Scam Alerts!
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A local Fox affiliate is warning consumers about a possible timeshare marketing scam being perpetrated out of Carlsbad, California by a company called 5 Star Resort Marketing. The company is reported to be charging large upfront advertising fees and is generating numerous consumer complaints to the local Better Business Bureau franchise.
The company allegedly touts membership with the American Resort Development Association and the Online Better Business Bureau to create legitimacy, but has not yet responded to attempts by the television station of the BBB to determine if they are a legitimate business. When the reporter visited the address, he was told that representatives from the business only appear there for scheduled appointments and do not actually regularly work from that address. If you believe that you have been the victim of consumer fraud perpetrated by this company, please take the time to report the crime to the State of California Attorney General Office. The Florida Attorney General is investigation an alleged timeshare resale scam involving the American Marketing Group out of West Palm Beach.
The cited case number is L09-3-1206. The company is being investigated for using deceptive trade practices to entice consumers to pay upfront fees to sell an unwanted timeshare. The case is being handled by the Attorney General Economic Crimes Division out of Palm Beach. If you believe that you have been the victim of consumer fraud perpetrated by this company, please take the time to report the possible crime to the Florida Attorney General. A corporate press release was issued warning of a possible timeshare scam out of Encino, California operating under the name of World Financial Timeshare Group.
The press release states, "Important: This group does not in any way represent World Financial Group, Inc. It is a fraudulent attempt by unaffiliated persons to obtain monies through fraudulent means and they are illegally using the World Financial Group name and/or affiliation." If you believe that you have been a victim of consumer fraud perpetrated by this organization, or by any timeshare resale scam in California, please take the time to report the crime to the California Attorney General by clicking HERE. The Florida Attorney General has an ongoing investigation (case number L10-3-1045) being handled by the Economic Crimes Division in Jacksonville, Florida of a timeshare marketing company by the name of Resales Buy Owner.Com, Inc.
operating as a timeshare reseller out of Daytona. The state is investigating alleged misrepresentation of timeshare resale services. The Florida Attorney General has an ongoing civil case investigating the timeshare reseller and marketer Timeshare Division GMAC Real Estate, which also goes by the name Timeshare Resales USA.
This investigation is filed under case number L10-3-1164 and alleges unconscionable acts or practices, and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce. The investigation is being handled by the Attorney General's Economic Crimes Division out of Orlando, Florida. The Federal Trade Commission has filed a consumer protection lawsuit against and alleged timeshare resale scam using the name Timeshare Mega Media and Marketing Group Inc. The suit also names Timeshare Market Pro, Inc and the principals behind the alleged scam Joseph Crapella aka Joseph John Philbin, Pasquale Pappalardo, Lisa Tumminia Pappalardo, Pasqualino Agovino, Louis Tobias Duany, and Patricia A. Walker as defendants in the legal action.
At the FTC's request, a federal district court has put a stop to a deceptive telemarketing operation that allegedly scammed millions of dollars from timeshare owners hoping to sell their timeshares. The FTC charged that the company conned consumers by promising that they had buyers waiting, and then required the timeshare owner to pay a large up-front fee. After paying the fee, no sale would occur and the consumer would be unable to obtain a refund. “When cash-strapped consumers are trying to sell their property, the last thing they need is to lose thousands of dollars to scam artists who promise a quick sale, but then provide no services at all,” said David Vladeck, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. The case is part of an ongoing FTC effort to crack down on con artists who use fraud and deception to take advantage of timeshare owners. According to the FTC, the number of complaints related to fraudulent timeshare resales has more than tripled over the past three years, as more consumers have attempted to sell their timeshares. If you believe that you have been a victim of consumer fraud or telemarketing violations perpetrated by these companies or individuals, please take the time to report the crime to the Florida Attorney General or by contacting the contact person for this case, William J. Hodor of the FTC Midwest Region, Chicago at 312-960-5634. As always, consumers should never pay any type of upfront fee to sell a timeshare or to rent an unwanted timeshare week. The Federal Trade Commission has reported that they have filed a lawsuit against what is believed to be a fraudulent timeshare reseller out of Tampa using the name Vacation Property Services, Inc. The business is charged with allegedly making tens of thousands of unsolicited telemarketing calls to timeshare owners. A federal district court has filed a temporary restraining order that has forced the business to close down in an effort to protect more consumers from falling victim to the timeshare marketing scheme. The lawsuit also includes other business names being used by the scammers including Vacation Property Sellers, Inc., Timeshare Experts, Higher Level Marketing, as well as the principals behind the company Albert M. Wilson, David S. Taylor, and Frank M. Perry, Jr.
