Bereaved grandmother denied a refund on caravan holiday

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by David Bates

Confusion for distressed caravanner

A recently bereaved woman was refused a refund by her favourite caravan park for a honeymoon holiday she had booked prior to the death of her soon-to-be-wed partner.

Jean Kinahan, 78, from Croydon, lost her betrothed to an extensive battle with heart disease on Monday (27 July). Having been together for 20 years, the couple had intended to tie-the-knot when James Burgess was discharged from hospital.

Their prospective honeymoon to Bunn Leisure’s West Sands Holiday Park fell through when Burgess unfortunately passed away approximately six weeks after being admitted to Croydon University Hospital with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

There seems to have been some confusion between Bunn Leisure and Kinahan when she tried to reclaim her £424 fee.

Kinahan was understandably outraged at the company’s refusal: “They said if your partner was sick we could give you a refund but death doesn’t constitute a refund.”

“When I spoke to them again, they told me to fax or send over his death certificate – I couldn’t believe it”, added the grieving woman.

Bunn Leisure insist, however, that it is a misunderstanding blown out of proportion in a situation the company had previously never experienced.

Philip Mitcheson-Smith, general manager at Bunn Leisure said: “Death is not covered in the terms of the cancellation policy.

“If you have a cancellation, people need to provide documentary evidence and in this case it’s a death certificate.”

“Obviously we get a number of cancellation requests so our reception team have to work to the letter of the cancellation policy.”

Bunn Leisure are now working with Kinahan to come to a reasonable compromise and rectify this regrettable situation.

Caravanners confident of their own road-safety

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by David Bates

New survey gives caravanners green light for safety

A new survey has revealed caravan and motorhome users believe themselves to be the safest of all road-users.

Caravan specialists, Shield Total Insurance, have conducted a survey of 400 UK caravan and motorhome users in response to a recent Brake survey which suggested that drivers tend to favour their own ability and dish out blame on others.

Caravanners also bore the brunt of another new survey, which labelled them the UK’s worst drivers.

Shield’s survey, however, finds the opposite, 83 per cent of those questioned described themselves as ‘safer’ or ‘much safer’ than other drivers, whilst the Brake report has this figure at 69 per cent amongst other users.

Meanwhile, confidence amongst caravanners is significantly greater than towards the general population. Only 52 per cent felt threatened by the driving of other caravanners, whereas 87 per cent felt imperiled by other drivers, of those, one in nine every time they take to the road.

The Shield Survey found a multitude of driving offences, amongst them tailgating, speeding, changing lanes without looking properly and running red lights, to be significantly lower, by around a third, in caravanners, than the Brake survey gaged in other motorists.

Further, caravanners are less likely to willfully break traffic laws, and the majority of the 48 per cent who admitted to breaching regulations, did so inadvertently.

With so much bad press directed towards caravan driving recently, is this a satisfying retort? Or unjustified self-confidence?

Woolacombe Bay is crowned Britain’s best holiday park

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by Ellie Pritchard

And the winner of Britain’s best holiday park 2015 is… Woolacombe Bay!

The nation has voted and, after a close Great British Park Off competition, run by Towergate Insurance, we can announce that Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks has been named as Britain’s best holiday park 2015!

The proud owner of Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks, Rudi Lancaster, told Towergate: “We’re over the moon to have beaten off some really tough competition to win Towergate’s Great British Park Off and we’re absolutely delighted so many of our customers love what we do so much they took the time to vote for us.

“So to thank all of our guests, and to introduce our park to families who’d like to see for themselves what makes us a winner, we’ll be having a big celebration over the August Bank Holiday weekend,” Lancaster concluded.

All four of Woolacombe Bay’s holiday parks have room for you to pitch up, with 16-amp electrical hook ups, awning space and use of the park’s facilities.

You can check out Woolacombe Bay’s camping and caravanning offers here.

UK drivers don’t bite their tongues in new survey about parking fees

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by Ellie Pritchard

A recent AA survey has revealed what drivers really think of parking charges

After the results of a recent AA study, high streets minister Marcus Jones’ call for free parking in small towns may have to be extended to bigger ones.

