# Damp Test £134.54 @ Brownhills Swindon - fair? legal?



## SilverScooby (Jun 21, 2008)

To maintain the Hymer 6 year weatherproof guarantee I've just had the 2nd annual damp test done by Brownhills.

I was quoted 88.19 which sounded bad enough, but when I came to pay they had added 39.55 plus VAT for "Under Seal and Sticker".

Hymer, and in particular Hymer UK, seem to be taking advantage of their monopoly position to charge large sums for a warranty.

Is this legal under UK\EC law?

What do European dealers charge?

I'm not sure it's worth the hassle, but I'm tempted to complain to all and sundry. Usually a polite email, guessing the CEOs email address works wonders: [email protected] maybe?


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

I paid £80.00 for habitation and damp test all in.The guy even came to my house. 8O Mark is his name from CLS.So yes,yours does seem to be a bit on the high side.

steve


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## artona (Jan 19, 2006)

Hi

_Hymer, and in particular Hymer UK, seem to be taking advantage of their monopoly position to charge large sums for a warranty.
_

Which monopoly do you mean?

stew


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## Murano (Mar 22, 2006)

> I paid £80.00 for habitation and damp test all in.The guy even came to my house. Mark is his name from CLS.So yes,yours does seem to be a bit on the high side.


Steve
Whereabouts is Mark located ?


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

Murano said:


> > I paid £80.00 for habitation and damp test all in.The guy even came to my house. Mark is his name from CLS.So yes,yours does seem to be a bit on the high side.
> 
> 
> Steve
> Whereabouts is Mark located ?


He`s a member on here.

Here ya go......

CLICKY

steve


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## gaspode (May 9, 2005)

SilverScooby said:


> What do European dealers charge?


We've had habitation checks carried out twice in Germany at different dealers (one of which was a Hymer agent). In both cases the charge was the same: €61 inclusive of tax.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

SilverScooby said:


> Hymer, and in particular Hymer UK, seem to be taking advantage of their monopoly position to charge large sums for a warranty.
> 
> Is this legal under UK\EC law?
> 
> What do European dealers charge?


Perhaps you should quote an extract from the Hymer manual before you email Erwin....

"To maintain the six year weatherproof warranty against water ingress, your vehicle must be inspected by an authorised Hymer dealer or an authorised workshop once a year. A small fee will be charged for this inspection and a confirmation stuck into this manual."

I'm in the same boat, £250 for a service and damp check at Brownhills this year because it wasn't purchased via Hymer UK. I intend to be in Germany next year (where prices are reported to be much lower) around book stamp time. :wink:

pete


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## SilverScooby (Jun 21, 2008)

artona said:


> Hi
> 
> _Hymer, and in particular Hymer UK, seem to be taking advantage of their monopoly position to charge large sums for a warranty.
> _
> ...


stew - The only way to validate the warranty is to get a sticker from a Hymer agent. There is only one Hymer agent in the UK - Brownhills. To me, that's a monopoly - and the difference between £134 in UK with 1 dealer, and €61 in Germany where there are many says it all really

PJ - thanks, I'm inclining that way myself, or maybe Campirama. I agree with you about "small charge"! My Van is official UK import though, so I don't think you're being picked on, they seem to charge everyone excessively!


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## 94055 (May 1, 2005)

Is a Hymer damp check different in a Caravan?

Are you on the same thoughts as me now?

Hymer Caravan agent surely is an approved agent?

Just a thought.

Steve


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## artona (Jan 19, 2006)

Hi

Have a look at this company - click here

stew


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

SilverScooby said:


> There is only one Hymer agent in the UK - Brownhills.


