Proposals have been put forward by Mr Millar for a Holiday Caravan Park (Wales) Bill. Mr Millar plans to address issues such as the unlawful occupation of holiday caravans and the costs of providing public services to those who use holiday caravans as their main residence, as well as protection from harassment for caravan owners.A key issue for Mr Millar’s Bill is the growing trend of people using their holiday caravans as permanent homes. Mr Millar hopes to secure strengthened powers for Local Authorities to deal with this issue when it arises.

Some of the measures sought by Mr Millar appear to be similar in nature to those being implemented under the Mobile Homes Act 2013, including a ‘fit and proper person’ test for ownership and management of parks and the removal of the requirement for park owners to approve a purchaser of a caravan.

Park owners in Wales should consider the potential impact that the proposals could have on their parks.

More information regarding the proposed Bill can be found at: http://www.darrenmillaram.com/news/am%E2%80%99s-proposal-holiday-caravan-park-bill-wins-ballot

Further details will be published on this blog as they become available.

For further advice about issues relating to your park or if you have any questions on this blog, please contact our Parks Team on 01392 207020 or by email at: parks@tozers.co.uk

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Park owners will be aware that they have 3 months from the review date, if at least 28 days notice is given, or otherwise 4 months after the date on which they serve the notice to apply to the RPT for a determination of the new pitch fee (where agreement with a resident(s) cannot be reached). The RPT can permit an application made outside the time limit to be considered if there are ‘good reasons for the failure to apply within the applicable time limit’.In this case, the park owner’s primary reason for not applying in time was that he was unaware of the time limit. He also put forward his view that the time limit did not allow for the reasonable process of seeking agreement to the review or payment of the reviewed amount and although the RPT took this into account, it was decided that this did not detract from the fact that the only reason the application was out of time was because the park owner did not know what the time deadlines were. It is a long held legal principle that ‘ignorance of the law is no excuse’ and accordingly the application was not allowed to proceed any further.

Clothier v Young acts as a reminder to park owners to ensure their applications to the RPT are made within the time limits and, where this is not possible, to be mindful of the fact that being unaware of the law is unlikely to wash with the RPT. The latter point is particularly pertinent given the changes being ushered in by the Mobile Homes Bill 2013.

If you have any questions about the blog or want advice on pitch fee reviews and compliance with the law please contact the parks team on 01392 207020 or email parks@tozers.co.uk

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The regulations are self explanatory and park owners should make sure they are familiar with them.  The forms to be used are set out in the schedules appended to the regulations.  Park owners may want to consider preparing copies of these forms and letting their residents know that they can obtain these from the park office if they are intending to put their home up for sale.Regulation 3 sets out the information and copy documents which the vendor must provide to the buyer.  All park rules in force, including those in force prior to 26 May 2013 and still in force, must be provided to the buyer or a written explanation of why they are not provided must be given by the seller.

Regulation 4 sets out the detail of a Notice of Sale to be given to the park owner on the first sale of a home and assignment of an agreement entered into prior to 26 May 2013.  Where the park in question has rules in force the buyer must confirm on the form that they have been provided with a copy of the rules, and have read them and are able to comply with them.  This is also the case with gifts of second hand homes.

Regulation 7 deals with the grounds on which the park owner may apply for an order from the tribunal refusing to allow a sale after a Notice of Sale has been served.  The grounds are that the new owner of the home would be in breach of a park rule dealing with age, pets, vehicles or parking.

Park owners need to be aware that with effect from 26 May 2013 some of their park rules are going to be immediately ineffective and unenforceable.  These are set out in regulation 12 and deal with the sale or gifting of second hand homes. They include a prohibition on a park owner requiring to meet a buyer of a park home from another resident.

If you have any questions about this blog or want advice on how the regulations affect any sales of second hand homes on your park then please call or email our specialist parks team on 01392 207020 or parks@tozers.co.uk

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There is a basic legal principle however that you can never disclaim liability for injury or death caused by negligence.  Many people try it anyway, just for the deterrent effect, but they may not appreciate that an attempt at disclaiming is potentially a criminal offence. Although liability for injury or death caused by negligence cannot be disclaimed, damage to property on the other hand can be excluded subject to certain rules and I will be explaining what these are and writing in more detail about disclaimers in the next issue of Parklaw.

