Any Cheval Liberte Trailer Owners With Dangerous Floor?

So we have a news post in H&H though it is raises lots of questions. At least it may show the extent of the problem, i.e, people will see it and may get in touch.

Watchdog: I haven't seen this in ages and don't know what sort of thing interests them. Although it's only of interest to a small number of people there is the horse safety angle, which may appeal to them. So it's worth a try.

Trading Standards: Maybe.

In any case if you have contacted people don't wait for a reply if it's more than a day. Call back and see how it's going. If your contact is not available speak so someone else and explain the situation and ask them to get your contact to call you back. If they don't call back start again. That's how we got the H&H news story and it is just because these people are busy and other stories get priority (because other people badger them!).

Let's also consider though what we want. We apparently have a new trailer floor if we take it to a dealer. If that's ok then the job is done. i have problems with the walls and I've already replaced the floor and I have a history with CL importer, and I'm in Denmark, which make my case different from most of yours.
 
wonkey_donkey said:
Took mine to Anglia Trailers in Bury St Edmunds yesterday.
I bought my CL from them new in October 2008.
They were very nice and sympathetic BUT said the floor looked fine so they wouldn't be doing any more about it because they hadn't heard anything from the CL manufacturers in France so they are not prepared to replace any floors that look ok as they will end up out of pocket.


How do I know my floor won't fall in after a further 6 months ???

I'm not happy, I just want a safe floor to travel my horse on. I paid good money for this trailer from brand new and have looked after it well, but it means nothing now.

I intend to take it further.

Do we not have enough evidence for 'Watchdog' ???
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We are taking ours to ANGLIA TRAILERS ON MONDAY we brought ours in 2008 .. Floo rvery spongey where front feet go.
armed and ready for Monday ..
 
Good luck with Agrimark trailers, they will do anything to get out of giving you a new floor, he knows only to well how bad these trailers are and is in on the coverup!
 
clait said:
Good luck with Agrimark trailers, they will do anything to get out of giving you a new floor, he knows only to well how bad these trailers are and is in on the coverup!
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A friend has been on another forum called explorehorse.proboards.com. post done on aug 14th makes interesting reading wewndyinfrance . saying that cheval knew about faults last year . About to join and find out more . Going fully armed .
 
wonkey_donkey said:
Any volunteers to do it ????
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I googled Watchdog , they are onine you can make your complaint there . Will get monday over and see what they say about floor first and if i dont get what i need a safe floor I will tell him i am going to make a complaint . Dont see why we should pay £420 for alli floor , I dont know it i can trust another 21mm floor that is less than an inch .
 
gillallen said:
I googled Watchdog , they are onine you can make your complaint there . Will get monday over and see what they say about floor first and if i dont get what i need a safe floor I will tell him i am going to make a complaint . Dont see why we should pay £420 for alli floor , I dont know it i can trust another 21mm floor that is less than an inch .
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I put a 21mm floor in our trailer and it was quite a bit thicker than the original one. I would say the original was about 18mm thick.
 
Does anyone know the exact dates of manufacture that this problem applies to? Also have there been any reported problems with trailers made after they had the faulty supply of timber?
 
Mines a 2007 and I believe the recall trailers in France were from 2007. A CL dealer (not one we'd bought it from) replaced our floor last Dec after our RID mare started to fall through it on the way back from a show. Due to Requisite article this August I realised perhaps I wasn't a one off. We were charged for a new floor but were told it would be cheaper if the Polish CL guy fitted it when he was over delivering.
Have recently taken the matter up with Dealership we bought it from (on advice of Trading Standards) they Dealer has said we were given a free floor last Dec and charged for fitting only WELL THATS NEWS TO ME! CL never admitted there was a prob when we had ours renewed so why would they give us a free floor??? And why were we not told we were getting a free floor at the time??? Why have I still not had any contact from CL Dealership or Main UK CL advising me to check the floor. Not everyone reads H&H.
I want to know which trailers (dates of manufacture/serial no's) were affected and if as CL reckon there is a really low number affected tell us how many, because ours is one of them! CL knew about the problem well before my mare went through the floor and by sounds of it other people's horses too.
My 11year old car went in for a recall earlier on in the year so why haven't CL acted upon doubts over the integrity of the floors. £££££s perhaps!
 
