Caravan problem - advice needed, please.

jenza8

Hi,
I'm asking advice for my mum and step father, who have a caravan that they are now experiencing some problems with. Basically, there is a problem with the brakes, whereby something sheared off and the mechanic who recovered the caravan said that they were incredibly lucky not to have had a serious accident with it (I think it ended up braking on only one side).
The mechanic also stated that the problem should have been identified by the garage, when it was serviced (back in March). He said it was so serious that it definitely would have been there in March (they've also only used it twice since the service). Mum has checked the service schedule and it states that the brakes were checked (recovery mechanic has written in his report that they cannot have been checked).
She has returned to the garage that serviced the caravan who said that they did check the brakes but they would not have picked up this fault as the whole brake wasn't removed because Mum didn't request the brakes to be checked.
A different independent mechanic has stated that the fault should definitely have been picked up on the service and it is not mum's responsibility to specifically request the brakes to be checked (that is the point of the service). He also stated that the fault could potentially cost up to £1200 to put right.
The man from the servicing garage did say he would ring mum back but he is now proving elusive. To make matters worse, last week the garage was taken over by someone else. The original owners are still working there but have apparently been bought out.
Obviously the fault was there previously and so even though the garage did not identify it, they cannot be liable for the full cost of repair. However, because it was left, the cost of repair is now going to be substantially more than if it had been identified. Also a service was paid for that clearly was not carried out in full (if at all).

So, we'd appreciate some advice on the following points:
1. How much should my mum try to get back from the garage? Should it just be the cost of the service or should there be some reimbursement for some of the cost of repairs?
2. Could this be pursued through small claims court, if the garage owner continues to avoid contact?
2. Are the garage even liable for anything, given that they have been taken over? Does the fact they've been taken over mean that mum has no claim for anything at all?

If you're still reading, thanks for making it this far. Any advice is much appreciated. Also, if this is posted in the wrong place, please let me know and I'll try to get it moved.

harveybobbles

I have some good advice for the caravan, but it's probably not allowed to be posted, so i'll say nowt...

goldspanners

jenza8 wrote: »

He also stated that the fault could potentially cost up to £1200 to put right.

what is it thats potentially costing £1200 to repair? that sounds like a rip off on its own.
i doubt you will be able to claim anything from the servicing garage as it was back in march,i dont know how you could prove how many miles the caravan has done since then.
you shouldnt have had to ask for the brakes to be checked but you may find the type of brake check carried out was only a check to see if they actually work,they probably havent removed the brake drums to check every part inside the drum.

jenza8

goldspanners wrote: »

what is it thats potentially costing £1200 to repair? that sounds like a rip off on its own.
i doubt you will be able to claim anything from the servicing garage as it was back in march,i dont know how you could prove how many miles the caravan has done since then.
you shouldnt have had to ask for the brakes to be checked but you may find the type of brake check carried out was only a check to see if they actually work,they probably havent removed the brake drums to check every part inside the drum.

Thanks for your reply. The £1200 would be the potential cost, if a whole new axle is required. This is not definitely needed but based on the recovery mechanics report, it is a strong possibility. Both the recovery mechanic and the independent mechanic said that the fault should definitely have been picked up at the service and that the servicing garage is at fault.

Rolandtheroadie

I cant see how a garage can be held liable 5 months after the event.
What was the fault? Binding brakes? worn shoes?

Paradigm

harveybobbles wrote: »

I have some good advice for the caravan, but it's probably not allowed to be posted, so i'll say nowt...

I'm with him

goldspanners

jenza8 wrote: »

Thanks for your reply. The £1200 would be the potential cost, if a whole new axle is required. This is not definitely needed but based on the recovery mechanics report, it is a strong possibility. Both the recovery mechanic and the independent mechanic said that the fault should definitely have been picked up at the service and that the servicing garage is at fault.

thats definatly worst case scenario....

....well it could be worse they could have advised replacing the whole caravan.

seriously i doubt a problem at one side would warrant a whole new axle, what was the actual fault?

marlot

Caravans are quite different to cars, especially in the way the brakes work (over-run brakes can be tricky to set up correctly if you're not used to them). Please suggest to them that next time they have the caravan serviced by a caravan technician (there are some good mobile ones out there) - they would check brakes, gas, hitch etc as a matter of course.

jenza8

goldspanners wrote: »

thats definatly worst case scenario....

....well it could be worse they could have advised replacing the whole caravan.

seriously i doubt a problem at one side would warrant a whole new axle, what was the actual fault?

To be honest, if it does cost that much, they'd be almost better replacing the caravan! It's only a tiny 2 berth and is only worth about £2000!!

Will ask mum what the mechanic said the actual fault was. Unfortunately, we're not mechanically minded at all and so it's hard for me to be really specific, as I don't really understand it all. We're just going with what the mechanic said.

jenza8

marlot wrote: »

Caravans are quite different to cars, especially in the way the brakes work (over-run brakes can be tricky to set up correctly if you're not used to them). Please suggest to them that next time they have the caravan serviced by a caravan technician (there are some good mobile ones out there) - they would check brakes, gas, hitch etc as a matter of course.

Does that mean that a 'caravan technician' is different to the mechanic who would service at a caravan garage? The place where the caravan was serviced before is registered with the Caravan Club and actually builds its own motorhomes. The independent mechanic who is going to sort the problem out is a mobile and specialises in caravans. He too said the servicing garage were at fault.

jenza8

Ok, the actual fault was that the back plate on the brake wasn’t located on the lug properly. It dislodged completely when my step father had to brake sharply. This also caused some metal to shear off. According to recovery mechanic and independent mechanic, it would have either been put back like that by the company that serviced it, or they should have seen it and sorted it out, when they serviced it.