Johnson’s Journey No 1.
Legislation 1st October 2006
Paragraphs 12 - 15 Inclusive (Owners right of Entry to The Pitch)
&
Paragraph 28 (Qualifying Residents Association)
Owners Right of Entry onto The Pitch:
The aforementioned paragraphs are causing some considerable problems for park home owners in that legal advisors to the trade organisations, and advisors to those who operate their respective businesses outside the umbrella of those organisations, are now implying that their clients can determine whether or not to carry out a survey under paragraph 14 on park homes without obtaining permission from the home owner, on the pretext that they are complying with the said 14 clear days rule in order to do so. They tell the home owner that their own home is to be the subject of a survey. Under this rule it is our contention that they are deliberately undermining the home owners right to refuse on the grounds that the latter of the two has no argument on the matter which to us is a more accurate argument than the one put forward by the industry side and their respective advisors. It would be very interesting to find out what they would do if someone decided to carry out a survey on their home without their permission??? Very interesting indeed, and that would include some of the so-called surveyors. Not everyone working in the industry as a surveyor, has obtained the qualifications required. so is not qualified in the true sense of the word. Home owners beware.
We have heard how some legal advisors are interpreting this paragraph but we are convinced that they are acting wrongly on this matter. In paragraphs 12 to 14 inclusive it is very clearly stated what a park owner can and cannot do in concern of the content, but of course, those who continually seek out the loopholes, have now decided that there is a flaw in paragraph 14 itself due to it not indicating the proper reason for it‘s inclusion and the way that it has been written. However, and in our view, paragraph 15 has made it abundantly clear in the statement that the rights conferred on paragraphs 12 to 14 inclusive, DO NOT EXTEND TO THE HOME. This being the so even a person of secondary school education can understand what the words state and realise what the statement means. It isn’t rocket science.
To now use the paragraph in the context which they are doing, is surely acting in breach of the new legislation which has clearly clarified and identified the fact that in their ignoring the home owners right to remain in control of the right to choose if he/she wants, or indeed needs an In section of his or her own property. It is not for park owners to blatantly impose their requirements upon others when the property in question does NOT belong to that park owner. If they are unhappy that the home is not up to standard, As per the Agreement requirements, then they must do so through the correct channels but NOT by stealth methods which is a deplorable way to behave to say the least. They have the legal right to take up the matter in the Courts using paragraphs 4, 5, & 6. That is the law so let them use it instead of stooping to the pathetic tricks which fool o-one.
To do otherwise than going through the legal channels at their disposal means that they are in fact throwing the law out of the proverbial window in order to achieve their aims of making sure that they still hold power over the residents, but we are fully aware of them due to the continual searching of these advisors to find as many loopholes, or in their own words preclusions, over many years in order to satisfy their clients needs in a desperate effort to keep their wages coming in. It must now be getting
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hard for them, poor souls. Government passed this legislation into law, so it is up to them to force these operators into using the laws in the way that they were meant to be used, not by devious methods as they presently do.
Despite the numerous complaints over the years to Government concerning the methods that these operators use, and the fact that their legal eagles continually find loopholes and preclusions for them to continue manipulation the innocent away from the corridors of power, we still have the same situation of park owners fighting to retain the upper hand of power, and their busy bees exploiting every clause and paragraph to the fullest extent with total disregard for home owners rights. Is it any wonder that these firms won’t represent home owners interests against park owners who operate their businesses in a despicable manner when no-one, not even Government can, or don’t want to, stop them doing exactly what they want??
In all honesty, the blame must surely lie squarely on the shoulders of a Government that is now devoid of all semblance of integrity due to the fact that, as is usual practice, they just wanted to get the whole process of consultation, and actually writing the legislation, whereby they conveniently forgot to thoroughly check these clauses (paragraphs), call them what one will, in order to get them out of the way so that the whole matter could be finalised. That is why there are so many mistakes in this unacceptable Legislation. It was NOT properly dealt with in the first instance.
Due to the clear statement in paragraph 15, and because they are using paragraph 14 as their loophole which has been condoned by their advisors, they ARE extending the clause/paragraph to the home in order to have a survey carried out which must surely be acting in breach of the Implied Terms, by acting unilaterally without the home owners permission or authority. In light of this blatant scam and deception by park owners, we will be approaching the Office Of Fair Trading, and Trading Standards Office with a view to having the matter properly clarified by impartial parties who have no ties to either party to the Agreement and ALL Terms therein. But this is only one of the two subjects being put forward for consideration by the above offices for an independent judgement on the two sets of problems. We, as home owners, wish to know for certain whether or not this is an unfair Term, and whether or not it can be modified to read what it means. We are not prepared to take notice of the trades many advisors as we need the truth, not lies.
Qualifying Resident Associations:
Hooray!!!! We have finally been recognised by Government. Or have we??????
In it’s infinite wisdom this poor excuse for a Government, which has filled the national press with it’s scams on pensions - wage increases - expenses scams - and now they want not only to turn around the investigation results on the last of the aforementioned scams, but they have the gall and audacity to now demand another pay rise, not doubt also coming out of the public funds. But hang on a minute, there are no funds left after this lot got their hands on them.
