'Overwhelmed with response'

POLICE OFFER FREE RV SAFETY CHECKS

POLICE at Cairns in Far North Queensland were today carrying out safety checks on caravans and camper trailers. Operated by the city's Road Policing Unit, free weighing will be offered on several highways. The educational initiative provides travellers and locals with the opportunity to weigh their RVs and discuss safe towing practises with officers. Police said they had been "overwhelmed with the fantastic positive response" so far. Checks were being made at:

Pyramid Truck Pads, Bruce Highway, Aloomba.
10/05/2021 - 9am - 1pm
12/05/2021 - 9am - 1pm

Fruit Bat Truck Pads, Captain Cook Highway, Aeroglen.
14/05/2021 - 9am - 1pm

Walkamin Truck Pads, Kennedy Highway, Walkamin.
19/05/2021 - 9am - 1pm

Council warns on RV non-compliance

NEW REGS 'WILL NOT SOLVE PROBLEM'

AUSTRALIA'S highways and byways are full of non-compliant recreational vehicles, according to the Caravan Council of Australia.

And it has warned that new regulations scheduled to come into force in July will not solve the problem.

"They will not guarantee that all future caravans will be fully-compliant," claims the council's founder and general manager Colin Young (pictured).

"The new safety and quality regulations will not apply to all manufacturers and importers," he explained.

"This is of serious concern as some companies that produce caravans in small numbers will be exempt from having to meet the requirements of the new laws."

Mr Young said companies that will not be subject to the same level of government scrutiny will be some newcomers to the market, which often lack the necessary resources and experience essential to manufacture safe and high-quality caravans.

"Industry insiders have long been worried that there are too many new manufacturers and importers competing in a very limited, and highly-competitive, market," he claimed.

Mr Young also fired a broadside at manufacturers, saying it had been hoped one major positive outcome from the lengthy and crippling COVID lockdowns was that they made good use of the non-productive time "to have a thorough and professional appraisal of all aspects of their business".

But "most unfortunately", this has not been the case with all of them.

   Highest demand near cities

Holiday parks rebound 'strongly' as border restrictions ease

INGENIA, which operates a chain of lifestyle and holiday parks, reports that its holiday business has rebounded "strongly" in COVID times. Parks near cities were proving to be the more popular as people travelled closer to home and took shorter breaks. It described the outlook for domestic travel as being "positive", adding: "Holidaying at home has driven growth in demand." Inegenia's 28-acre pet-friendly Cairns Coconut Holiday Park particularly benefitted after borders were opened and airlines increased flights to the northern Queensland city, Ingenia said. Have your say

  MYSTERY OF THE DUMPED CARAVAN

POLICE in Victoria were trying to solve the mystery of an abandoned caravan. The dual-axle Jayco pop-top was dumped on the side of the Ayresford Road at Terang on May 2 at 9pm, 140km from where it stolen at Geelong. Other road users reported seeing the caravan being unhitched from a vehicle described as a dark-coloured Ford Ranger. Anyone with information is urged to contact Terang Police on (03) 5592 1058. Alternatively, a confidential report can be submitted to CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

  'False or misleading representation'

Jayco ordered to pay $75,000 to RV owner who was misled on rights

CARAVAN manufacturer Jayco has been ordered by the Federal Court to pay a penalty of $75,000 for making a false or misleading representation to a consumer about their consumer guarantee rights. This follows court proceedings by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC). In November last year, the court dismissed the majority of the ACCC's case, including allegation that Jayco acted unconscionably towards four consumers by denying them the right to refunds or replacements for their defective caravans. But the court found it had misled one consumer by claiming they were only entitled to have their caravan repaired, when in fact a consumer's rights under the Australian Consumer Law when there is a major failure also include a refund or replacement. In a statement today, Jayco said it greatly regretted being found to have contravened Australian consumer law in its dealings with one customer and it intended to ensure its contravening conduct would not reoccur. 

