Complaint Review: Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper LLC

                                                                                          EXHIBIT A

FULL RETRACTION OF COMPLAINT AGAINST GIDGET RETRO TEARDROP CAMPER, LLC (USA)

My name is Meredith Hammonds Cesarano. I am the author of the complaint titled, “Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, PTY, LTD Theft and Fraud. Alpharetta Georgia.” I am also the author of the rebuttal titled, “Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC. Retraction Without Malice.” The purpose of this post is to retract all statements regarding Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC, Kathleen Wills, and Dwight Wills. I never purchased anything from this company nor have I ever had any dealings with Kathleen Wills and Dwight Wills. Accordingly, I offer my sincerest apologies to Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC, Kathleen Wills, and Dwight Wills for any negative comments that I posted and retract all such comments.

My name is Meredith Hammonds Cesarano. I hereby retract and correct my previous post published on or about March 13, 2018 in this chain regarding "Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC - Alpharetta Georgia" (Report #1434148, Reported by "Unhappy Camper") as follows.

I hereby retract any statements implying or accusing Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper, LLC ("Gidget USA") and/or Kathleen and Dwight Wills of having committed “fraud or theft.”  Neither this post nor my previous post are intended to cause harm to Gidget USA or the Wills and I have not made these posts with a malicious intent. 

 My earlier post was written in the first person, as if I were the one who had interacted with Kathleen Wills and Dwight Wills and their company, Gidget USA to purchase a camper. I retract that misstatement.  I was not the purchaser of the camper. My parents were the purchasers. The general experience I related in my post was theirs, not mine personally.

 I learned about this purchase from my mother, she told me the details of the purchase, which are not in dispute. My parents were looking for a camper and decided to visit the Gidget showroom in Alpharetta, Georgia. My mother told me that she first met Ms. Wills in January of 2017 while shopping for a camper. Ms. Wills told my mother that her campers were exclusively custom designed to the specifications provided by the customer. Ms. Wills said the patented technology was key in separating Gidget from the competition. She further explained that the process takes several months to complete. However, if a signed contract and a 40% deposit were provided, she could expect to have her customized camper delivered no later than October 12, 2017. On January 22, 2017, my mother paid the 40% deposit with a cashier’s check in the amount of $11,803.00 and signed the contract and ordered a camper.

 With the delivery date fast approaching, and having not heard from Ms. Wills in several months, my mother reached out to her for a status update on the order. Ms. Wills informed her the manufacturing plant had experienced a delay in production, and further reassured her that her camper would be delivered soon. By January 2018, my mother started having doubts that she would ever receive her camper, so she requested a refund of her deposit. At this time Ms. Wills stated that the manufacturer, Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper Plc, Ltd. (Gidget Australia), in which her brother-in-law, Glenn Wills, had an ownership interest and which was located in Australia, had filed for insolvency. My parents were crestfallen at this news. To date, my parents have not received a return of the deposit or the camper they ordered.

 I conducted several hours of research from which it became clear to me that Gidget Australia had been struggling financially. My post erroneously suggested that “Ms. Wills was aware of the financial struggles of the parent company at the time she accepted my mother’s contract and deposit, thus suggesting that Ms. Wills was aware and complicit in a fraudulent transaction.” I do not know that Ms. Wills was aware of Gidget Austalia’s financial difficulties and I hereby retract my remark that “Ms. Wills was complicit in committing a fraudulent action.”

 My post stated that “my suspicions of fraud had been further confirmed when I discovered that the patented technology Ms. Wills discussed in her sales pitch had in fact had never been patented.”  I do not know that Ms. Wills was aware that the technology was not patented and I retract my statement that “my suspicions of fraud were confirmed because the technology was not patented.”

 When Ms. Wills was confronted with the information that there were no patents, she stated that “all intellectual property had been sold to Brett Michael Brewster, a resident of Jasper, Georgia and business partner to Dwight Wills, her husband, and that the sale of this property would allow Mr. Brewster 40% ownership of Gidget.” I did not know then whether Mr. Brewster did in fact purchase the intellectual property, and I therefore retract my comments relating to him and any statements suggesting his ownership in Gidget.

 I also retract my statement that Gidget had “no intention other than defrauding its clients.”  I do not know whether Ms. Wills or Dwight Wills was aware that the "patents affiliated with Gidget have either been abandoned by the inventor, Glenn Wills, or never allowed in the first place,” and I do not know that “Dwight Wills and Ms. Wills had an intention to defraud their clients when they received deposits for Gidget Retro Teardrop Campers.”

 Based upon published information I read in the Worrells Report (issued by the forensic accounting firm representing Gidget Australia), I learned that over the span of just a few years, Gidget Australia received substantial funds from customers who were trying to obtain refunds. However, I retract my statements that (or implying that) that, “Kathleen Wills and Dwight Wills are part of a thieving family of con artists that stole millions of dollars from unsuspecting patrons, many being elderly and retired.” I also retract my statement that, “the actions performed by these people are abhorrent and textbook predatory.”

