Nightmare! brought a caravan on HP can anybody help?

agrinnall

Did you have the caravan independently inspected before buying? If you had bought a house with those sort of faults they would be your responsibility unless you'd had it inspected and they hadn't been noted, I'm not sure that this is really any different.

Chloese1

Thanks for your replies, firstly I had no idea I could try and claim my money back. We went to the finance company because we weren't getting any joy from the site, it was them who suggested a complaint should be made ( we are very new to this so went with what they suggested)

We are on a ten month site.

We were told everything had passed its checks gas electric etc although we were never given any paperwork.

We were never told of any faults, these were found by us two days after we got the van.

I am unsure what my rights are so I am unsure of what the best thing to do is.

Personally I don't want the van any longer as I have had so many problems with it and with the site.
4 months has felt like a lifetime when I've done nothing but chase up the work to be done week after week to no avail.
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Ectophile

I suspect that the credit company are trying to push you back to the seller because they are worried that they could be held liable if the caravan is faulty.

See http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/technical_notes/goods-and-services-bought-with-credit.html#2a

If you're getting nowhere with the caravan site, push back on the finance company and make it their problem. If they don't help, make a formal complaint, and threaten them with the financial ombudsman.

Chloese1

Thank you so much for this information this gives me a clearer understanding! :-)

knightstyle

So is it a caravan or a mobile home and how old is it?
Anyone buying a ten year old ex-holiday company mobile home must expect it to be worn out and need money spending sooner or later.
Does/did it have a gas safety cert?
I feel you should have checked these things before buying, just like buying a used car.

wealdroam

OP, I know you have said it is a Hire Purchase agreement, but are you sure about that?

Could it perhaps be a personal finance deal or some other form of credit/loan?

Put simply, if it is a personal loan specifically for the purchase of the caravan, then you have the very useful Section 75 of The Consumer Credit Act to help you.
Section 75 of the CCA cannot help if you really have a Hire Purchase agreement.

hollydays

Also, what exactly are the faults.

Chloese1

It is a 2007 westwood lodge
the site set us up with Black Horse total amount was 36k

Yes we were told it had a gas safety inspection although the boiler started leaking after one week and making loud churning noises and have been told there is a problem with the pressure

All faults were never mentioned to us or obvious at the point of sale. We were allowed half an hour to inspect it after that we couldn't go back to it until it was sited which took 2 weeks because the pitch we agreed had been rented out.

As soon as we discovered the faults we reported them , every single one we were told would be sorted ( we waited 3 weeks for a smashed window to be fixed that was the one thing they did do for us ) caused by transporting.

The main faults are
Condemned fire
Bolier
All outside lights
Faulty connectors to the gas bottle
Leaks under the van

There are other faults but these are the ones we wanted to sort out as a priority.

hollydays

Chloese1 wrote: »

It is a 2007 westwood lodge
the site set us up with Black Horse total amount was 36k

Yes we were told it had a gas safety inspection although the boiler started leaking after one week and making loud churning noises and have been told there is a problem with the pressure

All faults were never mentioned to us or obvious at the point of sale. We were allowed half an hour to inspect it after that we couldn't go back to it until it was sited which took 2 weeks because the pitch we agreed had been rented out.

As soon as we discovered the faults we reported them , every single one we were told would be sorted ( we waited 3 weeks for a smashed window to be fixed that was the one thing they did do for us ) caused by transporting.

The main faults are
Condemned fire
Bolier
All outside lights
Faulty connectors to the gas bottle
Leaks under the van

There are other faults but these are the ones we wanted to sort out as a priority.

I've read that it's good practice for large sites to insist on a yearly gas check and there will be a certificate for this . Have you clarified this? Has it been inspected and condemned?

I have also read that damage can occur in transportation .
Surely a gas bottle connector is a small simple replacement?
Exactly what leaks under the van?

When you say you were only allowed half an hour to inspect, it would be your prerogative to ask to go back for a second third or fourth view.

I'm having difficulty understanding why you'd spend this amount of money so casually.
These faults seem small though obviously gas safety is important .
it would have been best to put these issues in a letter, rather than have constant phone calls.

ThumbRemote

hollydays wrote: »

When you say you were only allowed half an hour to inspect, it would be your prerogative to ask to go back for a second third or fourth view.

I'm having difficulty understanding why you'd spend this amount of money so casually.
These faults seem small though obviously gas safety is important .
it would have been best to put these issues in a letter, rather than have constant phone calls.

Whilst the OP could have gone back for further views, it's worth remembering that this was a business sale not a private sale. As such the OP is not responsible for checking everything themselves, the retailer is responsible for that.