Read my review on Trust pilot regarding Swift.

[our poppy llll]

I strongly suspect that a bunch of solicitors will be rubbing their hands together at this whole thing and the outcome will be very interesting. I'd echo what someone else has said....I'd stop talking about it on an open forum, that no doubt staff from both Swift and Lowdhams look at.

Na my family are full of solicitors and barristers, and I really don’t care what Swift or Lowdhams read, I have all the emails, all the warranty paperwork, all the tickets and payments. They like I are not stupid, they will put a defence together, one that we will destroy either at a precourt meeting or in court. Even these exchanges may be brought up, all this does is cement my disappointment with the rubbish that Swift has supplied.

 

[our poppy llll]

Look on the bright side it could have been a Bailey!

Thank god you didn’t say Auto-trail V-line! I’d have had a heart attack. Ha ha…

 

[jerryz]

Swift clearly seems a company unable or unwilling to sort out its many customer and quality problems with arbitration or really bad publicity BBC etc , so a court case funded by someone with the means and motivation may be the only way change their hopeless culture and attitude ...

 

[Brains]

Swift clearly seems a company unable or unwilling to sort out its many customer and quality problems with arbitration or really bad publicity BBC etc , so a court case funded by someone with the means and motivation may be the only way change their hopeless culture and attitude ...

22% of Swift's Trustpilot reviews are 1 star!

For a company that supplies an expensive range of products that people are typically spending their life savings on, that is a dreadful percentage. I'd be shocked at 2.2%

 

[Brains]

10% of Lowdhams Trustpilot reviews are also one star.
Lowdhams are dealers of nine different motorhome & caravan manufacturers

But when you actually read through the one star reviews, the majority relate to Swift products.

If I was a Lowdhams shareholder I would be strongly suggesting to the board they drop Swift as a supplier as soon as the contract expires.

It must be costing Lowdhams a fortune is lost reputation as well as money and time to fix all the Swift problems, which appear to be more than all the other manufacturers they represent combined.

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[BrochMike]

Thank god you didn’t say Auto-trail V-line! I’d have had a heart attack. Ha ha…

You might not want to check Auto-trail's trustpilot page, then!

Autotrail is rated "Poor" with 2 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Autotrail's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 53 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

Surprisingly few reviews so I guess they don't 'participate'...

Edit: This 'claimed' page not much better (but only 10 reviews)

Auto-Trail is rated "Average" with 3.5 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Auto-Trail's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 10 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

 

[chaser]

That’s because I like giving reviews on stuff, it helps others decide. Plus as is the point of this site it can be fun, that’s the point. Having a laugh and having fun while helping others get a good picture.

I’ve ordered a V-line Sport 635. Brand new 1.4 bhp auto with lots of extras. Because I like it, I’ve asked for reviews and found very few. So I’m hoping it’s not a bag like the Swift turned out to be..

By the way, I took the potatoes back to Morrisons along with the opinions, they refunded double the value of the potato’s and 5 packs of onions, I also got a Credit to my Morrisons card for the black meat I took back.

I am a few pounds up! Whoo hooo it’s great being a pain in the rear.

What's a v line sport 635 , who makes that one?

 

[our poppy llll]

What's a v line sport 635 , who makes that one?

Auto-trail, 6.35 metre panel van..

 

[our poppy llll]

You might not want to check Auto-trail's trustpilot page, then!

Autotrail is rated "Poor" with 2 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Autotrail's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 53 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

Surprisingly few reviews so I guess they don't 'participate'...

Edit: This 'claimed' page not much better (but only 10 reviews)

Auto-Trail is rated "Average" with 3.5 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Auto-Trail's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 10 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh mi poor heart!

 

[barryd]

I don't think its just Swift that are having quality control issues. Have a look at this.

Erwin Hymer Group is rated "Bad" with 1.6 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Erwin Hymer Group's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 57 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

Is it a result of the post pandemic boom perhaps and cutting corners to meet deadlines? Just a thought.

