REGISTRATION
Communication failures by the DVLA about what a campervan is are leaving people confused and is a failure of its role, according to the Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman (PHSO), which investigated two cases brought by people who converted vans into campervans, but had multiple applications to change their vehicle’s log book rejected by the DVLA.
Having a vehicle registered as a van with windows rather than a motor caravan (the term ‘motor caravan’ is used by the DVLA for both campervans and motorhomes) means the owner can face a number of issues: higher fees on toll roads, costlier MoTs, having to abide by different speed limits and having difficulty gaining insurance.
Ombudsman, Rob Behrens, said, “People expect and deserve clarity and openness from public bodies like the DVLA. When they don’t receive it, they feel let down and frustrated, especially in cases like these where they are likely to have spent a lot of time and money trying to meet requirements that remain unclear. We hope that these issues will now be rectified.”
David Hollingsworth and Maddy Muffett complained to the ombudsman separately after they had built their campervans following guidance on the DVLA website.
During the investigation, the DVLA admitted it knew at the time that this information was out of date. It has since been updated.
After being rejected, both complainants asked the DVLA for advice on what to do to satisfy the requirements. However, they were only given suggestions that might make a difference, such as adding awning rails or stickers to the exterior. After doing this, including in Mr Hollingsworth’s case adding a big sticker that said ‘campervan’ on all four sides of the vehicle, both his and Mrs Muffet’s applications were rejected again.
Mr Hollingsworth said, “The DVLA seem to just have a blanket, knee-jerk reaction to anyone self-building a campervan. We converted a van previously and had no problems, and we’ve done even more to this vehicle; we’ve added extra windows, skylights, an awning rail, an electric step. [But] the DVLA just says, ‘it doesn’t look like a campervan in traffic’. But they won’t tell us why not.
“It’s disingenuous and nonsense and feels like discrimination against self-build campervanners.”
The Muffett’s applications were rejected four times. “We spent a year building the campervan so that it complied exactly with the criteria on the DVLA website, and it still came back listed as a van with windows,” said Mrs Muffett. “They utterly refused to tell us what we c
