Worth checking that the brakes were not set up with the levers in this state.

Error, I suggest you take your bike to your local bike shop, to make sure that the brakes were correctly set up. I would be fairly sure that demoncyclist is right, but just in case it's a slightly more complicated problem to solve than just pushing the quick release button across, it is probably best to have someone with some knowledge look at it.

I hope that helps
Graeme
Velotech Cycling Ltd
Campagnolo Main UK Service Centre