Solentcanvas Reviews 3

I wish I had checked the reviews of this farce of a company more thoroughly before I wasted my money.
I ordered my spray dodgers directly from them, paid them,then received a phone call telling me they had taken the order in error and would have to refund my money.....after waiting for 6 months now and being accused of being a liar I have finally had to write this review to warn other boaters to STAY WELL CLEAR of these con artists.They have stolen my money.

We brought dodgers from Solent Canvas 2020, went in the trash after a year. Threading came loose, eyelets used were poor quality, not even spiked or spurred, (whatever they're called) they came away from the dodgers pretty soon anyway.

Re; Boat Spray dodgers/severe fading, not UV resistant in any way.

23/3/21
In the quotation from Solent Canvas (SC), owner stated “canvas in [sic] a hard going 600D Pu backed marine canvas, and I use a bonded polyester thread to match, both are UV resistant”. So I ordered on 24/03/2021
Fitted on boat 30/05/21.
Boat taken out of the water 09/10/2021 for winter lay up. Total time dodgers spent on boat is 4 calendar months and 9 days.
Wrote to Solent Canvas 12/10/2021 and described severe fading. (see picture of original colour on bag supplied by SC which contained dodgers, using same material)
Solent Canvas responded
“aware there has been a problem…. canvas was purchased as marine grade with UV protection….become apparent this is not the case…If you return the dodgers I will replace them with a new set using only premium canvas with a fabric guarantee of up to 7 years”
I posted dodgers back to SC, SC explained “I had been disappointed with the quality of the canvas , caused me a few problems”, but then later stated “no-one else has had a problem with these”. !!

SC explained he would contact supplier. I had to chase response 2 weeks later.
SC responded and clearly backed out of any idea that he would resolve the issue unless I bought another set of dodgers with 20% discount.
”I sold you a set of budget canvas dodgers.. there was always a premium option available.The canvas supplier… told me was the canvas is a strong marine grade canvas, but doest [sic] have the uv protection properties of the more expensive premium canvas, they also said that to prolong the life of the canvas to store inside when not in use" (who does that with their dodgers between sails???!!!)
he went on to say "Its budget for a reason.. If you bought a cheap pair of curtains and after 8 months they faded, the shop wouldn't give you a new pair or a refund.. so what im [sic] willing to do, is to give you 20% off a new set of dodgers bought via my site, these will be made with the highest quality marine canvas…If you want to go-ahead, I can give you a 20%off code, otherwise Im [sic] happy to ship your old ones bk to you if you give me your address”

I will not pay nearly full price for another set of dodgers from this supplier. He is now refusing to return my dodgers to me unless I pay a £18.00 handling fee plus postage. On 28/12/2021 I sent £8.00 postage costs to SC, and he has not returned my dodgers. I have asked for a refund for the postage I have sent him on numerous occasions. He has not refunded the postage and I have had to open a case with Paypal against him. He has had my money, my dodgers and postage costs.
I have requested on numerous occasions for a HMRC VAT numbered invoice for the goods to help pursue case against SC. However they have not done this, hence this raises different questions for different statutory organisations...

SC went on to accuse me of mistreating the dodgers. Initially accusing me of washing them. I did NOT wash them. Given that these are meant to function in hostile and marine environment, getting wet, should not be an issue if I did! Unfortunately he furthered the accusation to that of me intentionally washing the dodgers in a “bleach solution”. I have found this accusation defamatory and have asked for this to be retracted. I am happy to pay for an affidavit to the contrary.

I sourced the supplier of this canvas, who SC used to supply and make my dodgers. It is sold for £7.00 a metre on ebay and it is NOT advertised as being UV resistant at all.

The specific problem with the product is that the material used to manufacture the dodgers is not UV resistant or stable and as a consequence is unable to perform to the environment it is designed for. For outdoor applications, UV radiation is one of the primary causes of degradation in outdoor equipment which leads to accelerating deterioration to its structural and chemical integrity, as well as any aesthetic qualities.

Readers can make their own minds up if this is the company you’d wish to supply your dodgers. For me it has been a nightmare. He has taken my money, my dodgers and my return postage I sent to him. I am currently taking forward with Trading Standards.