Tips For Anyone Thinking About Purchasing A Used Caravan

These days, more and more people are opting to purchase a used caravan over a brand new one. Whether they are just looking to try to lifestyle out before making such a big investment or whether they simply cannot afford a new caravan that is able to meet their needs is completely irrelevant. If this describes your current situation, the following tips are a must have:

• Always look for the ‘hidden'
  Even if a caravan looks fantastic, you should never let your guard down and always look for those little problems that could be hiding under the surface. Someone with mechanical van experience would probably be your best bet at uncovering some of the nastier ones.
• Check the service history
  Never hand over any money until you have checked the service history of the used caravan. Make sure that you look for signs of the van having been in an accident or having suffered damage that may not have been repaired properly.
• Understand the gamble
  You must keep in mind that, no matter what you do when purchasing a second hand caravan, you are always taking a gamble. At the end of the day, you never know what is going to go wrong down the line and you should be prepared for these sorts of problems.

Whilst we could have provided you with an endless list of tips for purchasing a used caravan, we felt that the three outline above are generally the most useful when it comes to making your final decision. The final piece of advice that we can offer you is to go with your gut instincts; if you ever have any qualms about a caravan, don’t make an offer.

Preparing Your Caravan For Sale

Caravans

Once you have decided to advertise your beloved family caravan for sale, there are a number of things that you could be doing to ensure that you receive the best price possible. By following the below tips and hints, you can ensure that you present your caravan in the best possible light and have lines of potential buyers lining up to take a look.

·         Photographs: If you are advertising your caravan online, it is always recommended that you take as many photos as possible, both inside and outside. This will allow you to choose the best shots to display with the advertisement, as well as giving you additional ones to send to buyers.

·         Price: Always do some research into what caravans similar to yours are currently selling for. Asking too much is a surefire way to ensure that your van remains on the market for months and sees very little in the way of inspections.

·         Questions: Think about what sort of questions you would ask a seller. If you can provide thought out and easy to understand responses to buyers, you will come across as someone who knows what they are talking about and they will listen to you.

When potential buyers come to inspect the caravans for sale, make sure that it is clean, smells nice and looks like it has been well cared for. You may like to put a vase of flowers inside, make up the beds as you would if they were going to be slept in, and hang towels in the bathroom. This way, buyers can envision themselves staying in the caravan and make a more personal connection with it.

Should You Travel With Your Caravans Blinds Up Or Down?

This is a question that few people think to ask – driving along the highway during the summer holidays, you are likely to see a number of caravans with the blinds down, but you are also likely to see almost an equal number travelling with their blinds closed. For some people, the blinds simply remain the way they were when the caravan was last used; for others, the blinds are rigorously checked before each trip. But is there a right way to do it?

• During summer, travelling with the blinds down helps to keep the caravan cool, as the powerful rays are reflected back. It can, however, cause the light to be reflected back onto other drivers; some van owners are well aware of this issue and choose to travel with their blinds up as a result.
• Some caravans are fitted with a full-length or –width mirror across the back wall, which can cause confusing reflections for the driver. If you are able to see any reflection in your rearview or side mirrors that could cause you to make a mistake, it is best that you travel with the blinds down.
• During long trips, it is likely that you will need to stop occasionally for rests or toilet breaks. Many people choose to travel with their blinds down because it stops would-be thieves from having a sticky beak inside their caravan whilst it is unattended.

So, should you travel with your caravan’s blinds up or down? Ultimately, the answer to this question depends on a lot of factors and could change for each trip that you make. Before departing on your trip, ascertain whether you will need to make any stops along the way, what sort of whether you will be travelling in, and what items inside your caravan could cause distractions.

Choosing The Best Spot For Your Caravan Holiday

Once you have invested in a caravan for your family, you will find that you have endless holiday opportunities open to you – but where do you start with making a decision? There are actually a number of places that you can take your caravan, each offering a different atmosphere, yet a relaxing stay all the same:

• Caravan Park
  This would have to be the most popular place to visit on your holiday, as these parks offer a number of amenities and facilities that can make your stay that much more comfortable. Many parks will have swimming pools, playgrounds, toilet, shower and even pet-friendly facilities, as well as offering travelers the luxury of choosing their own site. 
• Bush or Roadside Camping
  This has been common practice for caravan travelers in Australia ever since we were first settled – these days, however, many people are worried about their security in stopping on the roadside, so will avoid doing so wherever possible. If this an experience you would still like to try out, opt to stay in some of the designated camping sites dotted along the highways. 
• National Park Camping
  Behind the humble caravan park, camping in national parks is the next most popular destination for travelers. Whilst most of these camping grounds are designed for tents, many will cater easily for caravans (just do your research beforehand). The most important thing to remember with this choice is that powered sites are pretty much non-existent, so be prepared to be self-sufficient. 

If you are an avid caravan traveler, it is likely that you have tried out at least one of the above destinations and, if you haven’t, what are you waiting for? When planning your next trip, why not try staying somewhere different and see how you like it? You might find your newest passion, you never know!

How To Save Money On Caravan Insurance

Many people shocked when they see how much their caravan insurance is going to cost them a year – when you take into account the fact that it is a vehicle that must also have its contents covered, it quickly becomes clear that insurance isn’t cheap. If you would like to save on your caravan insurance, however, there are a number of ways that you can do this effectively:

• Level of cover: like with cars, caravans can be covered by fully comprehensive insurance or third party (with fire and theft added in for good measure). If you want to save some money, consider only giving your van third party coverage. 
• Policy: there is more than one caravan insurance policy out there, so take a look at what yours includes and see whether you can cut anything out to bring the costs down a bit. If you don’t care about having parts replaced by brand new ones, make sure the policy says this; if you only want to be covered at certain times of the year, find a policy that does this; and so on. 
• Security: some caravan insurance providers will offer you discounts if you have fitted your van with security devices, such as smoke alarms, fire extinguishers and GPS trackers. 

If you would like to save some money on your caravan insurance, you should look into one of the above scenarios and decide which one is going to benefit you most. If you have a brand new caravan, for example, you would not take out only third party coverage; you would have to save money by looking at the fine details of your policy or by installing security devices.