The best way to sell a motorhome or caravan in the UK
By Bradley Porter, founder of Hitchbay, who has spent years buying and selling motorhomes and caravans
There's no single best way to sell a motorhome or caravan. There's the best way for you, and it depends on three things: how much of the work you want to do yourself, how soon you need the money, and how much you want to keep at the end.
I've spent years in the motorhome and caravan trade, buying part-exchanges and pricing them for sale. This is what I'd tell a friend, including the routes where I don't make a penny.
The five ways to sell, at a glance
| Route | Your effort | Your risk | What you're likely to keep | Suits you if… |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Selling privately | High | Medium to high | Often more than a trade price, less advert costs and your time | You have the time and are happy dealing with buyers |
| Part-exchange or dealer | Low | Low | Often a trade price, below a private sale | You're buying another one and want it simple |
| Cash buyer | Low | Low to medium | Often a trade price or below | You need certainty, or you'd rather have a cash offer |
| Broker | Low to medium | Depends on the agreement | What it sells for, less the broker's fee; most aim for a private-sale price | You want a private price without doing the work |
| Hitchbay (sell from home) | Low | Low, with terms in writing | What it sells for, less one fee in pounds; I price it to sell, not to flatter | You want it to stay at home while someone else handles buyers |
Selling privately (Auto Trader, eBay or Facebook)
You advertise it yourself, deal with enquiries, host viewings and handle the money. Auto Trader and eBay charge for an advert. Facebook Marketplace and owners' groups are free to post on, but tend to attract more time-wasters and more scam messages.
Effort, risk and what you're likely to keep
Effort: high. You need good photos, an advert with the right details (layout, berths, base chassis and engine, service and habitation history) and a sensible price. Then come the calls, messages and viewings. The checklist covers getting it ready to sell.
Risk: medium to high. Strangers come to your home, someone may test drive your motorhome, and you're the one checking that the money is real. Fake payment screenshots, overpayment tricks and buyers who want you to use their own “secure delivery” service are all common tactics. The safety checklist below covers how to protect yourself.
What you're likely to keep: often more than a trade price. There's no dealer margin in the middle, so even after the advert cost, a private sale can give a good net if it's priced right.
Who it suits
It suits owners with time who don't mind buyers at the house and feel confident spotting a dodgy payment. It suits you less if you're busy, would rather not have strangers visit, or are selling for a relative.
Part-exchange or selling to a dealer
How part-exchange really works
You trade your motorhome or caravan against another one from the dealer. It's simple: one visit, one deal, and you drive away in the new one. The catch is that the dealer has to prepare yours, warranty it and resell it at a profit, so the price they give you is a trade price, not a private one.
Watch for this: the part-exchange figure and the price of the new motorhome are one deal. A generous-looking part-exchange allowance can be balanced by less discount on the one you're buying. What matters is the cash difference, the amount you actually hand over.
Getting a fair part-exchange
- Ask for the price of the new motorhome or caravan with and without your part-exchange. The gap is what yours is really worth to them.
- Get a private-sale valuation first, so you know the gap between trade and private. Here's what goes into a motorhome valuation.
- Have your service history, habitation check, MOT (for a motorhome) and both sets of keys ready. Missing paperwork is an easy reason to knock the price down.
- If you still have finance, ask the dealer to settle it as part of the deal and show you the figures in writing.
- Selling outright to a dealer, with no purchase, often gets a lower figure again.
Who it suits
Part-exchange suits you if you're buying another motorhome or caravan from the same dealer and value one simple transaction over the last pound. It doesn't suit you if you're getting out of motorhoming or caravanning altogether, or if the gap between trade and private matters to you.
Selling to a cash buyer
Cash buyers advertise widely online. They make an offer, collect, and pay. The appeal is certainty: no adverts, no viewings and no waiting for the right buyer.
Effort: low. Risk: low to medium. What you keep: often a trade price or below. A buyer who pays quickly has to allow for preparing and reselling it, and for the risk they're taking on. Before you agree, ask whether the offer can change when they inspect it at collection, and on what grounds. Ask who pays for collection, and how and when the money reaches you.
It suits you if you'd rather have a cash offer, if your motorhome or caravan needs work you don't want to do, or if certainty matters more than price. If that's you, my own direct offer comes with free UK nationwide collection, a hassle-free sale and any outstanding finance settled for you.
Using a motorhome or caravan broker
A broker sells it for you, much like an estate agent sells a house. They price it, advertise it and handle buyers, and you pay a fee when it sells. Done well, it aims to get you close to a private-sale price without the private-sale hassle.
Brokers vary, and the differences are in the agreement. Some charge a fee if you find a buyer yourself. Some hold the buyer's money in an account; others have the buyer pay you directly. Know which you're signing up to.
Effort: low to medium. Risk: depends on the agreement. What you keep: what it sells for, less the fee. The guide on how to choose a motorhome broker lists the questions to ask before you sign.
Selling from home with Hitchbay
Hitchbay is a broker built around selling from home: your motorhome or caravan stays with you, and you can keep using it until it sells. Here's how it works:
- A person values it. I compare yours with similar ones currently for sale and send you a price range with those adverts included. I price it to sell, not to flatter. You'll see the adverts it's up against, and if it isn't getting enquiries, I'll show you why and suggest a new price. The final say is always yours.
