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The thing about warranties/guarantees is that they are contracts between you and the manufacturer. You have to comply with the terms of that contract otherwise you are in breach of contract and the manufacturer can say that the warranty is void.

If you can't get to an authorised dealer then take ubuntu1's advice.

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by cwdc56768 on 19/2/2011

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The thing about warranties/guarantees is that they are contracts between you and the manufacturer. You have to comply with the terms of that contract otherwise you are in breach of contract and the manufacturer can say that the warranty is void.

If you can't get to an authorised dealer then take ubuntu1's advice.

Phil

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Quote: Originally posted by Jerry+Tina on 20/2/2011

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Quote: Originally posted by cwdc56768 on 19/2/2011

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The thing about warranties/guarantees is that they are contracts between you and the manufacturer. You have to comply with the terms of that contract otherwise you are in breach of contract and the manufacturer can say that the warranty is void.

If you can't get to an authorised dealer then take ubuntu1's advice.

Phil

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I always thought that the warranty is between you and the dealer that the van was purchased from, hence it has to go back to them for warranty work to be done. As for servicing, as long as the engineer is on a list approved by the manufacturer and is a member of the NCC administered Approved Worshop scheme then he /she can carry out routine servicing. At least that was my understanding.

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There are two kinds of warranty.

One from the manufatcurer which you get when you buy new. These, generally, are transferable when you sell the caravan, but read it to check that as some are not tranferable and end when the van is sold. So if you are buying second hand privately and the seller says that it is still within warrnty read the warranty just to check that it can be transferred

The second comes from the Dealer (sometimes) when they sell a second hand van that does not have a transferable manufacturers waranty.

In the case of this thread the OP mentioned that they had had their van for three years and that it was in its third year for warranty service. Sounds like a manufacturers warranty.

The first kind of warranty includes a condition that you have to take it back to the Dealer for it to look at any alleged warranty work. They then advise the manufacturer of the defect, and that it is covered by the warranty. The manufacturer then authorises the Dealer to do the work or takes the van into their own workshop to do the job.

The second type of warranty means you take it back to the Dealer because your contract is with them and they just get on with the job if they agree its covered by their warranty.

You comment" As for servicing, as long as the engineer is on a list approved by the manufacturer and is a member of the NCC administered Approved Worshop scheme then he /she can carry out routine servicing. At least that was my understanding"

This is true, and manufactirers warranties indicate that. However, there is a practical issue here in that Dealers workshops are only so big and can only take a certain number of vans. Hence there can be delays in getting into a workshop. To alleviate this some Dealers give priority to their own customers. So it can actually be difficult getting a service done just anywhere. That is a risk you take if you buy from some distance from your home

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by chrisneil on 20/2/2011

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Thank you all for your replies, They are great help. Service not due until May, so we shall look at a trip where we can combine with a service. Though will try Ubuntu's advice first, you never know, and it would make life easier.

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If you are buying a caravan from some distance from your home and have to take it back to be serviced etc, always buy the van from a very nice area you would like to holiday in. The thought of having to take a van back to a big city...urgh

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by Jerry+Tina on 20/2/2011

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Quote: Originally posted by cwdc56768 on 19/2/2011

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The thing about warranties/guarantees is that they are contracts between you and the manufacturer. You have to comply with the terms of that contract otherwise you are in breach of contract and the manufacturer can say that the warranty is void.

If you can't get to an authorised dealer then take ubuntu1's advice.

Phil

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I always thought that the warranty is between you and the dealer that the van was purchased from, hence it has to go back to them for warranty work to be done. As for servicing, as long as the engineer is on a list approved by the manufacturer and is a member of the NCC administered Approved Worshop scheme then he /she can carry out routine servicing. At least that was my understanding.

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First you have to get back to your warranty agreement. I have to question, as you purchased the van second hand, do you actually have a manufacturers warranty? I am not familiar with this form of warranty and cannot find one on the net to look at its terms. Just because the van, when you bought it, was three years into a six year warranty it does not always follow that you get the remaining balance of the warranty. Please note any other prospective purchasers of second caravans.

For example, in the case of a Swift warranty, the ability to transfer it is subject to

1. the caravan having been serviced by an authorised Swift Group Service centre
2. details of the change of ownership being supplied to Swift Group Ltd using the change of ownership form set out in the handbook.
3. A change of ownership being notified within 30 days of such a change

Failure to comply with any of those conditions and you do not have a warranty. British made caravans, in general, have warranties that are now transferable (subject as I said) but that is a recent change in the terms of warranties. So, is the Tabbert warranty transferable and if so did you comply with the transfer conditions so that the warranty remains valid?

Maybe I am labouring the point, but folk do sometimes misunderstand warranty issues, and to answer your question I need the actual facts clarifying.

If it turns out that you do not have the benefit of a warranty, and you bought second hand, then you can do what you want in terms of service and repairs and, I am afraid,  you have the privilege of paying for them!

Hopefully, the warranty is transferable and you followed all the right steps to remain protected by that warranty. In that case you have to look at the terms of that agreement to see just what it says about servicing by someone other than the original selling dealer. British warranties, generally, will permit servicing by any dealership they authorise to service their vans. 

Again as it was a private sale I would question whether you have a warranty from Catterick Caravans. Dealers warranties are often personal contracts with their buyers and are not transferable. That is probably academic as the van is ok apart from the water ingress.

If you would like to clarify just what the Tabbert warranty says I can advise further.

Phil

Surfer01 is correct but the "contract" he refers to is the contract to buy between you and the seller. That contract is regulated by the Sale of Goods Act and you can only enforce those statutory rights against the dealer.

There is a second contract and that is the one offered by the manufacturer and which it calls "the warranty." Read the form of warranty; it clearly says it is between the manufacturer and the owner of the van.

When something goes wrong, you have a choice, rely on the warranty or enforce your Sale of Goods Act rights against the dealer. The "system" that exists, is that the dealer relies on the manufacturer putting things right under their warranty. Its the easiest way forward (and a cheaper option for the dealer), so the Dealer steers you away from any Sale of Goods Act claim. So go the warranty route if you have one. Under that warranty you have to go back to the dealer anyway, as I indicated above. At the end of the day you just want problems put right whoever does it and by the easiest route for you to take without any hassle. If you insist that a dealer does not use the warranty to undertake repairs but that he puts matters right under his Sale of Goods Act obligations you would be right in contract law, but get no where.

Sadly, I suspect that Surfe01 will come back and say that there isn't a warranty,  or there isn't one from the manufacturer, or there is no separate contract with the manufacturer etc. as regular readers will know that we have been round this circle before.

It helps to understand how the different agreements we make, when nuying,  operate and are linked.

Phil