Introduction
In a lot of aspects of life you have two opposing sides.
Football clubs and supporter clubs.
Employers and trade unions.
Doctors and patients.
Governments and industry lobbyists.
So why do you not have it in the timeshare industry?
The resorts have a group/organisation, it’s called “RDO” but all the consumers don’t!
They pick up snippets and deluded sham advice from forums whilst the givers of the sham advice giggle as the avenues consumers are sent down hit dead ends or consumers end up back where you started from but with lees time to act.
The resorts have financed a timeshare association who give (resort sponsored) advice but that advice is subject to possible biases.
The consumers are all individuals whereby they are individually weak. They are unorganised so they can’t unify ideas or take joint actions. That will (or potentially will) cause hurt to their rightful positions and makes them insignificant.
The only way to have an impact is to unite in groups and sub groups and as a group, get advice which is directed at the overall issues and plights. If you do this you will create ‘the fox in the hen house’ without doubt.
TCA
We will organise you into groups and provide a structure so that you become a force. We do not sit on the committees, we do not control committees and we do not make money out of them.
The committees control all the affairs of the group, make the calls and seek the advice from any source you the group choose to take it from.
If the committee chooses another association, that is perfectly satisfactory to us, it’s not our choice, it NEVER was, it’s yours!
Our purpose is to assist the consumers – not the committees and not the resorts. To be elected onto a committee would create a conflict with our present duty.
The other issue is, people say we are a company therefore we are in the industry for money and we will make that money from you.
We are not that kind of a company!
1) We are The Timeshare Consumer Association Ltd. That is a “company under guarantee”. We are not allowed (by law) to take out any -yes any- profits (profits don’t belong to us) from this association.
2) We are a company under guarantee so that the holder of the share has a limited liability to any creditors of the association. That limited (in our association) is £1.00 and Steven Boyd holds that guarantee.
The TCA does need proper governance as we are at present a “rag bag bunch” of a few, but those few people are very loyal to a cause, are free and very determined.
If consumer timeshare groups form, are organised and united, then this association will be immediately transferred to the main group for (the grand total of) £1.00.
This association is not for sale in any sense of the word; it belongs to consumers, is for consumers and will eventually be funded by consumers.
Its entire purpose is to ensure that this industry changes for the good and for the benefit of consumers as well as developers.
As soon as groups are in place and structures formed in those groups, I will beg you to take over the TCA. I hope that makes matter crystal clear.
Purpose
The purpose of a group is to protect all its members (each and every one of them). It ought to act as a group and negotiate with resorts, RCI, timeshare sellers and agents (as a group and for and on behalf of the individual members).
It is to collate information, tender advice (to it’s members) and action matters on behalf of it’s member and/or members
Options
Actions and other actions come in many guises.
In respect to the present issues, action means gathering all available information, collecting witness statements, exploring jurisdictions and expected remedies which are to the benefit of it’s members.
Once done, proposals should be put to the members and a plan adopted. That plan can involve discussions, arbitrations, (with ACAS), mediations, injunctions, civil court actions, maintenance payment strikes etc . There are an abundance of good, quick options.
Advanced groups
Groups create crutches for others groups and bind others together into a large group.
You can generate a local group of say Silverpoint consumers, elect a committee and it’s Chairman could be elected on the regional committee and so on. At some stages some resorts will be challenged, whilst others capitulate, so resources can be united to get reasonable goals and reasonable outcomes in all matters.
Resorts can consider matters and consult, so that a situation like the MacDonald and Silverpoint problems never occur again or a small selection of consumers are selected for special treatment because a resort wants it’s property back.
Protection
As a group, it can be funded and each member will have a right to join or not. As a group, they can insure disputes and procedural disputes can be established.
The group protects and generates a common force and a blanket for the individual. Traders can be checked by like mined timeshare owners and as a result each trader can be forced to comply with a set of principles.
Advantage
That is simple, do you think to form a group would be a disadvantage when considering what is in existence at the moment?
Costs
Again as an individual you have a stark choice with resorts “capitulate or perish”. If neither occurs you have an action.
If you action in any manner and as an individual it will cost you a vast amount of money and risk.
Consider how many points have been argued over in all these years and all those legal advices which experts have poured over time and time again. All those advices and advice is lost. If you were a group you would know which arguments win and which lose as the group would own all the advices prepared by the experts.
The group would present arguments to the resorts solicitors and then you would have a cost effective and real chance to stand up for yourselves.
It could be a whole new day in timeshare!
This proposition is just an idea. I and the TCA can’t make it happen but you can!
What can you do now?
Do nothing with Silverpoint or MacDonald’s as you don’t know all the facts, but they do.
Put the phone down on them.
And
Most of all grab the phone and call the press, the TV stations, your MP, you councillors and do it now.
Tell the world what they are doing to you, tell them about the unfairness and rally the local and the nationals. That’s what you should be doing now. If you voice it, the help will come.
This is what you should do as we can’t help you with that. And again do it now. It’s not our fight, it’s yours, and we are only the servants to your plight.
To the traders, sellers, brokers I say:-
These are your customers; they are becoming victims. If you fight for them they will respond and warm to you.
This could be the finest hour for the fledglings and small companies!
This could get you out of the reach of the people who put you down. This could be the start of a great enterprise working in a grateful group of valiant consumers!
Don’t think I mean anything other than to raise the profile of this horrible event and raise it now, raise it fast, hard and effective. And do it for your consumers
When they have broken the contracts you the consumer can act by forming groups and uniting.
For more information regarding this article or assistance in any other timeshare related issues please contact the TCA on 01908 881058 or email: info@TimeshareConsumerAssociation.org.uk