Pros and Cons of buying Camper on Ebay (Without test driving)

JohnnyBananas

Hi All,

I’m planning to buy a used camper and I have noticed that there is great choice on Ebay, with campers that meet my requirements being based in different countries. I’m considering arranging to buy one from the comfort of my laptop, without test driving and only travelling to pick the vehicle up. FONT=Times The advantages of this approach include:

• I can potentially find a bargain by underbidding on a number of vehicles.
• As already stated, the choice would be considerably greater.

The disadvantages include:

• Without test driving, I would lose a deposit if my bid was successful and I decided not to proceed with buying the vehicle.
• Without test driving, I am more likely to end up with a crock/banger.

(I could potentially get around these disadvantages by ensuring the vehicle has a valid MOT (or equivalent) and ensuring the seller is a regular Ebay seller with plenty of positive feedback)

If anyone has any other information that I should take into account before deciding on this approach, that would be most welcome.
Thanks In Advance for all responses.

Hagar

Would you buy it from a garage without a test drive?

peasant

A camper is so much more than just a vehicle. On top of a test "drive" you would also want to have a test sit, sleep, cook, etc before you buy.

Judging the feel and quality of a camper interior and layout just from pictures is impossible. You might buy a camper on e-bay that has nothing whatsoever wrong with it and it still mightn't suit you at all.

Irishgoatman

Hi,
I bought a campervan on ebay last year. The seller was a (Used) car dealer in the U.K.
I arranged to travel over to pick up the 'van up and pay cash without any mention of deposit. After all, if you backed out without good reason your feedback and ebay reputation would be zero.
I figured that if it was not up to the standard as described on ebay all I would have lost was the Ryanair fare to the U.K. because under ebay rules items have to be as described.
Yes I also think that you should make sure that it has a current test cert.


I am now a very happy camper(van).

I agree with peasant to a certain extent, but if the description and pictures match-up with what you're looking for, try my way.

Best of luck.

spaceHopper

I bough a camper at auction from japan but they are independaly graded and tested - I also knew what I wanted and was using an agent in the UK very happy with what I got buy I got lucky to some extent as well and knew the risk.

I'd do it again but only if I couldn't find what I wanted here at a good price.

stapeler

We purchased ours from an private seller on Ebay a few years back. The MH hadn't sold on EBay so after a few phone calls we arranged to travel over to Manchester and did a deal.
We knew exactly what we were looking for and had a fair idea that a 3 year old vehicle should be in fair enough condition.
An important thing is to sus out the seller on the phone. If they're a private seller find out their reason for sale and get an idea what they are like. In our case the seller had purchased it a year previously, dreamed about touring the continent and changed their plans half way through.
Be prepared to walk away if it's not what you expect or it doesn't seem right. Be prepared to sacrifice the cost of flights etc. if it's not what you expected.

We're still happy with ours 4 years later and would certainly consider doing the same again.