Kathleen and Dwight have been falsely accused by this writer’s post. I believe they are as much victims as the writer and all the other buyers of a Gidget Teardrop Camper that did not receive their camper. Just because someone is "family” doesn’t mean they can’t deceive you. When we first saw the Gidget Retro Teardrop Camper on social media in 2015, even though we lived in the U.S., we ordered one. Christine and Glenn were so believable and at that time, I don’t think they intended to deceive anyone. They just got caught up with so many people wanting one of these unique campers. They took too many orders and just weren’t able to fill them. Kathleen and Dwight were also convinced what a great product this Teardrop camper was. They received the first Bondi to arrive in the U.S. Convinced that the company was really going to be successful, as were we, they signed on to set up the Gidget North American Operations. Even though we ordered directly from the factory in Australia, Kathleen and Dwight were our contacts, arranging shipping and keeping us informed as our Gidget traveled from Australia to Charleston, SC. Little did we or Kathleen and Dwight know, the company was in trouble even then.

They were so helpful when our camper arrived at port in Charleston, setting everything up and arranging for pickup. Any questions we have had since then have been answered promptly. So many customers were deceived by Glenn and Christine. Even after we received our camper, they were answering my questions and we really thought they were headed to a very successful year. I know we were so fortunate to receive our Gidget Noosa after waiting patiently for over 2 years. It truly is a remarkable product. So sad that so many people were unable to receive theirs, but that is not Kathleen and Dwight’s fault. Imagine how devastating it must have been for Dwight to find out how his own brother had deceived him! Kathleen and Dwight are doing their best by their American customers and are trying to repay all of them. They have suffered a great financial loss and don’t deserve their reputations to be sullied in any way. Just be patient and get all the facts.

  My name is Meredith Hammonds Cesarano. I am the author of the original post.   The owner of the Ripoff Report website does not allow for the author of a post to edit, modify or delete a report once it has been posted.  For this reason, I am submitting this clarification in regards to certain statements in my original post and in a rebuttal post I made as "Maggie" on May 1 under the heading of "Brewster Rebuttal".
 
In my original post, I made mention of a person named Brett Brewster.  While it is my understanding that Mr. Brewster’s company had purchased the intellectual property of Glenn Wills in relation to patents for the Gidget Retro Teardrop Campers PTY LTD of Australia, I have been informed that he is not an owner, shareholder, or director in any company associated with Gidget, either in Australia or the US.  By mentioning his name in relation to my overall post, the casual reader might have assumed that he was involved in the actions of Glenn Wills or Christine Bree, both the sole owners and directors of Gidget Retro Teardrop Campers in Australia.   To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Brewster relied upon the assurances of Glenn Wills that the patents were issued and valid in his purchase of the intellectual property, and it is my understanding that he is pursuing possible legal action against Glenn Wills for the fraudulent sale of the intellectual property.
 
It is my understanding that the purchase of the patents did not give Mr. Brewster or his company any ownership of the company as stated in my original post.  I apologize for any confusion that my statement may have caused for those reading either or my posts, and also for the possible damage I may have caused to the reputation of Mr. Brewster or his company.

To whom it may concern,

I previously posted a comment regarding Brett Brewster in connection with his relationship to the Gidget Camper Company.  Mr. Brewster acknowledges a substantial financial investment, but not complicity with the actions of Glenn Wills or Christine Bree, both the sole owners and directors of Gidget Retro Teardrop Campers in Australia. 

To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Brewster relied upon the assurances of Glenn Wills that the patents were issued and valid in his purchase of the intellectual property, and it is my understanding that he is pursuing possible legal action against Glenn Wills for the fraudulent sale of the intellectual property.
 
It is my apology that I may have identified the wrong assailant or caused any damage to the business or reputation of Mr. Brewster or his company; it is not my interest for any collateral damage to occur in my pursuit of the credible reclamation of my funds and good name, in the same way as I acknowledge any misunderstanding between myself and Mr. Brewster.

I’m sorry for your troubles and I want to post some helpful information for you and many other RV buyers. Several years ago I own a RV repair business and I got so many complaints of people buying brand new motor homes and have had so much troubles with defective components  and this should never happen especially on a brand new motorhome. 

  There are so many RV dealerships that sell brand new motor homes that refused to do any pre-delivery inspections before they place these motorhomes on the lot for sale.  I personally believe that many of these RV dealerships refuse to do these predelivery inspection because they do not want to pay their staff to do it.  Instead they would rather you buy the motorhome and bring it back and activate a warranty claim then the RV dealership gets paid to do the work.