'Busy time for acquisition team'

Ingenia splashes out $40m on acquiring land and holiday parks

INGENIA Communities has splashed out $40 million on acquiring land and another five coastal holiday parks. Chief executive Simon Owen said it had been a "busy time" for the group's acquisition team as it sought to disperse equity to materially grow the lifestyle and holiday park business. Acquisitions include 16.2ha of ocean-front land in Bargara, Queensland, for a 344-home lifestyle community (see picture above), and established holiday parks "in key markets", including Queensland, NSW and three in Victoria. This would add 844 cabins, sites and annuals and boost its holiday park portfolio by over 20 percent. Have your say

   'Another reason for people to stop'

Caravanners will benefit from new water filling stations in rural towns

NEW water filling stations at Goondiwindi, Inglewood and Texas in Queensland will mean 24-hour access to drinking water for caravanners and other travellers. Councillor Rick Kearney, who holds the portfolio for water services, said the stations would streamline access to clean drinking water for rural residents and provide additional revenue from visitors. "We've already seen many campers and caravanners flock to popular sites like Coolmunda Dam and the Dumaresq River rest area, and the availability of easily-accessible drinking water will further support the region’s tourism," he said. "This is giving visitors yet another reason to stop, spend some money in town and maybe stay another night, while also creating an additional revenue stream for council." Visitors can use their credit card to buy water, at a minimum charge of $5 for each transaction. The stations can facilitate all sizes of vehicles, from small cars to trucks, caravans and motorhomes. Have your say

Wading in to help flood victims

BlazeAid calls for volunteers
to help NSW communities

VOLUNTEER organisation BlazeAid, which estimates that caravanners make up 70 percent of its membership, is wading in to help flood-impacted victims in the Mid North Coast region of NSW. It has opened its camp at the Kempsey Showground and is urgently looking for volunteers to help the community affected by recent storms and flooding. "Anybody who can donate some of their time, a day, a week or whatever they can give will make a difference," camp coordinator Mary Howarth said. BlazeAid administrator Debbie Buttler told Caravanning News that caravanners made "a huge difference" to the organisation. "Without their contribution BlazeAid would not be able to help those families and communities that have been affected by natural disasters," she said.

  'Overcrowding will be eased'

New campsites being provided
 in NT's 'national treasure'

NEW areas of the Northern Territory's Litchfield National Park are being opened to tourists, complete with campsites. Construction work under the $17.5m Turbo Charging Tourism project is already underway, with Central Valley campsites on track to open this dry season. Thirty-two new campsites with swimming areas across three camping grounds will welcome visitors during the dry season, starting this month. Minister for Parks and Rangers Selena Uibo said overcrowding in one of the Top End's "national treasures" would be eased with new camping, swimming and walking spots to please visitors of all ages.

'We need help' 

Grey nomads urged to help roadhouse solve staff dilemma

THE owner of a remote and well known Queensland roadhouse has appealed to grey nomads to help her out of a staffing predicament. Cheri Stanger said The Burke and Wills Roadhouse ‒ halfway between Cloncurry and the Gulf of Carpentaria, a distance of nearly 400km ‒ is being run on a skeleton staff due to the shortage of backpackers. "We are facing an unpredicted, unprecedented and undeniable challenge after COVID," she wrote on the roadhouse's Facebook page. "We are getting busier and busier each day, which is exactly what we've been working so hard to achieve, but we cannot find employees to share the workload with." She said a friend who owned another well known Australian roadhouse had posted over 1200 messages/posts looking for people but with no success. "Maybe some grey nomads want to help out for a few weeks at a time," she said. "If the grey nomad population worked their way around Australia and stopped at all these rural pubs and roadhouses they'd be helping these rural businesses back on their feet. We have a lot of truckies and travellers that rely on us being open. We need help." Have your say

Changes to address concerns

Updated plans will mean fewer camping spots on foreshore

VICTORIA'S Mornington Peninsula Shire has updated concept plans for the Rye foreshore redevelopment which will mean reduced camping numbers. "Since community consultation last year, the landscape strategy and concept plan have been further improved to balance the vision of the foreshore along with feedback from the community," the shire said. Work will be part of the $6.5 million Rye Township Plan and follows last year's community consultation. The shire council said the landscape strategy and concept plan had been "further improved to balance the vision of the foreshore along with feedback from the community". It pointed out that the campground, a popular facility since the 1940s, occupied a large portion of the foreshore reserve. Changes and improvements would address current concerns and balance the needs of the campers, holidaymakers and the community. The four main themes of community feedback were a reduction in camping numbers, car park locations near the pier, biodiversity across the foreshore and all-abilities access. Have your say

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