. Ok, I know some of you experts will tell me this isn't enough but I've had my van for eleven years, from new, and this protocol hasn't failed yet.

[Tony Jones]

Our old van (some of you will remember pics of "Hannibal" - I'll try to attach one) wasn't suited for winter camping AT ALL (Spring and Autumn were touch and go!).

He also wasn't ideal as a "car," not having any rear seatbelts.

AND FINALLY had only cost me the princely sum of £3500 - and we had him for 8 years.

Oh, and Liz doesn't drive!

 

So we got into the habit of switching both the tax and the insurance between him and "Lexie," our trusty Escort estate. During the summer, we put up with Hannibal's limitations as a "car" for the sake of the pleasure we got from touring trips (on the continent most years, as far as Spain and Italy).

Come Sept or Oct, it was time to switch over and enjoy the luxury of car travel - until we changed back in April or May. Funny thing was, we came to look forward to BOTH changes, as seasonal "markers!"

 

Times change, and a legacy enabled us to buy "Roxie" - heated, well-insulated, four seatbelts, still under 5m long. Suddenly we had a vehicle which would do EVERYTHING, and do it well. So for nearly two years, Roxie was our sole or main vehicle, kept on the road (and well used!) all year round.

 

The mileage was piling up, though (40k in under 3 years!) so a year ago we bought a Focus for "non-camping" use, now keeping both vehicles taxed and insured all year round.

 

Which is the best way? Horses for courses I'd say.

If your van is worth keeping insured (and from the avatar, I'd say yours certainly is), splash out on the tax and USE it, whenever you get chance.

But if, in spite of the fact that a modern van would keep you snug and warm, you're REALLY not going to use it from Oct to Apr, then SORN it - but find some secure storage and do your best to keep it in good nick (running the engine, jacking up and turning the wheels, etc).

[Merlin1]

Yeah, it's not an easy decision. With the way things are, it's tempting to SORN them to save some cash but then I can see what the others are saying.

I had 3 1979 VW Devon Monnrakers from 2000-2005. Ok, we're talking of a different concept of van here but I'm sure the same applies to modern vans.....all 3 were in excellent condition so I decided to SORN them over the winter. Yes, it saved on the tax, yes it kept them clean but I'm convinced that is why I started having a few corrosion issues with them plus every spring I had binding brakes.

Since owning my Autohomes Merlin, I've taxed it every every winter. It doesn't go far at the best of times but I've never had any brake issues or battery problems.

Like everything, there's advantages and dis advantages.