Latest news with #caravan
The Sun
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Sun
M5 traffic: Motorway at a standstill after horror caravan crash with debris strewn across the road
DRIVERS have been warned of traffic chaos on the M5 after a caravan crash this evening. Bumper-to-bumper queues are building on the major motorway after a smash unfolded near Avonmouth Bridge, Bristol, on the southbound carriageway. 2 Motorists were forced to navigate debris strewn over the road following the collision. Traffic is now at a standstill as investigations are underway between J18 M49 to J19 A369 Martcombe Road (Portishead). Traffic monitoring site Inrix confirmed: "All traffic being temporarily held and stationary traffic due to debris on road and accident, a caravan involved on M5 Avonmouth Bridge Southbound from J18 M49 to J19 A369 Martcombe Road (Portishead). "Traffic held now around 18:35." It follows "severe delays" on the M5 this afternoon Northbound between J23 A39 (Bridgwater North) and J22 (Burnham-On-Sea), according to AA. The congestion formed after another crash earlier today. This comes after we reported on a horror bus accident yesterday. narrowly avoiding cars before flying off the road near Eastleigh, Hampshire yesterday morning. 19 people were left injured following the disturbing ordeal, which was over in a matter of seconds. A youngster behind the camera says: "Oh my god, the bus has just had a major crash and now he's speeding off." Someone else yells in panic: "Get away from the windshield." "We're going to die, we're actually going to die, what's he doing?", says the concerned boy filming. "Oh my god, oh my god, we're actually going to die," he repeats, his voice growing more shaky. Terrified screams pierce through the air as the camera falls and the large vehicle loses control. The video cuts off as the bus ploughs into the River Itchen, on Bishopstoke Road, near Eastleigh. It comes as the driver earlier blamed faulty brakes and a "jammed accelerator". Three passengers were rushed to hospital while fourteen were treated for minor injuries. Pictures from the scene also showed the large blue bus sitting upright in the shallow river with broken railings left behind. Elsewhere, the moment a speeding driver leaves a woman for dead in a crushed car to pick up his scattered £20 notes was caught on camera. Ty Kelsall smashed into the victim, who is aged in her 50s, as she drove along a quiet street in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. 2
BreakingNews.ie
12 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Caravan parked at entrance road to Tesco Maynooth must be removed by Wednesday
The High Court has ordered a mother and her daughter to remove a caravan they are allegedly occupying at an entrance road to the large Tesco Extra shopping centre in Maynooth, Co Kildare. The caravan was allegedly towed a month ago and left at the road, which serves as the main delivery route to Tesco and for the Carton Retail Park generally. Advertisement A man called Dermot O'Brien, who died tragically just over two weeks after the caravan's arrival, told centre staff he had used his last €100 to have it towed there, that he was renting the caravan, and that he was going nowhere until Kildare County Council housed him and his family. The orders that the caravan be removed are against his widow, Sandra O'Brien, and her daughter, Valentine O'Brien, who allegedly continue to occupy it. Tesco Ireland Ltd regional manager for assets and estates, Keith Brady, said in an affidavit when he spoke to Mr O'Brien he observed there were no personal possessions such as clothing, food or a television in the caravan which suggested to him it had not been lived in for very long as of May 27th when it was towed there. After Mr O'Brien became irate with Mr Brady, the gardai were called and said Mr O'Brien was well known to them, but that the only way to move him was with a court order, as it was private property. Advertisement A garda also warned more caravans might arrive overnight and Tesco arranged for further security and the next day installed concrete blocks on the grass verge along with a gate. Mr O'Brien again refused to leave and also had An Post deliver a letter to him at the site which he showed to Mr Brady and stated he could now show the council he was living on the Tesco car park as he had the letter with his name and eircode on it. He also asked Mr Brady if he could arrange for someone to cut the grass around his caravan, Mr Brady said. Several people visited the caravan over the next few days. Matters escalated dramatically on June 5th when emergency services were called to the caravan following a tragic incident involving Mr O'Brien. He was taken to hospital and died on June 13th. Advertisement While Tesco had already been having legal proceedings prepared to seek the removal of the caravan, Mr Brady said he instructed their solicitors to refrain from taking any enforcement action out of sensitivity for the family. For several days after June 5th, cars were coming and going, and there were a number of people in the caravan, with people seen bringing alcohol into it. Mrs O'Brien was asked to move on June 19th and said she had nowhere to go. Mr Brady said he was also told by her the council has put her on the emergency housing/B&B list. Ireland Man (26) jailed for drugs haul worth over over €2.... Read More Ultimately, it was necessary to bring proceedings, Mr Brady said. Advertisement Apart from the trespass itself, there was a traffic safety risk for the caravan occupants and lack of basic sanitary services or waste disposal facilities, he said. He was also concerned the antisocial behaviour at the site will dissuade customers from shopping there. Mr Justice Brian Cregan said he was satisfied to grant an interim injunction prohibiting trespass and requiring the removal of the caravan. The application was made with only the Tesco side represented (ex parte) by Niall Fahy BL, for the company. The judge said the defendants must do so by 5pm next Wednesday, but if they wish to oppose the orders, they should turn up in court that day.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Centrelink payment alert for 58,000 Aussies in caravans: 'Won't affect'
