Why You Should Never Make Your Timeshare Compensation Claim Alone
Do you have suspicions that your timeshare was misrepresented or unlawfully sold to you? Have you decided that you’re going to take on the timeshare companies in search of a financial compensation claim and nullification? As tempting as it may seem, going up against timeshare law and the resorts on your own could be a very dangerous decision.
It is essential for you to consult a specialist timeshare lawyer for many reasons. Here are five of them:
- You Can’t Just Walk Away
If you are unhappy with the terms of your timeshare agreement, or believe that the contract you signed is unlawful, you cannot just stop paying the annual maintenance fees and walk away. If you do this, firstly, it will not make the problem go away. Secondly, access to the timeshare resort will be taken away, along with your right to rent it out to others. Thirdly, and most damagingly, the timeshare company may then pass your details onto major credit agencies. At that point your information may also be passed to a collection agency in an attempt to recover the debt. Bear in mind that late payment charges may be added to the arrears thus increasing the costs considerably.
- Identify your Case
The process of identifying and acting against unlawful or misleading contracts requires an intricate knowledge of the timeshare industry, as well as contract law. Some of the more underhand clauses may be hidden deep within the contract, or dressed up to seem like they are saying something very different to what in reality they are. Without using a timeshare legal expert there is a good chance that you will miss areas of the contract which deserve closer inspection, thus greatly limiting your chances of success.
- Avoiding Obstacles
Timeshare companies are not in the business of giving compensation and voiding contracts. They will do anything they can to avoid having to do so. If you go up against these companies without a strong knowledge of the industry and the law, you are likely to fall victim to the many defensive tactics that they employ. A timeshare lawyer with good knowledge of contract law will be able to speed-up the process by avoiding all of the obstacles that the timeshare companies will try and hit you with. Also bear in mind their bank balance are far greater than yours, they have vast sums of money available to fund their defence and if they win, you not only retain your ownership and the ever increasing maintenance charge, but you will also have large bill to pay in legal costs.
- Finding Time
A timeshare litigation case can be a long, complicated process, and the amount of work that goes into such a claim is enormous. Trying to juggle the processing of a claim, with work and family responsibilities, will feel impossible. It will lead to tasks being rushed and, therefore, the careful eye and attention to detail that is required will be missing. Such situations might result in stress levels going up, damaging your personal and professional life, not to mention hampering the strength of your claim. A good timeshare lawyer will be able to handle the work for you.
- Weakness of Solitude
By going it alone, you are entering a David and Goliath situation. Yes, that time David won, but that’s rarely the outcome in the real world. Attempting to beat the timeshare companies at their own game all by yourself with little to no resources is a battle you are destined to lose. Only with the expertise and force of a well-organised timeshare law firm, whose reputation for winning cases is well known and publicised, will you be able to match the strength and reach of those you are fighting against.
If you think your timeshare might have been misrepresented or unlawfully sold to you, don’t try to win your case on your own, instead seek the expertise of a specialist company whose forte is legal claims, of course there will be costs involved but in the end it will be money well spent.
So what should you do?
If you feel that you have a claim you will need to have at hand all your timeshare purchase documentation, as this will required to be viewed by the specialist company you intend to use. This is necessary to ascertain if there is indeed a valid claim and whether they will be in a position to represent you. Please bear in mind that a legitimate specialist lawyer will not take on a case unless they believe that they can win.
What If I Paid By Credit Card?
If you paid by credit card you can also be able to claim under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. The purchase must be over £100 and under £30,000.00. Full information relating to a S75 claim and other important information may be found in the following articles:
If your credit card company rejects your claim and you strongly believe that their decision was unfair, the next step would be to contact the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Again it is advised to seek specialist help when considering a Section 75 claim. This is because the process many not be as simple as it seems and many banks will make the task difficult by objecting on spurious grounds, often requesting additional documentation which may not be easily available to Joe Public.
Finally
Legal matters in your own country and in your own language are incredibly difficult to understand for the lay person, for this reason we all engage specialist assistance from the legal profession, it’s no different in Spain except that the legal system is entirely different from those in your mother country and of course unless you are fluent in Spanish the language barrier will present serious problems.
If you wish to explore the possibilities of mounting a claim in Spain we would be delighted to assist and point you in the right direction to obtain the expert advice necessary to go forward
If you’re still unsure on how to proceed with your timeshare claim for compensation, please do not hesitate to contact us. For further information on compiling Spanish litigation claim, please view the following article.
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