Habitation check ( cost)

[chas]

I think I remember awhile back postings on the cost of the yearly habitation check at approved dealers, can any one give me an idea what they were charged say in the last 6 months, mine as been quoted as £141 inc. which by the way as gone up aprox £40 since last year. Any quotes in the midlands area would be best as I know if down London way prices are much higher. chas

[flicka]

chas - 2007-06-13 11:18 AM

 

I think I remember awhile back postings on the cost of the yearly habitation check at approved dealers, can any one give me an idea what they were charged say in the last 6 months, mine as been quoted as £141 inc. which by the way as gone up aprox £40 since last year. Any quotes in the midlands area would be best as I know if down London way prices are much higher. chas

 

Chas

Checking around the Linconshire area, I found 2 approved Caravan dealers offering Motorhome habitation checks. Their displayed prices were:-

1 @ £125 +VAT, 2nd @ £90 VAT not mentioned but added would be £106

As you asked for the Midlands area, you could check with Dave Newell at Telfordfor his charges. I seem to remember he quoted a competitive price on this forum late last year or early this year.

 

Flicka

[Don Madge]

flicka - 2007-06-13 9:01 PM

 

chas - 2007-06-13 11:18 AM

 

I think I remember awhile back postings on the cost of the yearly habitation check at approved dealers, can any one give me an idea what they were charged say in the last 6 months, mine as been quoted as £141 inc. which by the way as gone up aprox £40 since last year. Any quotes in the midlands area would be best as I know if down London way prices are much higher. chas

 

Chas

Checking around the Linconshire area, I found 2 approved Caravan dealers offering Motorhome habitation checks. Their displayed prices were:-

1 @ £125 +VAT, 2nd @ £90 VAT not mentioned but added would be £106

As you asked for the Midlands area, you could check with Dave Newell at Telfordfor his charges. I seem to remember he quoted a competitive price on this forum late last year or early this year.

 

Flicka

 

Flicka,

 

Dave charges £106 inc VAT for a Habitation check and his labour charge is £30 + VAT per hour.

 

Don

[Guest peter]

Do it yourself. No big deal. Waste of money IMHO. Sorry if that sounds negative. When's the last time you had your house serviced?.

[Don Madge]

peter - 2007-06-13 10:15 PM

 

Do it yourself. No big deal. Waste of money IMHO. Sorry if that sounds negative. When's the last time you had your house serviced?.

 

Peter,

 

You have to realise that a lot of motorhomers are getting on a bit and are not up to doing the job.

 

Also you might make a claim against your insurance for a gas related matter and if you can't produce a certificate you could be in trouble. For a £100 I think it's well worth it.

 

If you think it might not happen to you just ask Mel B about her very frightening experience. 8-) 8-)

 

The gas central heating in my house gets serviced every year.

 

Don

[icelander]

Prter I ...um... suggest you try a different hair style. That one does not suit you at all.

[davenewellhome]

Thanks for the mention Don, I feel it only fair to point out that I am NOT a member of the NCC Approved Workshop Scheme and therefore a hab inspection done by me will probably not be accepted for warranty purposes. It is also worth looking at what a hab inspection involves, many of my customers tell me their previous ones were completed in under an hour and frankly I don't know how this can be if they carried out a full hab inspection to the NCC standard. It takes me at least two hours, more often 2.5 to 3 hours to do a full check. How many approved workshops give you a report of tyre condition, tread depth and tyre age for example?

 

D.

[chas]

Hi Dave- Unfortunatly my hab check is a warranty issue and so If I want to keep up the cover it needs to be completed by the authorised workshop, although me being me I like to shop around for a good deal. My dealer is only 8miles away so that scores greatly in their favour, and their last check took about 2hours. I wish I could earn £70 hour *-) Anyway who said maintaining a motorhome was cheap, rest assured when out of warranty and when other things need adding I will be banging on your door. Regards chas

[Dave Newell]

That's fine Chas, just thought I ought to point out the approved workshop bit in fairness to prospective customers. £70 per hour does sound good doesn't it but I bet you wouldn't like to pay their insurance premiums or business rates, or rent, or electric bills, or staff wages ;-) .

 

D.

[Brian Kirby]

icelander - 2007-06-14 8:20 AM Prter I ...um... suggest you try a different hair style. That one does not suit you at all.

Yes, and God knows what the HSE would say about him doing his own habitation service wearing pigtails!

[Rowan Lee]

We go to RVTex at Newstead which is between Nottingham and Mansfield. Two lads with a great deal of experience and also Van Bitz agents. They don't do a "Habitation Service" as such, but will do anything you ask, ie. gas check, damp check, fix the whatever, etc. We used to have a "habitation check" at a place in Lincoln but it cost us £140 odd for nothing really. If they found anything, it was extra. If you've got a reasonable idea of what needs doing or checking, why pay extra?

 

www.rvtex.co.uk

 

[davenewellhome]

The whole point of a hab inspection or check is to identify problems that may not have been spotted. For example I've recently done one on a caravan whose three tyres were 7 years, undated and 14 years old respectively. A recent motorcaravan inspection turned up FFDs (flame failure device) on the cooker that were not functioning. Another one turned up a failed Truma 3000 space heater igniter, another showed up gas hoses that were three years out of date and the most recent turned up a rear wall that was so damp it registered 98% moisture content and the cycle rack was hanging off. None of these owners were aware of these faults before the inspection and several of them were potentially very dangerous.