 I offer my services to attorneys that represent RV buyers at no cost to show them what to look for when they activate a lawsuit against any RV dealership of their choice .

 One of the most important things that should be checked out on a brand new motorhome is the LP gas system and let me explain how explosive propane really is 

 Most RV technicians do not understand the expansion rate of propane here are the facts 

 If you have 1 gallon of propane in the tank it’s in a liquid form under pressure inside of the tank if that 1 gallon of liquid propane is released into the atmosphere because of a leak that one liquid gallon will expand a 270 gallons of explosive vapor. 

1.  5 gallons of propane is equal to  1350 gallons of explosive vapor

2.  25 gallons of propane is equal to 6750 gallons of explosive vapor

3. 50 gallons of propane in the tank is equal to 13,500 gallons of explosive vapor. 

 Now I am sure that you would like to know if you buy it brand new or used motorhome you want to know if the LP gas system leaks or not.  Ask your favorite RV dealership if they can show you the predelivery inspection documentation or the motorhome that you purchased and ask them to show you that leak down test results before you buy a motorhome never after you sign a contract. 

 If they can’t provide you with this kind of documentation you need to get up and walk out and refused to part with your money.  When you buy a brand new motorhome you want the experience of enjoying a brand new motor home without any troubles, just like for the most part when you buy a new car.

 A law firm in my past hired me to go up against one of the biggest RV dealerships in the country and I proved that the dealership was submitting fraudulent documents with Gord signatures on a predelivery inspection report. I prove to the judge that the document and forge signatures and a proper predelivery inspection was never done on the motorhome and after evaluating the motorhome which was a brand new motorhome I documented 27 pages of repairs  that the motorhome need it I made a believer out of the court that the motorhome should’ve never been on the market for sale until after everything was fixed not after he was sold.

Remember you can’t get any TV station or News Reporter Politician Reviews to do any stories on fraudulent misrepresentation RV sales because they get a lot of money from RV dealerships in the form of advertising money.

 Every RV fire should always go to Rip Off Report and read the reports that have been posted over the years before you go to any dealership of your choice.

Now I encourage you to go to RipOffReport.com  on the homepage just a little ways down on the right-hand side you will see Rip Off Report live. 

 Go to that page and scroll down a little bit on the right-hand side once again and look at the black audio player and listen to the very top number one show  listen to it completely that’s me  reveaking scams in the RV industry.  Listen to that show a couple of times the second show was me talking about scams in the automotive industry.  Any law firm who knows what they’re doing when it comes to RV dealership cases that’s worth a grain of salt  would agree with everything that I say.

Please do your homework before you part within leave your money please continue to read some of this information that I’m going to post below  this is a predelivery inspection check sheet list that RV dealership should be using but they don’t because they don’t want to pay for it. 

BEST REGUARDS YOUR RV BUYER ADVOCATE....

The most important functions of an RV are not listed on their list.  Items like the 

1. LP gas furnace does it leak LP GAS ?

2.  The LP gas hot water heater.

3.  The LP gas stove.

4.  The LP gas refrigerator.

5.  The ammonia gas system in the refrigerator  does it leak ?

6.  The power supply converting 110 V AC over to 12 V DC.

7.  The complete plumbing system does it leak ?

8.  Does the plumbing system have a water pressure regulator 

9.  The sewage system the black water and the graywater tanks do they leak ?

10.  All of the 12 V system batteries ?  Are they holding a charge 

11.  Does the complete electrical system on the 12 V DC side have any battery drains ?

12.  The air conditioning systems the dash AC and the roof AC do they work properly.

13.  Does the roof AC unit look like it's properly secured to the roof where it will not leak water when it rains ?

14.  Does the shower or the toilet leak water underneath that wood rot the wood out under Neath the shower or the toilet ?

15.   The water pump for the RV aspect of the motorhome does it leak it does it  maintain normal operating pressure ?

16.  Does any aspect of the RV have rotten wood ?

17.  Does the LP gas system have leaks anywhere throughout the system ?

18  does the LP gas regulator maintain a normal operating pressure without league downs ?

19  does the RV come with all of the owners manuals  for safe and normal operation knowledge ?

20  does the RV have leveling jacks to do the work without hydraulic leaks?

21  has the LP gas furnace been checked for any carbon oxide leaks ?  Which can be deadly if not check properly ....

22.  When driving the motorhome does the  motorhome engine charge the RV batteries properly ?

23.  Does the motorhome have slide outs and are they properly aligned so they do not create drag to wear out the electric motors ?  I could make this list five times longer.

I could go on for days when it comes to RVs and complete system checks.  If someone's only going to charge you a couple of hundred dollars for a complete system check on the motorhome they are an idiot because they don't know what they're doing they don't know the complete systems of a motorhome you cannot take a RV to an automotive shop and have it checked out it's completely different then a car or a pick up truck or a little minivan.

