It is being reported by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) that they are receiving alerts from worried consumers in respect to ABCS and its suspicious cold call activities.
This company is supposedly a ‘timeshare purchasing business’ which is claiming to be located in Dalton Gardens, Idaho.
The company is reported to be contacting consumers with the information of their timeshare to hand. One complaint in particular states that, they were called by a representative from ABCS offering to purchase the consumer’s timeshare in Mexico. The ‘solicitor’ claimed to have a buyer interested in purchasing the timeshare who was willing to pay more than face value and already had cash in an escrow account for the purchase.
What is an Escrow?
“A financial instrument held by a third party on behalf of the other two parties in a transaction. The funds are held by the escrow service until it receives the appropriate written or oral instructions or until obligations have been fulfilled. Securities, funds and other assets can be held in escrow“.
It sounded like the perfect transaction until the consumer received a call from the supposed escrow agent, who explained the contract included a $4,100 fee to pay the new owner up front due to Mexican government taxes.
The Better Business bureau has carried out investigations and has stated;
“BBB’s investigation revealed the address listed as ABCS’s physical location is a postal store. ABCS claims to have been in business since 2012, but it appears the owner of the company purchased the business name in Idaho in August 2015 from a corporation that had formed in 2012 so they were able to reinstate the business and use the previous company’s start date as their own.
BBB has confirmed the Mexican government does not require any kind of tariff, title or change fee up front from a timeshare seller”
As always, the TCA advises everyone to steer clear of ANY cold call companies. No matter how ‘polite’ the caller is or how tempting the offer is, it is not in your best interest to get involved with these companies.
If you have been contacted by this company, please get in touch on the below contact information.
How to deal with cold callers
Do:
- Ask cold callers to remove your information from their records. They must do this by law. If the same company calls again, complain to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) on0303 123 1113, or visit www.ico.gov.uk.
- Find out the caller’s number from a landline by dialling 1471 after the call.
- Check with your phone company if your number can be made ex-directory.
- Register for free with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) to reduce the number of sales and marketing calls on 0800 398 893 or register online at www.tpsonline.org.uk
- Be careful when signing up to services which box you tick. Decide if you really want your details to be used for marketing, or passed on to other companies.
Don’t:
- Don’t give away personal or financial information to cold callers, even if they claim to be from a company you know. If in doubt, look up the number of the company and call them back.
- Don’t lose your temper. Be polite but firm. If the caller refuses to go away, hang up. If you are worried about a call tell your friends or family, or get some advice.
- Don’t call back phone numbers left on your voicemail, or reply to text messages you don’t recognise. The cost of the call could be excessive, or it could be a scam.
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