Blocked From Selling Your Caravan? What Your Park Can and Can’t Do

Park won’t let you sell privately, or the commission looks steep? Here’s what’s normal, what may be unfair, and what to check in your agreement.

HOLIDAY PARK OWNERS

10/15/20263 min read

Selling a holiday caravan through your park isn't always as simple as finding a buyer and agreeing a price. Many agreements decide who you can sell to, how the sale has to happen and how much the park takes once it completes. Some of that is perfectly reasonable. Some of it can go further than it should, and it's worth knowing the difference before you sign up to anything.

This article covers the most common resale restrictions, what's usually fair, and where it's worth asking more questions. It's a starting point for checking your own agreement, not a verdict on your park.

Why parks have a say in sales

A park has a genuine interest in who moves onto its land. Knowing who the new owner is, and checking they'll follow the site rules, is a reasonable thing for a park to care about. So some involvement in a resale isn't unfair in itself.

The real questions are how much control the park takes, how it uses that control, and whether it goes further than it needs to protect its legitimate interests.

Commission: what is it paying for?

Commission on a caravan sale isn't automatically unfair. Estate agents charge commission on house sales too. What matters is what you get in return.

An estate agent is typically paid for active work: marketing the property, arranging viewings, negotiating offers and managing the legal process through to completion. Some owners report a very different picture. The park's role amounts to approving or rejecting a buyer the owner found themselves, while the owner can't put a For Sale sign on the van and has to advertise it on informal sites like Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree. If that sounds familiar, it's fair to ask exactly what the commission is paying for.

Questions to ask about commission

- What percentage is charged, and what is it calculated on?

- Is VAT added on top?

- What marketing does the park actually do, and will it confirm that in writing?

- When is the commission paid, and is it deducted from your sale proceeds?

Can the park stop you selling privately?

Agreements vary a lot here. Some allow private sales but require the park to approve the buyer. Others go further and ban private sales altogether, so the park becomes the only route to a sale.

A straightforward requirement to tell the park about a sale, or to check that a buyer meets reasonable criteria, is very different from a total ban combined with a mandatory commission. The second removes most of your control over the biggest financial event in your ownership of the van.

What reasonable approval looks like

Specific, clearly stated grounds are easier to defend. For example, a buyer who plans to use the van in a way that breaks the site rules is a fair reason to refuse. Vague wording such as "at the site's sole discretion, for any reason" gives the park room to turn down a suitable buyer for no good reason at all, including because it would rather sell you one of its own units.

When could a term be unfair?

UK consumer law gives you a route to challenge terms that tilt the balance too far. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a term can be unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in your rights and obligations under the contract. Whether a term crosses that line depends on its exact wording and your circumstances.

It's also worth knowing that holiday caravan owners generally have fewer statutory protections than residential park home owners. That makes the contract itself more important, so read the resale clauses carefully before you agree to them.

If you're trying to sell now

If you're already facing resistance, a few practical steps can help:

- Ask for the commission structure and approval criteria in writing, if you don't already have them.

  • Keep a record of any buyer the park rejects, and any reason given or not given.

  • If a private buyer is willing but the park is applying pressure, such as a higher fee for the incoming buyer or a push to buy one of its units, note the terms before and after you proposed the private sale.

Weighing up a part-exchange or sell-back offer?

See Selling Your Holiday Caravan: What Nobody Tells You

Before accepting a lower figure for a site-arranged sale, get an independent valuation to compare it against.

Want the full picture?

Mis-Sold or Misled? goes deeper into resale restrictions, commission structures and what to do if you're stuck, in plain English.

Get Mis-Sold or Misled?

Sources:

- Consumer Rights Act 2015, Part 2 (legislation.gov.uk) – https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/part/2

- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 62 (legislation.gov.uk) – https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/62

General information only, as at 15 October 2026. This article is not legal, financial or professional advice. Whether a resale restriction or commission is enforceable depends on the exact wording of your agreement and your circumstances. If you're unsure, speak to a qualified adviser or solicitor.