Commercial Van to Camper Van Registration
How to Register your Camper Van with the DMV
Retitle your commercial cargo van as a camper van and save money! In this article we will discuss why and how to re-register your van. This article is written for those that live in the state of California, but many states have a similar (likely simpler) processes.
Registering your van as a camper van can save money on annual vehicle registration, avoid some technicalities of commercial vehicles and truck scale stops and increase the chances of getting your investment insured as a recreational vehicle.
Cargo Vans are Titled as Commercial Vehicles
When you purchase a cargo van it will come with a commercial registration and commercial license plates. In California, commercial plates have five numbers followed by one letter then an additional number, such as 11111A1. Non-commercial plates begin with a number followed by three letters then three numbers, such as 1AAA111. You can tell a commercial vehicle from non-commercial simply by this orientation of letters and numbers.
Commercial Vehicles and Weight Fees
Commercial vehicles in most states come with a weight fee added to the annual vehicle registration. This fee is not assessed for passenger vehicles. In the case of our vehicle, a 2016 model year Sprinter van, our weight fee was $80 per year. Our vehicle pink slip and annual registration forms show it as a “Commercial” vehicle and with a “Body Type Model” (BTM) of “VN,” meaning van. The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) maintains this list of the various BTMs. You will note that “VN” (van) is under the commercial section of the BTMs. We did a BTM change from VN to VC (Van Camper). “Van Camper” is in the automotive section of the BTMs, as opposed to commercial. This drops the commercial designation from the vehicle title. It also means the weight fee disappears!
Commercial Vehicles and Truck Scales
In most states, all commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight (GVW) over 10,000 pounds are required to stop at truck scales. A 2500 Sprinter is rated to carry less than 10,000 pounds. However, 3500 Sprinters have greater than a 10,000 lb capacity and technically may be required to stop at truck scales if appropriately loaded. In California it depends on the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), but it can be interpreted that any commercial vehicle must stop at the truck scales. Specifically, here is what the California Highway Patrol have to say about cargo vans:
CARGO VAN — It depends on the load and the use. Technically, they are a motor truck according to CVC Section 410 and, therefore, required to stop at the weigh stations.
The thing to keep in mind is peace officers have a lot of discretion when it comes to issuing tickets. We re-titled our van to be more reflective of how it’s actually used. We don’t use it commercially, it’s a camper van, so we titled it as such. This had the side benefit of reducing our annual registration fee and lifting any doubts about commercial truck stops.
Insuring your Converted Van
If you choose to insure your van as an RV or camper van, the Camper Van vehicle designation may be required. The insurance on your van likely only covers the vehicle itself, not the actual build and contents inside. We are of the understanding that the proper BTM and vehicle designation must be done before approaching your insurance company. We have not gone through that process yet. Retitling the van was our first step in that process.
How to Retitle your Commercial Van with the California DMV
The official process for converting from commercial license plates to automotive license plates is detailed here. You need:
- California Certificate of Title (Pink Slip). (You can have the lien holder send a copy to the DMV if the vehicle is not paid-off.)
- A completed Certification of Vehicle for Human Habitation (Form REG 256A). You will fill in only the “Certification of Vehicle for Human Habitation” section of Form 256A.
- The commercial license plates on the vehicle.
The Process, as we Experienced It
We made an appointment with our local DMV. Once there, we told the clerk we had a commercial van that was converted to a camper van. We indicated we were there to get rid of the commercial vehicle designation. We handed the DMV clerk the pink slip, Form 256A and our old license plates. The clerk asked us to sign a Statement of Facts (form REG 256), despite the fact this form was not listed as a requirement above. We filled out Section E, “Statement for Vehicle Body Change,” and marked “Body type changed from type VN to type VC.” We were not asked to fill out the section on vehicle value.
The clerk told us to pull the van around for a vehicle verification inspection. DMV “verification personnel” are tasked with ensuring the body type change is appropriate. The vehicle must meet the requirements “for human habitation.” Human habitation is defined by the DMV as living space which includes, but is not limited to: closets, cabinets, kitchen units or fixtures, and bath or toilet rooms. The inspection will likely not be problematic if your van meets the aforementioned requirements. If you do get caught using your van for commercial use after these registration changes, the penalties are stiff.
