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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
National
Ciaran Flaherty

Caravan salesman responds to allegations in £23K dispute

This story follows on from our exclusive joint publication with The Impartial Reporter, revealing how one couple's dream caravan purchase became a fight for their life savings


Adrian Carron, director of Braeside Car Sales, has said Sophie Davidson and Michael Law will get their money back, when he sells the caravan at the heart of the whole issue.

Carron was just leaving his yard on the outskirts of Lisnaskea on Wednesday afternoon when The Impartial Reporter approached him to speak about the claims made by Michael and Sophie.

He did, however, get in contact just before 4pm to put his side of the story across.

He said he had been in regular contact with the couple the whole time but he found it hard to accept that the caravan he originally took a video of to send to them and the actual caravan that Michael collected and then returned were two different caravans.

"It was exactly the same caravan," Carron said when asked about the difference between the caravan.

He was then asked how the videos that he took and the ones that Michael and Sophie took show different caravans with certain parts not adding up.

"I don’t understand that at all. I don't understand how they don’t match up.

"It’s a 720UKFE, there's no difference in any of the caravans, they are all the same."

It was put to him that things such as a different microwave, different shower head, different mattress, a sign on the front of the caravan for another business all showed that the caravan Michael and Sophie got was not the same as the one that he showed them in the videos.

"They know the microwave was replaced. He arrived about 10am in the morning I met him at the door and he knew and I showed him the boys were working out the back I told him before he even left there was a brand new microwave fitted."

On the showerhead: "He did actually mention that to me.

"What it is when they come into us we, do a full service on them to make sure everything is working.

"When it comes into us we can only check a certain amount of things when it is traded into us there but then they do a full service to check over lights to check over your microwave."

While Carron did not understand how the caravans could have been different, Michael and Sophie felt they had been misled and mis-sold which saw them fork out over £23,000 of their life savings on the caravan they thought they were getting in the original videos.

They wanted their money back. 

Carron said he told Michael and Sophie they would get their money back once he had sold on the caravan. 

Trading Standards Northern Ireland and the High Court also ordered Carron to repay the Aberdeenshire couple and the dates for this repayment have passed.

"I had already said to Mike and Sophie made them aware there were other people had been on about it and that’s why they wanted to just go ahead and purchase and pay for the vehicle.

"When they did have the issues I said I have missed out on these 3 other people that wanted to buy the vehicle. Not very fair coming back to me saying now there's this, that and the other.

"[They] viewed the vehicle and the only thing [they] asked me at the time was the trim around the microwave and the TV bracket which I sent across.

"We missed 3 customers and I have no problem taking the vehicle back selling the vehicle for you and refunding your full money for you get full money for you but it has to be whenever the vehicle sells.

"There's never an issue where we never going to pay it back."

When the judgement from Trading Standards and the High Court was brought up Carron said he made Trading Standards aware of the plan to repay the couple. He did not say anything on the court's judgement.

Carron went on to say that the issues raised by the couple could have been fixed easily but "they didn’t give us the chance to do that".

"All they wanted to do was hand the vehicle back get their money back and tough luck. They weren't willing to work with us at all.

Adding that they were "making a mountain out of a molehill with some of the issues, Carron concluded: "Everything could have been easily rectified but we weren’t given that choice."

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