# Habitation check



## themariners (Mar 11, 2007)

Dear All.

My habitation check is due and have just been quoted £210 from one dealer.

I live in North East Lincs and wondered if anyone in this area could have any garages in mind who could do this service for a cheaper price.
My vehicle is still under waranty for another 2 years and just wondered if i have to take it to a authorised dealer.

Thankyou . 

Sue


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## JohnsCrossMotorHomes (Jul 21, 2007)

themariners said:


> Dear All.
> 
> My habitation check is due and have just been quoted £210 from one dealer.
> 
> ...


Hi Sue,

You are well advised to take it to an authourised dealer to keep the warranty valid, its not like a chassis.cab warranty where basically, although main dealers dont like it, any VAT registered garage can do it.

For a price comparison, we charge £99 plus Vat plus parts.

Good luck

Peter


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## Pusser (May 9, 2005)

May I suggest when members pay out to have a habitation check that they deliberately bugger up a couple of things so that they know the check has been done properly. e.g a lightbulb dead or a plug missing or a blind not in its runners or paint stripper splashed over the upholstery.


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## GerryD (Sep 20, 2007)

If it came from Brownhills they will not honour any warranty unless they have carried out all servicing. This is irrespective of the manufacturer's warranty conditions.
BTW, Brownhills charge £299 for habitation service alone. Evidently they employ factory trained technicians.
Gerry


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## b16duv (Feb 14, 2006)

GerryD said:


> If it came from Brownhills they will not honour any warranty unless they have carried out all servicing. This is irrespective of the manufacturer's warranty conditions.
> BTW, Brownhills charge £299 for habitation service alone. Evidently they employ factory trained technicians.
> Gerry


Yes, but which factory?

Mine was done at THE factory what made it and cost 100 euros.

Bought it cheap from Brownhills, factory sorted all the faults, Brownhills still owe me money.

David


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## mikeyv (May 23, 2007)

£300????!!!

No wonder they give you a coffee.


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## Suenliam (Mar 22, 2006)

Just for comparison purposes, we were charge £140 for the habitation service which included a few bits and pieces such as a battery for the smoke detector, a catch for the fridge and retensioning the front blind. We bought the MH from Ropers at Catterick Bridge so they don't charge us for "little" bits  

Just occasionally we get the service done locally at an authorised service centre but they charge more for the service and every penny for "bits".

Sue


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## StAubyns (Jun 4, 2006)

You could give Mark at CLS a ring. He is a member on here and he will come to you. You may have to wait a short while until he is in your area.

If you are under warranty, it may not be for you, but out of warranty, he is very highly recommended.

He charges £80  

here

http://www.central-leisure-services.co.uk/ratesservices.htm


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Pusser said:-



> May I suggest when members pay out to have a habitation check that they deliberately bugger up a couple of things so that they know the check has been done properly. e.g a lightbulb dead or a plug missing or a blind not in its runners or paint stripper splashed over the upholstery.


What, so like it was when you picked it up after it's PDI? :lol:

Eddie


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

I`ve used Mark from CLS and could not fault him.He does indeed come to your house and his rate is one of the best.

steve


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## themariners (Mar 11, 2007)

Dear All,

Thankyou for all your replies could we use Mark even though it is still under warranty.
Thanks.
Sue


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

themariners said:


> Dear All,
> 
> Thankyou for all your replies could we use Mark even though it is still under warranty.
> Thanks.
> Sue


yes you can  Give him a ring and chat with the guy.

steve


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

Why do you have to have a habitation check?

Surely if a bulbs gone etc it can be easily fixed. So what exactly do they do ?

I've never had one to date, so do i really need one for an 57 Cheyenne ?

I wouldn't have people come round my house to check that all is well.

Freddiebooks


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## themariners (Mar 11, 2007)

H Freddiebrooks,

Ours is a Autotrail 57 plate, just a year old and you have to have a habitation check to have your book stamped for the warranty, if not your warranty is void.

Sue


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

So how much was your check Sue ?


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## themariners (Mar 11, 2007)

Hi Freddiebrooks.

It is due now, so we are just trying to find a resonable quote, we have just has one for £210 but we do not want to pay that much.

Sue


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

When you said authorised dealer, was that an AutoTrail Authorised dealer ?


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## MikeCo (Jan 26, 2008)

I happen to be one of those people who does not believe in paying out for a habitation check. I pay out each year for a water ingress check as not having one would certainly invalidate your watertightness warranty.
I know that the lack of a habitation check will not probably invalidate your warranty, I know that that is certainly true for Autosleeper and Chausson from checking with them after buying new vans.
I know that some people will say that you still should have one so you do what keeps you happy.


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## Bubblehead (Mar 5, 2007)

Hi

Our van is currently with Southdowns having some warranty work done and a habitation check (inc gas check). The habitation check cost us £220 which is money Id rather spend on fuel, but was told that without it the warranty would be void. I also thought it best to make sure that we wernt being gassed whilst we slept.

Wish Id known what Johns Cross charged before Id booked with Southdowns, could of had a weekend away as well - BU££@&

Andy


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## Broom (Oct 8, 2007)

Hi Sue

Try Dick Lane Motorhomes in Bradford £140.00 they are approved by the Auto Trail Club, there is also Baldwins at Halifax they are auto Trail approved.

