2 days ago
5
BBC
Joanne Horner-Bloomfield says she is "devastated" to have to rely on food banks since losing so much money from her caravan
About 1,200 caravan owners across the UK, many of whom say they feel "ripped off", are to begin legal action against the holiday parks that sold them.
Members of the Holiday Park Action Group (HPAG) are seeking compensation for what they say are unfair increases in annual pitch fees and misleading claims about the value of static caravans at the time of purchase.
The legal proceedings follow a BBC investigation that revealed how people had lost their life savings, inheritance and pensions when the holiday homes they had bought lost value.
One of the parks involved said it gave "comprehensive information" to all prospective buyers, while another said its sales contracts were "clear and readily understood".
Joanne Horner-Bloomfield, 65, is one of those joining the legal action.
She said she "lost everything" after buying a static caravan on Watermill Leisure Park in Lincolnshire and now relies on food banks.
In summer 2022, she used £29,995 from the sale of her late mother's house to buy the caravan, spending an additional £7,500 for a decking and two storage sheds.
Mrs Horner-Bloomfield spent much of her time at the site, which she said was "a beautiful place".
The annual pitch fee in 2022 was £2,795, but it increased to £3,041 in 2023. When she was told the 2024 fee would be £4,100, she realised she could not afford to keep the caravan.
Mrs Horner-Bloomfield, who worked as a carer before ill health forced her to stop, and does not yet receive a pension, asked to sell the caravan back to the park owners in September 2023.
However, she was told they no longer purchased caravans manufactured more than 10 years ago.
She said the park also told her that her caravan would only fetch about £5,000 on the open market.
Mrs Horner-Bloomfield said: "I was stunned. I said why did you charge me £29,995 a year ago for something that was only worth £5,000? And he said, 'well it's business isn't it?' I was furious."
Watermill Leisure Park said its dealings with Mrs Horner-Bloomfield were "fair and transparent" and it provided buyers with a "clear and readily understood sales contract".
It said it was "under no obligation to buy back a holiday caravan" but any offers it does make are "a fair reflection of the value to the park of that holiday home at that particular moment", based on factors such as time of year and level of demand.
A spokesperson said sales staff also advise that holiday caravans are intended as a long-term purchase.
Joanne Horner-Bloomfield says she was told her caravan at Watermill had lost £25,000 in value in just over a year
Mrs Horner-Bloomfield said she felt "betrayed and let down" because she had not been informed how low the resale value of her caravan would be when she purchased it.
She eventually sold her caravan for £5,500, of which £500 was paid to Watermill as a disconnection fee.
She added: "It just broke my heart. I'm devastated that at 65 years of age I'm reduced to using a food bank.
"The money that I was hoping to walk away with would have made life so much easier for me."
Mrs Horner-Bloomfield said she hoped the legal action would help her.
"It would be nice if we win and could get some of our money back, but more importantly would be to make a law to stop these unscrupulous site owners from taking people's life savings."
'Disgusting practices'
HPAG, which has organised the group action, says most caravans were sold by parks at a "significantly marked-up price" which led to "substantial losses" if buyers later decided to sell.
HPAG has 70,000 members in a Facebook group where caravan owners voice complaints.
Carole Keeble, the group's founder, said existing regulations were failing to protect consumers from "unfair commercial practices" on an "industrial scale".
She hoped the group's legal action would put an end to such practices and called on the government to address the "significant issues across the sector".
The High Court will give a ruling based on a small number of identified test cases. Hugh Preston KC, the group's barrister, hopes it will pave the way for the rest of the claimants to get compensation too. He is representing about 1,200 people.
James Richardson and his wife, Emma, said they found themselves "haemorrhaging money" after buying a holiday home
The first claim will ask the High Court to declare whether or not the annual pitch fee increases written into the contract between park owners and caravan buyers are fair and enforceable - and if not, whether the buyers are entitled to a refund.
The second claim will ask a judge to decide whether the holiday parks selling the caravans should be expected to explain to buyers, before purchase, that caravans lose substantial value if resold after only a few years - and if so, whether they can be compensated for the lost value.
Mr Preston KC told the BBC: "It's essentially an unregulated sector, there's no statutory regulations that tell parks what to do or how to behave… and there are a wide range of issues that consumers feel they're just not getting fair value from."
A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade said it was "aware of the difficulties that some holiday home owners have experienced" and was committed to protecting consumers from "rogue practices".
They added the government had plans to introduce tough financial penalties for breaches of consumer law.
Some of those joining the legal action shared their stories with the BBC as part of our investigation in October.
They include James and Emma Richardson, from Cleethorpes, who lost more than £50,000 over two years of owning a caravan at Tattershall Lakes Country Park in Lincolnshire. Mr Richardson hopes the case can "put an end" to the "disgusting practices" by some holiday parks.
Sally Nicholls, from Sheffield, used her entire pension pot and borrowed money to buy a £69,000 caravan at the same park. She only managed to get £15,000 for it when she sold it three years later. She says trying to change the law was "more important" to her than winning compensation.
Away Resorts
Tattershall Lakes Country Park is run by Away Resorts Holidays
Sally Nicholls says she hopes the legal action will push the industry to change
Away Resorts, which runs Tattershall Lakes Country Park, said in October that it provided all prospective buyers with "comprehensive information, including detailed terms and conditions" to ensure they knew the potential risks of caravan ownership.
It said it had no further response to add about the launch of the legal action.
Industry representatives, the British Holiday and Home Park Association, said it was not appropriate to comment.
The National Caravan Council said it was aware of the legal action but would not be commenting further.
