Scam Alerts!
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A consumer reported that he had fallen victim to an upfront fee scam perpetrated by a company called Vacation Property Resellers. He alleged that the scammers assured him they could sell his timeshare.
"They seemed to know a lot about it and said they had buyers already lined up," Chris said. "The issue was they wanted $1100 up front. Yeah, I know. Dumb move but I was not thinking right back then. I paid it and saw the "closing date" move seven times in the last eight months." The same article also refers to a settlement with Timeshare Relief and the Vermont Attorney General where the "Pay Us to Take Your Timeshare" company reportedly used deceptive trade practices to entice timeshare owners residing in the state of Vermont to attend high pressure presentations under the assumption that they would be given an offer for their unwanted timeshares. Instead, they were charged thousands of dollars to be "relieved" of their timeshare burdens and made to believe that they would be eligible for a tax deduction if they paid the company. The reported settlement was in excess of $140,000. A troubling report in the Daily Mail out of the UK describes what could possibly be viewed as bait and switch tactics being used by a timeshare developer of a resort located near Bodrum, Turkey.
Buyers reported purchasing an end unit villa at the resort during pre-construction sales, but were later told that due to construction delays they were being switched to a different villa type. When they complained, they report being told that they could not cancel simply because of a personal preference for the villa that was originally sold to them. The reporter states that he contacted Giles Beswick, a representative for Select Property which also operates under the name We Are Home. Mr. Beswick allegedly defended the company's right to switch the villa without the buyer's consent under a clause in the condominium's rules of occupation which allows for the resort management to switch the assigned unit in the event of a maintenance issue. This type of disregard for consumers is unfortunately common for timeshare developers worldwide who routinely operate from the mindset that individual owners have no choice but to accept any changes that are force fed to them by the developer or resort management. This elitist attitude that individual consumers are powerless and do not have the financial capability to pursue expensive legal action is one of the most common complaints of unhappy timeshare owners both in Europe and the United States. There are thousands of cases where the rules of occupation or even the vacation ownership products themselves were simply changed at the whim of the developer, regardless of the promises and good faith of what was originally sold. Many believe that the resale restrictions that were just put in place by the Disney Vacation Club is a perfect example of a timeshare developer making major changes to the ownership rules of the product from what was originally sold. What many timeshare and vacation club owners don't realize is that often the governing documents for the timeshare regime do in fact give the developer and/or management company the legal right to amend the rules and regulations as deeded necessary. What the inflated egos of these developers fail to remember, is that it is precisely these individual consumers who actually pay all the bills with both their original purchase price payments as well as their annual dues. Changes that owners feel are detrimental will eventually cause more owners to sell or abandon their interests, hence weakening the overall health and stability of the timeshare regime in the future. While in this case it does appear that in this case the consumer and reporter placed enough pressure through public exposure to force a refund from the developer, there are likely many other instances where individual timeshare owners have simply given up the fight and accepted what they were given- even though it may differ significantly from what they originally purchased. If this happens to you, don't just sit quietly. As in this case, if you make enough noise to be noticeable, the developer may eventually do what is right! A new article in the Sunday Express warns consumers in the UK about another potential vacation club scam reportedly involving affiliates of the Incentive Leisure Group called Designer Way Vacation Club and CashBack Sales and Administation. In this scam, consumers are promised a cash back incentive at their end of their vacation club term. This is a potential scam that was also commonly found with vacation clubs and timeshares sold from Mexico where buyers were promised a dividend or residual payment at a specified date in the future when their original purchase price would be refunded to them. Often in this type of scam, the con artists use multiple levels of inter-related businesses or shell corporations as a way to deflect liability and avoid prosecution.
This article quotes the Office of Fair Trading as saying that each year more than 400,000 UK consumers fall victim to bogus holiday clubs. It also quotes Sandy Grey of the Timeshare Consumers Association as saying that, "We have never heard of anyone receiving any money from CashBack Sales & Administration." This is another great reminder that for anyone purchasing a timeshare or vacation club ownership regardless of its location should always purchase only with the intent of usage. Timeshare properties should never be considered an investment, and in many cases there may be no financial return or resale value of any kind in the future. Often, the only true value to a timeshare or vacation club ownership lies solely in the usage, enjoyment, and vacation memories they provide. A new consumer fraud alert has been issued for a timeshare resale company going by the name of All World Choices. This group is cold calling timeshare owners with unsolicited offers for their timeshare properties. The company lists an invalid phone number, and uses an address in Boulder, Montana that is simply a dirt lot.
If you have received an offer from this scam operation, please file a complaint with the Montana Attorney General. I recently received an email from a consumer asking about this scam, and realized that a scam alert entry had not been made about TS Luxury Group or its owner Mary Filocomo.
In August of 2010, Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum issued a press release announcing that TS Luxury Group would be permanently dissolved and would pay more than $110,000 to consumers who had filed complaints against the company. The full press release can be read HERE. I've posted this now so that an entry exists for this "company" and also to again provide an example that reporting timeshare fraud does make a difference. The investigative process can take time, but does get results! If you feel that you have been the victim of some type of consumer fraud or a timeshare related scam- please take the time to report it. In Florida- these crimes can be reported to several state agencies: Seniors vs Crime Project: http://seniorsvscrime.com (800) 203-3099 Florida Attorney General: http://myfloridalegal.com/timeshares State of Florida Dept of Business and Professional Regulation: Timeshare Investigation Unit (407) 317-7226 Also, please always remember to notify me as well so that we can help spread the word through the Vacation-Times.org scam alerts! Contact me by clicking HERE! Reports have come in about a potential upfront fee timeshare scam with a group called Timeshare Investors of America and an individual going by the name of Craig Rudolph. Timeshare owners have received unsolicited offers by phone that consist of ridiculously high prices (often reported to be higher than the timeshare's original purchase price!). Consumers are told over the phone that there are no upfront fees, but are then told that a fully refundable "deposit" must be paid which has been reported to range from $850 to $2,500. It is normally expressed as a percentage of the highly inflated offer price.