The Vehicle Verification Inspection
The vehicle verification personnel stepped into the van and saw the refrigerator, sink and cabinetry. She never asked to see the bathroom (a porta potty in our case) nor did she ask to see our cooking facilities. (We use either a portable propane stove or a portable induction cook top.) What it comes down to is that it was clear this was a camper van and not a commercial vehicle. If you haven’t seen our van, this is how our self-built looks inside. We have an entire build section of our website to show you how to build your own.
The verification specialist also checked the VIN, noted the mileage and under the hood noted the fuel type (diesel) and some emissions certification information. We grabbed a photo of her paperwork, with personal information removed.
We took the paperwork from the verification personnel back inside. She put the information into the computer and handed us an updated vehicle registration card and automotive license plates and registration stickers. The DMV kept the pink slip and said a new non-commercial pink slip would be issued with the updated license plate information. That was it.
A Note of Caution
You will note that the form for Human Habitation (256A) has line items for value. You’ll also note that the total value has “$0.00” pre-printed on the form. If you are required to put an amount here, use caution. It’s not clear why the “$0.00” appears there, but if you do put a value there it’s possible the DMV could increase the vehicle license fee (VLF). Our 2WD van has a VLF class of “LB,” which is a vehicle between $39,600 and $39,799 in initial cost. However a friend’s $67k 4×4 Sprinter, in VLF class SL, has a VLF portion of the annual registration cost $438 versus our $258. You can see where increased value can affect your annual registration fees. (Keep in mind VLF is a only a portion of the registration fee). You don’t want to increase your VLF class.
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Conclusion
We hope this helps solve some of the mystery behind vehicle licensing fees and registration in California. We would expect most other states would have a process that would be similar to California’s, but quite likely with less red tape.
DMV code of regulations are complicated and lack clear direction to staff processing the transactions. It’s likely your DMV clerk will not have done this before, so be patient and understanding in knowing the complexity of some of these obscure processes. Your experience may vary from ours but at least you know what to ask for and have some background knowledge on the process itself. Good luck, and if you haven’t browsed our website lately, please take a look!
Thank you so much for the detailed post! I’m about to do this for my 2019 Ford Transit and I’m hoping my experience at the DMV in Truckee goes as smoothly. My van cost $34K and I did a lot of the conversion myself, but I paid about $5K to have a shop do some electrical and finishing work.
If you don’t mind, I’ve got a few questions for you:
On the Reg 256A form:
1) Did you select option 2 (modified by licensed van converter) or the last option that just wants a date it was completed?
2) Did you leave the rest of that section blank (cost before and cost of changes) and the DMV didn’t have a problem with that? I’m shocked they’d let you leave that blank.
I’m thinking about seeing if they let me leave that blank, but, if they require it, then selecting the van converter option and listing the $34K before cost and $5K conversion cost.
On the Reg 256 form:
3) Did you leave the current market value and change costs blank? Any push back from DMV on that?
If they ask me to fill that in, I’m thinking of putting the current KBB value of the van and the $5K conversion cost.
Thanks!
Forest
Hi, thanks for the comment. Regarding your questions:
1) I put a completed date since my van was self-built;
2 and 3) If you look at the 256A form, there is a “0” pre-printed in the total cost column. I’m not sure why the zero is there but I also don’t see them asking you to arbitrarily cross it out and put a number there. Mine was left entirely blank.
What you stated about the conversion cost (if they ask) seems reasonable to me. Let’s hope they do not go there.
Please let us know how it goes, and good luck.
Got it done this morning, so I wanted to share my experience:
1) I filled out Reg 256 and Reg 256A and brought the receipt for the $5K van work from licensed converter in Sacramento
2) For vehicle value, I put down the current KBB value ($22K) and checked that a licensed shop did the conversion at a value of $5K
3) DMV guy was nice, but he had never done this task before and needed about 5 minutes to read through employee instructions
4) He confirmed that I provided all of the right forms, asked me what I did to the van, stood up and looked out the window at my van in parking lot, made a copy of the van conversion receipt, ask his supervisor if he needed to go out and confirm anything on the van, told no, and then completed the process and gave me new plates and registration.
5) I was hoping that he’d lower my VLF class since I provided a lower total cost of the van compared to when I bought it new, but that didn’t change with the new registration.
