On 31 October, a travel trailer stood alone in a cornfield off a quiet country road in Abbotsford, British Columbia. Neighbours later remarked that someone had taken care to back it neatly into the field before driving away. The decrepit trailer had become someone else's problem.
Disposing of an old RV in the province is difficult and costly, so some are simply abandoned in rest areas, on forestry roads or in farmers' fields. Phil Pires, owner of Big Phil's Rubbish Removal, said people think old RVs have value for scrap, but they do not. "The only metal is the frame, and in order to get to it, the whole thing has to be dismantled," he said. That means sawing through siding and insulation, separating Fiberglas from wood and upholstery, and draining the grey and black water tanks. Old fridges and appliances that may contain ammonia also need careful handling.
Removing a small camper typically costs about $1,000, while large trailers can cost several thousand dollars. Some owners pay a shady company $200 to take an RV away. "If it seems too good to be true, it usually is," Pires said. He recalled a woman who tried to get rid of an old boat and, after declining his quote, saw it abandoned on the side of a highway in Deroche. Police investigated, but Pires said he does not think she was charged.
Abbotsford police Sgt. Paul Walker said officers may get involved if a vehicle is stolen, connected to a crime or presents a public safety risk. Tracing a VIN is complicated because people sometimes do not update the registration when they sell. "In most cases, these abandoned RVs and vehicles are uninsured and, quite often, have been off insurance for many years," he said. Proving who dumped an RV is, in his words, challenging to say the least.