We have had a small victory with the article in H and H but now we still need to carry on ,I will be checking mine tomorrow for BATCH/DATE of MANUFACTURE /SERIAL NUMBERS .. Could all cl owners do the same lets see what this comes up with ... So looking forward to taking mine in tomorrow ...Gill
 
Trailer Type 1003XL
Manufactured Sep 2007
Serial No SY907DE1053

Floor gave way Aug 2010. Renewed Dec 2010 and was charged for it ( although they are now saying I was only charged labour, not according to my receipt states supply and fit!)

*****Update on my brakes issue locking on when you brake with an empty trailer especially downhill causing trailer to screech and skid along the road. Dealer says will have a look at them again (have been looked at 3 times already by different CL Dealers) but says these trailers are "overbraked" and do have a tendancy to "snatch on".

Anyone else had this problem? Surely it can't be safe or do the tyres or trailer much good AND it frightens nearby pedestrians! Any mechanics know if this is normal???
 
The serial numbers are country specific. UK ones mean nothing to the Danish importer because they are issued in the importing country apparently. So if we can infer anything from the serial numbers it is just about the uk. The manufacture dates tell us how long they were manufacturing them. My trailer has the month and year of manufacture.
 
Re: the brakes issue could make me cry.

I taught myself for my towing test in 2009 using my 4x4 and CL. I took the test using this set-up.

I only failed because the brakes locked up on the emergancy stop - it was an immediate fail and right at the start of the test although I was allowed to continue.

Obviously with a horse on board I never jammed my foot on the brake!

Like my OH said to me last night if I don't put a new floor in my CL, regardless of whether it is rotten or not, I will never sell it because quite frankly who would want to buy one!
 
I've just this minute had an email from the Danish importer who have been in touch with CL in France...

Your complaint has been accepted, and the bottom in your trailer will be replaced free of charge.

If you wish an alu floor instead, the extra cost will be DKK 2.500,- + VAT

That's 290 GBP plus vat.

What to do? It certainly makes the trailer saleable because as shellonabeach says it wouldn't sell very well with even our diy floor.

A new trailer would be nice.
 
shellonabeach said:
Re: the brakes issue could make me cry.

I taught myself for my towing test in 2009 using my 4x4 and CL. I took the test using this set-up.

I only failed because the brakes locked up on the emergancy stop - it was an immediate fail and right at the start of the test although I was allowed to continue.

Obviously with a horse on board I never jammed my foot on the brake!

Like my OH said to me last night if I don't put a new floor in my CL, regardless of whether it is rotten or not, I will never sell it because quite frankly who would want to buy one!
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Sorry to hear you failed your towing test. Bet that moment haunts you!
I wish ours did just lock up when the brakes are slammed on but it locks up with even the gentlest of braking down hill . As we live on the Pennines most of the roads are uphill or downhill usually with lots of twisty bends. It's really stressful being in the vehicle when it does it as you are waiting for the next screech and skid.
 
numbers so far
SY 907 DE 1053 TYPE 2003
SY 910 DE 1028 TYPE 2003
DE 1804 TYPE 2003
SY 920 DE 1517 TYPE 2003
SY 907 DE 1053 TYPE 1003XL
 
clait said:
How did it go at the dealer . Owner not there after we emailed and phoned to say we would be coming in "surprise !" not .. Left enployee to deal with 2 irate women .He stood in trailer at front and agree its not right , asked him to go underneath whilst i jumped up and down on top . Said he could see it was not safe . We got him to sign a piece of paper and stamp it with there stamper . We then took a stanley knife to rubbermatting to look underneath as it was not stuck to floor it lifted easily to show the floor was damp .. have taken pictures .. Have asked him to phone me as yet havnt had call . Now we wait , going to get in touch with trading standards to find out where we stand now after today . Does upgrade mean saftey or does like mean same problems ..gill
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gillallen said:
clait said:
How did it go at the dealer . Owner not there after we emailed and phoned to say we would be coming in "surprise !" not .. Left enployee to deal with 2 irate women .He stood in trailer at front and agree its not right , asked him to go underneath whilst i jumped up and down on top . Said he could see it was not safe . We got him to sign a piece of paper and stamp it with there stamper . We then took a stanley knife to rubbermatting to look underneath as it was not stuck to floor it lifted easily to show the floor was damp .. have taken pictures .. Have asked him to phone me as yet havnt had call . Now we wait , going to get in touch with trading standards to find out where we stand now after today . Does upgrade mean saftey or does like mean same problems ..gill
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Please everyone with a prob get in touch with Trading Standards NOW as the more complaints they get the less CL can fob them off and they may be forced to RECALL. Not sure how it all works as TS don't tell you what they are doing whilst carrying out their investigations. If they don't hear from you they'll assume I'm a one off.
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Looking at Trading Standards it is not obvious where to go to post a complaint. Can we have a link?

