Caravan Chaos for Consumers

The caravan and recreational vehicle (RV) market in Australia has been surging in the face of covid, lifestyle changes, and international travel restrictions.

According to the Caravan Industry Association of Australia 1 in 13 Australian households own a caravan. The ever-increasing number of buyers has seen a proliferation of manufacturers and suppliers offering their wares.

The purchase of a caravan or RV is not only a significant one financially, but also carries the emotional investment involved in securing that dream of freedom, travel, and experiencing all that Australia has to offer.

Increasing Issues

The ACCC has reported a rising number of complaints received about caravans over the past 5 years, including delays in supply and repairs, misrepresentations about performance capabilities, tow-weight, the availability of repairs, and warranties and their impact on consumer guarantees, and quality issues with caravans and their components.

Your Rights

Consumer Guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law (“the ACL”) provide remedies for consumers if the product supplied is not of acceptable quality. Consumers can choose to have a product replaced, repaired or refunded if there is a major fault. A retailer can choose the remedy for minor faults.

The consumer guarantee provisions in the ACL operate regardless of any right under a warranty provided by a manufacturer or supplier and any such warranty does not affect the rights of a consumer under the ACL.

Furthermore, suppliers are obligated to remedy the consumer for failures by manufacturers regardless of whether the manufacturer indemnifies them.

Remedies

The concerning trends in the industry has raised the interest of the ACCC who have been taking enforcement action against unscrupulous suppliers and manufacturers taking advantage of consumers.

If you have incurred financial losses incurred by the supply of a caravan of unacceptable quality, you may have a right to recover damages from the supplier or manufacturer.

Remember it is very important to retain evidence including communications, photographs and receipts, to provide you the best opportunity to recover the damages you are entitled to.

If you think you have incurred damages resulting from delays, misrepresentations, or the supply of a caravan of unacceptable quality, get in touch with our team.