Frequently Asked Questions

The answers to your most frequently asked questions about buying, selling or managing a motorhome share.

Definitely not! In a timeshare a third party owns the asset and the user just buys a right to access it at agreed times, and undertakes to pay excessive admin and maintenance fees for ever. Timeshare is often a scam.

We arrange syndicated ownerships, in which the Syndicate Members own the motorhome jointly in agreed shares. The members agree an annual maintenance budget and pay their share monthly. A Syndicate Member can sell their share at any time, or buy additional shares in the same motorhome. The syndicate can sell the motorhome together and split the proceeds.

Usually the original owner of the motorhome will be the registered keeper, but the syndicate can agree to nominate any one of their number as registered keeper. Only one member of the syndicate can be registered keeper. In a new syndicate (formed to buy a motorhome) the syndicate will have to agree a Registered Keeper.

On completion of your purchase we provide you with a Certificate of Ownership signed by the Registered Keeper and a copy of the V5. For a small additional cost we can have the Certificate notarised as well.

The existence of the syndicate has no effect on VED. The Registered Keeper will sign up to pay VED in the normal way and the syndicate’s monthly running cost payments will cover it.

We recommend that the Registered Keeper opens a specific online personal bank account to manage the motorhome’s budget to keep the syndicate’s accounts clear and transparent.

When emergencies arise the Registered Keeper will generally use this account’s card(s) to cover costs remotely while the ‘in-use’ Syndicate Member gets the problem fixed. It is possible to keep a specific payment card in the motorhome for use in emergencies, but this obviously comes with some risks which syndicate members may prefer to avoid.

The Registered Keeper manages the process of arranging and renewing insurance. The syndicate can either insure named drivers (the Syndicate Members, spouses and sometimes adult children), or buy an “any driver” policy (which will come with an age limit). Naturally these policies are more expensive than a single-owner policy, but less expensive than syndicate members buying their own policies (though that is possible if preferred, since all members have an insurable interest).

Syndicate members provide a DVLA licence check code to the Registered Keeper once each year, and undertake promptly to inform the Registered Keeper of any events that affect their insurance status (accidents, claims, convictions etc).

Syndicate members pay for their own fuel. The motorhome’s tanks (fuel and water) must be refilled before each handover, and its grey water tank or cassette emptied. The handing-over member will usually take a phone photo of the gauges and send this to the Registered Keeper. If filling and emptying is not done then the receiving member at the handover will tell the Registered Keeper, who will make an agreed adjustment to the handing-over member’s syndicate accounts.

In most cases the motorhome will “reside” wherever the original owner kept it before the syndicate was formed. Syndicates can agree any changes to this that suit them, and one of the benefits of syndicate ownership is that it enlarges the opportunity for basing the motorhome in new and more interesting places, either at Syndicate Members’ homes or at a remote commercial storage location (since the costs of that are shared). A syndicate can plan for storage to change each year to open up new areas of adventure.

Each syndicate will choose and agree its own allocation system, which will be run by the Registered Keeper. Common approaches are to divide the year into agreed periods (weeks, fortnights or months, to taste) and allocate these either on a rolling priority basis (first choices rotating around the syndicate) or allocating picking order by lot, or simply by discussing plans and needs together each year (for example to fit around school holidays).

Since it is easier for a syndicate to take a motorhome abroad or to more remote UK destinations it will often be the case that allocations fall into place after the broad travel plan has been agreed. It is usually most effective for the syndicate’s members to meet in person to work out both the programme for the year and how usage is to be allocated. Our recommended contract can be adjusted to include a variety of allocation systems, and to make provision for these to change over time as requirements change. Once usage is allocated that is generally carved in stone, though changes can always be made with mutual or general agreement.

It is possible to arrange for handovers at remote locations, with Member A reaching the handover location by car or public transport. After the handover Member B either returns using Member A’s car to an agreed location (using a short-term insurance policy such as Cuvva), or travels home on public transport. Using this method a syndicate motorhome can spend more time “working” in the leisure location and less time “positioning” out and back to the leisure location.

