A New Zealand family who poured $168,000 into their dream caravan say their long-planned lap around Australia has been thrown into chaos, after administrators confirmed the collapsed Zone RV will not deliver hundreds of luxury vans.
Cade and Alexis Thornton had sold their business, rented out their home, taken their children out of school and booked flights to Australia when they received confirmation their caravan had not even entered production, and never would.
“We were braced for bad news, but it was still a sickening feeling receiving the official email to say our van hadn’t even been started and our contract wouldn’t be honoured,” Ms Thornton said.
The devastating update came after administrators Cor Cordis wrote to affected customers this week, confirming Zone RV was unable to fulfil its contracts following its collapse into voluntary administration on December 1.
About 140 families who partially paid for luxury caravans have now been told they will not receive their vehicles, with some customers more than $160,000 out of pocket after paying up to 80 per cent of the purchase price in progress payments.
“We regret to advise the company is unable to fulfil its contractual obligations to you for the manufacture and delivery of the caravan,” the letter said, ABC reported.
“As at the date of administration, the manufacture of your caravan had not yet commenced, and the company is without sufficient resources to continue manufacturing and deliver your caravan.
“We acknowledge this is distressing and disappointing news to be receiving and we thank you for your patience as we work through the position with respect to each customer’s caravan order.”
The letters also included contact details for Lifeline and Beyond Blue, highlighting the emotional toll on customers facing financial loss and shattered holiday plans.
Administrators confirmed around 20 caravans have been released to customers who had already paid in full, provided they paid an additional 12 per cent fee to cover the cost of running the business on skeleton staff and completing remaining builds.
Another tranche of about 20 fully paid vans is expected to be completed and handed over by the end of January.
For the Thorntons, whose final instalment was due before collection in February, the future remains uncertain — but the family says abandoning their plans is not an option.
“We are trying to keep our plans alive — we have to because we have tenants moving into our house next month, so abandoning the trip isn’t really an option,” Ms Thornton said.
“We’ve started looking for a second-hand caravan.
“Zone may have taken our $168,000, but we’re determined not to let them take our dream holiday from us too.”
Zone RV’s collapse last week left around 100 customers in limbo and 250 employees without work or holiday pay just days before Christmas.
The Sunshine Coast-based manufacturer owes about $42 million to hundreds of creditors.
Industry veteran David Fealy, who has decades of experience across the caravan and manufacturing sectors, said the failure reflects deeper instability across the domestic RV industry.
“Right now, the RV industry in Australia is in a tougher place than most people realise,” he told Yahoo News earlier.
“Local manufacturers are being squeezed from every angle; cheaper imports on one side, soaring costs on the other, and warranty expectations that can destroy a small builder overnight.
“What used to be a stable, proudly Australian industry is now a pressure cooker.”
Last year, a retired couple who poured their life savings into what they thought would be the motorhome of their dreams faced the “shattering” prospect of returning to work after losing it all in the bombshell financial collapse of Tango Caravans.
Kids ‘gutted’, family in limbo after another caravan company goes bust
The New Zealand family say they’d already organised tenants to lease their home while they travel.
They’ve booked flights to Queensland and hired a rental car to get them to Townsville to collect the caravan, but at this stage, they don’t know if it will be there.
Cade said his children, aged seven and nine, who were “just so excited”, are now “gutted”.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and if we did have to delay it, the kids get older, and they don’t want to go. So, we’ve only got a small window to do this,” he told the ABC.
“It just seems bewildering how it can happen. You do so much homework and research, and you put your savings, all your hard-earned money into it.”
The father-of-two said the family are struggling to process the news, branding the situation “quite hard”.
“Coming home is not really an option for us. We don’t have a house to come back to,” he said.
They’re now waiting for updates from administrators as to whether they can expect a van, or if they’ll be forced to “start again”.
The company’s luxury caravans sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Source: ZoneRV
More than a dozen finished caravans may still be delivered to owners who have paid in full, the ABC reported. But less is clear for those who had only paid partially.
The first creditors’ meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, when administrators Cor Cordis are expected to outline the full extent of Zone RV’s debts
In a statement, a spokesperson for administrators Cor Cordis said the restructuring firm was conducting an “urgent review” of the caravan company’s situation.
The administrators “primary objective is to preserve value for all stakeholders, including approximately 250 employees, customers and suppliers, and to determine the strategic options available for the business moving forward,” they said.
“Zone RV will continue to trade in a substantially reduced capacity.”
According to the Zone RV’s website, its “Australian-made caravans are optimised for safety and weight, incorporating technology from the aeronautical and marine industries to ensure they can navigate even the toughest terrains.”
Its most expensive vans cost more than $250,000.
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