Services Australia has revealed how Centrelink payments work if you're living in a caravan that's traversing across the country. Tens of thousands of people were listed as caravan nomads at the 2021 census, and their home on four wheels is usually exempt from the assets test. It's the same story for those who permanently live on a boat, or a relocatable home permanently attached to a caravan park. Services Australia community services officer Justin Bott said these people were assessed differently from those who own a home in the traditional sense. "That's because you own the home, but not the land it's on or the mooring the boat is at," he said. Centrelink age pension changes coming into effect from July 1 Couple's side hustle amid double redundancy secures $13 million fortune Aussie left without cash as ING cuts access to bank account for days "So for Services Australia, you are considered to be a homeowner, and the boat, caravan or mobile home is exempt from the assets test and won't affect your payment." These people could also be eligible for Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA), which could go towards paying for ongoing fees like caravan site or mooring costs. However, if you do own the land or water that the caravan or boat is on, up to two hectares around your dwelling can also still be exempt from the assets a result, it won't affect your Pension payment, but you won't be eligible for CRA. Bott said things can get tricky if the caravan or transportable home park lists or advertises itself as a retirement village or strictly for people over 55. You need to complete asset and income tests to be approved for certain Centrelink payments. While your personal home might not be deemed an asset in some cases, Services Australia will include the following as assessable assets: financial investments home contents, personal effects and vehicles real estate, annuities, income streams and superannuation pensions sole traders, partnerships, private trusts and private companies According to the 2021 Census, the vast majority of Australians live in a home fixed to the earth, with nearly 11 million private dwellings counted. Standalone houses made up the greatest proportion of that at 70 per cent, with 16 per cent living in apartments, and 13 per cent living in townhouses. That left 58,155 people who lived in a caravan, and 29,369 who lived in cabins or a houseboat. Caravanning has exploded in popularity since then, especially after the pandemic forced many Aussies to check out their own backyard before travelling overseas. While some people might permanently live in their caravan to traverse across the country, others take their home on four wheels out for a couple of days, weeks, or months every year. According to the ABC, there are more than 800,000 registered recreational vehicles in Australia, and 1.5 million people caravan each year. "There is a lot more families on the road permanently," Regional South Australian tourism operator Jan Coleman told the national broadcaster. "They've given up their home, they've pulled their children out of school, they're homeschooling, and they're just travelling. Whether it's because they are sick of being in lockdown or whether they've realised that life really is too short."
ABC News
5 days ago
- ABC News
Hopetoun on WA's south coast will stop free camping, citing rubbish complaints
A West Australian town will close its only free caravan and campervan campsite after complaints of visitors leaving rubbish and human waste behind. Hopetoun sits about 50 kilometres off Highway One, or South Coast Highway, on the state's south coast and is 555km south-east of Perth. The Shire of Ravensthorpe voted last week to close a free RV campsite in the town and instead work with a local caravan park to offer discounted $15 a night sites. The move, which follows similar changes in other towns across Australia, has been met with a mixed response with some fearing it will turn tourists away. Shire President Tom Major said the council wanted to move the existing 48-hour free site to next to one of the town's caravan parks as it was a better location. "We want to keep our RV-friendly status for the town, so we need a free, or low-cost option … there will be a low-cost option, but it may not necessarily be free," he said. Cr Major said the community had raised concerns about the location of the free camping area on a road joining the main street. Issues raised included safety with its proximity to traffic and rubbish dumping, including toilet paper and human waste left in the surrounding bushland. He said there was a risk the town might lose some visitors by removing Hopetoun's free campsite, but the council wanted to grow the number of visitors from low-cost budget travellers to higher-yielding visitors. "We have to strike a balance," Cr Major said. "I think this policy does the best to strike a balance between offering good options to travellers, supporting local businesses, and making it amenable for residents." The closest town is Ravensthorpe, 46km away, which will retain its free RV camping site. Grey Nomad Awards founding director Liz Rivers said in the case of other free camp closures, visitors had typically chosen to visit another area. "You might find that Ravensthorpe becomes more popular as a free camp, and therefore there'll be more benefit back to the local businesses [in Ravensthorpe]," Ms Rivers said. "Grey nomads want to be able to give back to the communities in which they stay, and so they tend to make sure they're spending money everywhere they stay. When ABC posted information on social media about the Shire of Raventhorpe's decision, it was shared on multiple caravan and backpacker pages within hours. Simon Flick runs a cafe and grocer in Hopetoun and said he was worried about the closure deterring tourists from visiting. "We do get a lot of people coming in saying they came off the main road to get free camping," he said. Mr Flick said he was concerned some travellers would bypass the town if there were no free camping sites. "A lot of caravaners are on Wikicamps, which promotes local businesses that look after caravaners and campers," he said. Hopetoun Beachside Caravan Park will operate the discount camping site next to its property. Coordinator Rachel Small said the fee of $15 a night would attract visitors. Ms Small said some visitors were using the existing free site poorly with human waste left in nearby bushland a common complaint. "I think $15 a night is a very small amount to ask people to contribute to cover the cost of their stay in town," she said."And the caravan park makes a huge effort to make sure that we refer travellers on to all of our local businesses and share the love around a little bit. "It's not only for our benefit, but for the benefit of all of our local businesses and residents as well." The free camping site will close once the new site is open in the coming months.
