Importing from UK next week, any tips appreciated.

hometruths

We are buying a motorhome in the UK and am due to bring it back Monday week. It's our first MH and grateful for any advice from the experienced heads on here.

It's an ex hire, 1 year old, just under 10,000 miles, bought from a hire company who replace their fleet every year. Being ex hire price it was a decent discount to same make/model/year available both from trade and private.

Collection - Pre collection I have the opportunity to spend the night in it at their depot, and before handing over final 10% of purchase price. Obviously I will use this opportunity to try and test everything possible. Is there anything I should be looking out for that I might miss?

VRT?! Does the process allowing you to make a case prior to them deciding on the OMSP - i.e can I submit the invoice with price paid and some explanatory info eg the ex hire factor, to show that it deserves a lesser OMSP? I realise I have the opportunity to appeal, just wondering if this info can be flagged up in the first instance?

Insurance I have a decent broker who I'll be ringing on Tuesday but just wondered if anyone had any experience of best company to get temp cover for bringing in an import.

UK Road tax No longer transferable with vehicle, so have to purchase before I drive back. I can go to a local post office there but will I need hard copy of insurance proof?

The above is what has occurred to me so far, and I guess I'll worry about other stuff too over the next week! Any help much appreciated.

runner2011

How exciting !!! I'm delighted for you and wish you many years of happy camping. As it's an ex-hire and only 1 year old the mechanicals should be ok, check for the obvious. Collision damage which has been repaired , open the bonnet and look around the engine bay near the bumper for any sign of damage that has been repaired. Look at the cab doors for alignment etc. Check under the skirting around the habitation part of the camper for plastic damage / repair. Check the roof for damage from trees. Check all the seals around the windows (should be ok for a 1 year old) check under the windows on the inside for any evidence of water ingress. Check the water pump , all taps and waste holding tanks (check the loo for leaks) . Check all the hinges . handles and locks on the cabinets and doors for damage / repair. Check the leasure batteries are charging from the engine ok , check the fridge for correct operation on `Elec, Battery (when engine running) and Gas. Check the external locks on any storage lockers, some of the Zadi locks are crap even from new and can spin if roughly treated. Make sure you get the warranty cert that came with the camper , there should be one to cover the base unit i.e. Fiat or Ford and one for the Camper manufacturer some cover both.

No idea on the VRT really , ring them and they will be helpful I would imagine. Insurance , only two companies (Brokers) , Dolmen and Stuarts you should contact them. UK road TAX.. Do you really have to get it taxed to drive it to the ferry? Maybe you do, maybe you can just buy 1 months Tax.

Best of luck.

hometruths

Thanks runner, good tips.

Sorted insurance with Stuarts, and travel booked.

niloc1951

About the VRT
It's all a bit of a magical mystery tour
Revenue will not give you an estimate before you buy :mad:
The purchase invoice is irrelevant :rolleyes:
The NCT people will engage in a tyre kicking exercise and decide the vehicles OMSP :eek:
Revenue will bill you for 13.5% of that :eek::eek:
If you think the Revenue bill is too much you can appeal AFTER you pay the bill :mad:

hometruths

Back home now with the van and very happy. Great drive, and a couple of days getting to know the ins and outs of it. I was a little fearful that driving home I'd be filled with a sense of regret for going late model, way over initial budget etc, but I am definitely happy we pushed the budget for a newer model.

Only fault I can find so far is the mechanism for collapsing the dinette table seems to be broken. It's not a big deal in the short term as we don't need that area for beds but it is irritating as wanted the table completely out of the way for travel. Whatever the problem is I suspect it is not a big deal to fix.

Now I am into the VRT process. Went online to book an appointment today and first available is 14th May, even trying a number of different centres. This delay is a bit annoying because was keen to find out asap what the bill is going to be in terms of managing cashflow etc. But not much I can do about that, I guess there must be a lot of imported vehicles coming in.

runner2011

delighted to hear you got it home and are enjoying it so far. Table is an easy fix, plenty of sites out there to order parts from. Best of luck with revenue!

landmarkjohn

Good luck and well wear. On the plus side whatever is broken now after a year on hire is only the weak points and now you know where they are you can get it fixed and then "mind" it, when lowering the table etc.

Be careful with vents and roof lights, some of them don't take rough treatment and make sure they are closed before driving!! Have a printed check list for before driving off from pitch, bit like a pre flight check Enjoy.

hometruths

Just back from three days maiden voyage and happy out. Got a good test of everything and the table remains the only clear fault I can find. Fridge controls may be dodgy or it maybe my stupidity! Its a bit too cold and cannot work out how to turn it down!. I have a habitation service booked for Wednesday so I can get that all checked out.

But first I have the VRT appointment in the morning.

reni10

Any update on the VRT?

hometruths

reni10 wrote: »

Any update on the VRT?

Nothing of note. Had the inspection last Tuesday and still waiting to hear what the damage will be. Have heard anecdotal reports that they are slower than usual due to high number of vehicles imported at the minute. I hope they get a move on on as I have had here 3 weeks tomorrow so have 9 days left!

hometruths

Just had the VRT bill. It was top end of what I was expecting but just under figure I would appeal.
The Irish OMSP they assigned was a good bit higher than the € equivalent of the STG purchase price + the VRT inclusive.

niloc1951

schmittel wrote: »

Just had the VRT bill. It was top end of what I was expecting but just under figure I would appeal.
The Irish OMSP they assigned was a good bit higher than the € equivalent of the STG purchase price + the VRT inclusive.

The OMSP is just a notional value.
AFAIK Revenue do not have any database of the actual SELLING price of motorhomes.
I've heard it said that they often go by the ASKING price published on websites like Done Deal and as we all know that ASKING price is seldom if ever achieved.

autumnalcore

You can appeal the VRT after you have paid it, send in supporting documentation and example prices and you will get a refund of somekind.

reni10

Was it still worth it importing from the UK even with the high VRT?

Benbecul97

schmittel wrote: »

Just had the VRT bill. It was top end of what I was expecting but just under figure I would appeal.
The Irish OMSP they assigned was a good bit higher than the € equivalent of the STG purchase price + the VRT inclusive.

How much was it?

hometruths

reni10 wrote: »

Was it still worth it importing from the UK even with the high VRT?

Yes, absolutely. Mainly because of the wider selection allowed me to get what we wanted in terms of layout, belts, spec etc.

In terms of cost I think it would have worked out about the same if I had bought the van here.

The VRT is a kick in the teeth, for sure, but it is the same for everyone. By that I mean sure you can buy a van in Ireland and not have to hand over a payment to Revenue but I it seems clear to me that the VRT is baked into the purchase price. That's why vans are more expensive here than in UK.

The most annoying thing is the uncertainty, i.e waiting for revenue to let you know what they think it is worth.

hometruths

Benbecul97 wrote: »

How much was it?

Guts of 8k

jace_da_face

Can I ask what rental company you purchased from and do they have a website listing of ex-rental vans?