Thanks again for sharing your experience. I think bringing the forms pre-filled and explaining the process to the DMV employee made things go smoothly. I think it could have gone sideways if I walked in and asked him what I needed to do (he didn’t have a clue).
Curious, did he ask you to fill out the value? The fact that the form is preprinted with “$0.00” in the total column makes me think it’s not something they are concerned with. Thank you for sharing your experience.
No, I decided to fill in the values beforehand. I figured I might get a chance to lower the assessed value of my van. Worst case, it would be ignored and not change my VLF class (which is what happened).
The forms are editable PDF’s (when online). The $0 in the total value box is a formula that will change when you put in the before and after values. You’re right, if you just print the form, $0 is printed in that box if you leave the before and after values blank.
Thanks again for sharing your experience. In the end, it sounds like you ended up with the same outcome.
Foster, if you don’t mind my asking, what’s the name
Of the conversion company you used in Sacramento? I’m not too far from there. Thanks in advance!
No one is touched on a very important factor for me I am unable to get an insurance quote because the VIN is listed in the commercial vehicle and the insurance only will quote me a commercial price how do I get past this?
It really depends on the insurance company, they all treat van conversions differently.
Thank you for sharing this information! I’m going through this now. Just a bit different scenario in that I bought it new and converted through a dealer in another state. Fingers crossed I won’t have issues.
Thanks for the write up.. I’m in the process of doing this. I did the conversion myself. I ran into a snag with the DMV asking for “proof of ownership of parts put in vehicle for conversion” what?????
I’m lucky I have most of the receipts. I’m going to attempted to go back and hand them a stack of Amazon invoices and Home Depot receipts. This doesn’t make sense to me…. they did the verification and know what’s in the back ? … I own the vehicle, how could you want proof?????
I can see an insurance company asking for receipts, but it makes no sense for the DMV to…I simply think the clerk you had doesn’t understand. I believe I posted a link to the regulations, and I don’t believe you’ll find anything in there about receipts. On the other hand I guess you could dump them on the clerk just to complete the process and not start over with someone else.
Hey! Thank you for such an informative post. Question, any update on the insurance portion of this process? I’m eager to know how it has gone or what you have learned.
Hi, Getting the vehicle re-titled was the first part of that process. I have not started the insurance part of my shopping yet.
Were you able to get setup with a reasonable insurance policy yet? If you happen to know of how it can be done, please do tell. I’m at my wits end..
I picked up a step van which had already been retitled as a motorhome & I can’t get an insurance policy to save my life here in California. Maybe I’m asking the wrong questions, not saying the right thing?…
I still haven’t done it. I think the best route is to go to an insurance agent in-person, have them look at what you’ve got and let them tell you what options they can offer. Many will offer an insurance rider as opposed to an RV insurance policy. At that point it’s just a matter of weighing the annual cost vs self-insuring. If the van is stolen or totaled, you’re out. If it’s involved in an accident and written-off (probably the most likely scenario), hopefully you could transfer the build to another van. That’s my thinking anyway. I do intend to shop around, but probably post-covid.
I was able to finally find an insurance lady that could get my conversion insured.. I recommend bringing your commercial conversion rig to Stockton, California when/if ya got the time, so pics can be taken of your rig by the lady.. I also recommend pay up front.. I don’t know if it’s cheap, I paid close to a grand for the entire policy, for the full time + full coverage policy.. for reference.. I think it’s worth it just to even have insurance on the conversion..
With Permission from her, I give her info out:
Norma Aslami @ 445 W.Weber Avenue Ste 136, Stockton CA 95203 – License # 0D24914
I hope this helps, I didn’t add her phone number so she doesn’t get annoying calls concerning this.. If you have the conversion RV title/registration in hand with the vehicle & you go there when the office is open (9am to 5pm weekdays), you should be good to go..
Geico was my insurer for my last RV & turned me down for my current conversion.. so did a hand full of other phone-“centric” insurance companies..
You can send them all the pics of your rig all’ya want.. they don’t approve them..(weird, right?)
No One on the phone would would insure it.. I wasn’t sure why either.. I was under the distinct impression if California (“most strict state”) would allow the conversion to proceed in the first place, the insurance companies wouldn’t have any problem insuring it, boy was I wrong..