Consumers who are skeptical of the offer are told that the "company" has been hired by high powered investors who are acquiring timeshare properties. They are also referred to Dun & Bradstreet as a business reference. Consumers who have paid this upfront fee have then reported that the promised sale does not occur, and the promised refund is never given. It is very important for consumers to understand that timeshare properties do not appreciate like traditional real estate. They more closely resemble automobiles and boats, in that the developer price is hugely inflated because of developer marketing costs and salesperson commissions. It is not unusual for the expected resale value of a timeshare property to be from 50% to 95% lower than the consumer's original purchase price. Upfront fees are the most common timeshare resale scam reported to consumer protection agencies. You should never pay any type of upfront fee to sell or rent an unwanted timeshare. Timeshare Investors of America has been given an F rating by the Better Business Bureau. I just saw a report of what appears to be yet another version of the Mexican tax scheme allegedly being conducted by a company calling itself Atlanta Resale Group. Whether this is the same scammers reported earlier using the "INSERT CITY NAME" Resale Group names, or just a copycat attempt at a timeshare scam is not clear at this time. The contracts in this instance referenced the name of a Fredrick Cooper as the CEO/President.
The scammers reportedly cold call timeshare owners who own timeshare resorts in Mexico, and present the seller with a purchase offer that is supposed to not require any type of upfront fee. Contracts are sent to the seller that appear to be very legitimate, other than the drastically inflated sale price being promised. However, when the "closing agent" gets involved- the hidden upfront fee is demanded! The seller is called and told that a new "tax" is now required for all Mexican timeshare sales that must be paid prior to closing. The seller is told that this "tax" cannot be taken from their sale proceeds, but instead they must wire the payment immediately or their sale will be canceled. If the seller sends in the fee- they never hear from the "closing agent" again and of course, never see a dime of the supposed sales price they were promised! If you own a timeshare property in Mexico and receive an offer to sell your timeshare, always take the time to properly research the closing costs and closing process so that you are protected from scams such as this. You can simply call your resort's owner services department and ask them to provide you with instructions and the cost required to transfer the ownership. Mexican timeshares are not deeded, so the transfer is actually done by the resort itself! As always- never pay any type of upfront fee to sell an unwanted timeshare! Regardless of what it is called- marketing fees, advance commission, or even Mexican transfer tax- simply say no and hang up the phone. In a true closing process, any seller fees that would be due would simply be taken from your proceeds at closing and would not require you to advance or wire money to the closing company or the reseller! A story in the Palm Beach Post reports that Gregory Fusca, president of RCI Innovations, Inc, has been arrested and charged with five counts of the illegal use of credit cards, five counts of impersonating another person without consent, four counts of larceny and one count of organized fraud, according to the arrest report. He is currently being held in lieu of $450,000 bond at the Palm Beach County Jail.
Fusca called at least five people across the country and in Canada and said that he had found a buyer for their timeshare. The victims would then provide credit card as well as other personal information, expecting Fusca to handle the sale for a commission, the report stated. Like all of these scams- the timeshare owners never sold their property! The reporter incorrectly referred to Fusca as a broker, but I do not believe this is correct. I was unable to find any type of brokers license for either Gregory Fusca or the company RCI Innovations, inc. If you have been scammed by this individual, or have received solicitations from this company to sell a timeshare property, please contact the Palm Beach County Sherriffs Dept at (561)688-3000. A previous report stated that a scam outfit using this name was raided and shut down by authorities in Orlando, FL back in mid-January. However, a recent post on on the Timeshare Users Group seems to indicate that either this scam is back in operation, or another group of potential con artists are now using the same business name.
Kim from Massachusetts claimed that her elderly mother was scammed for a total of $2,400. The frail and elderly woman was promised that the self-proclaimed "timeshare reseller" had found a buyer for her unwanted timeshare who was willing to pay $11,800. She was promised money within 90 days (which not surprisingly is the traditional cut off date for when many credit card companies will decline a charge back attempt). She made a payment of $1,850. and then was pressured to submit a second payment of $550. for unexpected "closing fees". If you have been scammed by this group, please take the time to report the crime to the Florida Attorney General at https://www.myfloridalegal.com/. The State of Washington Department of Financial Institutions has issues a consumer scam alert warning about timeshare escrow scams involving two "companies" working in tandem called Elite Resort Services and Direct Escrow Transfers.
Elite Resort Services will contact timeshare owners with a very high offer to sell or rent their timeshare. The consumer is told that there is no upfront fee, but that a commission will be charged at closing. At this point, Direct Escrow Transfers is introduced as the escrow and closing company. It's important for consumers to know that Washington State law requires that “any person [engaging] in business as an escrow agent by performing escrows or any functions of the escrow agent” must be licensed by the Department. RCW 18.44.02. Consumers are then "required" to pay various fees to the closing agent, but the promised closing and seller funds never occur. Consumers who question why the funds cannot be taken from the proceeds at closing are often told that it is "against the law" to do so. This is not true.. A timeshare closing process is very similar to a residential closing, in that any seller fees or charges would simply be deducted from the seller proceeds. Read the Scam alert from the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions HERE. |
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