For advice on liability and drafting of effective Disclaimers and Standard Terms & Conditions or Employment Contracts and Policies contact Jill Headford on 01392 207020 or j.headford@tozers.co.uk.  Or email one of  team: Tony Beard | Paul Kelly | Peter Edwards

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Hire purchase agreements for the purchase of caravans as a  way of securing a buyer are getting more popular but they bring their own complications and park owners who are considering offering hire purchase should consider carefully the benefits and downsides of doing so.  Things to be aware of:

• Hire purchase agreements are unsecured so if the buyer defaults on the agreement you cannot automatically take back the caravan;
• Hire purchase agreements can only be used for chattels and not buildings so those parks with lodges which fall into this category must take care; properly trained staff will be key;
• In order to enter into a hire purchase agreement with individuals, a credit licence will be required, together with an A level in maths to work out the APR!
• Hire purchase agreements are a long term investment for park owners and the buyer.  You need to undertake checks to confirm creditworthiness of the borrower together with considering whether the amount you are lending is suitable for the circumstances (particularly the age) of the purchaser.

If you have questions about hire purchase or want advice on selling caravans by hire purchase please call our specialist parks team on 01392 207020 or email parks@tozers.co.uk

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If you have any questions relating to your obligations under the new VAT rules, please contact the parks team for more information on 01392 207020 or email – parks@tozers.co.uk.

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So where does this leave the holiday park owner?  Well, it is vitally important to review very carefully how you advertise holiday caravans and what is said by your sales staff.  This is a field where mistakes can cost dear.

If you have concerns about potential mis-selling claims or want advice on how to review your paperwork or to train your sales staff then please call our specialist parks team on 01392 207020 or email parks@tozers.co.uk

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Pitch fee reviews

• The matters to which particular regard should be had on review will be widened to include any deterioration in condition, and/or decrease in amenity, of the site or any adjoining land owned by the park owner and this will not limited to the year since the previous review;
• Pitch fee review notices proposing an increase will be invalid, unless accompanied by a notice setting out required information (in a format to be notified in regulations)

Park rules

• Park rules will become express terms of residential agreements to which the Mobile Homes Act 2013 applies (including agreements made before the Act came into force or the rules were made);
• Existing park rules dealing with” (a) the management and conduct of the site, or (b) such other matters as may be prescribed” will become invalid and all new park rules will have to be deposited with the local authority (after a date to be notified).

 Sale of homes

• The requirement of an occupier to obtain the consent of the park owner to a prospective purchaser, or to a person to be gifted a home, will be removed in respect of “new agreements”.  A new agreement is one made after 26.03.13 or one which was made before but has been assigned since (i.e. it is being assigned for the 2^nd time since the Act commenced).  The new owner must notify the park owner of the assignment of the agreement and pay the commission.  Regulations regarding the sale, including the format of the notice, and payment of commission are yet to be made.
• Where the agreement is not new the occupier does not need to obtain consent if they serve a notice on the owner naming the purchaser and (1) the park owner within 21 days of receipt of the Notice applies to the Tribunal for an order preventing the sale AND gives notice of this to the occupier or (2) the action in (1) takes place and the Tribunal refuses to make the order.  Regulations regarding the notice and application are still to be made.

This is only a limited selection of the changes and in each of these examples further information of the procedure or the format of notices to be used is awaited in the form of Regulations to be issued.  If you wish to read and acquaint yourself with the detail of the Act the link to the UK legislation website is http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2013/14/contents/enacted

We will be writing in more detail about the Regulations when they are published and the effect of this legislation on park owners in future issues of Parklaw. 

If you have questions regarding the Act or would like assistance with any other issues to do with your park please contact our specialist parks team on 01392 207020 or email parks@tozers.co.uk

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The aim is to offset the cost of the tribunal service onto the users of it.  The additional benefit should be a reduction in the number of claims brought on speculative grounds by unhappy employees.The fees are split into two levels of claim, level 1 being small low value claims arising out of payments due on termination, and level 2 being everything else, including unfair dismissal and discrimination.  The proposed fees are as follows:

The downside for employers is that if they are unsuccessful in defending the claim, the additional fees can be added to the amount which an employer is obliged to pay.  This could add a substantial sum to any claim.

A fee remission scheme, which operates in the County Courts, will also apply to Employment Tribunals so that employees who do not have the funds to pay a claim or hearing fee, can apply to avoid paying them altogether.  Commentators have pointed out that it will often be the case that a dismissed employee may not have the funds to pay so will often get a remission from the fees.  To tackle this, the Courts and Tribunal Service is proposing to amend the remission rules but this is unlikely to happen until the latter part of this year.

There is no commencement date as yet but it will happen.  We will let you know as soon as we know.  

For further advice and assistance, contact our specialist employment law team on
01392 207020 or email employment@tozers.co.uk.

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As both the House of Commons and the House of Lords have agreed on the text of the Bill, it now awaits the final stage of Royal Assent, which is when the Bill will become an Act of Parliament. A date for Royal Assent has yet to be set.The various provisions of the Bill will come into force in stages on different commencement dates, which are also yet to be announced.

We will provide a further update on this blog as soon as information becomes available.

For further advice about this issue and the impact it will have on your park procedures, please contact our parks Team on 01392 207020 or by email at:parks@tozers.co.uk

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