What I intend doing is ringing up the Insurance Company which the 2nd and 3rd year warranty is taken out with and asking them who I can go to, only problem with all this is if something goes wrong who will do it, most dealers will not touch it if they have not serviced it.

Best Regards
Broom


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## stuart1 (Nov 22, 2008)

*Please can someone explain a habitation check*

Hi i am new to all this and have recently purchased a Hymer B544 1993. There is of course no warranty issues to worry about, so do i need a habitation certificate or just an annual gas safety check? i don't need to pay any one to tell me things are broken on my camper as i can see those myself.

Thanks Stuart


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## StAubyns (Jun 4, 2006)

Hi Stuart

there is no law that says you have to have a habitation check. It is entirely up to you.

Personally, the minimum I would have annually is the gas check, more so as the van gets older.

I choose to have the full habitation check, a lot of warranties demand it.

Out of warranty, its up to you.

The cheapest I know of is CLS, he does a superb job, and is a nice guy as well.

I have no connection with CLS, I am just a very satisfied customer


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## Regal (Sep 25, 2007)

Hi GerryD

You say in your post that Brownhills will not undertake any warranty work if they have not carried out the servicing.

As a result of European Block exemptions they are not allowed to refuse to carry out vehicle manufacturers warranty work even if the servicing has been carried out elsewhere as this is a restrictive trade practice.

The confusion comes when you have an aftersales warranty that is not from the base vehicle manufacturer. As with Autotrail you get an extended 3 year warranty that stipulates that to retain the habitation warranty you must have the check carried out annually by an Autotrail Dealer. 

So to maintain your 3 year warranty you would need to use an Autotrail dealer twice, for the habitation warranty. As long as the base vehicle service is carried out to the manufacturers specification, also parts used are of an equivalent quality. That means that you do not even have to use original equipment parts for the service items. You would also need a VAT receipt. 

This would maintain your warranty unless of course Johns Cross knows differently.

Steve


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## waspes (Feb 11, 2008)

Hi I just phoned Continental caravans in Cross Hands and they said full habitation check for my auto-trail will cost £130. 

Peter.


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## JohnsCrossMotorHomes (Jul 21, 2007)

Regal said:


> Hi GerryD
> 
> You say in your post that Brownhills will not undertake any warranty work if they have not carried out the servicing.
> 
> ...


My thoughts on the chassis/cab servicing is that it would be wise to use genuine parts, then there can be no arguments or loopholes for the manufacturer to slip through.

You are quite correct in that you can use any Vat Registered organisiation to do the chassis/cab servicing

Regards

Peter


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

It all sounds like a big con to me....

So... if there is a wiring fault on my Autotrail, then my warranty is useless if i haven't had habitation checks.

So begs the question, if i had no checks done in three years, saving over £600, would there be £600 worth of faults in a motorhome in the first three years ?? Surely not. If the fridge faults surely thats a seperate issue along with the cooker and the water heater. How could a habitation check work out IF a any of the previous are going to fail. Crystal Ball Habitation Check, do they do them ??


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## Traveller_HA5_3DOM (May 9, 2005)

*Habitation Checklist*

Have uploaded a habitation checklist to the Downloads Section which should be useful to those either doing it themselves or engaging others to do it.
It is from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, Motorhome section, so it should be being used by garages who are members of this Trade body.


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## GOVER (May 1, 2005)

I have my Phoenix checked at the factory each year. The have a free aire de service and we often stay free for a couple of days making the event a 'short break'. They never charge for electricity or water. The habitation check was €150 last week and we went to the Christmas market.

As usual I arranged a date and time and everything was started and completed on time. - Richtig!

Gover


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## time-traveller (Apr 23, 2007)

Judging from the various replies and costs quoted I think that maybe there is confusion between a habitation check and a water ingress (damp) check. I would imagine that the dearer figures quoted include both while the cheaper figures are just for a habitation check. As far as I am aware a habitation check is just for piece of mind and there is no warranty issue with it whereas a damp check is a warranty requirement during the full period of guarantee, just as is the mechanical service at the manufacturer's prescribed interval. In round figures (VERY round) I would expect a cost of £100 for each is about right.


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## StAubyns (Jun 4, 2006)

Hi time-traveller

the habitation check that CLS carries out includes everything including damp & gas checks.

When Mark did my hab check last year he was with me for at least 2.5 hours. 

He even checks that the thetford is working correctly. 

I can assure you that it is VERY thorough   

Excellent value for £80


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## 100000 (Jul 11, 2006)

Hi,
Try Camper U.K in Lincoln a great family company £179.00
Tele 01522 697070 I have an Aut-trail Cheyenne which they care for.
[email protected]


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## jhelm (Feb 9, 2008)

We bought our year 2000 from a used camper dealer, it came with a one year gaurantee, at 6 months we were supposed to have him do a check for 200€ and he said he would also want to reseal all the joints for another 200 or so. I opted to give up on the rest of the year and save the 400€. Can't see anything going that wrong in the next 6 months. But we also had a free checkup by a company here that does it one time to promote their business. They didn't discover any problems. This whole check up thing seems a bit of a rip off to me. Whatever small things go wrong I just fix myself.

About the moisture check, I think buying one of the devices that measure the amount of moisture in the walls might be a good investment. I'd like to know where to buy one.


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## ramos (Nov 1, 2008)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CARAVEN-DAMP-...ItemQQimsxZ20081226?IMSfp=TL081226116002r5076

Ebay a great tool.
B and Q do one for about £19.00 to


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