Living in motorhome/campervan

RV2

Are there any legal restrictions on allowing relatives to live in a motorhome/campervan at the rear of a rural house or on farmland?

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

monty_python

I've often wondered about drink driving charges with them.
If your inside the vichile with the keys on you then your In control of that vichile.
What about people on road trips who park them up and then head of to the pub and back to the camper to sleep??

Claw Hammer

monty_python wrote: »

I've often wondered about drink driving charges with them.
If your inside the vichile with the keys on you then your In control of that vichile.
What about people on road trips who park them up and then head of to the pub and back to the camper to sleep??

If they park them in a public place, they can be convicted of being drunk in charge.

monty_python

But in a camping park they are ok??

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

Claw Hammer

monty_python wrote: »

But in a camping park they are ok??

Many camping parks are public places since any member of the public can drive into them, pay the appropriate fee and stay.

Nomis21

Truck Drivers usually sit in their passenger seat at night if they are parked up.

I always thought this was because they would not be considered as being 'in charge' of the vehicle.

Victor

RV2 wrote: »

Are there any legal restrictions on allowing relatives to live in a motorhome/campervan at the rear of a rural house or on farmland?

There may be a planning permission requirement, as there may be change of use involved.

On a night like tonight, it also seems foolhardy.

Nomis21 wrote: »

Truck Drivers usually sit in their passenger seat at night if they are parked up.

I always thought this was because they would not be considered as being 'in charge' of the vehicle.

No. If they are the only person in the vehicle and they have the keys, who else would be in charge?

monty_python

A mate of mine was charged for drink driving when asleep in the back seat of his car outside the pub. He had no intention of driving home.

doolox

Looks like even the people trying to do the right thing are also screwed over by the zealots

Peregrinus

If you have drink on you and you intend to sleep in your vehicle, you need to leave your keys with someone else. Otherwise you are open to a prosecution for being drunk-in-charge.

The Bishop Basher

doolox wrote: »

Looks like even the people trying to do the right thing are also screwed over by the zealots

To be fair though, while sleeping in the back of the car might seem like a great idea on your way out for the night, get a few beers down and the call of home can sometimes beckon when reason has long since left the building. You could easily find yourself in a position you never intended to.

We used to have motorhomes and I often wondered the same thing. We often parked at the side of the road or a public beach and had a few drinks.. saw plenty of interesting sights but never had an issue with the guards.

SmartinMartin

RV2 wrote: »

Are there any legal restrictions on allowing relatives to live in a motorhome/campervan at the rear of a rural house or on farmland?

Thread went off topic by the second post. To answer your question, there can't be a restriction as it's not a structure, it's a vehicle, and you can park what you like on your own land.

Victor

monty_python wrote: »

A mate of mine was charged for drink driving when asleep in the back seat of his car outside the pub. He had no intention of driving home.

What did he intend to do when he woke up?

SmartinMartin wrote: »

Thread went off topic by the second post. To answer your question, there can't be a restriction as it's not a structure, it's a vehicle, and you can park what you like on your own land.

Planning permission doesn't apply only to structures. You need also need planning permission for change of use. Parking of vehicles is a change of use.

Nomis21

Victor wrote: »

There may be a planning permission requirement, as there may be change of use involved.

On a night like tonight, it also seems foolhardy.



No. If they are the only person in the vehicle and they have the keys, who else would be in charge?

No one is in charge of the vehicle if it is not parked on a public road and the driver is not operating any controls. He is officially on rest if his tachograph is on the 'rest' position and he cannot legally be the driver at that time if he is not at the controls any more than if you or I were in the vehicle with the keys.

SmartinMartin

How is parking a vehicle a change of use? I've been parking a tractor on my land for years. It could be in one spot for months. Are you really saying that i need planning permission for it?

Peregrinus

SmartinMartin wrote: »

How is parking a vehicle a change of use? I've been parking a tractor on my land for years. It could be in one spot for months. Are you really saying that i need planning permission for it?

If you're parkign a motorhome or caravan and somebody is living in it, that's definitely a change of use. You're now using the land for residential purposes in a way that you weren't before.

