Part Ex-ing a caravan

Jan 3, 2014
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Hi, this might seem like daft question. This year has been our first year with a caravan and have had a ball, we are going to the motorhome and caravan show in October with the possibility of looking to purchase a new van. Here is the daft question, if we want to part exchange do we have to take the van with us? Will they take a part ex at the show? Is this why the provide a camp ground?
 
Jun 20, 2005
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DavenGill

Most Deaslers at a show will bite your hand off and offer a good px even though they haven't seen your unit. They will make an offer based on a lot of provisos none or some of which may catch you out later on. Rarely will they look at your caravan at the show.

Whilst the financial deal may appear good there are some very important downsides to buying at a show.
The Dealer may be hundreds of miles from your home.
Who will put things right when they go wrong?
Your Contract for the purchase is with the show Dealer. No one else and not the manufacturer. Thus you will have to travel to get things fixed.
A new caravan is a major purchase. Before the show why not visit a number of reputable dealers near to you. Choose the layout that suits you both best . Get some px figures and delivery dates. Ask if you will be getting a previous years model or the latest.
It is very easy to get sucked into the show glitz and glamour and then the tears follow later.
 
Jan 3, 2014
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Many thanks Dustydog, we are aware that the dealer may be many miles away however we were not aware that the guarantee was with the dealer and not the manufacturer thus as you say there could be a long drive to have a repair carried out.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Whilst I agree with most of what Dusty says,we have bought at shows from dealers a distance from home and when we have needed work done we have always had it done locally to us,depends on the dealer but in many cases it is cheaper for them to supply the part and reimburse you the cost of the fitting than collect your van and return it to you when the work is done. Some dealers will say that you have to return the van to them but if it is a claim under SOGA you should not be left out of pocket by returning the van, watch out for high part exchange value on your existing van ,and the small print will probably say subject to inspection,which will be when you go to collect your new van.
 
Mar 2, 2010
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Referring to not being out of pocket with repairs under SOGA,I think in previous posts a caravan is treated as an item that needs returning to the dealer and as the purchaser chose to buy it at long distance etc.The Prof is the expert but I'd rather buy locally even if it is slightly more expensive
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Deli Dave

I speak from personal experience,and not only have we had replacement/repairs completed locally at no cost to ourselves,we have received compensation for loss of use and inconvenience. We are currently waiting for 2 problems to be resolved and we already have agreement for the parts to be sent to us for local fitting, the delays always seem to be in obtaining the correct parts.When we have bought at a distance it has not been about solely the price,sometimes a particular layout can be in short supply,as was our case with our current caravan.
 
Jun 20, 2005
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Very interesting Woodies boy.

The answer must be to obtain in writing from the show dealer all problems and "dealer" repairs can be done at a local nominated dealer.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Dusty

Yes the buyer needs to be prepared to negotiate,and not get carried away by the 'new caravan' glitz.we have learned from past experience to treat the purchase of a caravan as a business transaction and obtain agreement at the time of the order so that both sides are aware of their responsibilities I would always prefer to deal locally and I know you have high regard for CS, when we bought from them they were very good at the sale and handover and also in servicing and warranty work,it was just that I am not convinced by the Alutech construction /front lockers on Baileys. We were looking for a specific layout also, so we needed to go farther afield to find what we were looking for,IMO some dealers try to duck their responsibilities to the customer and hide behind the wording of warranties from the manufacturers,as you told the OP the contract is with the supplying dealer,it is they that have the responsibility for the goods sold.
 
Jan 3, 2014
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Many thanks to everyone who has taken time to reply, you have certainly given us some valuable information.
 

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