For most people, the cost of parking will often determine where they visit, so with Brighton charging £5-25 to park for six hours at the seaside, compared to £3-7 to park along the Eastbourne promenade, or £5-8 at Southend-on-Sea and £0-6 along the front at Clacton-on-Sea, the cost of parking could decide whether or not visitors return.

The recent AA-Populus survey, taken between 28 April and 6 May this year, has revealed that ‘disillusion and deep-rooted scepticism’ about what determines parking charges leaves 89 per cent of the 18,688 drivers questioned believing that parking charges are used to benefit council income and operator company profits, as opposed to simply providing a service.

This supports the view of the 67 per cent of AA members that think councils and companies that run parking often treat drivers badly.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, nearly one in three AA members agree that there aren’t enough parking spaces available and there isn’t enough work being done to improve provision.

The study also revealed that a huge 86 per cent of the drivers surveyed said that parking spaces are often too small to accommodate the size of modern cars. But this disillusionment and lack of trust has tainted driver perception of council attempts to make car park charge payments more flexible, such as paying by phone.

When the survey asked drivers how readily they would take to paying for parking using their mobile phones, over half of the respondents said that they had no interest.

A tiny seven per cent of drivers said they would be interested in paying by phone, but are put off by the number of different schemes, areas and operators available, and 18 per cent of the people surveyed said that they haven’t even come across pay by phone parking.

Of the survey results, AA president, Edmund King, said: “The minister’s recent intervention chimes well with the overwhelming opinion of AA members and other drivers. He just needs to extend those sentiments to council-run parking in bigger towns.

“For the majority of drivers, the concept of councils elected by the people to serve the people does not appear to apply to car parking. The deep-rooted suspicion is that parking charges and penalties serve only one purpose – propping up council coffers,” King continued.

When the AA was asked whether the government should take further steps to make sure parking supports local shops and high streets, it responded by claiming that one of the problems with parking is the inconsistency of pricing and provision amongst different local authorities.

King added: “In its response to the Department for Communities and Local Government‘s call for evidence on parking reform, the AA highlighted a major advantage of council parking – it is regulated, unlike private parking.”

Sporty Swift Rio motorhome range expanded with two new models for 2016

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by Joe Jeffrey

Two new models and exciting updates heading to the Rio range for 2016

Swift has extended its Rio motorhome range, launched last year, with the addition of two new compact models.

First up, the two seater, two berth, low-line Rio 310, with parallel front lounge with side kitchen and rear washroom with separate shower should provide everything required for a couple wishing to escape. Meanwhile, the four seater, two berth, low-line Rio 325 provides a travelling dinette with side washroom and kitchen, as well as a fixed rear transverse bed which can be electronically operated in order for it to be raised to maximise garage space beneath. A new bike rack fixing on the rear to allow for the easy mounting of a bike rack will feature on both models.

The Rio two seater two berth 320, with side kitchen and washroom and rear parallel lounge, and the four seater, four berth Rio 340 will remain within the range for the new season.

2016 will also see the addition of Swift’s SMART Plus intelligent construction system on all Rio models, featuring a number of key enhancements. These include: a new sandwich floor construction with a GRP outerskin providing greater protection and durability from the elements; and upgraded hail resistant roof; and a front window jig which will feature full GRP and foam construction.

The Swift Rio 310 and 325 will be six metres in overall length, whilst the 320 and 340 are 6.4 metres long as per last year. All models are 2.26 metres with the mirrors folded.

Other additions to the Rio range include a new DAB radio and 100W solar panel, as well as a new 12V socket and USB socket – handy for the new dash mounted tablet holder.

With the new season in mind, new graphics will also come as standard, in an attempt by Swift to appeal to the whole family, as well as tinted Seitz C8 windows, LED running lights and front marker lights, and front and rear valances on side skirts to add to the sporty look Swift has gone for.

Moving inside to the interior in a little more depth, the furniture is in ‘Aralie Sen’ woodgrain for 2016, alongside new gloss upper locker doors, with smoked inlays, complementing the ‘Loxley’ soft furnishings, whilst the washroom fittings have seen an update as have what’s in the kitchen.