We recommend that the Syndicate meet to allocate dates and plan maintenance at least once per year. One good meeting is usually enough to discuss and decide all key points and plans.

The broad scheme for maintenance is agreed each year at the Syndicate meeting, where replacement or upgrade of kit is also agreed and budgeted for. The basic maintenance plan (servicing, MOT test, habitability test, other tests as needed, tyres) is also agreed and managed by a nominated Syndicate Member, usually but not necessarily the Registered Keeper, and is scheduled into the usage plan.

Each Syndicate will choose its own solution for external cleaning, which might be at set intervals charged to the Syndicate bank account, or on handovers, or just as required from time to time.

The Syndicate Agreement will set out the process, but a good way is for the ‘‘in-use’’ Member to take charge of the process on the ground, liaising with the Registered Keeper to decide what to do. All Syndicate members will be kept fully informed of progress towards a repair. All parties generally to make getting the motorhome back on the road quickly a priority. Syndicates will usually sign up to a breakdown service, though these are far from a complete solution. All syndicate members will bring their contacts and expertise to the table to effect a repair to the motorhome.

If the motorhome is so broken that it must be recovered to a location by a third party the Syndicate bears the costs of the recovery jointly.

In the event that the breakage cannot be quickly repaired and the ‘in-use’ Member has to interrupt their plans the Syndicate Members are not liable for any consequential costs (hotels, amended travel plans, etc)  - each Member bears their own liability for these. The right answer, of course, is for the Syndicate to run a proactive and forward-looking maintenance plan at all times. SYMH.co.uk is also available to support emergency repairs with contacts and expertise if it can.

Accidents to motorhomes are rare, but can happen. The ‘in-use’ Member will report the circumstances immediately to the other Syndicate Members so that they can begin to adjust their own plans as quickly as possible. The Registered Keeper will manage communications with the Syndicate’s insurers, and the ‘in-use’ Member will support that with detailed reports and photographs if appropriate. The ‘in-use’ Member will support the repair process with the aim of returning the motorhome to its planned schedule as quickly as possible. At the end of the ‘in-use’ Member’s allocated period the Syndicate will decide whether the ‘in-use’ Member will continue to manage the repair, or the ‘taking-over’ Member will take over managing the repair (because it is nearly done and the ‘taking-over’ Member’s plans can be rescued), or whether the Registered Keeper will take over the process.

In the very unlikely event that the motorhome becomes a write-off while ‘in-use’ naturally all Members’ plans will have to be cancelled. No Member shall have any consequential liability to other Members for the costs of cancellations. The Registered Keeper shall manage the process of the insurance claim, and when proceeds are received shall divide and distribute them by shares. The Syndicate will then choose whether to acquire a new motorhome or disband or reform.

The Syndicate Contract obliges each Member not to act in any way that invalidates the Syndicate’s insurance cover (for example by damaging the motorhome while driving over the legal drink-drive limit for the relevant location), and if a Member does invalidate insurance cover this way the contract makes them liable for the loss incurred by the other Members.

No. One Member can have a larger share than others. It will be commonplace for a new Syndicate to have this situation while new Syndicate Members are found and brought in. Syndicates can choose whether to use a decision-making system based on shares or on number of Members. Our contract makes provision for either solutions.

Not technically, but in practice a Syndicate of more than six Members becomes quite unwieldy. However it is up to each Syndicate to decide how many members it will have.

The Syndicate contract determines what happens, and our standard contract can be adjusted to suit any reasonable requests by a Syndicate, but in general the following is a good system:

A share in a syndicate is a personal asset in the Member’s estate and will pass to testamentary heirs just like any other asset. The deceased Member’s syndicate share can be sold by the estate, through shareyourmotorhome.co.uk or any other channel. A deceased Member’s share continues to accrue maintenance charges until sold, and the executors must meet these as they fall due.

The detail of what happens next is laid out in the Syndicate Agreement, which is drafted with our help but to reflect what each Syndicate thinks is a sensible approach.

The Syndicate Member can offer their share to the other members at a price to be agreed among them, or if the other members don’t want to increase their share then the Syndicate Member can offer their share on shareyourmotorhome.co.uk. The offer price is up to the seller, and we are happy to help advise on what the right market price should be.