 

D.

[Guest peter]

davenewell@home - 2007-06-14 5:58 PM

 

The whole point of a hab inspection or check is to identify problems that may not have been spotted. For example I've recently done one on a caravan whose three tyres were 7 years, undated and 14 years old respectively. A recent motorcaravan inspection turned up FFDs (flame failure device) on the cooker that were not functioning. Another one turned up a failed Truma 3000 space heater igniter, another showed up gas hoses that were three years out of date and the most recent turned up a rear wall that was so damp it registered 98% moisture content and the cycle rack was hanging off. None of these owners were aware of these faults before the inspection and several of them were potentially very dangerous.

 

D.

Well those owners are totally irresponsible to the point of negligence. Ignorance of faults is no excuse in law, should something catastrophic happen It's no good saying to a Judge "Well M'Lud I paid for a check each year so I am absolved of all Blame". I don't think that would wash for one minute. The same applies to your car, as it's only safe at the point in time that the tst is carried out. All any inspector has to say is"well it was safe when I looked at it" and that is all he is required to do. The point is this. The owner is always responsible for the safety of his property and is liable for any shortcomings in this respect. So just because you paid for an inspection doesn't mean you don't have to be reasonably familiar as to how the systems in your vehicle work and their maintenance.

[davenewellhome]

Quite true Peter but how many motorhome owners know what the true payload of their motorhome is and how many just ignore it? I'd be prepared to say there's probably more in the second camp than the first! How many know what the correct tyre pressures should and how many just stick to the 80psi max for their Michelin XC Camping tyres? Again I'd put money on there being more in the second group. Come to that how many base vehicle services or MOT stations check the age of a tyre? I'll warrant there are very few!

 

D.

[phantom]

I'm just looking into buying my first campervan/motorhome. I haven't heard of a habitation check before - is it like a MOT for the inside and should I have evidence of one before a second hand purchase?

 

Thanks - hope this isn't a daft question.

[Guest peter]

Yes and YES.Paid for by the purchaser and any faults found used as a bargaining tool or rejection of the vehicle.

[Vernon B]

For what it's worth Chas I had my van serviced by MMM's West Mid's Dealer of the year in May. Included the Water Ingress checks the bill came to £211.50 exactly 50% more than last year for exactly the same work. On raising the sensitive issue of "why the big hike", I was told they'd found out they'd been charging less than their competitors. Now there's service for you!

 

Vernon

[Don Madge]

phantom - 2007-06-14 6:57 PM

 

I'm just looking into buying my first campervan/motorhome. I haven't heard of a habitation check before - is it like a MOT for the inside and should I have evidence of one before a second hand purchase?

 

Thanks - hope this isn't a daft question.

 

Hi Phantom,

 

Have a look http://www.vicarious-shop.co.uk./view_product.php?c_id=1&sc_id=0&p_id=1 and consider buying the book.

 

Go Motorhoming Europe is a must if you are a novice buying your first motorhome. It will answer many of your questions and a few that you would never have thought of asking.

 

Don

 

[chas]

Hi Vernon B- I think what you have heard is what I suspected, we know it is acceptable to raise prices in line with inflation, to cover overheads and costs, but to increase charges just to match the competitors prices is both greedy and foolish in the long run. When customers relize that they are being taken for mugs they will go elsewhere when they can. In my line of business if that scam was tried I would lose out, to be competitive and give a good service creates more business thats just plain common sense. I have felt for along while that because motorhomes are expensive to buy some think that we have more money than brains and try it on. chas

[Guest peter]

It's just the same with boats Chas. Just a big hole in the water which you throw your money in. >:-( But.........Mooring fees are way cheaper than camp sites. Well they are on the East Coast where I moor anyway.

[Champstar]

Hi just had my first check done at my dealers for warranty purposes and it cost me £164. I dont know if this is competittive but this dealer is Scotlands largest and has a captive market. Do you have to keep going back to your dealer incase of any warranty work needing done?

[chas]

Hi champster- you need to contact your dealer if you have a problem that needs fixing A- if it is covered under the warranty restrictions B- provided you have had the habitation check carried out at the correct intervals and you have not reached the end of the warranty date. chas

 

Peter- The old saying as regards boat ownership used to be, If you have to ask the price,you cant afford it. I hope that never comes about with motorcaravans. chas

 

 

[Brian Kirby]

Champstar - 2007-06-15 2:15 PM Do you have to keep going back to your dealer incase of any warranty work needing done?

You'll have to read the warranty.  Some do seem to restrict you to having all the inspections carried out by one of their agents, in order to keep the warranty "alive".

[tonyishuk]

phantom - 2007-06-14 6:57 PM

 

I'm just looking into buying my first campervan/motorhome. I haven't heard of a habitation check before - is it like a MOT for the inside and should I have evidence of one before a second hand purchase?

 

Thanks - hope this isn't a daft question.

 

Light weekend reading ( with thanks to UKmotorHomes)

 

http://www.ukmotorhomes.net/annualcheck.shtml

 

Rgds

[Rowan Lee]

Dave,

 

Yes, I take your point, but we can check our own tyres, use a damp meter, check the date on the gas tubing, etc. We can also ask for those specific items to be checked out by someone else. But I did feel that £150 for someone to go down a checklist of very obvious things was, for us, unnecessary.