Van pdi'd but no damp check

Jul 30, 2007
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Recently purchased a 2013 caravan from my local dealer and was just looking through the pdi check sheet.
Ive just noticed that the "Damp Check" box has not been ticked.
Is this normal practice for a dealer?
 
Nov 11, 2009
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Mine wasn’t done either so I asked them to do one on collection day despite the dealer telling me it would be covered by them. They did one and gave me the sheet showing all okay. I had one of my own done six months later and it was still okay.
 

Damian

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Mar 14, 2005
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Regarding the damp check, it rather depends on when the last service was carried out (if it was ).
A PDI is just that it is not a service in any sense of the word, it is simply that everything that should be there, is , and in its right place and working.

Never expect a dealer to do any more than that they are obliged to do,,,it will not happen !!!

Sadly as with most things caravan related you have to be blunt nosed about it and demand that things , like the damp check, are carried out before parting with any money.
 
Jul 30, 2007
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Thank you.
Sounds like I may have to get a new battery for my damp meter and carry out some checks next time im at the storage compound.
 
Jan 31, 2018
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Our caravans have always had a damp check cert -even the 2 brand new ones were checked by the dealer as part of the sale/delivery process and given to us on the day we bought it. Poor by the dealer imo.
 
May 7, 2012
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A bit too late now but when buying a second hand caravan you do need to make sure there is a recent damp check. If you have the service record and I would have asked for that it should show when it was done and that the damp check was included. I am afraid it is up to you to ask for it, but if it has damp then you can reject the purchase if you do this within 30 days of taking delivery. Time is of the essence therefore.
 
Jul 30, 2007
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I was wondering if you decided to reject a caravan within the correct timescale for legitimate reasons,would you expect to be refunded the original purchase price or dealers current book value even if the caravan hasn't been used.?
 

Damian

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Mar 14, 2005
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If you are talking about your recent purchase, then you have a mountain to climb as you have bought a 2013 van with , as far as we know, an unknown number of previous owners.

You would have to prove a substantial reason and take into account that even though you may not have physically used it, you have had the use of it for however long you have owned it.
 
Jul 30, 2007
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Thank you Damien.
Yes.....understood.
I do have proof from the previous owner that damp was present in the caravan when the dealers workshop examined it before he part exchanged it.
His part ex.value was adjusted accordingly.
I purchased it on 16th Dec.2019 and put it into storage the next day(positioned under one of their cctv cameras) where it hasnt moved an inch.
The dealer has attempted to smear a lot of sealant around the offending part(inside toilet cassette door)but after taking my own damp readings,I have 28%on one side of the toilet in the washroom floor and 20%on the other side.
This was why I asked in my first post about no damp check on the pdi before I collected it.
The joys of caravan ownership eh?
 

Damian

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Mar 14, 2005
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There are a couple of things here.

First of all it would appear that there was a known damp problem when the previous owner sold the van to the dealer, which seems to have been at least attempted to be rectified, but without knowing what the reading was at that time it is impossible to know if the repair was effective or not.

Next is in relation to the kind of damp meter you are using and its accuracy as compared to the dealer damp meter, and the way the damp meter was used.

Next is the damp readings now, with the amount of rain we have had, and still having, then I would fully expect to record higher damp readings than "normal".
The atmosphere is very heavily laden with moisture and its cold, so any sunshine we have will create heat on exposed areas of the van which will cause the cold wet air to condense inside the van and give a higher reading.

Of course with any damp reading it takes an age for the wood to dry out, unless the van is taken in the workshop and dried with heaters., which is a mute point not knowing what facilities the dealer has to get vans indoors.

Lastly you have now owned the van for 79 days so over the 30 day auto rejection time, if that was applicable to the sale of this van, which I am not sure of.

At this time of year I always expect to find higher "damp" readings, but once the weather warms up the readings return to normal, which is why it is standard to recommend rechecking in 3 months, but of course if we continue to have a lot of rain that timescale may have to be extended.
 
