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First of all, it is pretty much worthless naming and shaming the companies that are continuing these well-known scams, simply for the reason that as soon as they get any damaging publicity they are shutting down and reopening with a fresh image, even operating from different offices. For that reason, I have just given a broad overview of the way each scam operates: 1) A group will call you (by telephone) asking if you desire to sell your timeshare. They often normally declare that they have somebody who wants to shell out thousands for your timeshare. The fact is that after a lot of smooth talking you have to pay them usually anything from £300-£1,000 (US$500 or more) in advance of the sale. They may even insist that you are covered against fraud by paying with your credit card, so this is a very popular scam, which lots of owners fall for. In truth you will not obtain payment for your timeshare as there is no waiting buyer and your credit card payment will be paying for a elusive item such as 'promotion services' which will be non-refundable. At some moment your waiting 'buyer' will strangely withdraw from the transaction but not before your payment has been taken. 2) This is a telephone call designed to initiate a bond with you. They will inform you that RCI have a court case in the USA that could entitle you to compensation of up to £15,000 (US$25,000) as an RCI member. They may well refer you to a website that provides you with an overview. The plan is to get you to attend a face to face appointment. They will invite you to meet with them to complete a evaluation as regards your transactions with RCI and then to see what you're entitled too. The bottom line is that you will be asked to part with cash to join a superb "Vacation Club" where they declare you will be able to access timeshare apartments from £99 with no problems with availability. They also say that you will be able to take as many as you desire with the cheapest flights around and perhaps bargain price cruises. They will tell you whatever you need to hear in order to get your payment. 3) Another telephone call with another tact to put you at ease. This time they quickly point out they don't want any money up front. However they have a genuine client who wishes to purchase your timeshare for x amount. They will get their commission out of this. They will point out that they are in your locale and only ask that you bring down with you your deed and a utility bill as proof of ownership. You turn up to a room with further timeshare owners to find out that it's a presentation on a holiday club. They will trade in your week worth x amount against theirs which is apparently worth more. 4) This telephone call is to inform you that your resort will not allow you to just hand back your week if you no longer wish to possess your timeshare and that they will send out the debt collectors to make sure maintenance payments are made. They may also assure you that even following your death your timeshare will pass on to your next of kin as part of your estate, so they will pursue them for maintenance payments too. They very benevolently will take over your timeshare typically if you pay up the next decades' worth of maintenances to them. Holiday Clubs. These are best avoided. Their presentations revolve around the idea that you don't have to own timeshare but can access them for as little as £99. They are dressed up on occasion with two for one cruises and or heavily reduced flights. Again, whatever that needs to be said to get the sale will be integrated into their presentation. The majority of these holidays clubs don't even exist apart from on paper (they do not own accommodation or have assets or systems in place to protect your investment). You will only ever see glossy sales and marketing materials. Most of these holiday clubs have only very poor availability and only access a limited range of destinations. Their stock is just 'fly-buy' accommodation, where resorts pay them to get people to be present at timeshare presentations whilst staying at a particular resort. So the perpetrators of these scams get paid by you when you join AND by the resorts that you visit. The 'Capital Back' Scam continues: this is where a company will dress up their offer with an opportunity to get your cash back after a certain period of time. Characteristically you are informed that you will get your cash back after a period of (say) three years with a generous interest payment too. They describe in order to receive this you have to present your cash-back documentation on a specific day. As most members 'forget' to do this or the certificate gets lost, this (they state) is how they can have enough money to offer a 'cash back'. They will tell you that they will not remind you and it's down to you to remember and attend on the day. They will display various testimonials and legal bodies showing you that this is a genuine offer. They can be very believable but yet again, it's a complete scam. TIPS IF you have been phoned once, you are more than likely to be on a record somewhere that will be accessed by other conmen , so expect lots of calls. Just inform them that your timeshare has been sold. That information will slowly filter down and you should get fewer calls. The conman will be regularly be looking at new tricks to obtain your cash and persuade you that they have something that will be of benefit to you. You will have heard the proverb that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Check out claims by using a Google search and don't fail to remember to ask your regional trading standards agency for assistance, as they are often the first to hear about the latest scams.
Article Source: http://tk4.org
Article submitted by Bryan Farrow of sell my timeshare and timeshare advice free resources for timeshare owners
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