The pan handle, as Florida is fondly nicknamed is without doubt the timeshare capital of the world. Simply looking at sales in the USA, roughly 30% of all timeshare sold in the States is in Florida. As we have pointed out before each individual state is responsible for legislation relating to timeshare, Florida is no exception.
Ashley Moody
The current incumbent of the Florida Attorney General office is Ashley Moody who has demonstrated that she is more than happy to look at and advise on being careful before buying a timeshare in her state. On the Attorney Generals website there is amount of sound advice which may be viewed here. Our reason for mentioning this is that there may possibly be further legislation aimed at greater consumer protection relating to timeshare sales in the sunshine state.
Florida Alliance for Consumers and Taxpayers (FACT)
According to an article published in the Capitol online news site FACT carried out a survey of 500 Florida voters 93% of Floridians who voted overwhelmingly supported a cooling off period before signing timeshare contracts. The suggestion put forward by FACT was that on top of the 10 day rescission (cooling off) period there should be a clear 24 hour “reflection” period offered prior to signing the purchase contract. The article went on to say:
“The overwhelming support for the measure is driven by the fact that most Floridians surveyed who have experienced a timeshare presentation described the experience as negative. About 74% said they experienced strong-armed sales tactics, insufficient time to consider the options, or deals that were deceptive or too good to be true”.
There is a vast amount of paperwork that is part and parcel of buying timeshare in the States, including, but not exclusively the Public Offering Statement (POS). The POS in itself often runs to 30 pages or more then on top of that are the various sales contracts, during the sales process there is little or no time to read and digest the mountain of information before signing on the dotted line. Allowing 24 hours to read, digest and reflect on what is after all a significant life and financial decision should be welcome. The majority of the comments on the Capitol website seem to agree that a pre contract reflection period would be most welcome; in fact several commentators think a better timeframe may be 72 hours.
Possible pitfalls
The first possible stumbling block is whether the Attorney General is prepared to act on the evidence provided by FACT; a measure that would address those concerns is under active consideration by Florida lawmakers in the 2022 legislative session. We are in no doubt that FACT will certainly be making strong representations surrounding their findings. The second hurdle will undoubtedly be a major reluctance to accept change from the timeshare industry.
Florida state has approximately 350 timeshare resorts, both the employment they offer and the tax contributions to the state should not to be underestimated, although just a guess, we would venture that as an industry, timeshare is one of the largest contributors to the state coffers.
The sales effect
When the EU introduced a timeshare directive in 2008 it stated that no monies could be paid by way of deposit or full payment within 14 days of contract signature. Overnight this took the wind out of the sales of the industry. No longer could sales reps seal the deal on the day. With 14 days to recover from the lambasting sales presentation and really think about the magnitude of the decision to purchase, many chose to cancel.
Sales teams across European resorts were scaled down and in a dramatic case Diamond Resorts shut their entire European sales division. Sales staff were informed that the European Sales and Marketing business had for sometime been facing a rather difficult time, in other words sales targets are not being met. This couldn’t be down to the Diamond product but the inability for sales to be fully completed on the day.
From this it may be seen that placing legal problems in the way of completing the sale is not a good idea, well not for the developer anyway.
Comment
At TCA we believe that this could represent a much needed additional level of consumer protection. A quick search of Google reveals the extent of buyers’ remorse setting in just days after the rescission period ends. Consumers locked into long term contracts with many funded by extremely expensive finance and not really sure of exactly what they had got themselves into. Allowing additional time, even if it is only 24 hours, to get over the brain numbing experience of the sales meeting can only be to the benefit of the consumer.
Whilst this action, if passed into legislation, will initially have a damaging effect on the bottom line sales figures of developers, long term there may be benefits to gain. Those who read, understand and proceed with the purchase will no doubt be happy and go on to be loyal customers offering rave review on the likes of Trust Pilot as opposed to the plethora of negative comment currently visible.
We will finish on the comment below as reported by Capitol:
“Florida is home to many vulnerable populations who are frequently targeted by timeshare marketers, including seniors and veterans,” said State Representative. Juan Alfonso Fernandez-Barquin. “They need a chance to get out of the room before they make a decision that will have such long-lasting financial consequences.”
Maybe if this change gets approved and enters the Florida statute then possibly other states will follow.
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