Alicia Mearns and her partner John Hayden allege they were coaxed into spending £36,600 on the caravan, which they now assert is "basically not worth anything" following a kitchen fit-out by John, blocking any potential sale.

However, Park Lane Holiday Homes, who operate the site in Meols, Wirral, said it refuted their comments. A spokesperson said: "The couple have not engaged in any communications with the company regarding selling the caravan."

Alicia, 41, and partner John, 48, were hoping to buy a property in Spain but wanted a base close to their places of work. Alicia, who owns Allure beauty salon in Birkenhead and John, who runs building business JandJ Joinery, decided holiday parks seemed to be the best option for a secondary residence, provided they could find one they were allowed to live in at any time of year.

In early 2023 they met a salesman regarding a site at Park Lane Holiday Homes in Meols, and had a budget of £25,000. They claim they were told there was only one caravan available near their price range at £36,600.

Additionally, they claim they were told that, as someone else was interested in buying it, they would need to commit right away with a £500 deposit. Alicia said: "We felt rushed. But the caravan seemed to be what we wanted, so we took the plunge."

John revealed: "The rest of the money we had to pull together from bank loans and part-exchanging our 2013 touring caravan, pending the sale of our former property.", reports the Liverpool Echo.

Alicia said: "We were not given a contract. Not then and not later. All we ever received was a piece of paper in the office to confirm the sale."

The couple disclosed that site fees amounted to £4,600 annually, payable upfront, with an additional charge of £300 levied shortly thereafter. Alicia expressed their frustration, especially since they spend most of the year on-site, but issues escalated on October 20, 2023, due to flooding.

She said: "Whenever there are heavy rains, our pitch floods, which is often, due to the British weather.

"The water depth can be such that we find it extremely difficult to get in and out of the caravan. I am a mum with two kids and the youngest is seven."

John added: "They told us a new water pump was installed to keep water levels down in future. But the flooding is actually worse now. It has flooded badly - a total of seven times since we moved in."

The pair allege they enquired about relocating their caravan to a higher, flood-free pitch, only to be informed it would cost them £1,400. They arranged for the move while they were in Spain, attempting to facilitate a move abroad.

Alicia said: "(The owner) told us outright that they would not be moving our caravan. He told us that the only way to move to a more flood-proof location was to upgrade to one in a more preferable location."

They claim they were hit with another blow when they were told by a manager on the site that their caravan was "basically not worth anything" because of a new kitchen that joiner John had installed at a cost of £10,000.

Alicia said: "Apparently this had devalued the caravan" and "plus the fact it was 20 years old (we had no idea about its age until this point) rendered it worthless."

She continued: "We are probably biased, but we feel that the caravan looks objectively better after John's lovingly installed kitchen replacement."

John reveals that they balked at the exorbitant prices quoted for an upgrade, which hovered around £75,000, driving them to consider private sales instead.

In contrast, a spokesperson from Park Lane Holiday Homes countered with: "The couple have not engaged in any communications with the company regarding selling the caravan and therefore their comments are wholly refuted."

Responding to this, Alicia claims she spoke to a manager about wanting to sell the caravan. She said: "Two friends expressed an interest in buying our caravan. He (the salesperson) told us that 'because of the caravan's age', the park would have to put the ground rent up from £4,600 to £10,500 for the new owners. Understandably our friends did not want to go through with the purchase after learning this"

Alicia and John claim they investigated the possibility of moving the caravan to a different site, but said that because of its age no other site would allow this.

Alicia said: "This information is something they absolutely should have disclosed to us before we paid out £36,600. We never would have paid so much money for a caravan if we had known the limitations caused by its age. Not telling us this was a serious failure on their part in our opinion.

"We are now stuck living on a pitch that continues to flood, resulting in our electricity tripping out as our washing machine and dryer are located outside. The tumble dryer is now ruined due to water damage.

"Currently we are in limbo. The park keeps sending us a new lease to sign, and we daren't sign it because it states a caravan age limit of ten years.

"We have paid two years' site fees for a pitch that is unliveable, not fit for purpose and a danger."

A spokesperson for Park Lane Holiday Homes said: "We can confirm that over the past two years the park has, on occasion, experienced flash floods.

"However, we would like to emphasise that such events are not unique to the park itself. They are consistent with weather patterns affecting the wider local area of the Wirral and are reflective of the environmental conditions experienced across the region, where flooding commonly occurs.

"We wish to reassure all guests that we remain fully committed to ensuring that the holiday park continues to be managed safely and responsibly. All necessary measures have been taken to protect visitors and maintain the high standards our guests expect.

"In respect of the allegations made by the couple regarding their caravan, we must highlight that firstly this is a holiday site, and not a residential site. Further the couple have not engaged in any communications with the company regarding selling the caravan and therefore their comments are wholly refuted.

"The 19-page licence agreement in place with the couple (signed on each page) is for one year, and they are at liberty to move to another holiday site if they so desire."