When a buyer appears they will get to know the other syndicate members to see if there is a good fit of personalities and plans, and if there is then the share is sold to the new member, who will sign the Syndicate contract as part of the deal. Existing Syndicate Members have a right of veto over the potential new Member. If this veto has been exercised more than an agreed number of times then the Leaving Member can require the Syndicate to sell the motorhome as a whole, end the Syndicate and distribute net sale proceeds among the Syndicate Members.

The Managing Member will produce an account down to the day of the sale transaction and appropriate adjustments will be made to or by the selling Member. Generally, if the maintenance budget has been managed properly, the outstanding balance either way should be small.

Yes. It is easy to rearrange the number of shares in a syndicate either by buying-in shares or by creating new shares, each with the appropriate transfer of balancing payments. Naturally changes will require agreement on valuation of the Motorhome, which is down to agreement among the Members, possibly assisted by external valuation either from shareyourmotorhome.co.uk or from a dealer.

The Members will agree a usage schedule either once or twice each year. Handover of the Motorhome to the Using Member might take place at its base, in which case the Managing Member will need to be present to check that there are no un-reported faults, or out on the road, in which case the two Handing-Over Member and the Receiving Member will carry out a check. Members should take a set of external and internal photos (phone photos are sufficient) at handover to record physical condition of the Motorhome (SYMH.co.uk can provide a recommended shot list), and report any maintenance issues that are live. On handover the Motorhome’s fuel and water tanks should be full, and its waste tank or cassette empty. Naturally it should also be in a clean internal condition.

On the handover the two Members will message the Managing Member with confirmation that the handover is complete. This gives an exact date and time for the handover.

Each Syndicate Member will bring and take home their own bed linen and towels. Generally duvets and pillows will remain in place, though some Motorhomers like to bring their own as well.

Yes. Suitable insurance arrangements will have to be made by the Managing Member, and the Motorhome should be furnished with the original V5, a Permission-to-use letter from the Registered Keeper for each Member, and a copy of the Syndicate Contract to show that the Syndicate Member is a co-owner of the vehicle. If the Motorhome is to enter a non-EU state it should have a CPD Carnet to avoid import duties. Although Members are co-owners of the Motorhome it is probably a good idea also to obtain a VE103 certificate from the RAC (https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/driving-in-europe/vehicle-on-hire/).

While individual UK citizens are limited to 90 days in every 180 in the EU, UK vehicles can generally stay in the EU for up to six months. Syndicates can take advantage of this by doing Handovers abroad without the trouble and expense of bringing the Motorhome back to the UK every time – one ferry charge per season, with potentially multiple trips, with the trip starting in a different part of Europe each time. It should be noted that some desirable Motorhoming countries (Turkey and Morocco in particular) are not in the EU and that the six-month period will not include time that the Motorhome spends in these territories.

That said, all Members should do their own investigation of the detailed rules applying at the time to ensure that they and their Motorhome comply.

Notification of these will arrive in the first instance with the Registered Keeper. Since this is also the Managing Member they will have a record of which Member had charge of the Motorhome at the time of the incident, and they will then report to the relevant authority that enquiries should be directed to that Member, while also passing on the Notification to that Member to deal with.

Each Syndicate Member will take a set of photographs of the Motorhome on takeover, and note any minor or major damage. We recommend that the Motorhome be furnished with a log-book to record any damage. If a ‘taking-over’ Member finds damage that was not present when the ‘handing-over’ Member took over the Motorhome then that is logged and notified at the time, for discussion later at a Syndicate meeting. It is generally not a good idea to argue over damage at the time of the handover, but rather to record it photographically and deal with it later.

Each Syndicate will decide how it wants to deal with minor damage.

It is important to distinguish clearly between damage and normal wear and tear. For example, tyres inevitably pick up nails and need repair or replacement, but a tyre damaged on street furniture or a pothole by over-fast driving would probably be “damage” rather than “wear and tear”.

What is essential is that, whatever system is chosen, it is agreed clearly in the Syndicate Contract. We can provide drafting for the different approaches. We can also act as arbitrators in the event of an irreconcilable dispute if desired.