But I diverse. This Government told park home owners some years ago that they would be forming a Working Party for the direct benefit and welfare of park home residents. That was in 1994. Note that, the direct benefit and welfare of the home owners. So what happened, oh yes, their meetings were not official and so there was no reason to keeps Minutes of these so-called get-togethers, in which case
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there was never a formal meeting. In the years since then we have had consultations by the bucketful and eventually new legislation came into force on 1st October 2006.
But in the meantime, those representing the two trade organisations worked hard to ensure that it was their voice, not the home owners, which were heard and taken notice of during the whole process of discussions. Right from the start that the latter of the two parties was not going to get a fair crack of the whip due to the fact that when specific subjects were raised, they were stopped before they were started, something to do with not enough time in which to discuss such matters. Did anyone notice how quickly the Park Homes Charter was sent out to parks, despite the fact that half of the subjects needing airing hadn’t been discussed thereby rendering the Charter an incomplete document and not being worth the paper it was written on. Wow, they soon lost sight of that one didn’t they?
Hooray again we are safe. Like hell we are, we’re worse of now than we were before the new legislation came into force and you know why??? Because they were in so much of a hurry to get it over and done with that they made a “pig’s ear” of it all, sent out the new legislation to park owners legal advisors three months prior to sending out the same documentation to the home owners representatives, so no wonder the industry is so secure due to the dogs-bodies finding practically all the loopholes and preclusions there were to find, and them told their clients how to use them. Great reading isn’t it???
Now we come to second of those new legislative inclusions, that of the QRA’s. Never has a clause, sorry, paragraph, been twisted around so much in order to deny home owners the same legal rights as other home owners have, ie; the right for ALL householders of legal age, no matter how many live in the home, to vote. But what did the snide park owners do, they insisted to Government that only one person per home be allowed the right of vote on park issues, that person being the first name on the document which they call an Agreement. Simple as that really. The first name on the document, so let’s look at the whole paragraph and see where it has been doctored.
Paragraph 28:
28.1. A residents QRA is a qualifying RA in relation to a protected site if:-
a) it is an association representing the occupiers of mobile homes on that site;
b) at least 50% of the occupiers are members of the association;
c) it is independent from the owner, who together with any agent or employee of his, is excluded from membership;
d) subject to sub-paragraph (c) above, the membership is open to all occupiers who own a mobile home on that site;
e) it maintains a list of members which is open to public Inspection together with the Rules and Constitution of the RA;
f) it has a Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer who are elected by and from among the members ;
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g) with the exception of administrative decisions taken by the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer acting in their respective official capacities, decisions are taken by voting and there is only one vote each mobile home; and
h) the owner has acknowledged in writing to the Secretary that the association is a QRA, or in default of this, the Court has so Ordered;
2. When calculating the percentage of occupiers for the purposes of sub-paragraph 1(b)above, each mobile home will be taken to have only one occupier and, in the event of there being more than one occupier of a mobile home, it’s occupier is to be taken to be the occupier whose name first appears on the Agreement.
Notes: The above paragraph 28 seems on reflection to be fair to both parties, right??? Wrong.
We will go through the paragraphs one by one to see where the problems lie. Firstly, in sub-paragraph 1(b) we see the distasteful criteria, that of 50% membership. Why 50%???? Well it’s easy to understand, park owners insisted on this being the cut off percentage figure, not because it is easy to remember but for one reason and one reason only, it is for the same reason that they want a copy of the list of membership.
They need to have a lever with which to destroy a QRA, so this way they can target the old and infirm, the little old lady living on her own in a corner of the park somewhere who is in the RA. Why?? so they can harass - intimidate - and bully her to the extent that she will succumb, capitulate and resign from the RA. The poor old lady is terrified at what the park owner will do if she doesn’t capitulate, threaten her with a big pitch fee increase which she cannot afford? Threaten to evict her from her home? Or simply just destroy the home, probably with her inside.
It doesn’t happen do we hear you say, tell that to the residents who were terrified by the 5 thugs who thank goodness, got their comeuppance by being sent down for a total of 64 years between them. Tell that to the residents on a park in Wolverhampton area who have been threatened to have their homes knocked down in order for their UPO to put a road through where their homes stand at the moment.
To destroy the Association by making the membership drop below the 50% which further means that they don’t have to show bills and invoices before making their demands for increases on anything they wish. Such park owners won’t have to justify themselves to the home owners because there will no longer be an RA.. Well done Government, another almighty cock-up.
1.(e) this states that the list of members of the RA is open to PUBLIC INSPECTION??? What public would this be???. A Park Home Residents Association has nothing to do with the public so why was this paragraph put into the legislation?? It is very doubtful if Government can clarify why this was entered into the legislation sent out to park owners, who by the way and on the whole, have not supplied their residents with a copy for themselves to retain with their existing Agreement. We wonder why this would be, or do we really have to ask????.
1(g) states that the first name on the Agreement only can vote, WHY??? It would appear that, despite the fact that all persons over the age of 18yrs are legally eligible to vote, only the park home industry acts discriminatory with total impunity towards those who live on their parks .