California is strict enough with converting Commercial vehicles to RV/Camper status & turning in the commercial plates for non-commercial plates.. after you succeed in that, Insurance is no easier, it seems..
I bought a 1988 gas Chevy Step Van P30 conversion to RV, that had the Non-Commercial License Plates.. I did mention to the insurance lady my P30 conversion was a short Class-A conversion (24ft), not a class-c (or B).. I’ve seen Allegro Class-A RVs on a P30 chassis before, for reference..
I hope this helps
Thank you, I appreciate the additional information.
Thanks for this tip. I wouldn’t have known to do this.
It took me three trips to the DMV but worth the effort to get my original title right the first time.
Glad it helped! Just curious, why the extra trips? Did they require something additional?
Now that California CARB kicked in this year for Banning the commercial vehicles with Diesel engines older than 2010, will converting an older diesel commercial vehicle to camper be hindered?
..I want to buy & non-op an older (’90s) commercial diesel van with a U-Haul type box on it (or step van), until I had all the required parts in it, then do the Title change..
Also, is there a limit on age of the commercial vehicle to convert in CA, with or without the new Ban?
Thanks
Hi, these are areas where I have no expertise. Perhaps someone reading this has an answer.
I’m also in California, read this a while back and just got my permanent registration and plates from the DMV last week. I will likely do what you did regarding registration when the conversion is done…two interesting things on the registration/insurance front:
1. Though my title is indeed commercial, the BTM is listed as “MH” which according to the DMV website means “Motorized Home.” Curious as it is a crew van that was used by a motorcycle customizer to transport fancy bikes to motorcycle shows and events, and has no innate motor home features. I bought it from a car dealership, but found the background out through the registration that was still in the glovebox (here she is before she was mine: https://www.instagram.com/p/B32BwWthuI4/ )
2. We have all our auto and home insurance through Allstate and they suggested insuring it as a class B motorhome and requested no registration information, proof of habitation, or any other evidence that it is (or will be) a camper van. When I asked about the level of coverage they recommended the same limits as our passenger cars, said the policy would cover the base vehicle (so in my case, whatever they determined the value of a 2017 Crew 2500 170 with XX mileage at time of incident) and then there was a rider for contents which I stated as $15,000 for the build out (and may raise later). Initially they said that coverage would up the premiums, but when they actually sent me the quote, that $15k was listed specifically but it was covered under the comprehensive, and apparently cost nothing extra. Just to ballpark it, insurance on the van is about $400 every six months.
Be curious to hear what you uncover on the insurance front.
Nice looking van! That’s interesting that it has the MH designation, it definitely doesn’t hurt. I wasn’t sure if there were pros and cons of going with “camper van” vs “motorhome,” but I can’t imagine it matters.
I really appreciate you sharing your experience with Allstate. I may go there first. I will be trying to strike a balance between declared value and the overall cost of the insurance. Thanks again!
Thanks Ken for a great write-up! I had not been back to check on your resources in awhile since I largely finished my build in the fall but while searching for info on registration, google brought me back to your site:) I think I follow the VLF concerns from the perspective of keeping your total registration fees as low as possible. My question is will my insurance know what values I report to the DMV? Also, the zeros are on the form because the e-version of the form is an embedded equation that automatically adds the vehicle value and cost of modifications together.
Cheers,
Mike
Hi Mike, happy to see you back and that google is finding the site. Your question is a good one. I don’t think DMV talks to the insurance companies. And I believe if you initiate the process with DMV and they indicate they will be raising the value of the vehicle, I would think you would have the option of pulling out of the process. Just a thought. From reading through the comments one other person said the value part of the form was ignored as well. No one has indicated a change in value so far. -Ken
Awesome write up, really appreciate the help! Quick question: I noticed on the photo of the Reg form 31 that DMV filled out, at the top the box is checked “None” for licenses plates on vehicle. Was this because you had to turn in the old plates, or did you not have any plates on the vehicle when you went to the DMV?
Thank you!
Correct, DMV collected my commercial plates and exchanged them for the non-commercial ones. Thanks for visiting! -ken
This should work for a diesel box truck…..theoretically.. right lol. I didn’t read anything that would state otherwise on that form. It looks like it just needs to be converted into a camper legitimately and not just used as a loophole for businesses
I would think so, as long as it meets the requirements. Empty cargo van or empty box truck, no difference in my mind!
