by Joe Jeffrey
Never worry about buying the wrong battery again, thanks to the NCC’s new verification scheme, set for launch this October
The National Caravan Council (NCC) will officially launch its Verified Leisure Battery Scheme this autumn at the Motorhome & Caravan Show 2015. The scheme looks set to provide product verification for batteries used in leisure vehicles.
With modern leisure vehicles featuring more technology and electrical appliances than ever before, buying an NCC verified leisure battery should provide consumers confidence that the battery they purchase for use is fit for purpose and will perform as advertised. Also, the NCC will encourage its leisure vehicle member manufacturers to fit NCC verified leisure batteries.
Battery verification comes via a comprehensive, industry leading, testing process conducted by suitably certified and audited test houses. Batteries will be verified, and labelled accordingly, into three categories, A,B,C, depending on their capacity and intended purpose.
Category A is for batteries with a higher storage capacity for people who frequently use their caravans or motorhomes away from electrical hook-ups, whilst category B batteries are aimed at those who frequently use sites with hook-up facilities, but require a greater battery capacity to operate devices such as motor movers. The final category, C, is for users that require a lower capacity battery to cover basic operation of their habitation equipment for short periods away from a hook-up.
David Reid, NCC Standards and Regulations Adviser, said: “The NCC has been aware that consumers could be getting short changed when purchasing a leisure battery because there has been very little guidance on how to match their requirements to the technical specification of the battery.
“Leisure batteries can cost as much as £200 each so we want to make sure that when people buy a new battery they get a product that is suitable for their caravan or motorhome and suits their lifestyle.
“The scheme is designed to bring transparency to the leisure battery marketplace and help consumers select a product that’s right for them. We already have some of the leading leisure battery brands signed up to the scheme, including Banner, Platinum and Yuasa and will continue to bring more on board in the future,” Reid continued.
John Richards, Platinum OE-OES & specialist channel director, said: “We are excited to start working with the NCC moving forward as we believe the NCC Verified Leisure Battery Scheme is right for the industry and our business”.
Consumers can find out more about the scheme on the NCC stand (7.12) at the Motorhome & Caravan Show 2015, and following its launch from leisure vehicle dealers, leisure vehicle and battery manufacturers and via the NCC website here.
