Selling an inherited motorhome
Dealing with a motorhome as part of an estate is usually one job among many, often at a difficult time. This page sets out the practical steps in plain terms, without pretending to be legal or tax advice.
This guidance is general information, not legal, tax or probate advice. For anything specific to the estate you are dealing with, speak to the solicitor or probate professional acting for it.
First, protect the vehicle
Before deciding anything, make sure the motorhome is secure and insured. Insurance often lapses on the death of the policyholder, so check the position early — most insurers can arrange cover for a vehicle held by an estate. If it will be stood for a while, confirm the tax status too, and keep it stored somewhere it isn't at risk.
Find the paperwork
- The V5C registration certificate.
- The latest MOT certificate and any service invoices.
- Habitation service reports, if the owner had them done.
- Finance agreements, in case anything is outstanding.
- All keys — vehicle, habitation door and lockers.
If the V5C can't be found, a replacement can be applied for. Missing documents slow a sale down but rarely prevent one.
Who has authority to sell?
The executor named in the will, or the administrator where there is no will, deals with the estate's assets. Depending on the estate's size and how it's being handled, that may require a grant of probate or letters of administration before assets are sold. The solicitor acting for the estate will confirm what's needed. Where ownership has already passed to a beneficiary, it's a normal private sale from then on.
Valuations for probate
Estates often need a value for the motorhome at the date of death. That is a different exercise from a sale valuation, and the estate's professional adviser will say what form of valuation they require. Tell us if a figure is needed for probate purposes rather than for a sale, so the conversation is the right one.
Why owners' families often sell
Motorhomes are expensive to hold onto — insurance, tax, storage, servicing — and a beneficiary rarely wants to learn the used motorhome market to shift one. Selling to a buying service means one conversation, one inspection, and collection arranged rather than a run of viewings at a family home.
If it's been stood a while
A van that hasn't moved for a season or more often needs batteries, tyres and brakes attention, and may have developed damp. It doesn't need to be running or MOT'd for us to look at it — see selling a non-runner.
How to start
Send us what you know through the valuation form — partial information is fine — or call the buying team and talk it through. There's no obligation at any point.
Dealing with an estate? We'll keep it simple
Tell us about your vehicle and our buying team will come back to you about a possible offer. It's free and there's no obligation to sell.