I have decided almost certainly not to go for a new floor because I will still be left with wet wall bottoms. This widens and complicates the argument. Does anyone else have wet wall bottoms, peeling paint at the bottom?
 
miscat said:
Looking at Trading Standards it is not obvious where to go to post a complaint. Can we have a link?

I have decided almost certainly not to go for a new floor because I will still be left with wet wall bottoms. This widens and complicates the argument. Does anyone else have wet wall bottoms, peeling paint at the bottom?
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You need to ring Consumer Direct 08454 040506. They will refer the complaint onto Trading Standards but can give advice on what your rights are as a consumer. Certainly worth a call.

There's just a very small bumpy section to the rear of my trailer next to back ramp at the bottom. Could be a sign of something amiss with the bottom of that side. Without removing the metal sheets how else can you see any damp?
 
Very worrying to hear of all these problems. I have a 2003 Pullman which has given excellent service and tows beautifully.I haven't checked mine yet but it will get a good going over this weekend.Looks like an alloy floor is the only long term solution, After this they will be unsellable without one.
 
miscat said:
Looking at Trading Standards it is not obvious where to go to post a complaint. Can we have a link?

I have decided almost certainly not to go for a new floor because I will still be left with wet wall bottoms. This widens and complicates the argument. Does anyone else have wet wall bottoms, peeling paint at the bottom?
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When we took a stanley knife to ours at the dealers , as the floor lifted which wasnt even stuck down floor was wet and stank .gill
 
WELL ITS OFFICAL OUR HAS A DEFECTIVE FLOOR ONE MORE TRIP AND IT WOULD HAVE GIVEN WAY ... Phoned trading stantards again yesterday to make them aware again looking at my serial numbers its the 2003 model brought in about 2008 that is having problems .. Now phoned left message for Mr Arwel need answers . Since 2009 they no longer make trailers with plywood floor now use alli so if they replace with plywood free of charge are they old 2 yr old floors they didnt use that might also be defective or are they having to get new Marine ply one sheet of 12by8 to make them . If so would it not be better to give us free of charge Alli ones that they have instead of charging £420 for one .???? Does up grade mean sellable and safe or does free of charge mean possibley defective ??? Fight not over or new trailer would be nice . So pleased we didnt clean floor when we took it to him else he would have blamed wet foor under matting on us .. Keep every one updated on progress , also found reports of CL trailers in Ireland with defective floors ..gill
 
Horse and Hound last week you put Cheval Liberte views in magazine do you now think you could put trailer owners comments in ..
 
To check the walls you have to look at the front of the trailer because the back has aluminium over it.

The white paint may be bubbling. The woodwork, if you can see it, would be dark and obviously damp. It happens because the end grain of this wood is sat in a permanently wet place.

It is important I think because the wooden sides are a structural component - if you took them away the metal framework would not have strength.
 
I think a new ali floor FOC is the least they could do as it currently appears(correct me if I'm wrong) that they have known about the plywood floor prob for some considerable time yet haven't contacted any trailer owners to advise of safety issues. I actually want to sell my single trailer to get a double but who the hell is going to buy it? Perhaps I ought to make CL buy it back! I would actually have been prepared to invest in a new CL double with ali floor before all this came to light.

Out of interest Consumer Direct have advised me to take all complaints to the Dealer where I purchased the trailer. TBH I feel like going direct to CL UK as it seems they may have been keeping the regional Dealers in the dark too in some cases. Who has everyone else complained to?
 
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