Caravan Warranties

[bertieboy1]

Putting out some enquiries for purchase of new caravan.One dealer warned me to be aware that if I bought a van from one dealer but wanted warranty work carried out by another dealer (for example a dealer nearer home) then the second dealer may not carry out the work presumably because the van was not purchased from them.
Is this common practice.

 

[Dustydog]

Bertie

Bailey say:- In the unusual event of something going wrong your first contact should always be your supplying retailer[/

Swift sa:- y In the unusual event that a fault develops and you need to claim under Body Shell Warranty or the SuperSure Warranty, your first contact should normally be made through the dealer from whom the caravan was purchased. If this is not feasible then a claim may be dealt with by a different authorised Swift Group Service Centre, please contact the Swift Group Customer Service Department on 01482 875740 or enquiring on our website: www.swiftgroup.co.uk directly for details.

The rest say pretty much the same.
They know full well your contract for sale is with the Dealer who supplied the caravan.
It is well documented Dealers receive a lower rate per hour from manufacturers for warranty or guarantee work.

Most dealers prefer to look after their own customers problems than someone elses.
There is no Law yet that I am aware of that says you can demand warranty work is carried out at another dealer.

This why over the years so many people have purchased at a show to find the Dealer is hundreds of miles away and they have to do the travelling in their own time and at their own expense. So cheaper isn't always best.

Personally we always buy locally to avoid these very problems.
Maybe the day will come when Caravan Manufacturers give us the same aftercare service as Car makers

 

[Damian]

This subject has been covered many times over the years.
The simple facts are that your contract to buy and the warranty are with the dealer you buy from.
The manufacturer has no interest or part to play as dealers are private sellers, not part of a franchise.
Other dealers are not obliged to carry out any work on your van.

This is the main reason that it may appear cheaper to buy from a distant dealer but if things go wrong you have the added expense and inconvenience of returning to that dealer.

 

[ProfJohnL]

When you buy any retail product you automatically have rights afforded to you under either the Sale of Good Act before OCt 2015 or the Customer Rights Act after October 2015. These are the basis of your legal rights and they are based on your contract of sale which is with your seller not necessarily the manufacturer.

Both you and your seller have made your positions clear such as your relative addresses, and if either party were unhappy with any of the pre contract details you would of course not signed to agree the contract.

If you had been aware that your rights rested solely with your seller, but the seller is too far away for you, you may possibly have not agreed to purchase, but legally this works both ways, and under both acts, the seller is responsible for all transit costs to rectify faulty goods!

So presuming the seller had your address, and if they were concerned about the distance they would not have agreed the contract. The fact they did agree the contract means they have accepted the risk of costs involved with travelling to effect warranty repairs under the your statutory rights.

However the same is not true when you have elected to have product failure repaired under the Manufacturer's Guarantee. This is not covered by SoGA or the CRA, and the manufacturer can limit their offer in any way they choose. Most decline to cover recovery costs.

So as a customer you have statutory rights, but the seller would prefer you to use the manufacturer's Guarantee becasue if you elect to use it, the dealer is not responsible for recovery costs.

The big question is, do dealers ask you which scheme you want to use? or do they make an assumption on your behalf, which actually costs you money, time and effort?

Look up your rights under SoGA and the CRA.

 

[Hutch]

Bertiboy, I have had a different experience recently, with Warranty. In the summer my Coachman developed a crack in the rear panel. But due to the dealer I purchased it from discontinued dealings, I contacted Coachman who advised me to just contact another dealer to process the warranty claim. Unfortunatley the first dealer could not even look at my van until January, due to high load of work.
I contacted DLS, in Newark who do servicing and Warranty claims for several different makes and they promptly helped me out. So maybe like myself, you do not have to go back to the original dealer. There must be other places that arrange for Warranty work to be done.

 

[Raywood]

The position seems to vary from place to place. Around here we have lost all except one dealer who is now so inundated with work they will only do anything for customers who bought from them. This is not a criticism of them, they simply do not have the capacity, and there must be scope for new dealers to set here. In other areas you might find a dealer who can help.
If you buy from a remote dealer get the position in writing as to what they will do for you in the event of problems. In practice you can get servicing done by any NCC approved workshop so you should be able to do that although, Swift only guarantee work carried out by their own dealers so if the workshop do something wrong you have to go against the workshop.