There aren’t many tough decisions for holidaymakers in Tenerife’s Playa de las Americas. Sangria or cerveza?
Factor 25 or 50 maybe?
But some Brits are being asked to make major decisions about their financial future – no wonder some get burned.
Among them is Lynne, a holidaymaker from Essex, who went to a Resort Properties presentation hoping to off-load some timeshare slots she no longer wanted.
Lynne claims a salesman told her he could take the unwanted weeks in part exchange for a portfolio of Resort Properties weeks – and that she would be able to resell them within a year for a 15 per cent profit.
Two years and not one sniff of a sale later, Lynne got a partial refund but had lost more than £2,500 along with her own weeks valued at £3,500.
The Resort Properties Group was founded by Bob Trotta in the 80s in Tenerife and now spans the globe from Dubai to the Caribbean.
According to his website, Trotta is a “true pioneer and visionary” who brought timeshare to Europe.
The group claims to have sold more than £250 million worth of timeshare – but we have seen numerous complaints from dissatisfied customers who have lost money after investing in them.
Sandy Grey of the Timeshare Consumers Association tells us that most complaints are about “hard sell” tactics by Resort Properties salesmen.
Other buyers say they were not told exactly what they were buying and what it was likely to earn them… if anything.
Timeshare’s not exactly the hot product it was 20 years ago and the resale market is awash with unwanted weeks.
Yet some Resort Property investors claim they were sold on promises of big profits within 12 months.
They also claim they weren’t warned how the annual maintenance fees on each week would rocket. The annual fees at the Beverly Hills Club have risen 52 per cent in six years to £330, while those at the Palm Beach Club are up 83 per cent to £326.
Inflation in Spain over the same period was 18 per cent.
Lynne, who has asked us to withhold her surname, said: “I was originally tempted into this because I was an unhappy owner of several weeks of timeshare. I still have that around my neck along with an annual maintenance bill of over £1,000.”
All in, Lynne reckons she lost at least £11,500 but says the true cost was on her emotional and physical health.
“At the time, it wrecked my life,” she said. “That for me was the real loss. The time and effort and stress were almost unreal.”
Resort Properties wouldn’t comment on individual cases but a spokesman told us: “We are not in the business of misleading clients and take complaints seriously.”
Trotta has a townhouse in Chelsea, west London, but according to his housekeeper, mainly lives at his villa in Tuscany.
We couldn’t speak to the man himself, but here’s what he says on his website: “Ultimately, our success depends on the satisfaction of our customers.
“Regardless of the product we are selling, we believe in delivering what we promise to our clients.”
TATTOC Says:- in March 2008
http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/investigations/2009/12/timeshare-boss-bob-trotta-of-r.html
October 29, 2009
Trotta was not in court to hear the evidence.
Outside court Grey said: “I am delighted I had the opportunity to come here and say things which I never had the chance to talk about in the UK.
http://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2009/12/27/crimeshare-doesnt-pay/
Bob Trotta’s raise to fame again
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