Forest River, Inc. — deep review (Elkhart, Elkhart County, IN)
TL;DR
- Forest River, headquartered in Elkhart, is one of the largest RV manufacturers in North America and a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary (acquired 2005).
- Forest River’s NHTSA recall record is among the highest in the RV industry by volume — hundreds of campaigns over the last decade covering brake-system, propane, electrical, and structural defects across its many sub-brands (Coachmen, Cherokee, Cedar Creek, Wildwood, Salem, Forester, Sunseeker, etc.).
- BBB complaint volume across Forest River sub-brands is high and chronic; multiple class actions and Indiana-court warranty cases have been filed in the past decade.
1. What they do
Forest River, Inc. manufactures travel trailers, fifth wheels, motorhomes, destination trailers, cargo trailers, buses, pontoon boats, and commercial vehicles. The company operates dozens of plants across Elkhart and surrounding RV-corridor counties. Berkshire Hathaway does not break out Forest River segment revenue separately, but industry analysts (RV Industry Association) consistently place Forest River among the top-3 RV manufacturers globally.
2. What customers actually report
- Quality-control complaints — the most consistent complaint category. Forums like iRV2, RV.net, and Facebook owners’ groups document delivery-defect lists running 30–100 items long on new units — a pattern that the RV Industry Association itself has publicly acknowledged is industry-wide, not Forest River-specific.
- Warranty service — a chronic complaint. Warranty work routes through dealer service departments, which are often booked weeks or months out; Forest River’s dealer-warranty reimbursement rates have been the subject of repeated dealer-association complaints, contributing to slow service turnaround.
- NHTSA recalls: Forest River brands have been the subject of hundreds of campaigns — brake-system, propane regulator, electrical, fire-extinguisher, and structural defects. Recall volume is elevated relative to industry peers but recall execution rates are comparable.
- Class actions and lemon-law cases: multiple actions filed in Indiana state court and federal court since 2018 alleging warranty breach and failure to repair.
3. What the data shows
- NHTSA recall database: Forest River sub-brands collectively show one of the highest annual recall counts of any RV manufacturer.
- BBB profile: Forest River carries an A rating but with substantial complaint volume; many customers report difficulty reaching corporate after dealer-level escalation fails.
- Berkshire Hathaway 10-K disclosures: Forest River is listed under the Manufacturing segment but specific segment revenue is not broken out.
- Indiana civil court records: publicly-available warranty/lemon-law cases naming Forest River entities can be located in MyCase.in.gov.
4. How they handle complaints
Forest River’s consumer-warranty channel routes through the dealer first; corporate involvement typically requires a dealer-level failure documented in writing. Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and Indiana’s limited motor-vehicle lemon law (which does cover RVs in some circumstances) are the primary consumer-legal tools. Resolution timelines, per public complaint data, frequently extend past 60–90 days, which is the chief consumer frustration.
5. IBE Score: 4/10 — reasoning
Major Indiana employer and a category-leading manufacturer; offset by high recall volume, chronic warranty-service complaints, and an industry-typical (but consumer-painful) defect pattern on new units. 4/10 reflects the weight of the consumer-experience evidence rather than the company’s scale.
6. Verified public sources
- NHTSA Recalls Database — Forest River recalls
- BBB profile — Forest River, Inc.
- Berkshire Hathaway 2024 Annual Report (10-K)
- RV Industry Association — quality-control statements
- Indiana MyCase — civil court search (Forest River)
7. What this review is, and what it isn’t
- Independent. No payment, sponsorship, or advertising relationship between IBE and the reviewed business.
- Public-record only. Every claim above traces to a source listed in section 6. Where data couldn’t be verified, the review either omits the claim or labels it as a pattern reported by customers (not a finding).
- Not legal or medical advice. If a specific transaction went wrong, document it in writing, escalate to the company first, then to the relevant regulator (Indiana AG, IDOI, IURC, CFPB, FDA, NHTSA, etc.) as appropriate.
- Updated as evidence comes in. If you have a primary-source document that changes any claim above — a court filing, a regulatory order, a settlement agreement — submit it via the tip form. Reviews are revised when verifiable evidence warrants.
This review reflects publicly available information as of the review date listed above. IBE has no commercial relationship with Forest River, Inc. or its parent entities.