Has anybody converted a large diesel truck to an RV here in California? The new CARB law states that if the GVWR — Sticker found on the drivers door jam— Is over 14,000 pounds they won’t register your vehicle.
Is this law stopping large diesel van conversions here in California?
Interesting, hopefully others can comment as I have no experience in that weight class.
So, I am buying a 2007 Ford e350 Utility Box Van tomorrow. It is currently listed as a commercial vehicle as it was used as a work truck previously. I will be converting it over the next 2 months and the living in it full time for at least the next year. What process should I take once I purchase the vehicle? I thought I needed to register the vehicle asap and get it insured asap? It won’t be campervan-ish for at least 1.5 months of build time, so if I try to register and insure it, it won’t meet the physical requirements to be retitled as a Campervan or insured as a Campervan. I guess what Im asking is what actions should I take after purchasing from the private party to best save money, classify the vehicle properly, and get it insured properly. I am in California as well. Thank you for any advice!
It’s tricky. I needed to have the infrastructure in place in order for the DMV to inspect and approve the reclassification. And an insurance company won’t insure a “proposed build.” Unfortunately I think that puts many of us in a position where we are self-insuring during the course of our builds. That’s unless you want to do some sort of insurance rider policy. I would discuss your best options with various insurance providers.
I don’t think I would sweat the change in vehicle classification right now. The insurance aspect is more important though.
Thought I would share my recent experience. My wife and I recently purchased a van out of state and also had the conversion done out of state. We just drove her home to California. After reading this great article I was prepared to do the DMV two step….first getting the van titled and registered in California and then coming back to have the BTM reclassified (thought I would have to have a California title first). I was pleasantly surprised to have it all completed in one visit. When the DMV employee inspected the van for VIN confirmation he notice the conversion and designated the van as BTM type MH. So basically it was classified correctly right from the get go. One thing I will share to those buying out of state….your van will need to be smogged prior to this process even if it was new like ours was. Thanks for the great write up!!
Great to know, thank you for taking the time to post! -Ken
Hi Ron, thanks for the info. I was wondering if DMV charged you the difference of sales tax for the van conversion if the other state has a lower tax.
I’m in Cali, also purchased my van in another state, and got it converted out of state as well. The builder gave me two invoices: one for parts which was taxed their state tax, another for labor which was not taxed. I wonder if Cali would charge additional tax for labor. Your insight would be appreciated.
Ron, I am in the same boat, I am purchasing van in Oregon and having it converted there. Then I need to register in CA first step and hopefully change classification from cargo commercial to MH. A few questions-
Did you have to pay sales tax on the conversion portion?
Did your registration fee include the price of the van only or did it also include the cost of the conversion?
Also what insurance did you get?
Thank you,
Hi Mary,
I did not pay anything for the transaction. The DMV’s interpretation of how to fill out the value portion of the paperwork was the same as my interpretation–the pre-filled 0’s in the value column meant they did not ask me to declare any value. My total registration costs dropped due to elimination of the weight fee. As for insurance, I have an article coming soon! -Ken
Which DMV was this?
I will be buying a diesel box truck this weekend with the weight at 14,500. I will be converting the truck so wish me luck. Thought I would post for more information. California ughhh! No box I will be building my own. Thinking about mounting my truck camper and see if that will fly with the DMV…If not I will just wait but the truck will be bought… so I am committed.
I would wait…you need certain equipment in order to be considered a camper/RV etc.
Perhaps the DMV employee who helped you used REG 256 and not REG 256A because it’s a camper van, and not a motor home, for camping, not “habitation.” That would also explain the lack of checking for a toilet, which seems to be required for MH status.
Well its done. I am fortunate that the owner had it registered as non-op. Build will start soon. Ill keep you guys posted when I go to the DMV
Well done!
One question – did the DMV refund your commercial fees from the day you registered the vehicle until the day you converted it? Ie. Did they retroactively refund your fees since it wasn’t a commercial vehicle.
Good question, I don’t recall exactly. I’m thinking no but maybe its possible.