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Jul 30, 2007
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Thank you Damien.
Yes,my meter is no where near as good as the professional people use but I think I should be able to moniter the levels with mine over the next few months.(Hopefully, it will gradually decrease).
With my 2013 Olympus,I understand its best to check the 4 corners of the floor,plus under seats,bed,cooker/fridge area?
Although I realise im past the 30 day reject(if applicable) timescale,but am I right that up to 6 months,the onus is on the dealer to prove there was no damp present when I purchased it?
Obviously a letter from the previous owner detailing the conversation he had with the dealers workshop when he traded it in,pointing out the damp,and then saying that in their opinion,with the level of damp,it had probably been leaking through the toilet cassette door for at least 12 months.
I was issued with an insurance based warranty when I purchased it,so im hoping that the damp levels will gradually decrease over time .
If they dont,then I suppose I have to make the decision to keep and let the insurance sort it,part exchange for another or (with the evidence I have)reject.
 
Feb 13, 2020
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I have just bought my 4 yr old caravan with 'damp' around the offside front window edge. The readings were 30+. But, the 'van had lain unused and unheated on the bleakest storage pitch imaginable. All this area on the outside was green, having faced north. Before purchase, i had arranged with a NCA fitter to assess and address it once i got it the 150 miles home.
Between him arriving and getting it home, it sat in good sun with interior heat for a week. In that short time, the readings dropped to around 18. The guy came, and said he couldn't smell any damp, and he couldn't see any tell-tale signs of damp, despite the readings. He told me to leave it while next service, as currently he would not know where to start looking for ingress as there were no obvious signs. The readings now are below 15.
As previously suggested; such a wet and damp winter time as we've had especially with an unheated unit, is going to throw up some abnormal readings.
 
May 7, 2012
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Our Avondale had some high readings at the end of one Winter. As the engineer suggested we ran the heater on high for a couple of hours several days in a row and it disappeared. We did sell it later that year so I cannot say if there was a long term problem but the dealer still talks to us and said nothing.
 
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Jul 18, 2017
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You are covered under CRA 2015 as the caravan is between the 30 days and within the 6 months. However you have to give the dealership ONE opportunity to do the repair and if they fail, you can reject the caravan and hopefully get all your money back. Rather than take my word, why not phone Which legal Services and get the correct advice. Just to add we did and we were very successful..
 
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Jul 30, 2007
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Thank you Buckman.
Judging by the amount of sealant around the joints inside toilet cassette door,it seems that they did make an attempt to seal it inbetween the previous owner part exchanging it and me buying it.
I will continue to take meter readings every few weeks and hopefully all will be ok.
 

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Jul 18, 2017
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I would strongly suggest that you contact the dealer in writing and advise them of the high damp readings. We had thsi issue on a 2011 Lunar and had no end of hassle with the dealer doing patch work. The big danger here is that screws on the frame rust and the rust reacts with the aluminium. This then leads to pock marks on the outer skin.
 
Jul 30, 2007
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Thank you.
Just out of interest,it appears the dealer has attempted a repair.
If the damp readings increase,would their attempted repair count as being "one chance to repair"even though I didnt actually own it at the time,or would I have to approach them and ask them to sort it properly.
Im hoping all will be fine as its a lovely caravan and we dont really want to change it.

P.S.
I think the sealant was applied with a shovel..lol
 
May 7, 2012
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Interesting point, but I think the repair would not count as it was before you bought the caravan. Basically you had 30 days to either accept nor reject the caravan from collection. A letter saying there was a serious damp reading when you took possession but you are prepared to allow time to see if it dries out should work but if you are in either of the club,s I would speak to their legal help line and if not try Citizens Advice.
 
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Jul 18, 2017
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Thank you.
Just out of interest,it appears the dealer has attempted a repair.
If the damp readings increase,would their attempted repair count as being "one chance to repair"even though I didnt actually own it at the time,or would I have to approach them and ask them to sort it properly.
Im hoping all will be fine as its a lovely caravan and we dont really want to change it.

P.S.
I think the sealant was applied with a shovel..lol
That was before purchase so would not count. You need to get the caravan back to the dealership ASAP to get the damp issue resolved as you are still within the 6 month period where you can reject the caravan. Even better if the caravan is on hire purchase finance as you then have the finance company to fight your corner.
 

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