Whoever created this business model has no clue what they're doing.   I feel their business model is to refer you to local automotive shops to have your cars and vans and pick up trucks checked out and they are the middleman to make money on work they've never done.  The above is my opinion.

When a RV dealership does not perform an LP gas system leak check is that a safe situation for the consumer or a unsafe situation for the consumer ??

In response to the person(s) referring to Dwight and Kathleen Wills actions as being “adhorent and textbook predatory”, I’d like to express my experience in dealing with them.  First of all, let me say that I am sorry for your loss and the loss of many others expecting to receive this remarkable camper.

I did receive my camper after a 2 plus year wait.  Being in America, I corresponded exclusively with Kathleen. I even went down to Georgia to see the Gidget in person.  Kathleen was waiting on me and spent an extra amount of time explaining every aspect of the Gidget. Given that I am older and not an experienced camper, I was especially appreciative of her time.  As most, I was anxious to get my camper immediately, but was willing to wait the extra time to get this particular teardrop camper from Australia versus buying one from America. At every junction, Kathleen was always available through emails and phone calls. I was never put off and she treated me with the utmost respect and courtesy. In addition, she was always prompt in responding to me whenever I reached out to her with questions. And, trust me, I had tons of questions.

In my heart, I truly believe that Dwight and Kathleen were just as much victims as you and others were. In fact, I don’t even think Dwight knew the dire circumstances that were occurring in Australia that ultimately lead to the demise of the company. Just imagine how awful this must have been for Dwight to find out his own brother had not been honest about the financial situation with him.  It would be near impossible for Dwight and Kathleen to know everything going on regarding the business operations of the company in Australia, when they live in the US. You might say that they should have known.  And, you would be right. But, I’m guessing that they believed everything Dwight’s brother (Glen) told them. I would have believed my brother. How devastating it must have been for them to have to come to the realization that they had been deceived. I know Dwight and Kathleen are honorable people. And, they appear to be dedicated to repaying the American customers they dealt with. I believe that given time, they will do just that.

I am lucky to be one of the people that got my camper. I realize this. I did wait 2 plus years for it.  I believe my camper was on the last shipment to the east coast. I picked it up in Charleston, SC. Both Dwight and Kathleen were there to meet me at pickup. Dwight went over everything on the checklist and helped me to get on my way.  The cooler and shower kit had been left off my camper. They did, in fact, get the cooler/shower kit issue resolved. Even after I got home, Kathleen guided me through all the registration process. She was always helpful and gracious in everything I asked of her.

To the American customers that dealt with Dwight and Kathleen, I know you are disappointed and hurt. But, I sincerely believe they are trying to make things right. I implore you to just be patient.  The Wills are hurting from this in both a personal and business manner.  I believe they are good people and do not want their reputations to be soiled by this. They will try their best to repay the American customers. I just ask that you give them a chance.

I am a creditor of Gidget Teardrop Campers Pty Ltd in Australia, so I share an interest in seeing justice done.  However the bulk of the statements made here are highly inaccurate (some unintentionally) and are highly irresponsible.

For example, reports to creditors from Worrells Forensic Accountants, the Australian company's administrator / liquidator, confirm that Mr Brewster has never been a minority owner of the Australian company as falsely alleged here. Nor does Mr Brewster have any interest in the US company (which is perhaps unintentionally implied). The only source of the claim that Brett Brewster is a part owner of either Gidget company (and the claim has only ever been made about the Australian Gidget) is Gidget Australia director Glenn Wills -- yes, the very person this post is accusing of fraud. The only registered owners of Gidget Australia are Glenn Wills and his wife Christine Bree.  Those two are being investigated by the Queensland Office of Fair Trade, ASIC, and other organisations.

Mr Brewster did purchase the IP in a camper design from Glenn Wills, director of the Australian company -- that IP has never been an asset of Gidget Australia -- however, as per one of the few correct comments made here, that IP is likely of no value as the patents have not been granted. There is zero logic in suggesting someone who bought the IP in good faith is somehow responsible for that IP being of no value, or is responsible for production issues in Australia.

The US company (owned by Dwight and Kathleen Wills, and with the sole purpose of importing and distributing the campers -- they were also reliant upon the Australian company run by Glenn Wills) is also a creditor of the Australian company and has been seeking compensation from the Australian company for its american customers. This is information that has been available to Gidget Australia creditors since early in the processs. All evidence I have seen thus far (including from the administrator Worrells, and the Queensland Office of Fair Trade) have never suggested anything to me other than Dwight and Kathleen Wills and Brett Brewster being victims, along with other customers, of Gidget Australia, owned solely by Glenn Wills (whose own statements this poster relies upon) and Christrine Bree.