Scam Alerts!
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A new report has been posted updating the status of the fraud charges that had accused the operators of Chateau World Vacations of consumer crimes. According to the article, consumers who allegedly lost more than a million dollars are dismayed that charges have been stayed against the company owners — Andre Muran of Canmore and Kim Schram of Edmonton. However, prosecutors decided that there was not enough evidence of fraud to go to trial. The decision appears to vindicate the timeshare developers, who stated that there was never any intent to defraud and that the business simply failed.
Reader reports possible new timeshare scam: Atlas Destination Management and Delta Transfer Title5/25/2012
A Vacation-Times.org reader has submitted a warning about what he believes is a new timeshare scam operating under the names Atlas Destination Management and Delta Transfer Title. Follows is the email from the reader:
"...Called offering to purchase our Grand Bliss through Mayan Palace as a profit for us. Only catch--we have to pay to some black hole in Mexico 5 years of maintainence before we get our money. Cannot find Atlas Destination Management location in Dallas or Delta Transfer Title in Schaumburg, Illinois. SCAM!..." If you believe that you have been the victim of any type of wire fraud perpetrated by this company, please take the time to report the incident to the FBI's internet crime division at http://www.ic3.gov Consumer Advisory Alert May 10, 2012
Based on communications with numerous timeshare owners, ARDA cautions consumers on a new scam targeting timeshare owners. It begins with the timeshare owner receiving a phone call inviting them to attend an "industry" update at a local location—often a Perkins restaurant. The person is met by a representative of Vacation Services International (VSI) who tells the timeshare owner that ARDA has enlisted VSI to assist timeshare owners who have complaints with one or more of the industry exchange companies. While the story varies slightly from owner to owner, VSI will usually offer help or provide "a way out" of timeshare ownership for a fee. The sales pitch at one Wisconsin location was made by an individual claiming to be B.J. Cooke. At the in-person presentation, the following offers have been made to timeshare owners: •An offer to allow owners to convert their timeshare for "points" that can be converted into exchange opportunities or even cash. The company that would perform this service is Point Rental Liquidators. •An offer to purchase a timeshare at Sunset Harbor—a timeshare resort located on Lake Conroe in Texas. An offer was also made to purchase a timeshare in the Fisherman’s Cove Resort, which has yet to be built. Another timeshare owner attended a sales presentation made by Jean Hamilton of HP Consultants. Hamilton claimed that she works with ARDA as a consultant to "help solve the industry-wide overbooking problem." HP Consultants offered to buy his timeshare and then sell him an $11,995 membership in a club that would give him, his family, and his friends the unlimited use of timeshares forever. Again, ARDA has nothing to do with this company or this salesperson and questions the legitimacy of this offer based on the alleged representations made during the sales presentation. If you are contacted to attend an "update" of any kind, be warned that you will likely be attending a sales presentation and one that could possibly be a scam. The same is true if a telemarketer (or a request you receive by mail) asks you to attend any type of in-person presentation related to selling, renting, or transferring your timeshare. If you have any doubt, please contact ARDA, your exchange company (e.g. RCI or Interval International), the developer who sold you your timeshare, or the company who manages your resort for help. ARDA does not endorse, authorize, or work with third parties to solicit timeshare owners. If a company tells you that "ARDA sent them" or "ARDA endorses us" or you see it on a website or billboard, it is not true. ARDA does not possess or have access to any timeshare owner’s name or contact information. Contact us directly by email at customerservice@arda.org or call our toll-free number (855) 416-6187 before you do anything with a company or individual who claims to be affiliated with or working on behalf of ARDA. Please visit www.arda-roc.org for more information. Attorney Files Complaint Against Wyndham Vacation Ownership Claiming Deceptive Sales Practices5/5/2012
An article in the Orlando Sentinel reports that Mike Finn of Finn Law Group filed a complaint representing one hundred and one people who claim that Wyndham Vacation Ownership used deceptive sales practices in order to coerce consumers in purchasing timeshare interests.
