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New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

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ten0rman
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New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#156953

Postby ten0rman » August 3rd, 2018, 1:37 pm

Hi,

I apologise for what may be a long post.

I am looking for information on where I stand in regard to some problems with our new caravan. In particular, I wonder if I am getting to the stage of formally rejecting the caravan on the grounds of it being unfit for purpose. Even if I do not, or cannot, reject the caravan, I do wish to ensure that those responsible are aware that there are outstanding problems which need correcting. Finally, I'm looking for suggestions on how I should approach this.

On 13 March 2018, I paid a £1000 deposit on a brand new caravan. This payment was made by a bank Visa credit card. This suggests that I may be able to invoke action under the Section 75 system, however, there may be a snag in that we live in England whilst the caravan dealership is in Scotland.

On 10 April 2018, we took delivery of the caravan and paid a further £15,800 by Visa debit card from our building society current account.

On arrival home I found that one of the stabilizer legs was very stiff to operate, in fact my battery drill which I used to use on the previous caravan with full satisfaction was unable to fully raise the leg, or, if the leg was already raised, to lower it. I had to use the manual crank handle to complete the operation. The other three legs were stiff, but usable, so no complaint there.

On 23 May 2018 we set off for a two week holiday in Scotland. During this period we discovered a number of problems, one of which was caused by us, and was easily rectified by the dealer's service team; another two which were actually down to us not knowing, or realising, just how to use the caravan; and the following three defects:

1. The operating panel for the electronic control system is not really secure and becomes loose whilst travelling. It does not actually fall off, but I contend that it should not be loose.

2. Some of the internal LEDs used for lighting are dimmable. We found that under a certain setting, the lights would flash on and off when the water pump was switched off after use. On contacting the manufacturer's Support team, I was told that there was a "suppression kit" available for this very problem.

3. On one occasion, the fridge apparently shut down completely in that all the indicator lights were off. We know that it was working at 1800 hours because it warned us that the door was slightly ajar, yet by 2030 hours, it was completely dead, and could only be restored to full working by temporarily completely powering down the caravan. On contacting the manufacturer's Support team, it was suggested that an available software update might cure it, but in the interim, we had to run it wholly on "Auto", rather than the manual mode we had hitherto been using.

On return from this holiday, we contacted the dealership, and arranged for the caravan to be returned on 25 June 2018 for rectification.

Mid July I contacted the dealership and discovered that they were still waiting for the "Suppression Kit" to be delivered. To be fair, they did say that the manufacturer was notoriously slow to deliver items, however, they did have the fridge software update and that this would be installed on Wednesday 18 July 2018. I therefore made arrangements to collect the caravan on Tuesday 24 July 2018 as we were going away again on 27 July. I was told that the stiff stabilizer leg had been lubricated, and to be fair, it was better, but still stiff compared to the other three legs.

The situation today, 03 August 2018, is that the stabilizer leg is still stiff - see below, the control panel is still loose, the suppression kit has not been installed (although to be fair, it isn't that much of a problem to us), and the fridge is now displaying a very annoying feature in that out of e last six nights, it was woken us up twice by beeping and not displaying any alarm conditions - the last time being 0430 this morning, plus it has done this during the early evening on a third occasion. On top of that, one of the cupboard door latches appears to have failed (but unofficially I hope to have a look at that as we cannot have the door open whilst travelling).

The action of the drill is suggesting that the leg operating screw is binding as it rotates since the drill slows considerably and then speeds up as it rotates. Also, the drill attachment wobbles as it rotates which makes me suspect that the operating screw may be bent.

My questions therefore are, does the Section 75 rights whereby a credit card issuer is jointly liable apply in Scotland even though we are resident in England; should I be considering rejecting the caravan as being unfit for purpose; can I in fact do this? Or should I determine who the chief man (chairman?) is of the dealership, and of the manufacturer, and then write to the dealership to lodge a strong complaint whilst copying the complaint to the manufacturer. Should I also involve the credit card issuer, and if so how do I go about it.