The scam artists would call timeshare owners claiming that they could quickly find buyers for the owners’ timeshares and would allegedly trick consumers into paying large up-front fees ranging from $200 to more than $8,000. They were reportedly using the con of stating that they had a buyer waiting for the property at an inflated price- then requiring the timeshare owner to pay the upfront fee. After paying the upfront timeshare marketing fee, the victims reported that no sale ever occurred and that they were unable to obtain a refund from the fraudulent reseller. The report also states that the defendants called hundreds of thousands of consumers between November 2009 and November 2010 whose phone numbers are on the FTC’s Do Not Call Registry. If you have been a victim of consumer related fraud or telemarketing violations perpetrated by this company, please take the time to report the crime to the FTC by contacting William Maxson with the Bureau of Consumer Protection at 202-326-2635 or by reporting the crime to the Florida Attorney General by clicking HERE. A Better Business Bureau franchise out of Denver is reporting that they have received numerous complaints about a timeshare reseller using the name Five Star Resort Services that is using a fake address on their website. (The address has now been taken down!).. When the BBB investigated by calling other businesses in that complex, they found that no such business existed.
This company advertises itself to be a no upfront fee reseller, but complaints have reportedly been filed with the BBB that state that they company does in fact ask that an "escrow fee" and a 5% commission be paid by the seller prior to the closing. Consumers report that no sale ever occurs, and they are unable to get a refund for this advance fee that they paid. As always- consumers should be aware that timeshare scams are very common and that many of the scammers are now using "no upfront fee" to ensnare timeshare owners but that it is often just another lie in their web of deceit! In a true no upfront fee transaction, the broker's commission and any seller closing costs would be taken from the proceeds at closing and no advance money would have to be submitted by the seller (unless they were upside down in the sale). It is always wise to use a true third party closing agent who is independent of the reseller and who operates from a verifiable escrow account. You should always be able to ask for the bank information where the escrow account is maintained, and then simply google the contact info for the bank and call to verify that an escrow account is actually maintained by the company. All payments should be made payable to the companies escrow account only! If you believe you have been a victim of consumer fraud involving this business, please take the time to report the crime to the Colorado Attorney General's office. Another possible timeshare scam has been uncovered and reported by the members of the Timeshare Users Group.
A group operating under the name Universal Timeshare SA or Universal Timeshare Sales Associates is reportedly running the same old upfront fee scam. They are allegedly contacting timeshare owners and offering ridiculously high sale offers, then asking for upfront fees of approximately $1,800. for fake legal and closing fees. If you have been approached by this organization and feel that they are perpetrating a timeshare resale scam, please take the time to file a complaint with the Oregon Department of Justice. Reporting timeshare fraud is the best way to stop the con artists! An interesting post was just entered onto a discussion of The Vacation Depot, aka Cambridge Marketing and Financial Services, on the Timeshare Users Group website. In the post, an individual claiming to be a former employee alleges that the entire operation is simply another upfront fee scam. Online forums hide the identity of the poster, so any claims made in such a venue should always be taken with a grain of salt but since there are a number of disparaging comments about this company from multiple posters, I would strongly recommend consumers exercise caution and ensure that they research the business fully before doing business with the organization.
His explanation of the "business" operation sounds very familiar to a business model common to upfront fee scams. What occurs is that they con artists purchase black market lists of timeshare owners. These lists are compiled in several ways. Often, data companies search the internet for timeshare owner information from free classified sites such as Craigslist or collect owner information from form fill internet pages that do not serve any purpose other than as lead generation engines. There have also been cases where disgruntled resort employees will steal owner information from resort databases, and then offer to sell this information to upfront fee marketers. Once they have a list, the timeshare scammers will simply open a call center or will set up a virtual phone bank where individuals will make calls from home. Often these are unlicensed telemarketing operations, and this is one of the areas where the state has been more effective as of late in raiding and closing down these groups. When they reach a timeshare owner, they will give them an offer that is much higher than what can realistically be expected to be received via the secondary market for timeshares. There are many reports where the fake offers are actually higher than the original or even current developer pricing! When the timeshare owner expresses interest in selling, they are told that some type of upfront fee must be paid. This is often collected via credit card over the phone. Once the upfront fee is collected, no sale ever occurs! It is always important for timeshare owners to understand that as a general rule of thumb, timeshares DO NOT appreciate in monetary value over time. In fact, resale values often range from 10% to 50% of the developer current pricing. This means if you purchased a timeshare from the developer for $20,000 on Monday- if you decided to sell on Tuesday it is likely that they reasonable expected resale price would be between $2,000 to $10,000. In some cases, timeshare resales for some resorts or low demand intervals have no resale value at all! If you have been the victim of this type of timeshare scam perpetrated by The Vacation Depot or by any other timeshare reseller or marketing company |
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