witzend Posted November 27, 2018 Share Posted November 27, 2018 Laurence - 2018-11-27 10:37 AM witzend - 2018-11-26 11:16 PM It needs a UK MOT before it can be taxed Surely not if the vehicle is new. Or is Alistair buying a used vehicle - I didn't pick that up. Yes new or old as Foreign vehicles aren't made to uk regulations Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 witzend - 2018-11-27 10:39 PM Laurence - 2018-11-27 10:37 AM witzend - 2018-11-26 11:16 PM It needs a UK MOT before it can be taxed Surely not if the vehicle is new. Or is Alistair buying a used vehicle - I didn't pick that up. Yes new or old as Foreign vehicles aren't made to uk regulations It needs IVA. https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-approval/individual-vehicle-approval Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 teccer1234 - 2018-11-27 3:54 PM we went to dusseldorf to get our secondhand van and when we were told the import plates only covered 3rd party I asked the dealer to drive it to the port for me on his comprehensive cover which he did for free, I had contacted comfort before leaving dusseldorf so it would be covered as soon as we landed in the UK, all worked ok I’m guessing that you obtained your motorhome from Dusseldorf some years ago, as in 2014 (when I was considering importing a motorhome from France) I contacted Comfort Insurance and was told that they (or rather AVIVA) would not offer insurance on a ‘privately-imported’ motorhome until the vehicle had been UK-registered. As far as I’m aware that continues to be Comfort’s/AVIVA’s policy. This had not been the case in 2005 (when I was in the throes of importing a motorhome from Germany) but, even then - although Comfort was prepared to offer ‘comprehensive’ insurance using the motorhome’s chassis-number as identification - the insurance cover would only commence when the motorhome had actually arrived in the UK. The DVLA’s INF106 leaflet provides guidance on importing a vehicle into the UK https://tinyurl.com/ya78k2ln This includes the following statement: "If you are bringing a vehicle permanently into the UK from abroad you must: - notify the details of the vehicle to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) within 14 days of its arrival, and - pay any VAT due as part of this process before the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) can register it. After notifying HMRC, you must register, tax and insure the vehicle before it is used on the road. A UK resident must not drive a vehicle displaying foreign registration number plates in the UK. To avoid difficulties, we advise you to: - transport, rather than drive, your vehicle from the port to your home or its first destination, and - keep the vehicle off the road until it has been properly registered, taxed and insured.” And (as I said in my posting of 27 November 2018 11:04 AM above) there’s now extra paperwork (and extra cost) involving the VCA. In view of the time limits involved once a ‘driven-to-the-UK’ imported motorhome has arrived in this country and the insurance- and registration-related requirements, I’m very doubtful that it’s practicable to complete this exercise and remain fully compliant with UK regulations throughout. That people still manage to buy a motorhome abroad, drive it back to the UK and get it UK-registered without anything untoward happening definitely doesn’t mean that, somewhere down the line, there wasn’t a regulatory issue that could have bitten them but didn’t. When I chose to import a motorhome in 2005 the main attraction was that I could buy the vehicle I wanted much more cheaply than in the UK and was happy to have left-hand drive. I could see that there would be risks that wouldn’t be there if I bought in the UK, but the cost-saving was large. In the end I treated the exercise like a bungee-jump - I didn’t have to do it and there were obvious risks, but I decided to do it anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 rael - 2018-11-27 7:42 PM...…………………..On insurance, Iv'e just checked an Adrian Flux policy for registering on a chassis number and it states: "Without a valid UK registration number we will only cover your vehicle for road use when driving to and from a pre-booked MOT or SVA test centre appointment. Until we receive a valid UK registration number your vehicle will not appear on the Motor Insurance Database"...……………. I note that condition would appear to exclude driving from the port of entry to your home. Does it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rael Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 Brian Kirby - 2018-11-28 6:54 PM rael - 2018-11-27 7:42 PM...…………………..On insurance, Iv'e just checked an Adrian Flux policy for registering on a chassis number and it states: "Without a valid UK registration number we will only cover your vehicle for road use when driving to and from a pre-booked MOT or SVA test centre appointment. Until we receive a valid UK registration number your vehicle will not appear on the Motor Insurance Database"...……………. I note that condition would appear to exclude driving from the port of entry to your home. Does it? They told me I'd be covered from entry into UK to home as I specifically asked for this. Having said that I still had the German third party insurance as well. Like you said, bungee jumping! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 Wouldn't another option be to arrange for someone with trade plates to pick it up from the port. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 This thread began in August 2016 when “Alistair” (Posted once and last forum logon on 22 September 2016) asked about obtaining comprehensive insurance to drive home to the UK a bought-in-Germany motorcaravan. He said then: “...Currently I've tried Comfort, Caravengaurd, Safeguard, Saga, Caravan Club, AA and Adrian Flux. The best I can get is via Adrian Flux who will cover on the VIN number BUT only once in the UK and then only for trips involved in getting UK registration MOT etc...” Rael said recently “..On insurance, I've just checked an Adrian Flux policy for registering on a chassis number and it states: "Without a valid UK registration number we will only cover your vehicle for road use when driving to and from a pre-booked MOT or SVA test centre appointment. Until we receive a valid UK registration number your vehicle will not appear on the Motor Insurance Database...” " As Brian queried, this seems to exclude insurance cover for the journey from a UK port-of-entry to one’s home. Rael