A new digital control panel has been fitted to control the heating and hot water, with the option to upgrade to Truma’s iNet box to allow for remote control and monitoring of the Truma boiler heating system.

All models will come with a TRACKER Retrieve Thatcham approved tracking system (category 7) as standard, along – of course – with Swift’s 10-year body integrity warranty.

All models will be powered by the Fiat 2.3 litre, 130bhp Euro5+ turbo disel engine with 6-speed gearbox, weighing in at 3.5 Tonnes. A fiat Comfort-Matic automatic gearbox is also available as an option to those looking to steer away from a manual drive.

The Rio range was launched last season to offer coachbuilt luxury in the size of a panel van, proving popular to first time motorhomers and those looking for a compact motorhome alike.

Pensioner driven to sell her caravan after being pestered by UFOs

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by Ellie Pritchard

Extraterrestrial beings are trying to contact humans by using caravans, says 72 year old lady

For years and years, we humans have been wondering if we’re alone in the universe, but caravanner, Helen Chapman, 72, certainly doesn’t think so. In fact, she claims she is being harassed by extraterrestrials.

Chapman, who is convinced that aliens are trying to contact her ever since spotting three triangular UFOs while watching the sunset in her caravan at the end of June, heard a loud bang one evening and, upon inspection, noticed that a dent had been made on one of the external walls of her caravan.

Sadly, she’s now so terrified that she will be selling the vehicle in which she has lived for 11 years.

The ex-hospital cleaner was given such a fright from the UFO sighting that she refused to go back into her lounge area for a month. To compensate, she watched her 52 inch flat screen television in her lobby.

Explaining the terrifying ordeal, Chapman told The Sun: “I’ll never forget hearing that huge bang on the back of the caravan. It was about 11 at night. As soon as I heard it I knew it was the aliens.

“I think they want to have contact with us and they are using the caravan as a way of contacting us and want to get some kind of message through, like a portal.

“I am afraid to look outside at night now. I am an old lady. What would they want with me? I think they want to use my caravan as a contact point.

“I am a level-headed person and was not what you would call a ‘believer’ before this happened.”

There could be some truth to the freaky report though, because there was a separate sighting of a UFO in the same week, just 25 miles away from Chapman’s caravan.

A video recording of the sighting showed a ball of light hovering over houses, moving backwards and forwards. When questioned, experts said that Chapman’s description was consistent with other flying saucer reports and “warrants investigation”.

Despite being confident in what she saw, Chapman isn’t afraid to admit that she doesn’t expect people to believe her, as even her daughters laughed when she told them about her extraterrestrial experience.

The pensioner from Luton confessed: “I know by coming forward and saying I have seen a UFO, I am opening myself up to ridicule but I don’t lie.

“I don’t want to do that but I feel like I am being watched and being targeted and it’s been a frightening experience – not one that I would choose to happen.”

UFO spotter and ex-British Transport Police detective, Gary Heseltine, supported Chapman and told The Sun: “The fact that she saw three objects all hovering together makes it more unusual than most sightings.

“It’s certainly a very interesting case. Because she is used to seeing the planes in the area and knowing what they look like, I would be surprised if she had mistook them for something.

“A lot will depend on the speed that the objects were travelling. It definitely warrants more investigation.”

Have you had any freaky extraterrestrial experiences when out caravanning? Let us know in the comments below.

Unwanted caravan dumped in skip – yes a skip

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by Ellie Pritchard

Newport man skips common sense when trying to dispose of his old caravan

A cheeky Newport man gave a waste collector the shock of his life yesterday, as he ordered a skip from hire firm GD Environmental and filled it with an old caravan.

Tyrone Covell, 43, cracked up laughing when he turned up to collect the skip and saw a caravan – more than twice the size of the skip – sat on top.

Covell explained his wacky finding: “I’ve been working as a skip driver for over nine years and I’ve come across some strange things before. I’ve seen items such as a wedding dress and an empty coffin but a caravan in a skip is a new one to me.

“I called the office straight away as I thought they were pulling a practical joke on me. While I was on the phone I was looking around expecting them to all jump out laughing.
“When you come to think of it, at least it’s one less on the roads, making Sunday driving a little easier,” he continued.