Any other advice.

MTIA

ten0rman

PinkDalek
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#156961

Postby PinkDalek » August 3rd, 2018, 1:55 pm

ten0rman wrote:My questions therefore are, does the Section 75 rights whereby a credit card issuer is jointly liable apply in Scotland even though we are resident in England; ..


I'm no expert but the Consumer Credit Act 1974 covers E+W+S+N.I. as per here:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/19 ... iew=extent

vrdiver
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#156970

Postby vrdiver » August 3rd, 2018, 2:41 pm

I had a similar situation a couple of years ago.

IIRC the relevant law is the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Under the act, faulty goods, where the fault is discovered and reported between 30 days and six months from purchase, are, at the discretion of the supplier, allowed to be repaired once. If that does not remedy the fault, you are entitled to ask for a refund.

The act has a value limit of £35k (from memory) so you are covered there, as well as with your cc section 75 protection.

I was fobbed off a few times (I still have the emails) until I referenced the CR Act, at which point the dealer sat up and paid attention to my issues.

We did return the vehicle (motorhome) and got a replacement new one from the same dealer.

If you generally like the new caravan, then I'd work on resolving the issues rather than recovering the cash, as re-purchasing is no guarantee that another set of new-van issues aren't lurking in wait for you.

When I went in to talk to the service manager re defects on the new, new van, I walked him around it, showed him each issue (and took pictures where appropriate), told him what I thought the "correct" situation should be and we went from there. Like you, some of my issues turned out to be user error, but he fixed all of them for me under warranty.

Took a while, and several visits, especially as I was adding to the list of defects faster than he could fix them! We're now very happy with the vehicle.

VRD

ten0rman
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#157892

Postby ten0rman » August 8th, 2018, 12:30 pm

PinkDalek & ,

Thanks for your replies. At least I now know where I stand.

We are away at the moment in the caravan, and another pair of problems has surfaced: whilst travelling, a part of the door dropped off (I assume) and will require replacing; the electronic control panel seems to think there is a problem with our internal water tank - unfortunately we haven't got one (!); the radio seems to have a mind of its own (we don't use it, and have tried to switch it off permanently, but now says something like "Wed 487", but I do need to read the instructions and have a play with it; and most of the earlier, reported, problems are still existant. Given that the water pump suppression kit has yet to be fitted, I'm now wondering if these surges from the water pump are causing these other electronic problems as well.

I'm still of a mind to write to the head man, chairman of the directors, or whatever he/she is termed, just to formally give advise that there are these ongoing problems: that way, they cannot, or should not be able to, wriggle out of them post 6months or whatever.

regards,

ten0rman

ten0rman
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#159685

Postby ten0rman » August 14th, 2018, 9:42 pm

Hi all,

An intermediate follow-up.

I had a word with the salesman. He then had a word with their service guy who eventually rang me back. The gist of the conversation was:

Another s/w update was to be done for the 'fridge.
A s/w update for the electronic control panel was available for the incorrect warning alarm for the non-existant internal water tank. So yet another problem that the manufacturer appears to know about!
The suppression kit for the water pump was now to hand. It's only taken over 4 weeks to arrive!
The loose control panel will be fixed, probably by a glue of some description. Silicon based?
The rear legs will be looked at for tightness, the front ones being ok.
The missing magnetic door part will be repaired by nicking one off another caravan. I rather got the impression that this happens all too often!
Nothing was said about the radio, but I am prepared to wait and see with that.

The due date will be August 24, but we won't really know how much of a success it will be until mid-October. Still, at least they will have tried and, I hope, will now have some record that these jobs have been done.

Apart from the mechanical problems, I must admit that I am not best pleased about all these electric & electronic updates etc, especially when it seems that the problems they are supposed to fix are known about. Quite apart from anything else, they have caused a certain amount of friction between Mrs T & myself. Understandably, she has an objection to being disturbed by high pitched bleeping sounds.

