Boardman fork snapped what should I do?

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Johnno260

Veteran
Location
East Sussex
For them to have shown some concern and perhaps some goodwill in replacing the forks wouldn't have cost them a great deal.
It could be that there are only a few of these breaking but if they are only replacing ones that fail in the warranty period or for the original owners then there could be more which are not being flagged up.
From the interest they have shown I wouldn't touch one with a barge pole.

Still it only takes one to kill someone.
 
OP
OP
R
Did you tell them where they could stick them?
I wish I was brave enough for that!

I don’t know if you’re a twitter user?

https://mobile.twitter.com/boardmanbikes?lang=en
No, I'm not. They are aware of it, just don't want to do anything about it so I don't know if contacting them via Twitter would make any difference.

After reading all this I'm not so sure I would want a new Boardman fork. Free or not.
The same thought has crossed my mind...

Still it only takes one to kill someone.
Hopefully not. I'm so glad this happened very slowly on the flat. It could have been so much worse.
 

J1888

Über Member
I feel very sorry for you, OP, it's a really unfortunate thing to happen, but like you say, thankfully it wasn't a fall that caused you any serious damage.

I suppose this is one of the drawbacks of not being the original purchaser, but as someone who has owned two Boardman bikes (and been very happy with them), I'm disappointed to read that given it seems like a failure of the bike, they haven't been more helpful. Sadly, as a company, I can understand that strictly speaking, they're doing what is required (i.e. very little seemingly).

One option could perhaps to write a letter to Chris Boardman (he's listed as the Chair of Boardman Bikes still on their website) and politely explain why you're so disappointed with the way that things have turned out, and that your confidence in their brand is completely gone, having previously had a good impression of them. Or, you could write to one of the staff in a similar fashion, i.e. not anger, not demanding anything (not saying you would do this!!), but just clearly explaining the history, who you've spoken to at Boardman and when etc. Here are the staff on their website: https://www.boardmanbikes.com/gb_en/why-boardman/team/our-crew/
 

The Jogger

Legendary Member
Location
Spain
I would have asked the guy you bought it from to bring it back under warranty (if he was the original purchaser) sorry I have only read start and finish of this thread in case this has already been suggested. Is this still possible?
 

keithmac

Guru
I'd be putting a set of aluminium forks in it and chalk it down to experience.

Saying that I'm surprised the manufacturer has just brushed you off given the potential consequences of the failure.
 

NickNick

Well-Known Member
Might be worth making a very public complaint on Twitter and see if you can shame them into acting.
 

MiK1138

Veteran
Location
Glasgow
everyone is really quick to diss Boardman on this, while I sympathise with the OP I can only find 2 instances of a problem like this. This thread and the BR thread referenced uppost. if this was a Boardman issue there would be much more evidence of it. Boardman would be well aware of any issue and I don't believe for a minute they would risk their brand rep nor their customers lives by ignoring what would be a serious safety issue
 

bigjim

Legendary Member
Location
Manchester. UK
I think there are many documented issues with Carbon fork failure, many of them fatal. But of course those are only the ones reported. how many have failed without serious injury and riders have just dumped the fork and bought a new one? Do manufacturers rely on this complacency? I remember an issue many years ago with, I think it may be Ford? They sold a car that under certain crash scenarios, the vehicle fuel tank ruptured and killed the occupants. It was revealed that the company had worked out it was cheaper to pay the claimants than change the design of the vehicle. Ralph Nader outed them.
I don't see any manufacturers giving long life guarantees on carbon. Wonder why that is?
I lost confidence with carbon forks and on the bike I had that was equipped with one, I changed it for a brand new steel fork for £18 off e-bay. Yes it was heavier, but it still soaked up the bumps, was comfortable and I had piece of mind.
 
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Really feel for the OP. I bought a Boardman Comp last year having come back to cycling, the actuall bike, once away from Halfords is a excellent bit of kit, i have no Carbon forks on my bike. Have you considered the alloy option, may ne cheaper, same angle fit etc, just a thought.
 
This seems like a terrible bit of luck; my sympathies go to the OP. I'm also surprised that Boardman /Halfords aren't more concerned about the safety issues here, regardless of whether they offer to replace the fork or not. If it were me I would want to push this higher, as a safety concern with the product rather than in an attempt to gain recompense.

On a side note, I'm struggling to sympathise with this though...

Unfortunately for our year of travelling we will have to get around on bicycles

I can't imagine how the phrases "year of travelling" and "get around on bicycles" could ever warrant being qualified by the adverb "unfortunately"!?!

The fork problem is no doubt annoying, but it will get sorted one way or another and you will be left with a good bike and a wonderful year of adventure to look forward to. I hope you enjoy both.
 
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