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I have to take Arthur to task regarding his expectations of obtaining a full set of cupboard/drawer fronts for is newly aquired 1994 second hand Fiesta Camper. 

Your first email to us was just prior to the Annual Shutdown and we receive on average almost 100 emails a day asking for advice and the availability of spares at this time of year. We do have a skeleton staff on during this period but their priorities are for emergency spares and breakdowns, some of which come from all over Europe. 

Since your enquiry a storeman has spent over 3 hours searching through our redundant stock furniture, unfortunately without success to date. However, I am unable to ask him to spend anymore time due to a lengthy list of other orders pending.

Should you still wish to pursue purchasing a replacement set of these drawer fronts we will have to order these from our supplier in Germany who will no doubt make a charge for a one off set, somewhere in the region of £200 which will make it uneconomical in this case bearing in mind that your unit is 16 years old.

I can assure you that we do take are responsibilities very seriously when it comes to looking after our Pennine/Conway owners as the previous messages confirm. I do apologise for the lack of communication over this enquiry but this was due to circumstances behond our control.

Howard

THE PENNINE GROUP

CHESTER STREET
ACCRINGTON
LANCASHIRE
BB5 0SD

Telephone: 01254 385991

Our Countryman is 13 years old, the canvas has not faded & is still waterproof, the interior is clean & complete. Is it not worth the couple of hundred I was intending to spend to fit a bedroom extension to the awning?

I find Howards comment about spending £200 on a 16 year old unit being uneconomic unhelpful.  Obviously the person who bought the camper feels that its worth refurbishing although perhaps they didnt expect it to run into hundreds.

Its good that Pennine are prepared to comment on a public forum but I feel that the OP would not have made an issue of it if his initial emails to the company had received a reply - I'm sure he would have been really appreciative to know that the storeman had spent so much time looking through redundant stock. I think the lack of communication has caused unnecessary bad feelings.

Its good to have a forum where advice & encouragement is given so freely

Homebird

Hello Howard of Pennine, let me be clear about my expectations and your shortfalls.

In your comments above you want to take me to task!!!

I have to take Arthur to task regarding his expectations of obtaining a full set of cupboard/drawer fronts for is newly aquired 1994 second hand Fiesta Camper.

WHY, because I thought that a market leader in their field would carry spares!   

My first email ;

Hello,we have just brought a 1994 Pennine fiesta to try to see if we like this type of camping. We would like to buy new draw fronts to clean it up abit before we use it, do you stock these items? If this type of camping suits us we will be buying a new Sterling as we like the layout of that one.Thank you.

At no point have you told me that you cannot supply, (EVEN NOW, YOU HAVE NOT EMAILED ME) If you had, that would have been fine, at least I would have known. Its called effective communication. For a market leader in its field I find it very poor service. I really dont care about your holiday issues, I am the customer. It might be a idea to move with the times, as a leisure/holiday suppier you have a shutdown in peak holiday time. (you couldnt make it up!) I am glad I dont run my buisness like this. I was willing to buy a new Sterling, but not now. I am now going to sell the one we brought and look for something different.

I do think that, like Claydoncamper said above, if I had not put something on this site I would still be waiting! In fact you still have not replied via email even now!

I also think that it was good of you to reply on a forum site, for your company it's a small step in the right direction. 

I would like to thank everyone in this forum, it's a great site, with some very knowledgeable people and its a great help. Keep it up and thank you.

I'll try not to take sides here and try not to make this sound like I am defending Pennine, but here but a few comments from me.

Its not unreasonable for companies to stop offering spares for a camper that is over 10 years old. They probably did have stock that has already been sold. They must at some point draw a line in the sand and not replenish spares stock. Unfortunate for you I know, but sadly true. They have actually offered to get a set made. Now that is going beyond what many companies would do. Most companies would say 'sorry, obsolete, no chance of getting them'. So you do atleast have one positive from this experience.

