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hey all!

on july 20th last yr. i bought a tent from a certain well-known store in Nott'm after seaching high n' low for a long-lasting, well=made tent, and after a lot of deliberation i decided to go for the Terra Nova Laserlarge 1. it's a high-spec expedition tent that is suppposedly the lightest on the market, and being a backpacker i needed one to ease my travelling conditions in high summer. i thought the high cost of the tent would last me for a long time withstanding all the normal conditions that the British weather would throw at us (on campsites, not alpine camping). i went on the 'expert advice' of the sales person of the store and was persuaded to pay £200 for this (reduced from £300).. as it was my first ever purchase of a supa-dupa lightest carbon pegs, ripstock material, titanium poles.. yes, i was wooed into buying it.. and besides, i was desperately running out of time, and didn't have too much time to ponder around for other alternatives (there were some in mind, but i couldn't find any to test out in the store). 

everything went swimmingly well with the first try-out, but by the second the caps on the pegs kept coming off as soon as you'd pull them out of the ground (they had no hooks, so you'd have to use extra force to pull them!) then by the fourth time in august last yr, the inner tent developed 'wearing' where ALL the seams  with the toggles to the outer tent was (loose weave). i was shocked to see that this would happen so soon after purchase.  i didn't noticed this at the time, until i used it this yr in May which i duly took back to the shop. the guy who originally served me at the time wasn't apologetic when i told him of the faults that i discovered: the caps on the pegs, the wearing on the seams, and also, the back small pole's caps came away too. 3 long weeks later, it was returned to me with the inner tent replaced, and caps glued on the pegs. the pole caps were forgotten about which i had to ring up about,a nd the seent them in the post.

off i went camping for the w/end and to my horror, the tips on the pegs came away as they were pulled outta the ground.. i was annoyed this time. and to top it all the caps came off too! grr!

on the phone to them and they said they admitted they had probs with these pegs, and i asked aobut a different set that were the normal hook ones. so i've got those to use, and expectedly they were fine. 3more camp trips later, this time the weather was very windy and i had trouble setting up. the pole bent.. yes.. truly bent. i didnt know what to do, but to accept that's how it was, and i had to make do with the porch door being lop-sided. it rained hard and the wind was gusty. the morning after, a pool of water collected in the flattened porch door! not a good sight! upon packing away, i noticed the supposedly ripstock tent stuff sac was ripped and worn=looking too.. another despairing moment..

tent went back with me not looking happy. no apologies given but i was then assigned to the person who normally deals with the Returns and he sympathised with my concerns. i asked for a refund but the asst. manager said it was past their 28-day policy and it was up to the manufacturer to handle all complaints, they also pointed out as it was past the one yr's guarantee it'll be very unlikely they would do so.  i told them about their 'life-time guarantee' on their materials, but they couldn't answer for them. i wrote a short but strong note to them with the Return order requesting this to be explained and why was request for a refund was reasonably justified. the c/back i got from the shop said they couldn't offer me, but as a gesture of goodwill, they would be replacing the pole but the stuff sac is expected wear n' tear... i was very let-down.   i said i would take them and the manufacturer to the Trading Standards to sort out my rights to the Sales Act. they didn't respond. i don't think i have rights now considering it's JUST over the one year mark (first purchase 20/07/05, first complaint/repairs 21/05/06 and last complaint/refund request 5/08/06).

i was talking at length to a smaller retailer and they said i was wrongly sold the tent when im just a normal but regular camper, camping on campsites doing about 6-8 small trips a year in this country in normal weather conditions. so the tent specs weren't designed for this as expedition tents are generally used for about a fortnight or so in a yr. and usually left behind. the lightest best materials are designed for that kinda activity, but compromising on the durability factor. they advised me it would of been better if i went for a middle-of-the-range tent, like a Vango for the third of the price, and i could get yrs of use out of it, rather than this Terra Nova which is better used once or twice a yr. i'm now stuck with this tent now for the time being, even tho' i 've been eyeing up other ones... i know.. can't afford it, when i've been away too many times this summer... but can't help feeling what a naive fool i am for believing in the crxp i was given by the shop asst. when he knew full well my particular needs, and the sort of camping i do. it used to be my preferred shop for my gear, and am now gonna go elsewhere.

sorry it's such a long and detailed whinge, but feel really awful about losing lots of money on this pathetic tent. doubt i'd get much for it if i tried to sell it Ebay.... woe!

xxb

You still have rights, even though the tent is over a year old. The Act you need to look up is the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (lots of subsequent ammendments).

In a nutshell, the relevant bits for you are the goods must be as described, fit for purpose and of satisfactory quality.

I would write to both the shop and the manufacturer (keep copies) giving them 28 days to sort it out between them. Quote all the relevant part of the Sale of Goods Act and they'll see that you mean business. If nothing happens after that Issue a small claims against them, it costs £30, but you get that back if you win:

www.moneyclaim.gov.uk

hi you may also wish to test where you stand with your local trading standards       e-mail them with a concise timetable of events as above and then you may also have another allie in your corner .....good luck and before you commit to your next tent give yourself a shortlist and post it on here and see how they really perform with reviews by the people who really know ......us tenters not some one just after a sale (not all sales staff are the alike though)

Quote: Originally posted by JMGA on 10/8/2006

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I agree with ahhbarnes. Also, If you paid for it on credit card you can ask the Credit Card Company to take action on your behalf. Good luck with it and hope you get a good outcome.

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Terra Nova make good tents. Their Quasar is the gold standard. Having said that my solo choice was a Hilleberg Akto. Hand made in Sweden and pretty much bomb-proof. Mine has withstood some very testing conditions in Knoydart. Having seen the Terra Nova I thought it was simply an attempt to copy the success of the Akto.

The thing about a lot of shop assistants is that they know of what they are selling but they haven't actually been out there and done it themselves. A tent like that should last more than a year and out of guarantee or not Terra Nova should be taking an interest. Contact them personally.

Good luck.

hey everyone!

many thanks for your supportive replies.. i will try and sort something out with the shop by letting them know that i was in touch with Trading Standards, and the credit card co. hopefully, they might take more notice of me this time...i did ring Terra Nova personally when i had the 2nd problem with the caps but was met with indifference but i managed to get a new set from a different range..i heard that manufacturers are reluctant to deal with the public as they prefer the retailers to sort out any probs themselves.. i ll ring up and let them know too of my  intentions.. watch this space!

xxb