Having bought a static caravan on a park in Scotland which was for a lifestyle change due to a recent stroke, I am sure this will affect others in similar situations or indeed families that have decided to invest hard earned money or retirements funds. So let me start by saying this is not a financial investment it is simply an expenditure, some will say very expensive whilst others will have another opinion.

Apart from the initial cost of purchase there are annual site and environmental fees to pay, some of which could be north of £3000 and then add on insurance, and utility bills. This starts to become a very expensive lifestyle change however, if you use the caravan often enough it does negate some costs, but not many. On some parks there are strict rules that the caravan you bought and own, cannot be rented out to other holiday makers.

Now here is the real issue for me, I am becoming more and more aware of the monopoly and hold that the park owners have on caravan owners. Each caravan has a life-span according to some parks of 20yrs and must be updated to keep your place on the park. However, the caravan can be updated and bought via the park only, at an over inflated price charged. You can sell your existing static to anyone if you want but the park owners will take 20% of the selling price, you can sell back to the park owners at a massively reduced price which could equate to the 20% you would get if you sold to anyone. 

There are some owners that have circa 5yr old statics and have tried to sell back to the park but have not been successful because they are too old and of little or no reselling value. So you could be stuck and should the static be kept for the remaining time this could cost you over £15000 on site fees alone.

Parliament should look into this practise and stop park owners from putting these outrageous clauses in contracts when purchasing static homes. Buyers are really unsure when they first purchase static caravans as it is a hard sell on behalf of the park owners. Prospective buyers need to be told upfront the consequences when buying or selling a static caravan.