"Wyndham, for whatever reason, has chosen to make sure that there is no exit scenario for these clients whatsoever," said Finn. "I've done this because I feel bad that I have 100 clients that have paid me good money. … I just felt an obligation to go as far as I could." Finn is quoted as saying that when negotiations with Wyndham didn't result in his clients getting out of their contracts, he turned to attorneys general in seventeen states and to the Federal Trade Commission, accusing Wyndham of deceptive sales practices. He alleges that Wyndham sales representatives made sweeping promises to potential buyers during marketing pitches that were not included in the written contracts the customers eventually signed. Wyndham Vacation Ownership, the Orlando-based time-share unit of Wyndham Worldwide, said it usually does not comment on legal matters but decided to issue a prepared statement in this instance: "We are aware of a growing trend of unscrupulous businesses that exist for no other purpose than to prey upon and exploit timeshare owners with promises of financial gain in exchange for an upfront fee," said Adam Schwartz, chief communication officer for Wyndham Vacation Ownership. "Not unlike the recent proliferation of timeshare rental/resale and third-party transfer and relief companies now getting the attention of law enforcement agencies in Florida and elsewhere, these so-called advocacy groups specifically target timeshare owners facing economic challenges, collect their fees and leave their victims grossly misinformed with even greater financial hardship." A consumer has reported what he believes to be a telemarketing scam targeting timeshare owners on the Timeshare Users Group website. The poster claims to have received a telemarketing call promising to rent his timeshare resort, and was allegedly required to pay a large upfront fee. After payment, the poster claims never to have gotten any contact from the company until another employee called to again request a large upfront fee for a promised rental. The Better Business Bureau has given the company an F rating, and has documented thirty-nine consumer complaints.
If you believe that you have been a victim of a telemarketing or timeshare rental scam perpetrated by this company, please take the time to report the crime to the Florida Attorney General. The Wisconsin Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning consumers about Midwest Timeshares. Follows is an excerpt from the consumer warning:
"...Midwest Timeshares, a Green Bay-based timeshare reseller who has racked up 70 complaints from consumers in 33 states and Canada. The company, which has also done business as National Timeshare Resale (“NTR”) and Integrated Advertising Solutions, has an “F” rating with the BBB, the lowest grade possible. Complainants tell the BBB that the company charged them upfront fees, claiming they had a waiting buyer, but the buyer never materialized and promised refunds were never received. Patricia Z. of Delaware states, “We were contacted by Midwest Timeshares and had to give them money for them to do a title search, in the amount of $499. They wanted more but we didn’t have any more to give them. We were called back and told that they had a buyer for the timeshare and it would take 30 days to complete the sale.” Patricia never heard back from the company and it did not respond to the BBB. Clara P. of Indiana says Midwest Timeshares promised to sell her timeshare in twelve months. When it didn’t, it promised to refund her $699. She never received the refund and said, “I hope that my information can help you in some way to stop these criminals.” The Wisconsin BBB has sent several requests to the company asking it to verify its techniques in finding buyers for timeshares and to provide name and contact information for customers whose timeshares were sold. However, Midwest Timeshares has not responded to the BBB’s requests. “If you want to sell your timeshare, contact a real estate agent”, says Ran Hoth, CEO/president of the Better Business Bureau of Wisconsin. “Do not pay money to a stranger that you have only spoken with over the phone, that you have never seen nor met.” Hoth says, “I understand that our economy has been struggling, and some timeshare owners may be desperate to rid themselves of their investment and make some money. Unfortunately, scammers are capitalizing on this desperation. And by the time they realize that they were scammed, it may be too late to get a refund through their credit card company.” ... Consumers and realtors have reported rental listings posted on Craigslist which secure a deposit up front but the property is not a legitimate rental. The posting is simply a way to either get you to send a deposit or to provide your personal information to the con artist who posted the fake listing. The posting generally involves a property that is actually for sale. However, in some ads, the postings show property for addresses that either do not exist or that may exist at a particular address but the property is not for sale or rent.