I'll report back in November as to the success or otherwise, in the mean time, thanks for all your help.

ten0rman

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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#160051

Postby didds » August 16th, 2018, 7:21 am

"he due date will be August 24, but we won't really know how much of a success it will be until mid-October."

I presume that mkeans your next trip isn;t planned until then.

But you cold (merely asuggestion) just take it for a spin one fine day to the coast and back (say) and at some time spend a few nights sleeping in it at home, to check stuff through?

didds

ten0rman
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#160066

Postby ten0rman » August 16th, 2018, 9:29 am

didds,

Quite correct in your assumption.

Your suggestion is v.unlikely, primarily because the 'van is parked away from home, there being no room for it at home, inside a locked up barn. Which makes life awkwardish.

Actually this year has been a bit odd for various reasons. Historically, we would have been away right now thus cutting down the time to the next trip. But, you know, we've had almost 5 weeks away already this year, with at least a further week, or maybe two, to come. Which isn't bad in the general scheme of things, although we did come across an elderly couple, he was 85 which puts my 75 to shame, and they had been, or were planning to be away for three months continuously! Trouble is, three months away, and I'd need a tractor mower for the gardens.

ten0rman

ten0rman
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#175858

Postby ten0rman » October 23rd, 2018, 9:18 pm

Hi folks,

Final update, after a week at Callander.

2 software updates for the fridge, suppression kit for the water pump, software update for the control panel, control panel correctly fitted (back part was too far into the hole hence the front panel could not lock into place, and door magnet replaced by nicking one off another caravan.

I'm pleased to say that apart from a couple of incorrect alarms about low water which were cured by delving into the control panel system settings and finding one that said Tank Alarms On/Off, and setting to Off, we now have a fully working caravan. It's only taken 6 months to get to this stage - shame on you Swift!

The stiff steadies, as the service technician said, was perfectly usable using the hand brace, hence no fault. I have now bought an 18V battery drill - problem solved (my original was 7.2V).

The radio turned out to be that once the caravan is powered down, and then up again, the radio automatically switches on. I'm not sure if it remembers the presets or not, but I really couldn't care less - I've simply learned how to switch it off. The strange numbers displayed were actually a date and time, bit of a nonsense really as the unit is inside a cupboard with the door normally shut.

So there we are, all my worries & concerns evaporated. Dumfries Caravan Centre came up trumps eventually, although I do wonder if my words with the salesman might have had an effect.

So, my thanks to those of you who commented on my woes.

Regards,

ten0rman

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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#175911

Postby jackdaww » October 24th, 2018, 8:56 am

try joining which? legal . they will guide you through it all. ive found it well worth it .

try buying an older van - saves a lot , most of the snags have been sorted , quality was better 20 years ago .

ten0rman
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Re: New Caravan Issues - Reject or what?

#175979

Postby ten0rman » October 24th, 2018, 1:22 pm

Jackdaww,

This van was to replace a Bailey Hunterlight 470/5 which we bought at 3 years old in 2001 and which now is life expired, eg, the sides were spreading resulting in gaps appearing between the internal fittings and the walls. Sizewise, both caravans are about the same dimensions, but the new one is 2cwt heavier. The old one is much simpler, and that is where Swift have fallen down in my opinion. All that glitters is not gold comes to mind. I suspect that overall the Hunterlight was indeed a higher quality, certainly we didn't have any problems which could be put down to manufactering problems. Yes we did have the odd fair & wear problem. Anyway, it is v.unlikely now that we will ever buy another caravan, old or new, we are simply getting too long in the tooth.
Interestingly, my first choice was actually the Bailey Pursuit 430-4, or even the higher level equivalent (not made now) which is Bailey's equivalent to the Swift we bought. We actually thought that the Swift was better laid out than the Bailey - I'm not too sure now, but it's too late, spilt milk, greener grass, and all that.

Cheers,

ten0rman


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