Bike rack fell off!

Hi . We are on our first big trip in Scotland , Our bike rack with box fitted broke off and hit the ground . It was fitted when we got our new van It contained a small awning wellies and coats . 
Could have been on motorway or up narrow roads in Highlands , Has this ever happened to anyone else ? 
Got to Perth Caravans who said they couldn’t help but said rack hadn’t been fitted properly .

How long have you had the van with the rack fitted, who fitted the rack, when I fitted the bike rack to the last van it was bolted threw the wall with large spreader plates on the inside to spread the weight .
Sounds as though yours was just screwed to the wall for it to come of,  any photos of fittings

Strewth!  That could have been a disaster, and very expensive. Lucky no-one injured, nor other vehicle damaged, or expensive bikes destroyed. 

I often wonder about ours, and never load it more than 60% of its stated load-bearing capacity. But this is the first time I've heard of its happening, and I'm sorry for you.

Can't tell from the original post (a) if you've had the van from new; (b) if the rack was fitted by a dealer (new or re-seller) or by some other professional or by you (or previous owner if any) as DIY. Dependent on those answers would be a possible course of redress, if any.  Certainly sounds like incorrect fitting rather than failure of rack. What make of rack, incidentally?

Did the rack rip out chunks of GRP bodywork, or did the bolts shear? 

Your post raises something I've sometimes pondered: what checks should one carry out on the security of a rack? Check all bolts / nuts for tightness; look carefully at points where rack is fixed to bodywork, for tell-tale signs of weakness such as cracks.  Any other ideas?

Cymro

Yes you are right .We were lucky The top part sheared off and we had great difficulty removing the box which was on the ground . Luckily it was a built up area and just doing 30 . We stopped when we heard the noise ! We had the van from new and the dealer fitted bike rack . 
Back to the dealer I suppose and see what they say

The trouble is even a relatively few kilo can weigh in the region of tonnes as an instantaneous load over a large bump. The fixing may have been able to hold it as well at that high peak load but if not properly done they will as you have found out eventually fail.

I have been looking at fixing in a small microwave permanently. Easy enough to support the basic weight of it, much more thought to it needed to be safe on the road. I have seen a couple of TV mounts with a removable hanging plate with the instruction to remove the TV on the road.

Fiamma

Norwich Lass wrote:Yes you are right .We were lucky The top part sheared off and we had great difficulty removing the box which was on the ground . Luckily it was a built up area and just doing 30 . We stopped when we heard the noise ! We had the van from new and the dealer fitted bike rack . 
Back to the dealer I suppose and see what they say

If you haven't already done so, I'd suggest you take detailed pictures of the mountings, inside and outside, to support you in the event of a claim if the mounting has not been done properly.
Some AS models have built-in strengthened sections designed to support rack mounting, maybe someone who has the same can confirm if this is so for your age/model?  In any event, internal plates to spread the load should be used.

Thanks everyone , , 
Bummer !

This happened on a 2 year old vehicle, where the rack was fitted by the dealer. 

As you say, Norwich Lass, "Back to the dealer I suppose and see what they say".


I'm afraid I'm stilll unclear as to whether the rack itself sheared off from the bodywork (suggesting dealer failure to fix it properly) or whether the rack failed (possibly because not properly set up / bolted, or because the Fiamma metalwork snapped) albeit not overloaded.


We'll all be very interested in the outcompetese: do please let us know.


Cymro

The upper bar fixed by 2 single screws into body work and screws worked loose and came out . Bottom part solid and firmly fixed . On one side of top fastening bar 3 drilled holes and the other side only one . Therefore looks like dodgy original fix  ?

Does that make sense ?

Roger makes the point. Our Owner's Manual for our Broadway FB 2013 section 'On the Road ' Cycle Rack.
'In order that a cycle rack can be fitted, the rear panel coachwork has been strengthened accordingly. Timber is bonded into the bodywork immediately above the rear light units, laterally across the vehicle. This allows the lower mounting brackets for the Fiamma  Pro C cycle rack to be fitted in a suitably reinforced area. However, your 2019 Malvern, will have the same strengthened bonding but whereabouts in the rear panel should be specified in your Manual.

Thank you !

As mentioned, due to the strengthened bonding immediately above the rear light units on our Broadway, it puts our Fiamma carrier quite high off the ground. I recall when first obtaining our van, I did instruct the dealer to mount it much lower for ease of loading but a panicked phone call otherwise ensured it was mounted in accordance with the instructions. 

Thanks

I’ve only just read this thread and it’s early so apologies if I’ve missed something!
Doesn’t a 2019 Malvern come from the factory with 2 bars installed externally, ready for a bike rack to be fitted relatively quickly?

Dbvwt wrote:I’ve only just read this thread and it’s early so apologies if I’ve missed something!
Doesn’t a 2019 Malvern come from the factory with 2 bars installed externally, ready for a bike rack to be fitted relatively quickly?

A most relevant point. This was on my mind when composing my post as later coach builds seem to show pre-installed fixings much lower requiring a lighting board?

The upper bar fixed by 2 single screws is not a strong enough fixing to hold the bike rack never mind carrying bikes, the cantilever effect on those 2 screws at the top is far more than the bottom fixings, I would be straight back to the dealer who fixed this and asking for answers and a complete new bike rack fitted

Before I bought my van I looked at a 2018 Nuevo with the pre installed factory bars. I remember thinking at the time the 4 bolts would need to be very high strength to hold the rack and a couple of bikes.
I can imagine a dealer using any old screws/bolts that were kicking around the workshop.