I've had two Swift vans. The Kontiki 640 from the last century which I had for 16 years (Hank the Tank) And yeah stuff broke but many say it was the best motorhome ever built. (or maybe that was just me ). On my second one now. An Esprit 496 which I bought purely because of its same layout as the old one and massive payload for the bike on the back. Over the years though there have been many stories of new vans going back for all sorts of issues. Not sure I would ever buy new and less so now by the sound of it. Sorry to hear about this awful experience though.

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[Brains]

Trustpilot makes some interesting reading on major brands.
I looked at Hymer for example.

Dozens and dozens of complaints, but nearly all relate to Elddis caravans.

Elddis was a British manufacturer which was bought by Hymer in 2017.
It would appear that the new owners have not improved the quality of the product.

It strikes me that every manufacturer has a 'golden age'.

Early on they are improving the product.
After a few years they have perfected the product.
They get lots of orders because the product is good. The Golden Age.
They need to scale up production - so the the new manager arrives and starts cost cutting to speed up production.
This causes the experienced (expensive) trades to leave.
The boss then sells the company and retires to the sun
The new owner comes in with a 'stack it high, sell it cheap' mentality and wants volume and profit above all else
and down the pan the quality goes along with the reputation.

I know nothing about Elddis caravans, but I'll bet there are still quite a few around from the late 1960's but very few from the late 1990's .

 

[Zoshee]

I think part of the problem is the manufacturers have squeezed every ounce of profit from what the dealers get that when a problem comes up they do anything to dodge the bullet at the expense of the customer because that profit is eroded further. Not sure how you sue over that though because it's not something you can easily prove and I don't expect it to change unless we all vote with our feet. I won't say who my dealer was (hint ), I've mentioned it in other posts, but it's not Lowdhams. I think all the bigger ones are the same. I don't think I'll ever buy a new van again after this experience.

 

[Beltie]

That’s because I like giving reviews on stuff, it helps others decide. Plus as is the point of this site it can be fun, that’s the point. Having a laugh and having fun while helping others get a good picture.

I’ve ordered a V-line Sport 635. Brand new 1.4 bhp auto with lots of extras. Because I like it, I’ve asked for reviews and found very few. So I’m hoping it’s not a bag like the Swift turned out to be..

By the way, I took the potatoes back to Morrisons along with the opinions, they refunded double the value of the potato’s and 5 packs of onions, I also got a Credit to my Morrisons card for the black meat I took back.

I am a few pounds up! Whoo hooo it’s great being a pain in the rear.

You might find it a tad underpowered with 1.4bhp!

 

[chaser]

My daughter has a swift caravan from Lowdham, never had an ounce of a problem.

 

[Jenka]

My daughter has a swift caravan from Lowdham, never had an ounce of a problem.

Totaly agree,I've brought both MH's & caravans from Lowdhams and never had any issues with them and to be fair they always tried to resolve issues with the manufacturers on my behalf so I can't fault them personally, one particular manufacturer is a different story fortunately that nightmare has long gone.

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[Lusky]

My daughter has a swift caravan from Lowdham, never had an ounce of a problem.

We never had a problem either with a Swift Sundance we enjoyed for 5 years ( apart from the common issue with the spring in the Hartal door lock )

 

[our poppy llll]

You might find it a tad underpowered with 1.4bhp!

140 bhp. Ha ha fat fingers…

 

[Outdoors Dad]

There's a thread running where a member has just purchased a new v- line sport.....it reads like he's had 6 mth wait though

 

[pampam]

I would buy outdoors dads autosleeper amethyst even if i was a millionaire cos they are well made

 

[Outdoors Dad]

I would buy outdoors dads autosleeper amethyst even if i was a millionaire cos they are well made

Even with the green curtains she's a lovely old girl I wouldn't part with her. Sometimes my head gets turned by newer shiny models.....but then I ride her and think nah

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[Sparkie44]

My daughter has a swift caravan from Lowdham, never had an ounce of a problem.

We never had a problem either with a Swift Sundance we enjoyed for 5 years ( apart from the common issue with the spring in the Hartal door lock )

We bought a Swift Autocruise Starfire new in 2011, wouldn't swap it for anything else. Never had a problem with it, good quality fittings and dry as a bone.

 

[jdk62]

Irrespective of the OP’s financial status etc., unlike many of the posts on this thread, I do have sympathy for his situation.