Regarding “Licensed Upfitter” who are they licensed with? If a Vendor/Upfitter in Oregon does work on the van is the work recognized in California? If Vendors do part of the work but the van owner does the rest, I’m thinking the 3rd box is what is checked… Right?
Any Comments”
Thank you for the information. I live in Massachusetts and I just bought at 2006 ford Van to convert into at mini camper for personal use. I hope we can convert the tittle and be able to register as personal use.
This info helps a lot, we are working to get the info. for Massachusetts RMV
Hi. Firstly, thank you for giving people the right information. Secondly, I have a 2021 ford transit-350 cargo van and I have it on a lien. My problem is that my local DMV and my lienholder( Ford ) don’t know what they need from me exactly
and everyone I have talk to at the DMV or Ford have given a different answer every time. I am trying to convert my commercial van into a camper so I told Ford to send a copy of the pink slip to the DMV. It took 7 weeks and now the DMV says that they need the original car title, not a copy. So I go home and call Ford again and I talked for an hour only to understand that my car has an electronic title and because of that, they can’t send the original to the DMV. I go back to the DMV to explain what happened and the DMV says that our papers with stamps, along with the title, needs to be written as paperless for them to take it. So I go home again and call Ford for them to do that but Ford says I have the original paper title this time and they can’t write paperless on it anymore. I don’t understand what to do and both places have me going back and forward with different bits of information conflicting with the last. The DMV doesn’t pick of their calls either so I keep having to wait 1 hour in line. What can I do? What do I need to say tell them? Thank you if you can help us.
Hi Anto, were you able to get a copy of your title? I’m about to start this process and concerned about asking a copy of the my title from my lienholder. Does this cause a red flag of any sort with them? Can an auto lender cancel my loan if I make changes to the registration? Maybe I’m overthinking the process 🧐 thanks for any input!
Thank you for this write-up. Really appreciate the time and effort you put into your video and posts.
I just picked up my 2021 Sprinter cargo van. I will be converting this myself over the next 6-12 months (fingers crossed). Since the van hasn’t been converted and still a cargo van, would I be able to insure it as a non-commercial passenger van? Thank you!
Thank you for the kind words, and congrats on the new van! I highly doubt you’ll be able to register it non-commercial as it doesn’t have seating to make it a passenger van and doesn’t have the necessary fixtures to register it as a camper van or RV. They will need to do an inspection to confirm the BTM (body type model) change, and I don’t believe there’s anything to justify the change at this time. -Ken
Thank you for the info. I was able to register it non-commercial in 30 minutes. They didn’t even bother to check out my camper van. ;^)
Nice, thanks for reporting back! (They really should have done an inspection to confirm the conversion but it worked in your favor!)
I tried last year. No physical title / pink slip
So now van is mine. No lien. Went back
Basically told. Yes it can be done with forms, inspection and RECEIPTS.
You will eliminate the commercial designation and not have weight fees, however the VLF value will increase thus in California you will not save $$ on registration. You could actually pay more. Pretty hard to have a customized van with all the required stuff inside to make it habitable and say you only paid a few 1000 For the parts.
Thank you for sharing your experience. This is the first time I’ve heard of any DMV employee asking for receipts or a value. The fact that the DMV form is pre-filled out with a “$0” total in the value column is confusing–you’d have to cross out the $0 value and write in your own, and I’m not sure why a person would do that or why a DMV employee would ask a person to do that. Perhaps go in on a different day–I suspect you’ll have a different experience with a different employee.
Once again, invaluable information here on your site that’s really hard to get anywhere else. I’ve got my DMV appt. Gonna give it a try. My hesitations are this:
Are they gonna reassess the value of my conversion at Covid inflated prices? (Have you seen what people are paying for used vans these days?) and
Will this have any affect on my insurance rates? (So far the word I get my my agent is that the DMV has to make the changes to the information associated with the VIN for insurance company to quote a price.)
Would love to hear if you or anybody else has any experience with this. Hope its possible to abort the DMV process if I don’t like where the VLF talk is going.
Hi, I don’t think anyone at DMV has the authority to try and estimate what the value of your vehicle might be. If they were to try and get you to put in a value in the cells that are pre-typed “0”, you might want to come back on a different day and work with someone else. If you start down this process and you don’t like the direction it’s headed, you do not have to file the paperwork. I certainly understand your concern there.
