Protect your Caravan with CRiS

CRiS (Central Registration and Identification Scheme) is the National Register for caravan owners in the UK working towards preventing and detecting caravan related crime.

Established in 1992 by the The National Caravan Council, CRiS provides registration documents similar to the DVLA for motor vehicles and maintains information relating to the history of the caravan.

A CRiS check will:

• show if a caravan has ever been written off by an insurance company,
• show if a caravan is subject to any outstanding finance,
• provide details of the current registered keeper, and detail how many owners there have been in the past,
• confirm the make, model and age of a caravan.

All new caravans will be given a unique 17 digit Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), which is recorded onto an electronic tag and embedded into the bodywork of the caravan, and etched onto the windows. It will also be recorded in the Touring Caravan Registration Document which is kept by the registered keeper of the caravan.

If you are buying a new caravan, the dealer will register the van and you will receive a CRiS certificate shortly after. If you already own, or are considering buying a caravan which was manufactured prior to 1992 when CRiS was established, and therefore does not have a VIN, you can apply for it to be CRiS registered.

If you are looking to buy a used caravan, the CRiS number is really useful in preventing you from purchasing a stolen caravan, or one which has finance outstanding on it. Simply call CRiS with the number which has been etched onto the windows (or stamped on the chassis), and for a small fee they will make sure that the number matches the caravan make and model on their register. It is also advisable to ask the seller for their CRiS registration documents.

Whilst it is highly recommended that you do carry out a full check, you can decode the CRiS number yourself.

Here’s a quick guide:

Say your CRiS number is SGET000EX9AVA5009

• The first two characters represent the country of manufacture. SG = United Kingdom
• Second character is the make of the caravan. E = Elddis
• Third character represents the number of axles. T = twin axel (s=single)
• The next three digits are for optional manufacturers data, like the caravan model.
• The eighth & ninth digits show the make of the caravan. EX = Explorer (known as Elddis)
• The tenth digit is the year of manufacture. 9 = 2009
• The final digits are the caravan’s serial number = AVA5009

Please note that the caravan build seasons runs from 1^st September to 31^st August. This means that a caravan which was built between 1^st September 2010 and 31^st August 2011 will have a manufacture year code as B for 2011.

For reference, here is complete list of VIN codes:

Manufacturer codes: AB = ABI AD = Adria AV = Avondale BE = Bessacarr (later built by Swift so will use the SW code) BU = Buccaneer (later built by Explorer Group so will have code EX) BY = Bailey CL = Carlight CM = Coachman CP = Compass (could have EX code as were built by Explorer Group) CS = Cosalt (later Abbey’s were built by Swift and so will use SW code) CU = Sprite (later Sprite’s were built by Swift and so will use SW code) EL = Elddis (may carry the EX code, as Explorer Group re-branded to Elidds) EX = Explorer Group (now known as Elddis) FL = Fleetwood LU = Lunar SW = Swift

Group Build year codes: N = 1992 P = 1993 R = 1994 S = 1995 T = 1996 V = 1997 W = 1998 X = 1999 Y = 2000 1 = 2001 2 = 2002 3 = 2003 4 = 2004 5 = 2005 6 = 2006 7 = 2007 8 = 2008 9 = 2009 A = 2010 B = 2011 C = 2012 D = 2013 E = 2014

If you’re struggling to decode your CRiS number,  here’s a tool that will automatically do it for you: https://www.caravanvindecoder.com/

For more information about CRiS, visit Central Registration & Identification Scheme - CRiS