Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Senator, and indeed, any other Senator should feel free to contact me directly about any particular areas under my remit . If Senators have difficulty in raising a Commencement matter, I am always happy to assist any Member of this House or, indeed, the Dáil so feel free to contact me at any stage.

Covid-19 has, understandably, raised a number of issues for mobile homeowners. Current level 5 restrictions mean people generally cannot travel to their mobile home in the normal way and this has been the case for significant periods of 2020. The Senator has been active on this issue for a number of months and launched a survey to gather feedback. I thank him for sharing some of his findings. I am interested to know how many people contributed to his survey because having made inquiries with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, I can confirm that it has received 70 queries from consumers about caravan parks issues this year. Unsurprisingly, the majority of these were received during the spring and summer months. Due to the varied nature of these queries, the CCPC had to deal with the issues on a case-by-case basis and had key messages for consumers.The contract or licence agreement which consumers have with their holiday park operators is very important and they should familiarise themselves with the terms and conditions. Where consumers require further information about their contractual arrangements, they should speak directly with the operator of the site. In the case of unilateral changes to a contract made by an operator or contractual arrangements which may contain unfair terms and conditions, the consumer should raise the matter directly with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, under the regulation on unfair terms in consumer contracts. In cases where a consumer and a holiday park operator cannot mutually resolve a dispute over contractual arrangements, it is up to the parties to seek a civil remedy to the case.

The application of charges for mobile homes during the Covid-19 pandemic is likely to be determined by the terms and conditions of the contract and reflected in a licence agreement which would be granted by the operator of a caravan park to the owners of mobile homes. Notwithstanding the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, consumer rights apply in full and they have not been weakened. Consumers are entitled to rely on what is provided for in the contract that they have with their operator. Where a written contract is drafted by a trader in advance and a consumer does not have the opportunity to review the terms of the contract before signing, those contract terms will be subject to the regulations. It is important to highlight that under these regulations, traders, including operators of mobile home parks, are obliged to adhere to the contractual terms previously agreed. A trader cannot unilaterally change the terms and conditions without the consumer's agreement.

The CCPC recommends that consumers check the terms and conditions of their agreement with their operators. If consumers think an operator is acting unfairly in relation to the contract, they can make a complaint to the CCPC. Following this process, if the issue is not resolved, it is open to them to commence legal action. If the claim is for less than €2,000, consumers can use the small claims procedure to try to resolve their complaint.