Selling Advice
Selling a Caravan With Damp or No Service History
6 min read
Damp readings and missing paperwork are two of the most common worries owners have — and neither one stops a caravan selling.
Damp is common, not disqualifying
Caravans are made of panels, seals and joints, and after ten or fifteen British winters a proportion of them will show a reading somewhere. Damp is the most frequent thing owners tell us about before a visit. It reduces a figure because the repair is labour-heavy and the extent is only fully known once trim comes off — but it does not make a caravan unsellable, and it is not a reason we would decline one.
What a damp reading actually means
A habitation engineer records moisture percentages at set points around the shell. Low readings are normal. Elevated readings at a specific point usually mean a failed seal, a leaking rooflight or window, or water tracking down inside a wall from above. What matters for valuation is where the reading is, how high it is, whether the floor or wall feels soft, and whether it has been left for years or found last month.
Tell the buyer before they find it
This is the single most useful thing you can do. If you say up front that there is a reading by the washroom door and a soft patch under the window, the figure you are quoted already includes that work — and it is the same figure on collection day. If it is discovered at inspection instead, the figure has to be recalculated on the spot, which is a worse experience for everyone and usually a lower number, because unknown damage is priced cautiously.
Do not spend money trying to hide it
Painting over a stain, replacing a strip of trim or drying a cupboard out before a visit changes nothing about the underlying reading, and a trade buyer will find it in minutes with a meter. The spending that does pay is small and honest: a clean, a clear-out, a photograph of the affected area, and any engineer's report you already have.
No service history? Say what you do have
Missing habitation service records are very common, particularly on caravans bought privately or kept in storage for years. It affects the figure because there is no documented damp history, so more has to be assumed. But it is not a barrier. Gather whatever exists — old invoices, a receipt for a rooflight replacement, a gas certificate, the original purchase invoice — and tell us honestly when it was last serviced, even if the answer is that you do not know.
Proof of ownership still matters
Service history is optional; ownership is not. For a caravan that means the CRiS registration document or your original invoice. If both are missing, CRiS can usually help you establish the position, and we will tell you what is normally needed before the visit rather than turning up and finding out. Outstanding finance is fine too — get a settlement figure from your lender and it is handled with the paperwork.
What to expect from the visit
We check damp, floor, running gear and the interior in front of you, explain what was found and how it affects the figure, and there is no obligation to accept. If you do, the paperwork is completed with you, payment is arranged by secure bank transfer at handover and the caravan is collected free of charge — even if it has not moved in years and is not fit to tow.
Want a figure for your own caravan?
A free valuation visit costs nothing and commits you to nothing. We come to the vehicle wherever it is kept, anywhere in the UK, and explain how the figure is reached.
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