Ah, but is it? 
If you look in the official Hymer service outlet book, Lowdhams, just up the road from Brownhills Newark are the official Hymer Caravan agent. It would need some research, but I wonder if they could do the check and more importantly, would it be an accepted stamp. Mind you, Lowdhams will probably charge just as much, especially if you didn't buy from them. :?

pete


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

SandJ said:


> Is a Hymer damp check different in a Caravan?
> 
> Are you on the same thoughts as me now?
> 
> ...


good point Steve, and my position on the B'hills monopoly with Hymer in the UK is well known! If they were car dealers, the EU competition commissioners would be sniffing around :x


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## Exem (Mar 12, 2006)

Last week I enquired about maintaining the Hymer warranty - our B514 (an import via Edgehill) is now 3 years old.

Brownhills Preston (Hymer UK) quoted £89 for a damp check.

Brownhills Swindon quoted about £245 as they say it must have a habitation check as well as the damp check. Last year we had the full check at Swindon.

Each page of the Hymer service booklet has two sections (in German) - one for habitation, one for damp?

What authorised checks are necessary to maintain the Hymer warranty?

Regards

Geoff


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## SilverScooby (Jun 21, 2008)

peejay said:


> SilverScooby said:
> 
> 
> > Lowdhams, just up the road from Brownhills Newark are the official Hymer Caravan agent. It would need some research, but I wonder if they could do the check and more importantly, would it be an accepted stamp. pete
> ...


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## ICDSUN (Oct 10, 2006)

If you were quoted a price for the service and they did not inform you of the extra's they cannot demand payment for said items, if that is the case then ask them for your money back, your agreed contract was for the price given, if you paid by credit card tell them of the extra charges which you did not authorise and ask them for a refund of the overcharge

If work of any nature was carried out on your vehicle without your express permission you may have a claim for damages from them :lol: 
I would suggest a free service/hab check next year which is less than a solicitor to argue with you.

If you gave permission in any form prior to the work being done then the charge is valid

Chris


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## SilverScooby (Jun 21, 2008)

Exem said:


> Brownhills Preston (Hymer UK) quoted £89 for a damp check.


Geoff - that's what I was quoted - but they added 39.55 + VAT for some very expensive underseal and vvv expensive sticker....



Exem said:


> Brownhills Swindon quoted about £245 as they say it must have a habitation check as well as the damp check. Last year we had the full check at Swindon.


maybe I got off lightly just having the damp check done then...



Exem said:


> Each page of the Hymer service booklet has two sections (in German) - one for habitation, one for damp? What authorised checks are necessary to maintain the Hymer warranty?


To maintain the damp warranty, it's just the damp check, as the manual confirms, see quote below:

I'd also be interested in the German text of the first page of the manual, 5th para, 4th & 5th sentences to quote. English text is: "To mainatain the six year weatherproof warranty against water ingress, your vehicle must be inspected by an authorised HYMER dealer or an authorised workshop once a year. A *small *fee will be charged for this inspection and a confirmation stamp stuck in the manual"


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

My VAN522 was one year old on 30th June.
Bought new from Hymer UK at Preston.

Is it really worth all the hassle (which for me is more than the cost in £s) of getting this annual damp check done?

Has anyone ever had a damp problem within the 6 year period that has needed remedial work done under the warranty?


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## smiler (May 23, 2005)

*damp test*

Never had a damp test done in the uk, had them done on my travels either in Germany France or Italy cost 60 to 80 euros


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## 96410 (Sep 30, 2005)

Is the damp test just putting a damp meter in a few spots?


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## smiler (May 23, 2005)

*damp test*

Subaru in my opinion you are spot on


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## 96410 (Sep 30, 2005)

If thats the case then i think i can save you all a fortune, i will but a meter i guess for about £50, then i will only charge £70 to test your van and saving you about 50%.


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## SilverScooby (Jun 21, 2008)

Yep, I've got my report here:

"Exterior inspection (visual)", 9 boxes to tick 

"Interior inspection (damp meter and visual)" 6 boxes to tick

"Readings over 25% No/Yes"


a bargain at £134.....


subaru - nice try, but you'll need a source of the individually numbered Hymer stickers, currently in the range 220,000 ish.
Thinks - 220,000 x £134 = loadsamoney!


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