Elddis – STILL the safest motorhomes in the UK
Last year Elddis launched its ‘Belts = Berths’ motorhome passenger safety campaign. At the time Elddis were the ONLY UK motorhome manufacturer to provide a seat belt for EVERY designated sleeping berth in EVERY model that it produces.
One year on, Elddis is STILL the only UK motorhome manufacturer to provide seatbelts for every passenger, despite this being what we believe to be a basic safety essential for our Customers.
Our Belts = Berths crusade is very simple. You would never allow your family to travel in a car without seatbelts, so why would you compromise their safety in a motorhome without seatbelts?
Above: The Elddis Autoquest 165 4-berth with four dedicated seatbelts – like every other model in the Elddis Autoquest and Aspire motorhome ranges, this motorhome has a seatbelt for the driver and ALL passengers.
Elddis Managing Director, Rob Quine says: “It has been a long held belief of mine since my first family trip in a motorhome over ten years ago that it is wholly inappropriate for a responsible motorhome converter to develop and offer for sale, for example, a four berth motorhome which has only two seat belts.”
Rob Quine adds further , “I only had to see the steam coming out of my wife’s ears and then looked into my children’s eyes when I told them all those years ago that it was a ‘loophole in the law’ which allowed motorhomes to carry unrestrained passengers to know that my conscience would not allow me to be in charge of a Company that exposes its customers to such potential danger. It is just wrong! “
Elddis makes the safety of passengers travelling in their Motorhomes an absolute priority, including its insistence on ‘Belts =Berths’. The seat belts and frames in Elddis Autoquest and Elddis Aspire motorhomes have undergone extensive testing to ensure they are safe and fully compliant with all the European Safety regulations currently in force.
In order to ensure that the seat belts and frames are safe, they have been tested by the supplier AL-KO (who supply many major UK & European manufacturers) at their authorised test house in Germany. These tests are witnessed by representatives from R. Plus Luxembourg and the TUV in Germany in order for the seat belts and frames to be granted European Type approval.
The test is a simulated crash test where the force applied to the seat belt and frame is calculated taking into account the deceleration which occurs in a 70mph crash, the weight of 2 adults sitting in the seats, and the weight of the frame itself.
The frame is fitted onto a test rig which is constructed around the Motorhomes chassis and the seat frame as supplied by Elddis. The loads applied can be as high as 4500kgs (4.5 tonne) and these are applied to simulate the rapid loads applied in a crash situation.
Even after all this testing the final Motorhome must be inspected by the Type approval body which grants Elddis Autoquest and Elddis Aspire Motorhomes their European Whole Vehicle Type approval. The Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) also ensures that all surfaces within the passenger seating zone will not cause any injury to the passengers in the event of an accident.
All Elddis Autoquest and Elddis Aspire Motorhomes are European Whole Vehicle type approved proving that all the necessary testing has been carried out and witnessed by Independent Engineers from the UK Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA), thus giving all Elddis customers the complete reassurance that their safety comes first when Elddis consider the development on any new motorhome.
Back in 2009, Elddis became the first UK manufacturer to gain EC Whole Vehicle Type Approval for all our motorhomes, with certification via the UK’s world renowned type approval body, the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA). Motorhome safety is a crucial factor to consider when buying a new motorhome and there is no higher standard awarded than European Whole Vehicle Type Approval. A host of stringent regulations and European Directives govern the design and safety of all road vehicles and the systems they contain and this approval covers virtually every component of the base vehicle as well as the conversion.
In order to gain the approval, a sample vehicle of every type must be inspected and approved by a Type Approval Engineer from the VCA. The VCA then verifies that there are Conformity of Production systems in place to ensure all production models continue to comply with all the necessary legislation. Each vehicle carries a unique Vehicle Identification plate and a Certificate of Conformity.
Check out the latest 2013 Elddis motorhome ranges, including exclusive new videos and latest product reviews at www.elddis.co.uk
