Nearly 2,000 people have joined a group legal action against the UK holiday park industry, alleging they have lost thousands of pounds due to mis-sold static caravans and unfair pitch fees. The Holiday Park Action Group, which is leading the claim, says the number of claimants is growing daily, with some reporting lost life savings and being forced to sell their homes.
The group is seeking compensation from companies that allegedly sold caravans at overinflated prices and from sites that drastically increased pitch fees, often forcing owners to sell up and leave. Carole Keeble, the group's founder, described the industry as a 'wild west', with no regulation and people losing everything they had worked for.
The legal action, expected to be heard later this year, involves two claims: one against 'unfair and legally unenforceable' pitch fees, which campaigners say are increased at extortionate rates without proper communication, and another against buyers who paid far more than their caravan's real value and were not warned of substantial depreciation.
Sally Nicholls, 70, lost over £50,000 on a caravan lodge she bought at Tattershall Lakes Country Park in Lincolnshire in 2020. She paid £69,000 for the lodge, but after pitch fees and park pass costs rose sharply, she sold it for just £15,000. She said she was given misleading verbal information and had to sell her home to survive.
Away Resorts, which runs the park, said the industry had faced economic challenges leading to increased operational costs and pitch fee rises. They said they take pride in their professional approach to holiday home ownership.