Some 5 years ago we bought a new Swift Kontiki and straight away encountered numerous issues. The dealership (3A’s in Carmarthen) initially dealt with some of the issues and then went AWOL ( wouldn't respond to messages, phone calls etc.). I contacted Swift who of course said my contract was with the dealer….When I pointed out that the dealer was one of their “selected partners” they failed to engage and ignored me.
I engaged legal representation, was prepared to go to court and issued papers. 10 days before the court case was due to start, Swift accepted responsibility and took the Motorhome back to the factory for 12weeks to rectify the 32 issues ( some minor, quite a lot significant), they then invited me up to the factory ( hire car, hotel etc) to inspect the Motorhome after the remedial works. Speaking with the lead of the “remedial team”, he advised they have a team of 15, rushed off their feet… he had been with Swift for over 20 years and was embarrassed by the quality of Motorhomes and caravans being produced. After we got the Motorhome back and accepted a financial settlement from Swift, we had no confidence in it and traded it in.

So I wish the OP well in his challenge and hope he gets a satisfactory outcome.

My lessons learnt were a) never buy a Swift product and b) never buy anything from the dealership 3A’s.

 

[Outdoors Dad]

Friends of ours bought a brand new swift caravan in about 2021 it was at dealership more than with them. Many serious issues structural and major damp it was basically falling apart after 3 outings. Long story short she dug her heels right in, used finance company insurance ? etc. the saga went on years. In mean time she borrowed her mam's old caravan to not miss holidays etc. Eventually she had it rejected even when dealer and swift tried to drag it out so long to not make that not possible. Purchase price was returned.....it nearly broke her though.
Her mam's old caravan is still in the family today solid as a rock and bone dry!

 

[JockandRita]

our poppy llll.
If you are as genuine as you are leading us all to believe, then I personally wish you all the best in your plight to make Swift squirm. You are in the privileged position of being financially able to take on one of the "Big Boys" in the leisure vehicle construction industry, and one which is renowned for poor quality products. That is something that most of us could never achieve financially, so thank you.

When looking at MHs back in 2005, we liked the look of the Swift and Autotrail models, especially the Kontiki. Three we looked at were all showing signs of damp where the habitation body joined the cab.
It didn't take us long to stop looking at UK products in favour of better quality built German products. This was reinforced by the problems friends were having with their Swift products, one of which had to have the whole of one side of their new caravan replaced under warranty........due to water ingress, ie, damp.

I look forward to reading of the progress with your case, and again, I wish you luck.

Cheers,

Jock.

 

[BrochMike]

Irrespective of the OP’s financial status etc., unlike many of the posts on this thread, I do have sympathy for his situation.

Some 5 years ago we bought a new Swift Kontiki and straight away encountered numerous issues. The dealership (3A’s in Carmarthen) initially dealt with some of the issues and then went AWOL ( wouldn't respond to messages, phone calls etc.). I contacted Swift who of course said my contract was with the dealer….When I pointed out that the dealer was one of their “selected partners” they failed to engage and ignored me.
I engaged legal representation, was prepared to go to court and issued papers. 10 days before the court case was due to start, Swift accepted responsibility and took the Motorhome back to the factory for 12weeks to rectify the 32 issues ( some minor, quite a lot significant), they then invited me up to the factory ( hire car, hotel etc) to inspect the Motorhome after the remedial works. Speaking with the lead of the “remedial team”, he advised they have a team of 15, rushed off their feet… he had been with Swift for over 20 years and was embarrassed by the quality of Motorhomes and caravans being produced. After we got the Motorhome back and accepted a financial settlement from Swift, we had no confidence in it and traded it in.

So I wish the OP well in his challenge and hope he gets a satisfactory outcome.

My lessons learnt were a) never buy a Swift product and b) never buy anything from the dealership 3A’s.

I too wish the OP well - there is clearly justification for appropriate recompense.
I also suspect, as in your case, that the threat of court will be sufficient to achieve that outcome.

However, the challenge for OP (based on the bravado of the opening post) will be to have realistic and reasonable expectations:

"Full loss recompense" +
"at least full purchase price" +
"cease operation order"

seems somewhat optimistic...

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