Daily Mail
20-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE I spent £32k of my father's inheritance on a caravan from Britain's 'richest gypsy'... two years later they tell me I can NEVER sell it - now I'm losing thousands every year
A pensioner has told how she lost £50,000 after spending her father's inheritance money on a caravan - only to be told two years later she can never sell it. Debbie Mularczyk, 67, purchased the 12-year-old mobile home in 2022 at Cornwall's SeaView Holiday Park, a branch of Wyldecrest Parks founded by self-proclaimed 'billionaire gypsy' Alfie Best. She was allegedly promised the £32,000 caravan was an 'investment' by park owners, who claimed she could make a profit renting it out and then sell up down the line. However, in what the pensioner has described as a 'complete blow', she was told just two years later in 2024 that the property was unsellable as it was 'too old'. After forking out the initial lump sum and tens of thousands in site fees, the pensioner claims she is £50,000 out of pocket and trapped with a caravan she doesn't want. She told MailOnline: 'It's just devastating because we've lost all that money which was meant to be a legacy, because my dad lived there. 'We used all the money thinking it would be somewhere for family and friends, [...] but it's just a drain financially.' Mrs Mularczyk, a retired NHS nurse and midwife from Somerset, said when going to sell up in 2024 she was told it would not be possible as the home was more than 10 years old. 'There's just a little comment on the lease that says caravans must not change hands when a caravan is over 10 years old. We bought it at 12 years old,' she said. 'We were told at the time [of buying] it would be no problem - it's a great investment.' Mrs Mularczyk said she has tried to make back some of the money by renting out the property on AirBnb, but added the profits don't come close to covering the annual site fees, as well as cleaning and maintenance costs. 'Eventually I guess we'll just have to lock the door and walk away, and we've lost all that money,' she said. 'We thought it would be a wonderful use of my dad's money, but it's been basically a total waste of his money. We don't know where it's going to end.' She added: 'Our plans were to sell it while it was still valuable [...] but then we were told last year that we couldn't sell it at all - it was a complete bombshell. So that's where we are.' To make matters worse, Mrs Mularczyk claims the state of the park itself has become more and more 'derelict' as the three years have gone by. 'The site itself looks derelict. The facilities when we bought the site are less now. When we bought it there was a tennis court, outdoor pool, we were told there was a restaurant and bar, that's only actually just opened,' she said. 'The children's outdoor playground is derelict, the only thing that's in there is the slide, a broken zipline, a broken down dinosaur, the picnic area is just derelict.' Mrs Mularczyk claimed she was recently told the £5,500 annual site fees are increasing in September by 8 per cent. She is the latest in a string of caravan owners who have told MailOnline about their mobile home nightmares - with many claiming they lost their life savings after their property plummeted in value. The pensioner also said she has tried tirelessly to contact Wyldecrest Parks with her concerns but is yet to receive a response. MailOnline has contacted SeaView and Alfie Best for comment. Wyldecrest Parks declined to comment. Alfie Best founded Wyldecrest Parks in 2001 when he purchased Lakeview Residential Park in Romford, Essex - marking the beginning of his mobile home park empire. Last year, he told MailOnline his net worth is into 10 figures thanks to his business interests - having quit Britain to move to Monte Carlo.
