Bailey Caravan - Faulty Shower Tray and Warranty Expiration

bluejonny

Hi All

I wrote a very nice email to Bailey of Bristol recently as the shower tray in in our 4 year old caravan has developed a split that has crept upwards through the tray to the point where the shower can no longer be used as it would leak.

In the email I said how much it would cost to repair or replace and whether Bailey would be prepared to help partially or fully. I also pointed out in the email that to date and within warranty three expensive parts had failed including the toilet pump, the hot water pump and also the charger unit. In what I can only describe as an arrogant response, they refused point blank citing the expiration of warranty which was 3 years (so from Sept 2009).

I now feel pretty strongly, that in this situation I do not believe liability stops with warranty.

Here is my reasoning.

1) Is it fit for purpose? No. Over time and with the general movement of the caravan and usage of the shower, the plastic has cracked, meaning it is either too thin or has not been supported correctly.

2) Has it lasted a reasonable amount of time? No. If you look at usage of a caravan, in our case it get's used probably 3 times per year for holidays in the UK since we bought it. So since 2010 when we bought it (and our first holiday in it was Summer 2011) the shower tray has been used no more than 60 times. Compare that to our en-suite shower tray in the house that has been used daily for 10 years without a problem.

3) Is the product of merchantable quality? Questionable. At the time of purchase you would never consider a shower tray cracking, otherwise what is the point of having a shower in a caravan if you cannot use it. You don't buy any product and think "I must not use that function for fear of breaking it".

The question is this. Is this reasonable enough to expect the company to provide partial or full assistance to rectify the fault?

I am quite happy to put in a Small Claims application but wanted to check I could have a case.

Any advice or thoughts would be most welcome...

Thanks

Jon

Hintza

I think you have put forward a well reasoned argument, but unfotunately that will not be enough.

bluejonny wrote: »

Is this reasonable enough to expect the company to provide partial or full assistance to rectify the fault?

You need to get an expert to look at the shower and write up a report on their findings, even if they find in your favour you can still expect a deduction for use you have had. If yo base that on 6 years that would be 50% (caveat:- assuming it was agreed on linear depreciation) you could argue that it should last say 10 years then reduction would be less.

I think your biggest problem would be finding an expert as I imagine this could all be subjective.

I'm quite surprised the company haven't offered you something eg a base at cost.

Buzby

Very difficult. I have a similar issue with an Auto-Trail Motorhome costing £45,000 where the first 5 or so were built as a new model and stupid errors meant after rain, the roof retained 5 gallons of water with no way of draining (other than evaporation or stopping quickly). Outside in winter, this froze, resulting in the roof seals breaking down and leaking internally.

This happened at 4 years, and the firm just did not want to know - despite later models designing out this weakness. Barristers opinion was 20/80 of success, so we had to abandon the idea. The warranty period would be deemed reasonable and all claims would need to be lodged before expiry.

bluejonny

How do you think a "punt" would go down in terms of a Small Claims case? By the look of it, it seems it could go either way based on your comments.

shaun_from_Africa

You stated that you bought the caravan in 2010 and that the warranty ran from September 2009, so I'm assuming that you bought it secondhand.
If this is the case, did you buy it from Baileys or was it purchased from someone else?

bluejonny

it was a private sale and we paid to transfer the warranty. The people who had it before did not use the shower as they were an older couple. They only used the caravan a couple of times realizing it was too big for them!! It still had the original stickers on the plastic. In fact one is still on there!

shaun_from_Africa

In that case, small claims action is pointless.

The Sale of goods act only applies between the retailer and the original purchaser.
You didn't buy from Baileys so apart from the warranty, you have no contract with them, and as a warranty is something that is provided in addition to your statutory rights, the warranty provider is perfectly entitled to limit any repairs or replacements to the period stated in that warranty.

When buying privately (as in your case), there is no requirement for the goods sold to be durable or fit for purpose provided that when sold they are as described.

bluejonny

Ok, thanks everyone for the replies here much appreciated.

forgotmyname

Write to some of the caravan magazines and see if you can find other owners with similar issues.
Maybe you can prove they fitted them poorly or didnt provide enough support when manufacturing them.

Spread the word. Potential buyers may think twice before buying a Bailey caravan.

Failing that. Plastic welding? Or a fibreglass insert for the tray to mater it watertight and stronger?