Don’t Buy a Timeshare for the Frosting

I keep telling people to only purchase timeshare to use as an alternative to hotel rooms on vacation. But people continue to buy it for the unfulfillable promises of “other” uses.

Just as you shouldn’t buy a cupcake for the frosting, don’t buy a timeshare because the salesperson is telling you “frosting” stories which of course can’t be validated until after your rescission period has run out.

Here’s today’s frosting story:

I don't know if there if anything to be done or legal help, but I thought I'd check here. 

About a month ago we purchased a sampler package for $4000. We spoke in detail (for 3 hours) about wanting to take a trip to Europe with our points. We were told we could completely use our points to reserve these, at a half off rate, for hotels and rental cars. 

When I went to activate the package 10 days later, I found out that we could only use up to 20% points (at full rate) and that rental cars aren't even an option at all. 

We were completely, and blatantly lied to. I tried to follow up with my sales rep who gave us the runaround for over a week. 

I just spoke to the escalation department who said they basically can't do anything since we signed and it's past the rescind date.

I am just feeling so frustrated, lied to, and now out a lot of money that we were saving to use towards our trip. :(

Any help would be amazing, thanks.

No, RCI Is Not Calling You

Notice From RCI:

From time to time, RCI becomes aware of third party companies attempting to defraud RCI Members and timeshare owners.  Recently, RCI has learned of several trends in consumer telemarketing scams relating to the timeshare and exchange industry that we feel is important to bring to your attention. 

The scams vary, but all of them seek either personal information or money.  Here are some examples: 

•Caller claims to be calling about your recent or past RCI vacations or resort vacations

•Caller asks you to take a survey regarding your timeshare ownership

•Caller invites you to an RCI update, dinner or meeting

•Caller offers to rent your “getaway weeks”, “bonus weeks” or otherwise rent your timeshare week with the promise of sharing the rental profits with you, but requires payment of an upfront fee

•Caller poses as RCI, claims you have RCI weeks left over and offers to purchase them back on behalf of RCI, but requires payment of an upfront fee

Often these callers are fraudulently stating or implying that they are RCI, authorized by RCI to make offers, or they are somehow affiliated with RCI.   These companies use the name of the RCI exchange programs, or refer to RCI terminology and products, to legitimatize the offer. 

Many of these calls originate from “spoofed” or fake telephone numbers.  Sometimes the calls give the appearance that RCI is calling when in actuality RCI is not the caller.  “Neighbor spoofing” is also used where the calls show up on your “Caller ID” using your same area code and telephone number prefix, leading you to believe it is a local call. 

Please know that these calls are not from RCI, and RCI does not approve or in any way endorse these calls or offers.

What should you do if you are contacted with one of these calls?

>Gather specific information about the company calling you, including the name of the company, the full name of the individual, the number they are calling you from and the day and time of the call(s)

>Know Your Rights. Often these companies are calling you in violation of do-not-call rules. If your number is on the national Do-Not-Call Registry or the Do-Not-Call list in your state of residence, and you do not have an established business relationship with the calling company, you may have reason to file a complaint against the company with federal and/or state regulators

>Check the validity of an and all calls by calling 1-800-338-7777 or 317-805-8000. Don’t hesitate to ask!  This will allow you to have confidence in knowing it is RCI calling

We are here to help you plan and enjoy the vacation of your dreams.  If you need any further assistance, please don’t hesitate to visit us at RCI.com or call us at 317-805-8000 or our toll free line at 1-800-338-7777.

I’m Done Answering Questions About 5 Hour Sales Pitches

One of the most frequent questions I receive from both owners and non-owners is “Do I have to attend a timeshare sales presentation when I’m at the resort?”

It’s very cut and dry:

> If you are staying at the resort or even a hotel at a discounted rate offered by the developer or their affiliated marketing company the answer is YES

> If you are staying at the resort using all or a portion of a ‘trial program’ you previously purchased the answer is YES

> If you are receiving any sort of free or discounted admission, tickets, etc. to a theme park, attraction, concert, special event, etc. the answer is YES

> If you are using your week or points to stay at your home resort the answer is NO

> If you are using your week or points to exchange into another resort the answer is NO

> If you are renting a stay at the resort from an individual owner the answer is NO

> If you are renting a stay at the resort from the resort itself CHECK THE FINE PRINT

As a follow up, here’s an easy to follow checklist of what to do and what not to do to avoid being taken advantage of during a sales presentation:

> Be polite

> Don’t hand over your credit card and/or driver’s license to anyone or allow anyone to make a photocopy of them. If you’re asked for them upon check in to verify your identity, show them while holding onto them

> Ask the salesperson at the onset how long the presentation is going to take, or better yet, the minimum time you need to be there to fulfill the terms of the offer. This is BY LAW found in the small print of whatever offer you’re accepting 

> Set a timer or alarm for ten (10) minutes prior to that to serve as a reminder to both the salesperson and yourself

> If you choose not to purchase whatever they’re offering after your allotted time, say NO, shake the salesperson’s hand, thank them, get up and ask to be directed to where you can claim your gift, or whatever you’re entitled to receive

> If you choose not to purchase whatever they’re offering do NOT sign or initial anything, whether on paper or electronically 

Sounds easy, right?  I can guarantee you that next week I’ll hear a sob story from a consumer telling me that they were ‘forced to buy something’ because the sales presentation went on for 5 hours. 

There are important issues facing consumers in the timeshare industry. I’m done wasting my time on people who simply will not follow any common sense. 

