- Original Poster
- #1
I was operating a business under a licence agreement on a holiday park for 4 years, the first 3 years being 8 months of the year and the final year being 12 months. Prior to the final year I was told by the operators that they were more than happy with the way I operated the franchise and they would be happy for me to carry on for many years to come. I had asked for a lease because it had turned into a year on year licence and they said they would review it. However 7 days before the licence ended in 2010, they said that they would be taking over the running of the business. I had no notice of intention of them doing this before the 7 day notice, in fact they had asked me to prepare for Xmas parties and promotions for the next year. The company had invested a fair amount of money into the redevelopment of the business fixtures and fittings and had asked me to do the same with restaurant and bar equipment, which I did.
In 2010 the operators bought a piece of land to develope, but due to them not carrying out the correct searches and surveys the cost of developing this land is astronomical and well beyond their initial budgets.
The company was forced into increasing the cash flow and profit forecasting in an attempt to service the loan for the purchase of the land and thus the taking back of my business. I sold them the equipment that I had purchased etc., at a reduced cost to try and stave off bankruptcy, but it was still not enough to do this and I am now working in a low paid job as well as my wife being unemployed, she was employed by me in the business.
The company, as with the majority of holiday parks, profit maker is caravan sales and the fact that the land has not even started to be developed has caused a further problem with cash flows etc. The 12 month licence on the holiday park has also proved to be a costly mistake with 2 or 3 months of last year the park being frosen over and basic facilities such as water and gas were not available to the caravan owners. I am also aware that at least 3 court cases have been lodged against the operators about changes in pitch licenses and the mis selling of the 12 month licence. If people leave the park the company is happy because they will be able to sell on to these empty pitches. However, there are a lot of empty pitches and a lot of disgruntled caravan owners who have lost thousands and thousands of pounds on their dream investments.
I want to inform others of the problems that they may face if they purchase a caravan from them, I also have the backing from a lot of the owners both on the park now and others who have left, how do I do it legally. I have informed the local papers, but have had no interest from them.
In 2010 the operators bought a piece of land to develope, but due to them not carrying out the correct searches and surveys the cost of developing this land is astronomical and well beyond their initial budgets.
The company was forced into increasing the cash flow and profit forecasting in an attempt to service the loan for the purchase of the land and thus the taking back of my business. I sold them the equipment that I had purchased etc., at a reduced cost to try and stave off bankruptcy, but it was still not enough to do this and I am now working in a low paid job as well as my wife being unemployed, she was employed by me in the business.
The company, as with the majority of holiday parks, profit maker is caravan sales and the fact that the land has not even started to be developed has caused a further problem with cash flows etc. The 12 month licence on the holiday park has also proved to be a costly mistake with 2 or 3 months of last year the park being frosen over and basic facilities such as water and gas were not available to the caravan owners. I am also aware that at least 3 court cases have been lodged against the operators about changes in pitch licenses and the mis selling of the 12 month licence. If people leave the park the company is happy because they will be able to sell on to these empty pitches. However, there are a lot of empty pitches and a lot of disgruntled caravan owners who have lost thousands and thousands of pounds on their dream investments.
I want to inform others of the problems that they may face if they purchase a caravan from them, I also have the backing from a lot of the owners both on the park now and others who have left, how do I do it legally. I have informed the local papers, but have had no interest from them.
