Yet another incarnation of the infamous rogues from Tenerife. We have to admire the tenacity of these crooks and the sheer stamina displayed in the continual reinvention of both themselves and the scam. We have reported on so many name changes over the years, but that’s all it is, a name change.
Once again, on investigation, we find the same absolute rubbish and total misinformation surrounding this scam. First we will look at this supposed law firm then take a closer look at the scam.
The fake law firm
As to be expected following a search of the equivalent of Spanish Companies House there is no company under the name of Litigandolo Abogados, this is odd because their logo displays a CIF (Código de Identificación Fiscal) number, a legally required Spanish company registration number being A39501286. Again we checked this and below are the results:
For those whose Spanish is a little rusty, Empresa no encontrada translates to company not found.
Much like the UK Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority (SRA) search facility, Spain not only has a central register of Solicitors (Abogados) being Abogacía Española Consejo General but also a specific “college” of solicitors in most regions. For Tenerife this is the Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Naturally we searched both for not only the company but the named lawyers on the scam website, what did we find? Nothing, no individual listings or corporate listing.
Conclusion, a company that doesn’t exist staffed by lawyers who don’t exist. Despite this, the company headed paper would have you believe that not only are they registered with the Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Santa Cruz de Tenerife (ICATF) but many other prestigious organisations:
All 100% lies. To prove how easy it is to pretend to be something you are not, we visited the ICATF website and with one right click of the mouse and a copy command this is what we got:
The website quotes an office address of Calle El Beril 16, Edificio Pricipe, Oficina 361C, 38006, Santa Cruz, Tenerife, which according to Google maps doesn’t exist, no surprise there, after all they don’t want you turning up at their offices unannounced. Of note, they do have a map of their location on the corporate website with a red pin showing where the office is. Unfortunately, not only is the pin not in the fictitious Calle El Beril, when enlarging the map their office would appear to be in the middle of a roundabout on Avenida San Sebastian:
The Scam
This time around the targets are those who purchased through Silverpoint. The letter sent to the victims is well produced on quality paper and runs to seven pages but this is seven pages of absolute nonsense which, although reads well is all rubbish. Apparently Mark Cushway and David Taylor have been found guilty in a court case, more on this later but first let’s see what the letter says:
Very interesting but we fail to see what David Taylor has to do with this case. Mr Taylor did work for both Resort Properties and Silverpoint and although there are plenty of bad comments on the web about him, he had no controlling interest in Silverpoint and was merely a sales manager. On checking the various Silverpoint companies being Silverpoint Hotels & Resorts Santa Cruz De Tenerife, Silverpoint Vacation Solutions Santa Cruz De Tenerife and Silverpoint Vacations SL neither David Taylor nor Mark Cushway are quoted as Directors or Administrators. As a further point of interest, and a blatant mistake, the extract above states Silverpoint SL, there is no company registered under that name only those we have quoted above.
Silverpoint was part of an enormous group of companies known as the Limora Group created by the late Bob Trotta and it’s true to say that all Silverpoint companies are in administration so until such time as that process concludes there will be no settlements. Neither Mark Cushway nor David Taylor have been charged with anything….yet! So again we see a lie, apparently the authorities stopped the Silverpoint bankruptcy just in time….no they didn’t, yet another lie.
No win no fee
In the letter it states that the case will be handled on a no win no fee basis, what a scammer not taking any money up front? Never heard of! But as you read on this small paragraph pops up:
Wallop! This is where the scam hits. We have no idea what the amount of this “procurator” fee will be but no doubt it will run into a considerable sum. Our enquirer who kindly submitted the paperwork to us got wise early on and stopped this scam in its tracks before any “fees” were mentioned, or more importantly damage done.
Legal fees for Spanish court cases where lawyers/notaries are involved may run into thousands and these costs would need to be paid, at least in part, upfront. No Spanish law firm or UK law firm for that matter would take on a case of the magnitude and complexity described by these scammers on a no win no fee basis
Our comment
Given the massive web of lies that Litigandolo weave, if you add all the lies and idiosyncrasies together one would have to conclude that no matter how good the story and no matter how they attempt to put a stamp on the legitimacy on their service, if you are approached by them, you should immediately say no and walk away, failure to take this course of action will undoubtedly cost you money, frustration and eventually no actual return whatsoever!
Clearly the only two things these scammers truly depend upon are gullibility and greed.
Luckily our enquirer came to us for advice before they allowed themselves to get involved with these nasty individuals. It is all too easy to be hoodwinked by scammers. Over the years we have seen how sophisticated they have become. When being presented with “help” from what appears to be a legitimate law firm who seem to know an awful lot about you and can provide you with what seems to be the appropriate legal documentation, it is very easy to become the victim of these fraudsters.
Above all, treat all communications that you have not personally instigated with a great deal of caution. It takes all but a few minutes to search for details of the company that allegedly wants to “help” you and if you are in any doubt at all, please call or write to us as nothing gives us greater pleasure than saving our enquirers from the lion’s den and exposing these criminals for what they truly are.
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