A very simple question with answers that could go on for hours so we will try to keep it short. Going back 27 years when TCA was founded by the late Sandy Grey, problems with the industry were already manifesting themselves. Some called Sandy a “maverick” because he didn’t hold back when he became aware of the wrong doings and level of deceit he saw in the industry.
As far back as 1998, Sandy published such articles with the headlines:
- Four companies offering “Free Holidays” for attending a timeshare presentation are to be wound up by the Department of Trade and Industry. Travel Time (UK) Ltd; Embassy Enterprises UK Ltd; Harmony Holidays Ltd and Marlborough Promotions Ltd all based at the same address in Devon were said by the DTI to failed to provide many of the promised holidays.
- Timeshare Consumer Association issue a warning to holiday makers in Spain about buying timeshare whilst on Spanish soil.
- Villa Investment Plan directors Roger and Michael Steed were sent to prison today for four and three years respectively for their part in a timeshare fraud. The brothers, one a respected JP living in Stamford, Lincs, were convicted of frauds totalling more than £7M.
So a question might be, “has anything changed over the years?” The answer is no, if anything the whole industry has got worse.
TCA enquiry line
For the most part, the inbound enquiries we receive are negative. On very rare occasions we do speak to timeshare owners who are actually happy with their lot, but they are very rare indeed. To draw an analogy, no one ever makes an appointment with their doctor just to say they have never felt fitter, it’s always because they are ill.
As we stated above, the TCA helpline rarely bumps into happy owners, like the doctor, we only receive calls relating to problems being experienced, from this you may start to understand why, over the years, TCA may seem a tad bitter towards the industry.
In all honesty, we would absolutely love to publish positive articles with headlines such as:
- Wyndham publish a free and easy exit strategy for those wishing to relinquish their ownership.
- Hilton Grand Vacations to stop selling timeshare with perpetuity clauses.
- Marriott announce a maximum ceiling of 5% for increases in maintenance fees.
- Westgate to retrain all sales staff and remove the non verbal reliance clause from their sales contracts.
- Club la Costa announces removal of all resorts from online booking platforms – Owner booking requests now to take priority.
Being human, we like to dream, headlines such as those above are exactly that, dreams. The chances of any of our dreams coming into reality are extremely unlikely, or being more realistic, simply won’t happen.
Utopia?
Being frank, in the real world there are virtually no products that we buy that don’t have some sort of problems, the perfect product is merely a utopian dream. Providing the pros outweigh the cons, then we buy, unfortunately with timeshare, generally the cons outweigh the pros.
Because the product is so flawed it has created a sub culture, being the scam industry. Globally this industry is responsible for fraud running into millions. In no way do we either condone or agree with timeshare fraud, however the blame for this criminal activity lays firmly at the feet of the timeshare developers. If developers in Spain upheld statute Spanish timeshare law there would be precious few claims. If developers had published easy cost effective exit strategies, there would be no exit companies. If lenders who finance timeshare purchases applied more due diligence, there would be no finance claims. If developers sold the product with absolute truth, there would be no accusations of misselling. Utopia we guess, but doable.
TCA comment
Timeshare or something similar could still find a place in the holiday market today, but given the product that’s available now, and the history of bad development and negative comment, the proverbial socks need pulling up by a fair distance.
TCA would love to publish happy stories but we are beholden to working with timeshare owners’ negativity and complaints all of which feature in our day to day operation. Whilst this is all we have to work with, nothing will change, yes we are negative towards the timeshare industry but on average the criticism is a self inflicted wound. If the industry doesn’t change for the betterment of its consumers, TCA will continue to take the same stance as it has done for the past 27 years.
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