Dan Posted August 29, 2010 Share Posted August 29, 2010 Hi Folks I see Hoseasons have continued updating the site with the odd new piccie that they've taken recently. Lots of Richardsons ones were added and now also the odd one for Swancraft, Topcraft, Moonfleet, Horizon Craft, Ferry Marina and Summercraft. Noticed on Summercraft's they have put Gala Girls new picture under Gardenia's pictures. There's a few things like that which make me think maybe no-one at Hoseasons knows or has much interest/expertise in boats these days? Nice pictures anyway.... I especially like that with the latest photos you can click to enlarge and see much more detail and clearer etc. http://www.hoseasons.co.uk/webpages/eub ... T=boatInfo Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sandragon70 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 All the things I have seen and heard over the years I would be extremely surprised if anyone at Hoseasons knows anything about boats escpecially Richardsons, The only Hoseasons boats we haven't had something go wrong with was at Acle. Have never been with Hoseasons at Wroxham so I don't know about them but Richardsons are totally rubbish and I will never hire one of theirs ever, in my opinion too many boats and not enough staff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyg Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 hi sandragon. it seems you had a bad time with rickos sorry too hear that its not the norm as their customer service imho is first class, yes some of the boats they hire are old i think its fair too say thats reflected in the hire price. weve hirered boats many times through hoseasons and have never been let down. but they are just the letting agent and dont own the yards or boats, so when you say hoseasons at wroxham. royalls and summer craft are the two yards hoseasons are agent for in that area and they are two of the best yards on the broads. happy boating in sept. andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pks1702 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Have never been with Hoseasons at Wroxham so I don't know about them but Richardsons are totally rubbish and I will never hire one of theirs ever, in my opinion too many boats and not enough staff. Oh dear a rather sweeping statement and very much at odds with most evidence we see from other users here. I am sure you will have discussed your alleged dissatisfaction with the company at the time to allow them to be aware and act accordingly. A bit like going to Paris and saying you don't like French people Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Ricko Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 All the things I have seen and heard over the years I would be extremely surprised if anyone at Hoseasons knows anything about boats escpecially Richardsons, The only Hoseasons boats we haven't had something go wrong with was at Acle. Have never been with Hoseasons at Wroxham so I don't know about them but Richardsons are totally rubbish and I will never hire one of theirs ever, in my opinion too many boats and not enough staff. where is the 'water off a ducks back' smiley?? I still find it interesting that people still think Hoseasons own the yards however I do hope the yard in Acle was Horizon craft! I am sorry to hear you have had a previous bad experience but for the 300 boats we run there are 130 staff employed which works out to less than 3 boats per staff member, I think you would be hard pressed to better that but would be interested to know if it is being done. last year we had less than 1% complaints with with all 300 boats going out roughly 1.5 times per week which is a real credit to the staff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark42 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Well said Clive, we have hired for 3 years in a row with Richardsons and the staff are great, if you have any mechanical problems they react quickly and the newer boats that they have are truly excellent very clean. Booked yesterday for Broads Harmony in April. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sandragon70 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 The worst boat I have had actually was at horning some years back and the company did nothing when we complained the boat leaked and the bilge pump was going all night and we were very unhappy. I have heard of people having engine problems, a family going to hospital with carbon monoxide poisoning and my sister said her boat she hired some years back from richardsons was very cold and leaked and it wasn't too long ago one of their boats sank according to someone else on this forum. This was a few years back now and it sounds like things have definitely picked up so I may consider richardsons in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyg Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 hi clive well said and i guess you know but how does the same boat go out one and half times a week andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Posted August 31, 2010 Author Share Posted August 31, 2010 Hi Sandragon I think i've hired from Richardsons about twenty times. i've had them out to replace a video player & tighten a dripping stern tube. Neither were big or neglected problems to my mind. I've only hired from other Broadland yards a few times but have had a couple of callouts there so their callout ratio is impressive from my experience. I think its a little unfair to comment if youve not hired from them in a long time. I've been hiring from them since 1996, and also having seen the workforce in action through the season and over a winter I think the investment, work and team they have is hard to better. Not all the craft are top luxury of course (though some are) but I think all are well maintained and a good/fair standard for their individual hire fee. If you've (truly) got an open mind give them a try then give us your thoughts afterwards... though of course if you've made your mind up I guess your doing the right thing and hiring from where you're happiest Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodall_m1 Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 hi clive well said and i guess you know but how does the same boat go out one and half times a week andy Andy, Two short breaks one week and week's hire the second, would be 3 turnarounds in two weeks , i.e. average 1.5 turnarounds per week... Must have a lot of short break's and not many multiple week hires if that is the overall average though. Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Ricko Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 thats right Martin, although we had quite a few fortnight hires years ago things turned more towards weeks hires and short breaks although there have been noticeably more longer holidays taken this year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stranger Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 i guess some people must be very unlucky or can pick fault with anything without trying the last time we hired with Richardsons was a few years ago and we had a heating fault while moored at Oulton it was tea time and an engineer was there within the hour of ringing them it was an early April hire so we needed the heating or wouldent have bothered them and by the time the engineer had drunk a coffee the fault was cured now these hire boats do some work over a season so you have to expect anything can happen you dont know what abuse the boat has had the previous week as we all see so i hope Clive you are fitting trackers to your new boats and bump cencors we fit them to fork lift trucks and if they have a hard enough bump the machine is shut down till an engineer can reset it even if its worth bull s--ting the hirers as on a boat it wouldent be safe cutting the engine out it may make them respect the boat a bit more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Ricko Posted August 31, 2010 Share Posted August 31, 2010 tracking devices and bump sensors? that could get interesting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DAYTONA-BILL Posted September 1, 2010 Share Posted September 1, 2010 I remember my brother had Magic gem 3 about 28 years ago, and was`nt very happy with it. It was dirty inside, with cobwebs in places, but that was at a time when the yard WAS`NT in the family, having been bought by the Rank Organisation, and called "Fresh Fields". When i was told Bob Richardson bought the buisiness back, in the 90s (is that correct Clive?), in the first year, they spent MORE on each boat than the Rank organisation spent on the whole fleet in their whole period of ownership. I could tell how much Richardsons had been putting into the boats, as whenever we moored in their basins, we always saw boats being re-fitted in the sheds, and many of the older boats were being pentioned off. These days, you can see just how the whole yard and the boats have been dramatically improved, and that only comes from dedication and investment. So if you`ve had a bad experience in the distant past, go back and give them a second chance, and i doubt very much you`ll be disappointed. Regards .............. Neil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broads01 Posted September 20, 2010 Share Posted September 20, 2010 Blue Kestrel from Topcraft now has photos at http://www.hoseasons.co.uk/webpages/euboat/ProductDetailPage.aspx?ISDLNK=1&SCODE=TOPC&ACODE=BH2000&TINDEXPD=0. Looks rather nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teadaemon Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 The worst boat I have had actually was at horning some years back and the company did nothing when we complained the boat leaked and the bilge pump was going all night and we were very unhappy. I have heard of people having engine problems, a family going to hospital with carbon monoxide poisoning and my sister said her boat she hired some years back from richardsons was very cold and leaked and it wasn't too long ago one of their boats sank according to someone else on this forum. This was a few years back now and it sounds like things have definitely picked up so I may consider richardsons in the future. If a company runs 300 hire boats, sooner or later one of them is going to sink. (In fact even if they run considerably less, one can sink, as we found out earlier this year with Spirit of Freedom). IIRC, two boats from Richardsons have sunk (or come very close) this year, both of them due to collision damage below the waterline of one sort or another (if that's not entirely accurate, I'm sure Clive will be able to correct me). Given that the boats are built to the requisite standards, and that even with the best handover procedures not every hirer is an expert at controlling the boat, the risk of this happening is something every yard has to deal with, and shouldn't reflect badly upon them when it does happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Ricko Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 If a company runs 300 hire boats, sooner or later one of them is going to sink. (In fact even if they run considerably less, one can sink, as we found out earlier this year with Spirit of Freedom). IIRC, two boats from Richardsons have sunk (or come very close) this year, both of them due to collision damage below the waterline of one sort or another (if that's not entirely accurate, I'm sure Clive will be able to correct me). Given that the boats are built to the requisite standards, and that even with the best handover procedures not every hirer is an expert at controlling the boat, the risk of this happening is something every yard has to deal with, and shouldn't reflect badly upon them when it does happen. Thats just about right Teademon, Concerto took about 2-3 hours to sink, unfortunately the hires did not know where they were or what direction they were traveling in so we were unlikely to ever find them in time, the hirers did unload all their stuff on to the bank and move all the mattersses to the saloon, pity they did not chuck them on the bank too!! she now has all new upholstery, galley, linings and electrics. The Ruby Gem did not sink, the hirer was unaware of what was going on around him, he had managed to shove the rudder backwards into the prop and upwards busting the gland off the hull making it leak, he had not realized the steering was not the same as it was when he started. lucky Jason at LBBY shouted them to stop and called us after