On each handover the ‘taking-over’ Member must check tyre tread depths and record them in the on-board maintenance log. This is essential because an illegal tyre results in a penalty for the driver of a vehicle, not its owner. If a tyre reaches the end of its tread life the ‘in-use’ Member should arrange for its replacement and ensure that an email of the paid invoice reaches the Managing Member, who will either refund it or credit it to the maintenance account of whoever paid for the repair.

In general, the Managing Member will oversee tyre life. Some syndicates might decide to replace all tyres each season, or to replace tyres at a set level of tread depth to ensure that tyres last the full season without creating a problem.

The Syndicate usually agrees a base stock of ingredients which will always be kept in stock in the motorhome during the season, and if the ‘in-use’ Member consumes the last of an item they shall replace it at their cost. What happens with other food stocks is laid out in the Syndicate Agreement.

No. Our contract with you allows both you and us to withdraw without notice or penalty. The only case in which there will be a charge on your withdrawal is one in which we have found a buyer for your share and the buyer completes the purchase after you have withdrawn your share from shareyourmotorhome.co.uk in which case you remain liable for our transaction fee.

Syndicate Motorhomes must be debt-free (since no lender will lend jointly to a Syndicate or on an asset that is only part-owned). However, there is nothing to stop a Syndicate Member from using personal finance to pay for a share in a Syndicate.

One advantage of Syndicate Ownership is that the amounts to be financed are much smaller, and indeed the standard 25% equity required to obtain a loan deal will cover a ¼ share’s cost in full.

Yes, so long as your plan includes the repayment of that debt when the Syndicate comes into being. We check vehicle finance databases before listing a Motorhome on shareyourmotorhome.co.uk and if there is finance outstanding we can still list the Motorhome with a note that it has finance which will be retired by the new Syndicate. Any early repayment penalties must be paid by the individual with the finance deal.

Technically yes, but the administration of a Limited Company is an added cost that yields little benefit. There are also taxation issues flowing from the use of a company, since each Syndicate Member will have the use of a company vehicle which may trigger multiple tax charges. In addition the company will have to account for the Motorhome as a physical asset with complex and unhelpful rules about writing-down allowances, and will have to file accounts, a return of directors’ benefits and a corporation tax return each year. Finally a limited company will be governed by Articles of Association and a Shareholders’ agreement, which add cost and legal complexity.

In general we firmly recommend that Syndicates do not use limited companies to hold their Motorhomes.

Life is complex and wherever two or more people cooperate in a venture there is always the possibility of a dispute arising.

The first rule of cooperation is to create a Syndicate Agreement that is written on the assumption that disputes will indeed arise (strong contracts always assume disaster has happened and that the parties now dislike each other intensely). We provide just such a contract, which anticipates (so far as possible) every possible source of dispute and makes provision for settling these equitably. A well-written contract substantially reduces the risk of entering a dispute in the first place.

We can also provide an arbitration clause which appoints us as arbitrator of disputes which fall out of these prepared solutions. We provide this service at considerably less cost than normal arbitrators (£50 per hour) as it is part of our service commitment rather than a core source of profit, and we are also a disinterested party since we are neutral in the case with no invested interest. If the arbitration clause is included by the Syndicate it precludes resort to the Courts for disputes and thereby substantially limits the risk/cost of a difficult dispute.

If the default is not rectified then the unpaid amounts become a debt on the defaulting Member’s share in the Syndicate. The Syndicate contract provides that after an agreed period of default (three to nine months according to taste) the Syndicate may suspend the defaulting Member’s use of their share and place the share for sale at a price set by the Syndicate. When the share is sold the defaulted amounts and the transaction costs are deducted and the balance is remitted to the defaulting Member.

While the Member is in default the remaining Syndicate Members will naturally have to “carry” the defaulter’s share of maintenance costs. As compensation for this inconvenience the Syndicate Agreement can provide for value penalties for missed maintenance payments.

We have tried to answer every question that has come up so far. If you have a new question please contact us on office(at)shareyourmotorhome.co.uk and we will look into it.