But what makes this story even more hilarious is that the customer called up GD Environmental, who managed to dispose of the caravan yesterday, asking for a list of banned items, and it didn’t specify that caravans weren’t allowed.

Of the incident, Melissa Hodges, from GD Environmental, said: “It was just a normal skip hire. When people book the skip they ask us what they can’t put in there and this customer did too.

“So we gave them a quite an obvious list with all the things people sometimes put in there but shouldn’t – but of course we didn’t say you can’t put a caravan in there as it’s blatantly obvious you can’t put a caravan in a skip.

“He had to tell the customer it must be broken down for us to take it, as we just cannot take it like that.”

She added: “I think they were just pushing it a bit, they had some real cheek. It’s definitely the funniest thing we’ve had in a skip. We also had to tell them we have to charge extra for the tyres too. There wasn’t any other rubbish in there which we could see so it seems like they just hired it for the caravan.”

But we think the real question here is how on Earth did he get that caravan in the skip?

Caravanners are the happiest people in the UK according to recent findings

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by Daniella Almeida

Recent survey conducted by The Caravan Club prove that caravanners, motorhomers, and campers are happier and less anxious than the rest of the population

Caravanners rejoice! Your favourite hobby is keeping you healthy and contented.

Recently, members of The Caravan Club were asked to rate their ‘happiness’ on a scale of one to ten. And an impressive 42 per cent answered with a nine out of ten. Compare that to when the British public were surveyed by the Office for National Statistics who posed the same question, and only 33 per cent of the rest of the British public answered as cheerfully.

When surveyed about their ‘satisfaction with life’, 41 per cent of Caravan Club members answered with another nine out of 10, again refusing to pale in comparison to the rest of the UK, of whom only 27 per cent agreed. It might just be time for a few more Brits to go out, buy a caravan, and enjoy the great outdoors!

The survey also noted that caravanners proved to be less anxious than most. But who wouldn’t be with the freedom to travel wherever and whenever they want? 47 per cent of members rated their anxiety at one out of 10. That’s nothing compared to the 39 per cent of the rest of the nation that claim to be less anxious.

Of the findings, fellow caravanner and celebrity Rowland Rivron told The Caravan Club: “I would definitely say I was a happy chap, and I definitely love our gorgeous caravan. It’s something about knowing you can just go wherever and whenever it takes your fancy. Everything, bar throwing a few clothes in the bag, is ready to go. It’s knowing we have that potential for being outside, free from constraints of a package holiday, at any time. And at very little cost!

“Freedom always makes people happy; and being outside makes people happy,” Rivron continued.

Having looked at the results of The Caravan Club’s survey, we’d certainly have to agree with Rivron and it should be noted that members of The Caravan Club feel more worthwhile. When asked to rate their feelings on the matter, 48 per cent of members responded with a nine out of 10 (only 33 per cent of the population answered the same way).

We here at CaravanTimes think it’s about time the rest of the British public joined the club and lead a much happier life! What do you think of these statistics? Let us know why you enjoy caravanning so much in the comments below.

Marquis Motorhomes relocates head office to accommodate successful growth

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by Jessica Almeida

Success in the company leads to relocating and expansions

The UK’s largest motorhome dealership network, Marquis , is relocating its head office facility from its origins at Marquis Hampshire to larger facilities at Marquis Lancashire, in Preston.

The relocation is due to the company’s successful growth over the past few years with an aim to meet future expansion plans. Marquis Lancashire’s all-new facilities will include an extended administration and aftersales team to supply increased service for both the business and its customers.

Within the group’s network, Marquis Lancashire is one of the largest sites. In recent years it has seen expansion and refurbishments, with the new location said to be fitting to support the growth of the business in the North of England.

The company has made significant investment to advance its integrated computer systems to further improve administration across all 11 nationwide branches.

The relocation will take place during the month of September, which is when training will take place for the new team, as yet unannounced. Within the next few weeks information about the new head office team will be made available.

For updates and more information visit the Marquis website here.