repairs the only damage was the inverter needed replacing as it was mounted low down in the rear of the boat. Sandragon, Forums are a great source of information but dont believe everything you read on them we have provided around 7000 holidays on the broads this year and have less than 1% complaints which is not bad seeing as we market to and attract a heck of a lot of people who have never been on the broads, it is not everyones cup of tea and some dont know what to expect. happily the majority rebook and enjoy many more boating holidays, also of the complaints we do get if they are justified (thorough investigation every time) we generally keep the customer and see them again year after year. Sandragon, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 The trouble with every business... You never hear about the good stories do you? A happy customer tells 5 people... an unhappy customer tells 10! Clive, I must say you are doing something right my wife and I walked to beccles today from Oulton and the amount of your boats down our way today outnumbered everything else we saw. do you do a discount for RNLI personnell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Ricko Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 hi Snowy, Everyone gets the same great prices that is how we dont upset anyone. we found that when people in the pub talk next year everyone waits until last minute the next year and wants a discount.. we dont want to get back into that spiral, we have been there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DAYTONA-BILL Posted October 9, 2010 Share Posted October 9, 2010 Thats just about right Teademon, Concerto took about 2-3 hours to sink, unfortunately the hires did not know where they were or what direction they were traveling in so we were unlikely to ever find them in time, the hirers did unload all their stuff on to the bank and move all the mattersses to the saloon, pity they did not chuck them on the bank too!! she now has all new upholstery, galley, linings and electrics. The Ruby Gem did not sink, the hirer was unaware of what was going on around him, he had managed to shove the rudder backwards into the prop and upwards busting the gland off the hull making it leak, he had not realized the steering was not the same as it was when he started. lucky Jason at LBBY shouted them to stop and called us after repairs the only damage was the inverter needed replacing as it was mounted low down in the rear of the boat. Sandragon, Forums are a great source of information but dont believe everything you read on them we have provided around 7000 holidays on the broads this year and have less than 1% complaints which is not bad seeing as we market to and attract a heck of a lot of people who have never been on the broads, it is not everyones cup of tea and some dont know what to expect. happily the majority rebook and enjoy many more boating holidays, also of the complaints we do get if they are justified (thorough investigation every time) we generally keep the customer and see them again year after year. Sandragon, Just to back up one of your points Clive, while we were having a pumpout at your yard in June, a retired couple on one of your Horizon 35s (not sure of which class) brought the boat back saying it was the first time they`d actually had a boating holiday, and said it was`nt their cup of tea, and were bringing the boat back to go home. They`d booked the boat for a fortnight, and only spent the first night aboard. There was only two of them on board, and they said it was too small, and just did`nt like the idea of sleeping on a boat. Now, most level headed people would have hired a boat for a weekend to see if they would like it, would`nt they, or am i missing something?. It would`nt surprise me to hear if they went home and bad mouthed the whole idea of a boating holiday to several people, resulting in others losing out on the chance to discover the joys of a holiday afloat. Good job there`s the oportunity to find out all about it on this forum. Regards to all .................. Neil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teadaemon Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Just to back up one of your points Clive, while we were having a pumpout at your yard in June, a retired couple on one of your Horizon 35s (not sure of which class) brought the boat back saying it was the first time they`d actually had a boating holiday, and said it was`nt their cup of tea, and were bringing the boat back to go home. They`d booked the boat for a fortnight, and only spent the first night aboard. There was only two of them on board, and they said it was too small, and just did`nt like the idea of sleeping on a boat. Now, most level headed people would have hired a boat for a weekend to see if they would like it, would`nt they, or am i missing something?. It would`nt surprise me to hear if they went home and bad mouthed the whole idea of a boating holiday to several people, resulting in others losing out on the chance to discover the joys of a holiday afloat. Good job there`s the oportunity to find out all about it on this forum. Regards to all .................. Neil. Some people are just odd. We had one group of customers arrive Saturday afternoon and go out on one of our best boats (Flight of Freedom, the only one in the fleet with a bowthruster). They then phoned the yard up on Sunday morning to say that they really couldn't cope with the boat, could somebody come and drive the boat back from the New Inn? What was even more strange was that they'd done canal boat holidays before, so you would have thought that they'd be familiar with staying on a boat, even if the Bure around Horning is a lot busier than most of the UK's canal network. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 15, 2010 Share Posted October 15, 2010 hi Snowy, Everyone gets the same great prices that is how we dont upset anyone. we found that when people in the pub talk next year everyone waits until last minute the next year and wants a discount.. we dont want to get back into that spiral, we have been there! Lol its ok Clive, I was only kidding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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