Your insurance will likely go down because you’ll move from commercial van insurance to RV insurance.
Ok, so my Credit Union will not finance a camper van. Does anyone know one that will? I’m trying to see what do, commercial interest rates are crazy so I was going to buy as commercial, re-register it and refinance with a bank/credit union. I am open to any ideas on the best way to go about this. Banks, lenders that give good rates and camper cans would be cool.
Hi! Ken! Thank you for sharing this process with us, especially for those of us in California! For some of us, being able to add aftermarket seats is crucial to the layout. Since you’ve added those awesome seats as a DIYer, and registered your van as a Van Camper with California DMV, I’m wondering if you could share the legal aspect of things regarding adding seats as a DIYer? Like, if adding seats would affect insurance, registration, inspection, legal liability etc.? Thank you so much!
Hi Robin,
The presence or absence of seats does not seem to play in to insurance rates, registration or inspection, at least in my state (CA) and in my experience. Liability is a different issue though; I would not ever endeavor to add a seat to anyone’s van but my own. I had no way to model how my setup would perform in an accident, so I had to overcompensate by ensuring my install was super robust. With my kid’s safety at-stake, I did not take the design or implementation of the seat lightly. I hope that helps. -Ken
Thank you so much for the reply, Ken! I also live in California. This helps a lot! So, the officials couldn’t care less about added seats, that’s GREAT news!
Your mounting looks SUPER robust! If your seat mounting method were to fail, the cross member has to be ripped out …
Regarding liability I did some research online but found no definitive answer. Some say that in case of an accident, if somebody were to get hurt in the added seats because the system failed, the DIYer could be held responsible for the installation of an un-roadworthy seating system that did not meet FMVSS 207 requirements thus endangering his/her passengers.
Find a sprinter master upfitter that offer these seats and the installation? Find some seat installer that have had their mounting method pull tested to meet FMVSS 207/210 to do the job? Or do a heck of a job oneself installing exactly the seats one needs? Uhm …. mm … mmm ….
That is how I understand it as well. Back in early 2017 when I was building my van there were no safe seating options (pull-tested, 3-point shoulder belts, etc.), so I had to go to a lot of trouble to import mine from the UK. Of course now they are available in the U.S. So clearly no one would install that seat so I just went the overkill route.
has anyone tried to insure the contents of the van conversion under a homeowners policy?
My insurance agent told me that insurance really only covers the van and things bolted to it, and homeowners insurance would have to cover lost personal possessions. YMMV…
Hello Ken,
Do you also need to get a smog check done prior to changing your VN to VC?
My registration is due coming up, but smog check is due next year
Thanks
FiL
I don’t believe so. My smog interval remained the same after making the change.
Now, that it has been some time after the conversion, how significant has the cost savings been?? I have a 2018 Sprinter that is registered as a commercial vehicle, but we mostly use it for camping. It has been partially converted to be able to camp in. I was just wondering if it is worth it financially to drop the commercial vehicle status. I live in California and dread DMV visits.
Hi Devin, the change dropped the registration fee $80, as I no longer have to pay the weight fee. However it was an enabler for me to insure the van as an RV. RV insurance assumes occasional use (versus the commercial designation it had before). I can’t quantify that savings but between the two it’s a good amount of money. -Ken
Last year we bought a Promaster 136. The registration is due in May. We took our van to the DMV to change the commercial license. We had a permanent bet mounted between the walls, a portable butane stove, Yeti cooler, a floor and rug. The DMV inspector looked at it and said it barely passes, filed out the form and told us to take it inside and bring the license plates. We waited in line for about an hour and gave the paperwork to the clerk. The clerk went in the back somewhere and talked to the inspector. When she came back she said he changed his mind and can not approve the van as a camper van. We are in our 70’s and their is no way we would be using it for commercial use. The DMV sucks and the commercial license law is unfair. Why can’t we have a van for pleasure?
The DMV form I linked in the article describes Human habitation as a “living space which includes, but is not limited to: closets, cabinets, kitchen units or fixtures, and bath or toilet rooms.” They want to see some form of permanence in the RV build, and that it’s somewhat not capable of being used in a commercial manner. The fact that you don’t convert it to an RV doesn’t mean you can’t use it as such, but unless you can meet their requirements for “human habitation” you may have to leave it as commercial.