Peregrinus

Nomis21 wrote: »

No one is in charge of the vehicle if it is not parked on a public road and the driver is not operating any controls. He is officially on rest if his tachograph is on the 'rest' position and he cannot legally be the driver at that time if he is not at the controls any more than if you or I were in the vehicle with the keys.

He doesn't have to be the driver; he just has to be "in charge". He's in charge of the vehicle if he is in a position to control it. So, if he has the keys, and if he could change the tacho setting, he's in charge.

SmartinMartin

Peregrinus wrote: »

If you're parkign a motorhome or caravan and somebody is living in it, that's definitely a change of use. You're now using the land for residential purposes in a way that you weren't before.

Complete bull****. Nobody mentioned a caravan for a start, only a motorhome and campervan. These are vehicles. Doesn't matter whether someone's living in them or not, if they're on private land and not connected to services it's **** all to do with planning.

Mod
Smartin Martin
Your above post is rude, crude and wrong on several levels.
I have had a lot of experience in planning matters, and I agree wholly with Peregrinus here.
Could you pls be good enough to apologise to Peregrinus and then delete your post.

Peregrinus

I don't know why you imagine that, because motorhomes and caravans are vehicles, the planning legislation is somehow magically disapplied.

As others have pointed out, the planning legislation covers all "development" of land, and "development" is defined to include a "change of use". The use of land for (a) the keeping or placing of any tents, campervans, or caravans, (b) the parking of motor vehicles, and (c) the open storage of motor vehicles are all uses of land that get specific recognition in the Planning Regulations. And that's even before we get on to the point that the use of land for residential purposes is definitely a change in use, and this doesn't cease to be so simply because the residence is a vehicle. Why would it?

OP, you do need to look into the planning aspects of this. The motorhome is not a structure which requires planning permission, but the use of the land for storing the motorhome, or for residential purposes by having someone live in the motorhome, may well require permission; it partly depends on how the land is zoned and what permissions, if any, it currently has.

The keeping or storing of a caravan, campervan or boat within the curtilage of a house is an exempted development, provided you only keep one, you are not using it for storing, displaying or advertising goods or for business purposes and, crucially, you keep it for nine months or less. So even if nobody is living in the van, you can only keep it for nine months; more than that requires permission. But if anybody is living in the van, you probably need permission from the outset. But you can check this with your local authority.

davindub

Peregrinus wrote: »

I don't know why you imagine that, because motorhomes and caravans are vehicles, the planning legislation is somehow magically disapplied.

As others have pointed out, the planning legislation covers all "development" of land, and "development" is defined to include a "change of use". The use of land for (a) the keeping or placing of any tents, campervans, or caravans, (b) the parking of motor vehicles, and (c) the open storage of motor vehicles are all uses of land that get specific recognition in the Planning Regulations. And that's even before we get on to the point that the use of land for residential purposes is definitely a change in use, and this doesn't cease to be so simply because the residence is a vehicle. Why would it?

OP, you do need to look into the planning aspects of this. The motorhome is not a structure which requires planning permission, but the use of the land for storing the motorhome, or for residential purposes by having someone live in the motorhome, may well require permission; it partly depends on how the land is zoned and what permissions, if any, it currently has.

The keeping or storing of a caravan, campervan or boat within the curtilage of a house is an exempted development, provided you only keep one, you are not using it for storing, displaying or advertising goods or for business purposes and, crucially, you keep it for nine months or less. So even if nobody is living in the van, you can only keep it for nine months; more than that requires permission. But if anybody is living in the van, you probably need permission from the outset. But you can check this with your local authority.

It definitely requires planning permission, to use a campervan as a dwelling while stored is specifically not exempted development.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

db

In rural areas you may place a tent, camper van or caravan or boat, barge or other vessel for purposes of camping, for not more than 10 days. It should not be within 50 metres of any public road unless enclosed by a wall, bank or hedge of not less than 1.5m and, should not be within 100 metres of another tent, caravan or camper van.

Source: Schedule 2 (Part 1) Class 8 and Schedule 2 (Part 3) Class 1. Planning & Development Regulations 2001.