Caravanning profits on rise with caravan popularity

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by Daniella Almeida

Profit, turnover, and employment for leisure vehicle insurance company proves caravanning is here to stay

A surge in caravanning holidays over the past year has seen not only more people hitting the roads to explore the great outdoors, but has also meant many caravan insurance companies have been reaping the benefits associated with the popular pastime.

According to documents filed at Companies House, one caravan-related insurance company, Caravan Guard, has reported a 51 per cent increase in profits for the year to the end of March 2015 to £1.14m.

Within the twelve-month period documented, the insurance company, which provides insurance for touring caravans, motorhomes, trailer tents and other types of policies pertaining to the caravanning and holiday industry, recorded a profit of £757,450.

The company also recorded a turnover of £7.16m for the year – a 10.8 per cent increase from last year’s turnover of £6.46m. The documents revealed that the number of people employed by the firm increased from 92 to 109 within the last year.

With an increase in the number of caravanners looking to explore the great outdoors – perhaps more so than ever before – the future’s certainly looking bright for the caravanning industry; long may it continue.

The Caravan Club offers last minute getaways to France

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by Jessica Almeida

Explore the picturesque campsites in France’s famous wine-producing region, but act quickly – they’ll be gone before you can crush a grape!

Families interested in exploring the best of France’s famous wine-producing region as a last minute treat to themselves are being invited to contact The Caravan Club now, in order to secure some brilliant last minute offers.

One of The Club’s recommended campsites currently advertised is Château de l’Epervière, situated between Beaune and Mâcon, in the heart of Southern Burgundy.

Getting there is easy, with direct routes form Dover to Calais with DFDS Seaways, following which a short trip should see you hitching up in no time.

A last minute seven-night stay at Château de l’Epervière, where families will be able to enjoy exploring all that the region’s countryside has to offer, with swimming and fishing onsite, as well as local cycling path ‘Voie Verte’ passing vineyards and villages, costs just £439 based on two adults and two children (under 12), and includes one car and a caravan (caravan up to 8m in length), ferry crossing and, of course accommodation for the duration.

For couples who want to enjoy more of what France’s wine region has to offer, The Caravan Club’s fully escorted tour, entitled Wines of Burgundy, might just be for you. The tour, which will see friendly Caravan Club hosts take care of you throughout your holiday, will also offer the opportunity to enjoy wine tasting at the onsite château, as well as allow for a visit to local vineyards and more, whilst spending seven nights at Château de l’Epervière. The tour runs through 26th August to the 4th September and is priced at £699 for two adults.

If you are interested in booking contact The Caravan Club directly on 01342 488713 now. With deals that appealing on the palette, we might just have to raise our glasses to that.

Changes to the Vehicle Excise Duty coming into full effect in April 2017

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by Daniella Almeida

Low CO2 emissions cars may prove to be less cost effective in the future as changes are made to the VED bands according to road users’ opinion

Three out of five AA members agree that the change in the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) system, set for introduction in April 2017, will have an adverse impact in the sale of low CO2 emissions cars.

Presently, there are 13 CO2-based VED bands in the UK which range from A (paying zero in tax) to M (at a cost of £505 in tax). Starting in 2017, however, cars that emit no CO2 will pay nil, whilst all others will be required to pay £140, which is currently the standard fee.

Drivers become subject to the two-tier system after one year following the purchase of their car, with the VED applicable for the first year is at a banded rate. If your car is registered before the April 2017 start date, these changes won’t apply to you just yet.

With these changes comes the stipulation that drivers purchasing cars over £40,000 must pay an additional £310 supplement for five years.

The current system, which was introduced in 2001, drastically changed CO2 emissions in the UK as drivers began to opt for more fuel efficient cars. At the time, average UK new car emissions were 178 gCO2/km which dropped to 173 gCO2/km by 2003. Since then, it has dropped to 125 gCO2/km.

These new changes may just raise that number again. Members of the AA believe that drivers should just take the standard £140 tax rate and buy any car of their choosing.

Of the changes, AA President Edmund King said, “Whilst our members realised that the system needed to be reformed they think that the proposed system will not encourage the take up of lower emission vehicles.”

The purchase of fuel efficient cars may just become obsolete soon. What do you think of these changes to the system?