Hi, did anyone convert the title from commercial to camper in New Jersey?
Or anyone has experience with this?
Thx
Ok Im in CA and being charged an extra weight fee of $175 a year for the weight fee and dont use it for commercial.
I would like to convert the registration to camper/personal use vehicle.
All I have inside is vinyl flooring, a cot with a sleeping bag , a porta potty and a coleman stove. I cant afford to do a conversion.
The whole point of this is to save money.
Do you know if the DMV will accept this as a camper van on inspection???. They should since thats all its used for.
Thanks.
The DMV form that I linked in the article defines Human habitation as “a living space which includes, but is not limited to: closets, cabinets, kitchen units or fixtures, and bath or toilet rooms.” I think the main idea is they want to see some level of permanence and that the vehicle is being used exclusively as an RV and not for commercial purposes.
It got me when you said that there are huge penalties for people who have registered their vehicles and suddenly use them for commercial purposes. In my opinion, anything that you own whether this a car or a house should definitely be used accordingly to prevent penalties and other issues that can even hit the lawsuits. For example, you are getting your auto tabs renewed and you declare that it is for personal purposes, so it means that you do not have any right at all to use them for things that are not meant for it to avoid problems on your part.
Hi Ken:
Went to CA DMV today and it was just as you documented , they wanted forms 256A AND 256, there was no request for me to fill out any dollar amounts. The vehicle inspection took all of 5 minutes, and form 256 showed “change from VN to MH” , they crossed out the VC and said it’s Motor Home now… lol… I was pleasantly surprised, the whole process took under 20 minutes. Cheers and thanks for your help!
Tim
Awesome, thanks for letting me know!
Thank you for the help! I did this today and it went so smooth at the DMV. Heads up, at least in my experience, they asked me to drive up to inspection first and then just come back in for my appointment. I left all values at $0 on form and wasn’t asked about it. Thanks for making this simple, being organized I think made the DMV officers more chill because they appreciate you making their job easier.
Awesome, thank you for sharing your experience. The website donation was also greatly appreciated! -Ken
Thank you for the detailed explanation of legal procedures for converting the vans. I did have one question however. Is it mandatory to have insulation on the interior walls. Reason asking is because i have multiple magnets all along the interior walls of my 98 Ford E350 and do not necessarily need the insulation for my comfort. Was wondering if i can just get away with my pull out couch and a few cabinets along with a sink and plumbing.
Thank you again for your information it was very much helpful.
Insulation is not one of the requirements. The DMV form states “Human habitation is living space which includes, but is not limited to: closets, cabinets, kitchen units or fixtures, and bath or toilet rooms.” Our porta pottie was enough to meet the bathroom requirement. They are just looking to ensure this is a legit RV and not a temporary setup to avoid commercial fees.
Have you had any experience with a van with vehicle type “Incomplete Vehicle”. It is intended to be converted so once converted when and I register it as a camper van will the vehicle type be changed? Does anyone ever decertify their vans and get a new NHTSA sticker? If so who would do that certification.
I have never heard of that but maybe someone else can comment.
Hi y’all thanks for sharing your experience. About to do the same with the CA DMV. The office told me I can’t register it as an RV – even though it has all the life supporting requirements – but I can register it as a camper van. Does that sound right to you? Will the camper van designation make it Class B? Selling my van and the buyer needs it to be this designation.
Hi, my van is registered as a camper van. As far as I know the DMV does not distinguish between various sub-grades (class b, c etc) within the camper van designation.
Hi. Thanks for that infromative article.We are about to purchase a van and are debating a cargo or a crew (we have a daughter who travels with us). The cargo would cost less. We plan a very simple DIY build. We will have a crew van set up with second row seating and a bed behind. Do you think counter space for a snk, a portable camp stove, an ice chest (possibly electric Dometic) and a porta potty (permanently installed on heavy duty drawer slides) would suffice to pass the RV verification?
Thanks!
I would think so. Take a look at the 256A form and in indicates “Human habitation is living space which includes, but is not limited to: closets, cabinets, kitchen units or fixtures, and bath or toilet rooms.” “But not limited to” is the operative word. As long as looks like a legit campervan and not something you are using for commercial use, it should pass the visual.