The posting is generally accompanied by a fictional story that has similarities to the following information: The rental belongs to a person/couple out of the country on some emergency. Originally the house was for sale but the person/couple changed their mind and now only want to rent the property. The rental price is far below the comparable market rate. The consumer is instructed to fill in what appears to be personal information qualifying the person to rent the home. The consumer is told to send the rental deposit out of country (thus, the reason for the explanation that the posting is by someone who was called out of the country on an emergency). In cases that involve a posting where the property is indeed for sale, the consumer is encouraged to drive by the home but advised that any sign in the yard belongs to the “former realtor company.” The scam posting then warns the consumer NOT to contact the realtor company as it no longer has keys to the property. This type of scam is designed to make the consumer part with money and/or personal information. Be wary as these types of postings are almost always scams. For additional information on protecting yourself from these crimes, contact the Consumer Fraud and Economic Crimes Division of the District Attorney’s Office at (316) 660-3653 or visit the District Attorney’s website at http://sedgwickcounty.org/da for helpful links. An article in the Daily Commercial states that a 30 yr old Clermont woman faces charges including grand theft for her role in a telemarketing scam targeting timeshare owners operating under the business name RCIJB World Enterprise. Jennifer Bacon was charged with grand theft, exploitation of the elderly/disabled, unlicensed real estate activity, unlicensed telephone sales and unlawful use of a two-way communication device according to the report. According to the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Bacon would cold-call residents claiming she had a buyer for their timeshares. The company would collect fees but never complete any sales, investigators said.
State records also show that Bacon was involved with another company using the same Orlando address, calling itself RCI Worldwide Enterprise Inc. Another company that also had "RCI" in the business name, apparently trying to convince consumers the company was somehow associated with the timeshare company. The Better Business Bureau has also issued an alert for RCI Worldwide Enterprise Inc. Registered complaints claim the businesses promised that a buyer was secured for the timeshare and asked owners to pay a fee to RCI Financial Title, after which no sale occurred and no refund was able to be obtained. A new report in TodayOnline sheds light on another aspect of the vacation ownership industry that continuously generates consumer complaints. Vacation Club marketers often hold seminars, where timeshare owners are told that they can "trade in" their unwanted timeshare for a discount on the purchase of a non-deeded travel club. However, many consumers claim that even through the purchase is completed, the travel club marketing company often fails to transfer the unwanted timeshare out of the consumers name- leaving them with the same maintenance fee obligation and adding another annual fee for the vacation club purchase. The Consumers Association of Singapore, a consumer protection agency in Asia, has filed an injunction against Concord Developments under these same claims of misleading promises.
Follows is an except from the article.... "Singapore's consumer watchdog has obtained a temporary court injunction against Concord Developments, a business and management consultancy services company. The Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) said today that with the injunction, Concord Developments cannot carry out certain practices deemed unfair under the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act. CASE said a district court has ordered Concord not to make false claims and/or representations on the subscription agreement (SA) between consumers and Kinson Real Estate PLC. The order includes injunctions preventing claims that could mislead consumers into thinking that if they enter into the SA, they would be entitled to the "Leisure Alliance" (LA) or "Our Vacation Club" (OVC) agreements with Boston Ventures for free. The order also applies to claims that could give the impression that LA or OVC agreements with Boston Ventures and the SA were part and parcel of a single agreement, and that payment for this single agreement would be used as a deposit towards the SA. The court also ordered Concord not to make false claims and/or representations to existing timeshare owners which could mislead them into thinking that they would be released from all liabilities under their existing timeshare agreements. The order applies until the trial, in which CASE intends to apply for a permanent injunction on similar terms." Read the entire article by clicking HERE. During the many years I've been in the timeshare resale and rental business, there have always been instances where a lesser known company has tried to create the impression of being affiliated with a well known business. There have also been numerous cases where outright fraud occurs and a con artist assumes the identity of a well known business to lure victims into their con game. However, over the last year this type of "business identity theft" has become almost an epidemic!
This new breed of con artists are pretending to be a legitimate timeshare business in order to gain the trust of consumers. Numerous resale brokers and even closing companies that have earned the respect and trust of the industry are now being forced to defend themselves against accusations of fraud- only to discover that the consumer was actually victimized by a con artist who assumed the identity of the legitimate company and had no affiliation with the true business. A new report by Channel 10 KOLN out of Lincoln, Nebraska is just another example of how common this scenario has become. Consumers should exercise caution when dealing with any type of timeshare transaction, and there are five simple common sense tactics that timeshare owners can learn and use to protect themselves from most forms of timeshare fraud. Timeshare owners can identify con artist by taking these steps: Five Simple Ways to Identify Timeshare Scams:
Florida timeshare owners can learn more about these simple guidelines and learn where and how to take action against these thieves by reading the free information and resources for Florida timeshare owners that is posted on Vacation-Times.org by clicking HERE! Don't allow yourself to become the next victim! Always take your time, research any offer you receive, and go online to contact and verify the business or individual you are working with is actually who they say they are! |
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