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This is blatant discrimination against one party in each home, and that usually happens to be the lady of the house, in which case, they are blatantly discriminating against women, but it is despicable in the way that they use loopholes in the law in order to manipulate innocent people for nothing more than pure greed and avarice.
1(g) Again. We have to ask Government why park owners have the right to dictate the terms of a Residents Association’s Constitution? For as long as the Association acts in accordance with the Constitution it has made, then park owners have no right whatsoever to interfere and dictate how the association should be run, and they most certainly do not dictate when or whether votes should be taken. It would seem that park owners have conveniently forgotten that voting on proposals is only used in accordance with the park rules and not other matters. It is very strongly suggested that they read their own Clause 4 in the existing Express Terms in their own Agreements before shooting their mouths over matters which do not concern the.
But government must know that it has allowed the existing problems to happen at every turn of the wheel through their couldn’t care less attitude towards park home owners nationwide. They have failed miserably as our duly elected representatives, whilst at the same time pacifying those who operate their parks for the sole benefit of destroying peoples lives via their legal advisors who, by their own actions, manipulate the law to their clients satisfaction in the sure and certain knowledge that their lobbyists have done their job well in the corridors of power. And the politicians have listened to every word told by these lobbyists to the total detriment of the other party in these matters, park home owners.
1(h) Insofar as park owners recognising and acknowledging a park QRA, they totally ignore this sub-paragraph in the full knowledge that if they ignore the residents long enough, the latter will stop trying to come to agreement with them, thus they have stopped a QRA from forming. Alternatively, they are also aware of the fact that they are forcing the other party to seek recognition through the Courts which means that the residents have to pay out of their own pockets, but having said as much, these arrogant, ignorant owners, all over the country, still refuse to cooperate and totally ignore their own legal obligations to others. No change there then???.
The response given by the former NFSO in 1983, concerning the new legislation of that time, spouted a complete pack of lies from start to finish, they have never worked with their residents since the inception of this industry, and just because new legislation came into force in 2006, they are certainly not going to change their greedy ways in order to pacify Government, and most certainly not the residents. Everything these operators have said in the past and up to date has been total kidology and stupid politicians have swallowed their fabricated lies wholesale, hook, line and sinker.
Note: the readers of this missive must understand that, according to Government and trade organisations, the reasoning behind only being allowed one vote per mobile home is because, if every owner/occupier were taken into account, park owners would never receive a proper and fair vote because of the vast difference in numbers alone. That really is the cat calling the kettle black. It is understood that in the outside world of normality and conventional housing the country is voting for or against a whole Government inclusive of both Houses which is far more important.
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In the park home world regardless that owner/occupiers, may be outnumbered by other occupiers in the same mobile home and/or tenants who are not permitted to vote, they can still win the day on voting rights. Add to this is that fortunately park home residents are nowhere near to being as devious and nasty as park owners via their greedy and disgraceful scams just for the sake of making their residents suffering, rather than act as upright honest businessmen who treat their counterparts with the respect they fully deserve. Park owners would know how to speak the truth if it got up and smacked them in the face. They are despicable in all aspects of their way of life unfortunately for the home owners. This organisation is fully committed to telling prospective buyers of park homes to turn away before they lose everything they have in regard to quality of life - finance - respect from the other party - dignity - but most of all, their legal and inherent rights in both law and expectations when moving into a park home for the rest of their lives. It is a great shame that the general public have no idea whatsoever about the park home industry, if they did then this industry would have fallen flat on it’s face before it got anywhere near the twenty first century, and that’s a fact.
Because of the way in which this industry is run from top to bottom by the cheating, lying, greedy avaricious owners, ably supported by their legal advisors who play their clients game for as long as they need to if the price is right, then the park home lifestyle will continue to decline to ever increasing levels of despair and unhappiness, all because of the parasites who run these parks. Such people as these do not, and never will, know the meaning of the words truth and honesty because they are the disciples of Herr Rachmann, the man whom the general public hated, the very same man who couldn’t hold a light to these despots. Against these people, he was a pussycat.
Park owners only have one God.
No it isn’t He who sits on high.
It isn’t the missus and nor is it the laws of this industry or the land.
It is something we all had in our pockets before going into the park home lifestyle.
IT IS MONEY AT ALL COST, REGARDLESS OF WETHER OR NOT IT RUINS OTHER PEOPLES LIVES. PARK HOME OWNERS KNOW IT ONLY TOO WELL, BUT OBVIOUSLY THIS INEPT GOVERNMENT DOESN’T, AND NOR DOES IT CARE. IS IT JUST THE MINORITY? NO IT IS THE VAST MAJORITY WHO ARE ON THE TAKE.
PHRAA will actively endeavour to tell the truth regardless if it hurts those who purport to be representing the interests and welfare of park home owners, and we will make sure that we will do our hardest to stop prospective park home buyers ruining their lives by purchasing a new home from any park owner in this country, no matter who he is.
Governments are not prepared to fight for the home owners, so we will do it ourselves, but be warned, park owners you had your turn at the helm, now it’s ours.
Johnson's Journeys No 1 