says that he specifically asked about this and was told that the port-to-home trip would be covered, but if that’s not stated in the insurance documention, if he had had a problem during the trip, he might have needed to obtain redress from Adrian Flux rather than the insurance company. It is possible to reduce the risks when importing a motorhome by using a transport company rather than driving the vehicle oneself, or arranging for someone to drive the vehicle on trade-plates (and I’d be wary of the legitimacy of doing that), but the only certain way of removing all the risks is to not buy abroad in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rael Posted November 29, 2018 Share Posted November 29, 2018 Clearly there is an element of risk and uncertainty with importing, but I think, in my circumstances its worth it. Its not just the cost but the range of choice in Germany far exceeds UK. For example we wanted a panel van conversion, 6 metres long, bathroom with shower and a fixed rear bed, NOT a rear lounge. We also wanted Webasto/Eberspacher diesel heating. The choice in UK is extremely limited and expensive. So to be able to get exactly what we want, 7 months old, for £333000............ Ok its ex-rental (but so have all the others I've imported, 5 in total over the years), has 18000 on the clock, but it suits us. Importing is certainly not for everyone and I think with the current economic and exchange rate forecasts (25% off the value of £!) then it may become uneconomical. Just itching to get everything sorted and get away in it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Rael Hopefully you won’t have any significant problems with the conversion element of your Vany V114, but (as far as I’m aware) it’s not practicable in the UK for have remedial work on Challenger motorhomes carried out under warranty. Chaussons and Challengers are built at Tournon in France and a Chausson model and the Challenger equivalent are near identical. However, although the Chausson marque is marketed in this country and there are currently 14 Chausson UK dealerships, Challenger has no UK presence at the moment and no UK dealerships. For a very short period, years ago, Challenger motorhomes were officially imported to the UK, but my understanding is that this stopped because the Challenger name is ‘owned’ in the UK by Swift. In 2004, when I was looking to replace my Herald motorhome and buying a Chausson was a possibility, a UK dealer told me that he had a contact in Germany that sold the make and could offer a good deal. But it turned out that the German dealerhip sold Challengers not Chaussons and I was concerned about possible warranty issues if I bought a Challenger. In the end I bought a new Hobby motorhome in Germany, when Brownhills had the sole UK Hobby agency and a reputation for being resistant to progressing under-warranty claims by owners of Hobbys bought abroad. Any conversion-related problems with my Hobby (and there was one very serious fault) I managed to fix myself rather than involve the Hobby warranty. But at least there was a UK Hobby agency that I could have called on, even if they might not have been helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rael Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 Yes, was looking specifically at a Chausson Twist for all the reasons you mentioned but the one I was after sold to someone else. We weighed everything up, knowing that the moment there is no Challenger dealer in the UK. Again its down to the risk factor. We travel to Germany at least twice a year so any habitation issues we can sort out then. In an emergency there are 4 Challenger dealers within an hour of Calais and living on the south coast its easier to go to France than my home town of Manchester! I also considered that most of the habitation kit is provided by third parties and thus has its own warranties. Webasto, Thetford, Fiamma etc etc. With it also being a panel van conversion leaks in the habitation area are going to be less likely than other motorhomes with GRP bodies. As already said its down to the risks your prepared to take, who knows, I may be back on in a years time complaining about problems with the van, but I hope not! What you say about Brownhills does not suprise me. If people like me, yourself and others are importing our own vans then they are loosing out, so they throw teddy in the corner when it comes to after sales service and warranty work. I experienced this myself recently with my now sold LHD Sunlight T67. Tried to get a habitation check done at a local dealership, as i was selling it but was told as I did not buy the van from them it would be January before they could fit me in. That was in May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rael Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 Just a quick update. Got the Challenger back without any glitches and received my UK registration number/documents Friday last week. The whole process took longer than expected due to being let down by one garage ref. changing the lights from LHD to RHD. Got it sorted at another garage but that delay had a knock on effect. VCA were slower than usual, and that combined with the Christmas period meant it took over a month from import to final registration. One thing that did crop up was finding RHD lights with LED daytime running lights. The van came with LHD LED DLRs built into the headlights, but we struggled to find compatible RHD ones. The garage found a workaround and we have DLRs that are actually the sidelights. New MOT legislation states that all vehicles first used from 1st March 2018 must have DLRs and they are tested. Granted, it will be nearly three years before I need to get an MOT, but it seemed sensible to sort it out now. This is not of concern to UK purchased vans, but anyone importing needs to be aware of this. In terms of insurance, Flux were fine, I just kept them updated as I knew we were not going to get everything sorted within 30 days. Very, very happy with the van! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monique.hubrechtsgm Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 What about your front side mirrors RHD? On LHD the mirror "R" is Convex and the other Aspherical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rael Posted January 15, 2019 Share Posted January 15, 2019 I just have to live with that! It does not need to be changes for uk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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