My 1997 Conway Cruiser has needed a few bits, but I never once contacted Pennine as I understood that the parts would either not exist on their shelves now, or that it would be too much expense on what is an old camper. Its just not worth it.

What is sad is the fact you had so many emails un-answered. I have no kowledge of Pennine, but there are several companies I deal with daily that prefer phone calls, regardless of whether they have an active email account or not. They prefer the personal approach. It may appear rude to you that you have been ignored, but think about if it was the opposite way round. Imagine the posts on here if they decided not to answer the phone calls and instead only responded to emails. I can see how easy it is for emails to get missed, put to one side and then forgotten about. Not a good excuse I know, but in this modern day we are all too reliant on emails and often forget its sometimes better to ring someone up.

If I had a 20 year old Ford Escort and the dealer could not supply me with a brand new set of body panels for it I would not put me off from buying a brand new Ford Focus from them. You have to see there are similarities there. Would you expect Ford to keep stock of obsolete cars on their shelves? Would you email your Ford dealer or call them up? Would it really stop you buying the new car you wanted just because they could not help you with your old car?

Finally, if I was in your position I would not be put off one bit by this I would enjoy the camper as it is for as long as you like. Are you really going to ignore this company just because you bought a camper that needed a bit of tidying up?

Just thinking though, if Howard has time to read & post on a forum surely he has time to reply to a customers email?

Homebird

Let me give you some background info into my intervention. Firstly I am a 67 yr old retired Director and founder of the company. Although I don't actively work on a day to day basis, I still keep an interest into the camping industry through my computer and this website forum.

If I see someone who is having a problem i.e. obtaining spares etc, I will try and add my vast knowledge of this industry, to help them. This is not always appreciated as some people can never accept that you are doing your best.

In Arthurs case when he first emailed the After Sales Dept. for a set of 1994 Fiesta drawer fronts he was promptly sent a reply from our senior sales person Julie, whose reply can be read on Arthurs second message on this topic. Unknown to him a lot of time and effort has gone into searching to find suitable replacements for his Fiesta, not to mention the cost of someones time.

Where it all went wrong unfortunately was Julie selfishly got married on Sat. 31st July and didn't get back to Arthur. When I saw Arthurs message I went into the factory myself to see if I could resolve his frustration. I don't want to make excuses for not keeping him informed of what was happening, that is why I posted a message to him on this forum so he would know that something is being done.

However Julie Booth is now Julie Bolough and is back at her desk and assures me that she will be emailing Arthur today with a full report.

Best of camping to all our thousands of happy Pennine/ Conway owners.

Howard

Director of the Pennine Group

Howard,

I am new to Folding Campers and bought a Fiesta 1997 model in the spring of this year.  I have just read this forum and must agree if you want old parts they are going to cost money..... I have been looking for a pair of bed skirts any colour and have ended up having a pair made by T.V. S this week they will be costing me about £250 for the pair but if you  want something you have to pay.  As for door and draw fronts go to a local kitchen fitter and they will be able to arrange for some to be made a lot cheaper.....

I am very happy with my Fiesta and hope to update to a newer model in the near future,  Thanks for keeping your eye on peoples problems Howard.... How many retired company staff would bother....

Sandra

I have experienced problems in contacting Pennine via email on their link.  I got a vague and dull reply to my question which did not inspire me or give me confidence in their service.   I had the problem dealt with by the dealer with no problem. But there will be a time when the warranty expires or there are problems beyond the dealer and the company have to be on the ball to deal with the issue or concern of the customer.  This is especially important during the first 3 years when it is expected that a new product should be functioning properly.  

However having said this, some of the problems with my crusader Platinium 2010 have been rectified by my good self, otherwise I would be still waiting to have the issues sorted.  My problems were faulty gas regulator.  Incorrectly fitting wardrobe light fitting.  Incorrectly fitted sink which had a crumpled seal.  No screws in a cooker/oven protection plate.   This has not stopped me and my family enjoying the unit 8 time sin 6 months since purchase.