(home) Caravan issues.

[Psychoduck]

Hi guys and girls,

 

seeking some advice for my mother here.

 

She owns a caravan which is currently situated on Marine Park in Rhyl, North Wales. She lives in the caravan for ten months a year and then B&B's for the other 2 months.

 

She had a partner, who basically just took her money and never gave anything back and after a while of us all convincing her, she got rid of him. It was only a 6 month relationship, but during that time she had had to pay for the living of 2 people, on her own because he refuses to claim any financial help, and fell behind a little on her monthly caravan site fees.

 

In December, worried about her situation, she asked if she could switch to paying monthly. She would pay £100 in Jan and Feb, whilst she was having to stay in the B&B, and then the rest of the year she would pay £350 a month, across the next year this would wipe out her debt from this past year and leave her just £200 short of next years fee, which she would hopefully be able to find by next March.

 

This was agreed by one of the staff on site who deals with the sales and such.

 

So she had no worries about anything over christmas and was all good and happy. She got payed a few days ago and was ready to pay them when she got a phone call and was told she had to pay everything she owes in full in March and cant pay monthly across the year.

 

Obviously this was no good, she would need to somehow find £2200 in a month to do that. She said she was told she could do it monthly, and they said they'd look at it again.

 

Today she got called. They want the £2200 now, or else she is not allowed back on the park. All her belongings except clothes are in the caravan. But because it's off season now, they think she should have already payed the £2200, for the 10 months it was open and these 2 months now should be no access anyway (even though you are allowed on to check your caravan) so they've cancelled her access card.

 

She's been told she has to pay £2400 (the £2200 she owes, plus the £100 for Jan and Feb she offered) in order to stay on the park, and if she doesn't pay it by Mid February, they'll scrap her caravan. In the mean time she is not allowed on the park.

 

She was told she would have to sell it. But she can't sell it if it is on their site, as they wont allow it. So they want to charge her £650 for a disconnection, as she can't afford to have it sited somewhere else (no where is doing free sitings at the moment) she would need it to be disconnected and sold immediately which would see her get a payment in scrap value of about £800-£1000 instead of the £7500 a salesman claimed it would be worth if sold privately.

 

But she can't even do this, because she can't get on site to clear her stuff out, making a disconnection and removal a high risk of anything inside breaking.

 

Does anyone know any advice I can give her? any help at all?

 

She realises she is behind in a contract payment, and she has been 100% upfront about it all the time. But she was promises the monthly payments would be fine and sorted out her finances based around that (payed upfront for her B&B) and for them to now tell her they changed their minds and ban her from the park seems a bit ****ty.

 

Thanks for any help

[Lea_HTH]

If losing the caravan will make her essentially homeless (it appears to be her main home for the bulk of the year), then I strongly suggest she goes along to the local authority to see if there is any assistance that they can give her. For householders facing this kind of issue with rental/mortgage payments, there is financial help available - I see no reason why this would also not apply to someone in your mother's situation.

 

I don't know much about caravan parks, but I cannot imagine that they are legally entitled to hold onto her belongings and prevent her access to them, and they definitely cannot just wantonly scrap her caravan for their costs - not without going to court first to prove that she actually owes the debt in the first place (I know she's not denying this).

 

Get her to go along to the local CAB or community law centre for some further advice if the local authority cannot assist her.

[Psychoduck]

I'll tell her to do that in the morning, thanks. She works throughout the night, and sleeps days but should be able to call in straight after work. Hopefully they can help her at the local authority.

[Lea_HTH]

Anything involving law and static caravans is very complicated. If the CO (caravan owner) was on a holiday park, she did not have the legal rights to use the van as her main residence, and because it was not her main residence she probably will not be entitled to rehousing as homeless. Put basically because her park and her contract (also known as licence agreement) is for holiday use, she does not have the protection afforded under housing law.

Under the law the caravan is treated as if it were any other goods, such as a car. The contract is also treated like any other business to consumer contract.

Did they give the CO the proper notice period? did they follow their own contract terms? and Code of Practice. Was she properly informed of her breach of contract and given reasonable time to amend the breach?

Possibly best immediate action for the CO is to apply for a court order for return of her belongings.

I operate an online advice service, dealing specifically with static caravan disputes. The depth of advice I can give you here is very limited, this is a complicated dispute in law.

 

The facts clearly set out that the person was occupying the van for 10 months a year and the site was closed for two months a year, which would imply it's not a 'holiday use only' contract that the person holds. Based on the information that was given, the deduction that there is no issue with the 10 month use is fairly obvious - the dispute is with not paying for a period of time and being asked to pay up again before being allowed back on the site again.

 

No mention of there being a problem with the way the caravan is used, or for how long.

 

Not particularly complicated. Neither is contract law, which is what would govern the rental due on this caravan site.

[Lea_HTH]

The word 'rent' has only been mentioned by you.

 

Your experience doesn't appear to be assisting you with the OP's facts as presented.