Buying a used camper: what to inspect, in order

The strongest checks on a used camper happen before anyone opens a door. A seller who cannot produce the paperwork below is not automatically hiding something, but the absence shifts risk onto the buyer — and should shift the price.

This is roughly the order an AWS-approved workshop works through in a full habitation check, and it is worth following even on a private viewing before paying for a professional check — it surfaces obvious problems early and tells you which vehicles are worth paying for a proper inspection.

A documented annual habitation check is more than a peace-of-mind record. Manufacturers commonly tie a long water-ingress warranty — often 10 years — to a documented annual check, so a gap in the history is not neutral: it can mean the warranty has already lapsed, regardless of the vehicle's actual age. A used camper with a full, unbroken habitation-check history is carrying less risk than an identical-looking vehicle with gaps, even if both currently pass a damp-meter test — and that difference belongs in the negotiation, not just in the small print. See habitation check, explained for what the check itself covers, and approved workshop scheme, explained for how UK checks are accredited.

A current MOT (UK), TÜV (Germany), ITV (Spain) or contrôle technique (France) certificate says the base vehicle — brakes, tyres, lights, emissions, structural safety of the chassis — passed its national roadworthiness test. None of these tests look at damp, gas, habitation electrics or water systems. A van can have a fresh, valid roadworthiness certificate and a lapsed or nonexistent habitation-check history at the same time — the two are independent, and a used-camper buyer needs both, not one standing in for the other.