What if I have to postpone my European motorhome trip?

April 17, 2019

After a tricky couple of years of unexpected family health challenges which have completely shifted our best laid plans a couple of times, we thought we should write a few words about what happens if you buy a camper and your plans change before you pick it up or whilst you are on tour. Our mainly overseas, baby boomer clients have encountered a number of unexpected developments over the last few years which have affected their trip plans so we know events can dictate a delayed start, an early finish or a mid-trip pause.

An unexpected illness for you or a close family member, the manager you put in to run your business not working out, your property sale falling through or a more joyous event like your daughter surprising you with triplets could all bring about the need put your trip to Europe on the back burner so what do you do if have purchased a motorhome in Europe? The good news is, you can simply leave your motorhome in storage and resume your trip when you have dealt with your crisis.

Having run a motorhome rental business for ten years we were always heartbroken for clients who had to cancel or postpone their trips. They had often saved for years to hire for a trip of a lifetime touring Europe and could not afford to reinstate it once it was lost but the beauty of owning a motorhome is that you can simply pause your trip and come back to it when the emergency is behind you.

The elements that make a delay to your trip inexpensive in Europe are the slow rate at which campervans depreciate and the very reasonable price of insurance and storage. You can calculate your likely ongoing expenses from our webpage here.

Motorhome depreciation is only accelerated by high mileage and excessive wear and tear so if your camper is safely tucked up in storage whilst you cannot use it, it will be depreciating slowly and patiently awaiting your return.

Needless to say, although you can benefit from limited costs against your vehicle, that won’t compensate you for the cost of cancelled flights, getting home in a hurry or incurring medical expenses here in Europe so do take out good insurance to make sure you have all unavoidable emergency costs covered for your trip too.

It’s a thorny topic and we were bit loathe to bring it up. Nobody wants to consider it might happen to them but disaster can strike every now and then and it’s good to know you won’t have to abandon your European home. You can simply put your trip on hold and get back to it when circumstances allow and it will provide you with something to really look forward to during a difficult time.

Finally, if the worst happens and you cannot resume your trip, don’t forget we can sell your motorhome for you (or store it while you find a buyer from back home) so all you need to do is hand it over to us and let us do the rest.

Lots of things might get in the way of you taking your dream trip but don’t talk yourself out of the most exciting adventure you might ever have just in case the worst happens. Over the last five years, only a handful of our buyers have encountered trip-pausing problems and none have caused a definitive end to their adventure. Get in touch now to discuss your needs so we can help make your trip a reality.