- You send the photos, I write the advert. You take them on your phone from a short list I send (it's also in the photo guide). Nothing goes live until you've approved it.
- I handle enquiries and buyers. We speak to buyers by phone before any viewing is arranged, and Bradley gives a buyer your address only after that call. I can offer buyers a video call first, and you choose when anyone comes to look.
- Cleared funds, then keys. Nothing changes hands until the buyer's money has cleared in your account.
You get one named contact, me, from start to finish, and a written update by email every week on views, enquiries and viewings. You pay one fee, shown in pounds before you sign, and nothing unless it sells. See my fees, or the details for motorhomes and caravans, and for selling a campervan.
Who Hitchbay is right for, and who it isn't
It's right for you if you want it priced properly without hosting every passer-by, you'd rather someone experienced wrote the advert and dealt with buyers, and you want the terms in writing before you commit.
It isn't right for you if:
- You'd rather have a cash offer. A managed sale relies on finding the right buyer. If you want certainty, ask about my direct offer instead, with free UK nationwide collection, a hassle-free sale and any outstanding finance settled.
- You're happy handling buyers yourself. If you've sold privately before and enjoy it, a private sale saves you my fee.
- You're buying another one from a dealer. A part-exchange may be simpler.
Safety checklist for a private sale
These are the checks I'd make. They matter most when you're selling privately, because you're the one doing them.
Getting paid safely
- Wait for cleared funds in your own account. Check your banking app or call your bank. An email, text or screenshot saying “payment sent” doesn't prove anything.
- Bank transfer is usually safest. Be careful with banker's drafts, which can be forged. If you're offered one, check it with the issuing bank using a phone number you've looked up yourself, not one printed on the draft.
- Be wary of large amounts of cash. It can be counterfeit, and you're carrying it home. If a buyer insists, offer to meet at your bank and pay it in together.
- Never refund an “overpayment”. Buyers who send too much and ask for the difference back are a classic scam.
- Don't use a payment or delivery service the buyer suggests, and never share a one-time code sent to your phone with anyone.
- Keys, documents and the motorhome or caravan stay with you until the money has cleared.
Viewings at home
- Leave your address out of the advert, and blur your house number in the photos.
- Get the buyer's full name and number, and talk on the phone, before you give out your address.
- Arrange viewings in daylight, and have someone else with you.
- Keep keys, documents and valuables out of sight, and don't leave a buyer alone in the habitation area or the cab.
Test drives (motorhomes)
- Check the buyer's photocard licence and match it to the person. If your motorhome is over 3,500kg, check it shows category C1. Many drivers who passed their test after 1 January 1997 don't have it.
- Check the insurance. A buyer's own car insurance is unlikely to cover them driving your motorhome. Either the buyer arranges their own cover, or you check that your policy covers them driving. If you're unsure, don't allow the test drive.
- Go with them, and keep hold of the keys whenever you swap seats.
Caravans aren't test driven, but check that the buyer's car and tow bar are suitable before they hitch up, and don't let anyone tow away before the funds have cleared.
Paperwork and checks
- Motorhomes: the V5C. Fill in the new keeper section with the buyer, give them the new keeper slip, and tell DVLA you've sold it (you can do it online at GOV.UK (opens in a new tab)). Never hand over the full V5C before you've been paid.
- Caravans: no V5C. Touring caravans aren't registered with DVLA. Most UK-built touring caravans from 1992 onwards are registered on CRiS (the Central Registration and Identification Scheme), which has its own registration document. See the guide what is a CRiS number?.
- Finance. If you still have finance on it, settle it before the sale or agree how it will be settled. Buyers often run a history check (a CRiS check for a caravan), and outstanding finance will show.
- A receipt. Write one for both of you to sign, with the price, the date and “sold as seen” if that's agreed.
So which route is best for you?
Plenty of time and happy to deal with buyers: sell privately. Buying again from a dealer: part-exchange, comparing the cash difference. Want certainty or a cash offer: a cash buyer, or my direct offer, with free UK nationwide collection, a hassle-free sale and any outstanding finance settled. Priced properly without the work, while it stays at home: that's what I do. Start with a valuation.
Questions owners ask
- What is the best way to sell a motorhome in the UK?
- It depends on what matters most to you. Selling privately often gets more than a trade price but takes the most work and carries the most risk. Part-exchange and cash buyers are simpler but often pay a trade price. A broker aims for a private-sale price and handles the buyers for a fee.
- Is part-exchange a good way to sell a motorhome or caravan?
- It can be, if you're buying another one from the same dealer and want one simple transaction. You'll usually get a trade price rather than a private one, so compare the cash difference you'd pay with and without the part-exchange.
- How do I avoid scams when selling a motorhome or caravan privately?
- Only hand over the keys and documents once the money has cleared in your own account, checked in your banking app. Never refund an overpayment, don't use a payment service the buyer suggests, and never share a one-time code from your bank.
- Do caravans have a V5C?
- No. Touring caravans aren't registered with DVLA, so there's no V5C or reg number. Most UK-built touring caravans from 1992 onwards are registered on CRiS (the Central Registration and Identification Scheme) instead, which gives each one its own number and registration document.
- What does Hitchbay charge to sell my motorhome or caravan?
- One fee, shown in pounds before you sign. You pay nothing up front, and nothing unless it sells. The terms are set out in writing before you sign.