A CARAVAN owner is looking for answers as he tries to get a refund from a storage company after it lost its contract at Durham Tees Valley airport.

Like most caravan and motorhome owners, Peter Mann paid upfront for a year’s storage on the site but was left out of pocket when Easy Park Northern left the airport site near Middleton St George in April this year.

The airport’s owner took over the running of the storage area on the same site and Mr Mann paid for another year’s storage for his caravan.

Mr Mann said: “This is not about the money, this is about the principle. I paid for a year’s storage and then within a couple of months we were informed that the company was leaving the airport site and we were told that we could move to another site or have a refund.

“As we are from Darlington, we didn’t want to move our caravan to a site further away so we opted for a refund, which several months later we are still to receive.”

The storage area on the airport’s car park held up to 200 caravans and motorhomes when Easy Park Northern were in control.

The retired civil servant, from Darlington, added: “I have no idea how many other people were affected by the refund problem, I know some people opted to go to the other site but not everybody did. The company owes me around £100 and I accept that doesn’t sound a great deal but if you multiply it across everyone on the site who could be affected the sum could run into thousands and I don’t see how that is right.”

No one from Easy Park Northern replied to telephone calls or emails from The Northern Echo but Mr Mann is urging other people affected to get in touch with the company to try and get a refund.

He said: “I have called the company a number of times and at first they used to tell me that I was next in the queue for a refund but it was never forthcoming. I have written to them and still nothing has happened – the last time anyone from the company responded to me was in July.

“I don’t have a problem at all with having to pay a year upfront to the airport – this is the site I want to be on – but I don’t want Easy Park Northern to possibly making thousands of pounds from people who have given up trying to get a refund.

“Hopefully, other people will come forward now and we can get this sorted once and for all.”

Mr Mann was keen to point out that there was no issue whatsoever with the airport’s owner over the refund row.