After speaking with many caravanners, it is perfectly clear that regrettably, very little credibility is given to "Reviews of New Caravans" conducted by some journalists for
caravan publications. There are certainly some good credible journalists.
Sadly the general opinion is that Manufacturers and Dealers, who advertise in the publications, never get a bad write-up of their 'vans, or at the worst, maybe just a brief mention of a couple of minor blemishes.
Caravanners place no credence in the selection of the
caravan to be appraised, believing that it is not just a random selection, but rather a hand-picked blue-printed
caravan.
It is considered essential that in order to gain the public's believability of being a genuine and honest assessment, the
test personnel choose one
caravan from several being offered for sale.
Surely the two most important items to be first confirmed are: Is the
caravan really legally Compliant and Safe?
The most common complaint by
caravan owners is that the actual (empty
caravan) Tare Mass is much more than the stated Tare Mass.
This means that the
caravan cannot legally carry as much luggage as was anticipated the buyer, and advised by the Dealer.
In addition, quite often the actual Empty Ball-Loading is appreciably different - either much higher, or much lower - than that stated.
The Tare Mass and the Empty Ball-Loading need to be accurately and independently
measured to see if they are, in fact, the same as advised, and the certified weigh-
bridge ticket included in the write-up of the
caravan, along with a legible photo of the Trailer Plate.
Instead of concentrating mainly on the assessment - and personal preferences - of the lay-out, style, and finish of the
caravan, etc., should not the critical initial stage of the evaluation be to determine if the
caravan is completely Compliant?
There are some excellent detailed Compliance
Check Lists - and Pre-Delivery
Check-Lists - readily available, that should be used for all
caravan appraisals.
Much credibility would be gained if the Review included an assessment of Compliance, based on a standard professional "Compliance
Check-List".