Caravan Window Breakage
Hi All
Having checked with our insurance service its nice to know we are fully covered for accidental damage or even damage through theft etc on our caravan windows being broke or smashed while towing or left on a storage site or holiday site.
The question we need to ask and we are sure for many on here (God forbid it should ever happen to anyone) is, what happens when you contact your insurer while lets say on route to your 2 week holiday destination with your van in tow within the UK?
Do they send someone out like "Autoglass" to repair your damaged window? Or are you told to get the van to the nearest dealer who can fix the problem? and then do you have to wait days for the replacement so losing out on your holiday days of 2 weeks?
Of course I suppose if it cracks rather than smashes then you could patch it up until you have had your holiday and hope it doesn't rain too much while in the UK?
We were just interested to know from caravanners who this has happened to what are insurers like about paying out when this happens? and how quick a repair can be done at a local dealer if you get the van to them? and if neither of the above what happens?
Await everyone's comments
Comments
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It will take more than likely over 2 weeks to get the replacement window to the repairer
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Contact your ins company strait away, I would think that you will probably have to do a temp repair yourself, as the lead time for a new window will depend on the make and year of your c/van as most windows tend to come from abroad,as there are so many types and sizes ,i do not think any stocks are kept,and New build vans will take priority at the manufacturers
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For our only repair so far, luckily while at home, the window had to go in so they could take a mould off it, though ours is not a standard modern caravan. It took a couple of weeks.
I imagine a good roll of gaffer tape could be the best insurance meanwhile.
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Definitely don’t expect an Auto Glass type of replacement. In Caravan world things take much, much longer.
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I have an Adria - bedroom window fell out (not in anyway was it Adria's
Fault)
Window cracked and lost part of acrylic as it had degraded- bodged it
with gaffer tape - got it home and phoned CC insurance who just said get one ordered and send us the bill.
Took 2 weeks to arrive and was £347 plus £50 carriage
Sent bill to insurers - cheque on my desk within 72 hours - couldn't have been happier .
Great service from CC insurance.
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Never needed to replace whole window but did have all locks and catches prised off whilst stored at home in attempted theft luckily window not damaged. Last month whilst out on site in strong winds from Ophelia and Brian nearby caravan,s front window was damaged and temporary repair made with gaffer tape.
I have seen a more extensive temporary repair carried out to a missing window on site by using a sheet of plywood cut to just over size and placed on the outside. Held in place by drilling two holes through the plywood and using two wooden struts inside with two long bolts joining them and tightened to secure. Also can be used to effect a temporary repair if you lose or break a roof light.
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Hi All
Well that's any eye opener! let's hope we never have to experience what some of you have gone through!
Cannot believe though that spares are not readily available from manufactures?if they sell the vans then like cars they should hold some stock to service the whole of the UK I would have thought? bit strange that one!
So already carry gaffer tape and now have loads of spare materiel with new winter cover so god forbid could always do a bog-it job with that until you can get to a dealer!
Which does beg another question? Does the repair have to be carried out by your dealer i.e in our case The Elldis dealer we brought it from? Or can it be carried out by any approved NCC workshop?
thanks for all the comments
Ansley & Jane
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any NCC approved dealer should be able to repair any make of caravan, the question is would they want to. it come down to money as usual. if its a warranty repair most don't want to know because they have a difficult time getting the money from the manufacturers. its funny really as caravanning should be the easiest holiday to have, do what you want when you want but dealers and manufacturers seem to make it a little bit more difficult for us, unless you are one of the lucky ones that has never had a problem with anything to do with caravanning. just my opinion.
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Welcome to the world of LVs, Gateway. The industry is a law unto itself.
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We have just had a cracked window replaced on our 2014 Lunar. It took six weeks to get the window and about 2 hours to get it replaced. The difficulty is there are so many different types of window even for the same size aperture. Manufacturers seem not to hold any stock other than that for their current manufacture. Also I think there is no real incentive for the manufacturers to be part of the solution.
I have mentioned before on another post a warning not to store the caravan with reflective blinds (silver backed) down fully in direct sunlight. The reflected heat was the cause of my cracked window.
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Hi ken
Yep jury still out on that one although as we said in our post seems like its like Marmite! you either like them or you don't!
But what amazes me in all the time caravanners have been buying vans no one is putting any pressure on the manufacturers to hold limited stocks of windows within the country? If a car manufacturer produces a new model they are forced to hold spares so why not caravan manufactures?
There must be some sort of body which can and should be applying pressure? why must we have to wait for parts weeks and weeks? We don't hold up payment for the caravan dealer when we buy it!Having only been doing this for a year we are learning fast.
We still think on items like windows are they all so different then? or is Swift using the same type in their vans as Bailey do as Elldis does and so on and so fourth etc? Surely these parts coming from abroad must fit similar vans etc or is that to stupid to think about an idea where all the caravan manufactures get together to have an industry window standard? a bit like safety belts in cars everyone system being the same no matter what car they are fitted in!
Well that's our rant for the morning must say though feel better to know that out there somewhere in some little corner of a caravan design office maybe just maybe someone will have a "Light Bulb" moment and start thinking the same way as we do..lol..lol
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After over 40 years of caravanning unfortunately I have seen a deterioration not improvement in avaIlability of caravan body spares. Sitting here this morning on CAMC site l can see 8 caravans from 5 different manufacturers with 6 different types of windows and even where the manufacturers are the same most of the body panels,doors etc. are different. So it has always been and I cannot see it changing mostly because designers want to make their caravan different and appealing.
Having said all that there are many components that are common to most caravans such as heaters, fridges, sinks, water pumps, cookers etc and where spares a more readily available.
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I don't think caravan maker's keep many spares at all. Some years ago I collected my new van Sterling Eccles, at the end of February 2006. First trip away one of the front windows got damaged, I believe by rubble coming off a tipper lorry in the next lane to me on a motorway. This was April. Didn't make an insurance claim due to the excess. Took it back to the dealer who informed me that the replacement window was a different shade as Swift could not supply one the same. All sorted by the dealer who got Swift to send replacement windows to match and I only had to pay for the broken one.
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we were hit by a bird on the M1 several years ago, caused a diagonal crack right across the LH Front window. I found the same problem - no one stocks van windows because there are so many shapes, shades and sizes. We found a company in Halifax who make a new window from the pattern of the old one which you have to send to them. it took them two attempts but the new window was on the van within a fortnight. The price? £315. Mind you, the bird came off much worse!
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