Thoughts on Timeshare ‘Exit Companies’

This week the St Louis BBB, who has done some great work warning consumers of a myriad of timeshare related companies, came out with yet another strong warning against two so-called timeshare exit companies. You can read their full report here:  https://www.bbb.org/article/news-releases/18745-bbb-cautions-consumers-about-springfield-missouri-timeshare-exit-companies-vacation-consulting-services-the-transfer-group

I applaud such findings as the proliferation of companies designed to con unsuspecting timeshare owners out of their money continues at an alarming rate. 

The timeshare industry has also entered into a flurry of activity designed to shut down some of the worst offenders in the exit/transfer space. 

All well and good. But this is a problem that was created by the industry itself through the use of antiquated marketing practices, false claims of ‘today only’ prices, lengthy and complicated contracts in perpetuity that favor the developer that the consumer is given no time to read and most telling; few if any viable options for the consumer that wishes to exit their timeshare. 

It would be great if the everyone spent as much time looking into fraudulent practices getting people INTO the product as they do with those claiming to get them OUT of the product. 

They Said...Doesn’t Mean You Should Believe

Here are the most common things I hear from unhappy, frustrated timeshare owners. The developers continue to get away with them because of the infamous ‘oral representation’ clause. 

>They said it was an investment

>They said it was easy to sell

>They said to fill out an application to see if we were eligible, but they opened a credit card and charged it for the purchase (or down payment)

>They said we could pay our maintenance fees with this new program, but the program didn’t exit

>They said we could sell our timeshare if we bought more points, but the program didn’t exist

>They said we could pay our maintenance fees by using a credit card, but we would have to charge $200,000 in a year to pay a $2,000 maintenance fee

>They said airfare would be included when we booked a stay

>The sales agent said the last agent did not sell us enough points

>They said we could rent our timeshare, but the resort does not allow this

>They said if we did not give up our deed and buy points, our children’s’ credit would be destroyed if something happened to us

>They said the sales presentation would only be 90 minutes but it turned into 5 hours

>They said if we didn’t change to another program our maintenance fees will go through the roof

>They said that I should not have bought a timeshare in Hawaii because they have hurricanes

>They said that I should not have bought a timeshare in Florida because they have hurricanes

>The sales agent said he would be my personal representative, but he never returned my calls or text messages.    

Inheriting (or not) a Timeshare

I’m not an attorney so I am not giving out legal advice here, but one question I get asked time and time again is ‘Do I have to inherit my parents’ timeshare?’

The best answer I can provide is ‘maybe.’

If you are on the deed or other legal instrument conveyed by the resort, the answer is most likely YES. 

If you’re not on the deed or other legal instrument conveyed by the resort, the answer is most likely NO. 

From the legal experts that I’ve discussed this with, it seems the best course of action in either case is to send a "disclaimer of interest," along with a copy of the original owner's death certificate, to the timeshare property within a specific time frame -- usually nine months after the original owner's death. 

If you intend to refuse the timeshare inheritance, you must not take advantage of any timeshare privileges because this may cause you to forfeit your right to refuse the timeshare. 

If money is still owed on the timeshare, that presents a whole range of additional steps and in that case, you absolutely should contact an attorney as you would in the case of any other debt that the deceased had. 

Don’t be taken in by the scare tactics that so many of these self/proclaimed ‘timeshare exit’ companies use to get you to cough up thousands of dollars so that your heirs don’t have to inherit an unwanted timeshare. As with most of the claims they make, it just isn’t true. 

Certain Similarities

There’s been a lot of teeth gnashing lately about the dangers of those so-called timeshare ‘exit companies’ that promise beleaguered owners a way out if they’ll hand over several thousands of dollars. Much of this teeth gnashing has come from the timeshare industry itself. 

Don’t get me wrong-I abhor those companies that promise a quick solution to a problem that isn’t at all easy to fix. The timeshare industry has had 40+ years to carefully construct lengthy contracts in perpetuity that favor the developer. Contracts are not easy to get out from. And I applaud the timeshare industry for shutting down these bad players. I’d applaud them even more if there were more viable exit strategies for owners, but that’s a blog post for a different day. 

However, with the industry applauding themselves for having played a part in shutting at least one of these ‘exit companies’ down, it brings certain similarities to the surface between ‘getting into a timeshare’ and ‘getting out of a timeshare.’

Consider:

>Both involve the consumer being ‘invited’ to a presentation I.e. a sales pitch of some kind

>Both involve a multi-hour demonstration of how the consumer can have their problem solved by signing up

>Both require the consumer to make a decision immediately after the presentation, the dreaded ‘this offer is only good today’ pitch

>Both require the consumer to pay thousands of dollars upfront for some service that may or may not ever be available to the consumer

It’s this last point that’s really telling. In the case of the ‘exit company’ weary consumers are forking over thousands of dollars today under the assurance that the company will be able to extricate them from their contract at some uncertain date in the future. In the case of the timeshare itself, weary consumers are forking over thousands of dollars today (and promising to pay more every year in perpetuity or until they rid themselves of it) under the assurance that the company will be able to provide them with their dream vacations year after year. 

In both cases, the consumer leaves the presentation several thousands of dollars lighter and with a head full of dreams. 

The all so sad and familiar tales of woe show up several months later when the owner either receives yet another unwanted maintenance fee bill from the resort because lo and behold the ‘exit company’ didn’t fulfill any of their promises and/or the developer turned down the transfer request or when the owner discovers that they can’t get to Hawaii or Myrtle Beach or use their points to pay for their maintenance fees because lo and behold, their oh so friendly salesperson misrepresented some key factors.

Ever wonder exactly who works as the pitch men for these ‘exit companies’?  Ever wonder where they learned their spiel?  Ever wonder why I tell people to not make any purchasing decision in haste or why it’s not advisable to pay today for some promised service in an undetermined date in the future?  Wonder no more, people. Wonder no more.