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SCAM: Diamond Resort Properties Info?

denverbob

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I recently responded to a Craigslist ad for condo rental. The price was excellent and I sent $200. The company name is Diamond Resort Properties (I don't think it's related to Diamond Resorts), but this appears to be only a website. The only contact I've had is with Casey; who I've talked to about three times, but have left about 10 messages.

He never got back to me with reservations for my request. He has said he would return my money, but still nothing. He doesn't respond to emails, either.

Just wondering if anyone on TUG has had contact with this group?
 

RuralEngineer

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Payment

did you use paypal? suggest canceling your payment.

airbnb is more reliable way to rent.

stephen
 

denverbob

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Actually I did use PayPal, but sent the first payment using the "goods and services" section. Casey called me and said that would take 21 days to "clear" and I should send again through the "personal" side of PayPal. The dates I was seeking for rental were in the 21 day period. The first payment was refunded, the second has not (and I think will not) been refunded by PayPal.

I should have realized something might be amiss when he asked to send again.

I have rented many times using various sites, including TUG.
 

DeniseM

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Did you use a credit card?
 

Saintsfanfl

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Actually I did use PayPal, but sent the first payment using the "goods and services" section. Casey called me and said that would take 21 days to "clear" and I should send again through the "personal" side of PayPal. The dates I was seeking for rental were in the 21 day period. The first payment was refunded, the second has not (and I think will not) been refunded by PayPal.

I should have realized something might be amiss when he asked to send again.

I have rented many times using various sites, including TUG.

You should never ever send a payment through PayPal using the Friends & Family transfer option unless it is actually for friends and family. There is no buyer protection using the friends & family transfer. Any merchant that asks for that type of transfer should be avoided. They are not only preventing you from having protection but they are also defrauding PayPal of the fees for being a merchant.

If you used a CC then you could file a dispute directly with your CC. The CC dispute is still questionable because you authorized PayPal to send money to friends and family. It's shaky ground to now admit to the CC that you lied to PayPal and it was really for a merchant. You could say that the merchant required that option and put the blame on them. I am not sure how they handle disputes like that but it is worth a shot if you used a CC. The good news is that it was only $200. Many are taken for much more. Lesson learned.

Hopefully you can still get a refund. Just because they are slimy doesn't mean they are outright criminal. That is the best you can hope for but I wouldn't hold your breath.
 
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Saintsfanfl

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The website looks fake. It's "members" only and was not done well at all. Some links at the bottom don't work. It says BBB accredited but there is no BBB record for a company by that name. I find no search hits anywhere with this company. It's probably a new scam.

I just noticed that when you click the "booking" link it takes you to really bad agreement page. No other party is listed, which makes the agreement no a legal contract. It refers to the "owner" getting confirmation, which leads me to believe they are a third party joining the real owner and the renter.

It's either a scam or somebody's extremely poor attempt at a vacation rental business. There is even threatening language on not filing a dispute. "Any cancellations and adjustments made through disputes will void terms and will be subject to refunds not being issued."

http://www.diamondresortproperties.com/

By the signatures below, both parties agree that they have thoroughly read this
Rental Agreement, had the opportunity to ask questions, and understand and agree
to the terms. Both parties understand Resorts will not represent or act for
either the owner or the renter, nor will the company act as an intermediary
between the prospective parties to a transaction.

It sounds to me like they took your money as a deposit and then the deal never went through. Did you sign anything?
 
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denverbob

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I did use my American Express card to send through PayPal.

At this point I don't know for sure if this is fraud. I was hoping to hear GOOD reports on TUG for this company. So far, I can't find any (good or bad) reports on the internet. They returned my goods and services payment quickly. Maybe that means they are legit.

I did "sign" the electronic contact (from their booking website). And I noticed that language about not disputing the deal. In my mind there never was a deal, since they never confirmed any bookings.
 
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Saintsfanfl

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I did use my American Express card to send through PayPal.

At this point I don't know for sure if this is fraud. I was hoping to hear GOOD reports on TUG for this company. So far, I can't find any (good or bad) reports on the internet. They returned my goods and services payment quickly. Maybe that means they are legit.

It means they wanted to bypass PayPal fees and prevent you from filing a dispute. It does indicate they are trying to run some form of operation but it isn't saying much. Even if they were a scammer that took this one payment and ran, you would probably be entitled to a refund from Paypal or Amex.

Amex is pretty good with disputes on the side of the cardholder. If you want to wait it out you have a good amount of time before the dispute period expires.

Their website is extremely questionable from a scam perspective. BBB accredited but no BBB record. PayPal verified but they asked for a friends transfer which is fraudulent and violates their PayPal merchant agreement. They can't be a verified PayPal merchant if they are not receiving merchant transfers. Most of the other links do nothing. They used homestead.com to create the web page. The whole thing screams run away fast.
 

DeniseM

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You should dispute this with your credit card immediately - a reputable company would not ask you to use the "personal" Paypal method to make the payment.

They returned your first payment quickly, because they had to pay FEES on it - no other reason!

You should dispute this with AMEX immediately.
 

denverbob

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They have two websites that I know of. One is diamondresortproperties.com , and the other is 12345booking.com (looks just like the first).

The ownership of both of these domains is hidden behind a shell company in Canada (Contact Privacy Inc. Customer 0138331414).

I have two phone numbers. One is the company number: 888.578.0881. No one ever answers that number and voice mails are not returned. The number in the Craigslist ad is: 909.359.BOOK.

The email I have for Casey is kenneth_cole44@aol.com (also the PayPal email).
 
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Saintsfanfl

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There are more red flags than China. Ok, maybe not, but it's pretty bad. I personally would file the dispute and not spend any more time with it.

It is interesting that I find no hits whatsoever except this post. No hits on either phone number or the company name. Nothing negative or positive and no evidence of any "operation". No hits on the email address. It all seems very new. Can you tell when the web sites were created?

I just found it. Both domains were created on 9/1/14.
 
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denverbob

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I didn't find anything either. And I thought it must be new. I saw the first Craigslist ad on 9/3/14 and called. I sent the first payment on 9/3/14 and the second on 9/6/14. Was to receive confirmation on 9/8/14. When I didn't receive any confirmation and couldn't reach anyone by phone or email, I asked PayPal to stop both payments on 9/12/14.

Casey called me that night and told me to be patient and that nothing was amiss. He offered to return the first payment and I agreed. I'm sure it was the heat from PayPal that caused the call. PayPal has notified me that the second (the personal one) cannot be rescinded.

I still see ads running on Craigslist with the 909.359.BOOK number.
 

Saintsfanfl

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I didn't find anything either. And I thought it must be new. I saw the first Craigslist ad on 9/3/14 and called. I sent the first payment on 9/3/14 and the second on 9/6/14. Was to receive confirmation on 9/8/14. When I didn't receive any confirmation and couldn't reach anyone by phone or email, I asked PayPal to stop both payments on 9/12/14.

Casey called me that night and told me to be patient and that nothing was amiss. He offered to return the first payment and I agreed. I'm sure it was the heat from PayPal that caused the call. PayPal has notified me that the second (the personal one) cannot be rescinded.

I still see ads running on Craigslist with the 909.359.BOOK number.

I wonder what happens if you do the Amex dispute. PayPals rules and T&C's should have no bearing on the Fair Credit Billing Act. Their friends and family transfer option should not automatically exempt the transaction from the law. The fact is that it was indeed a merchant transaction and you did not receive your goods or services, which is covered under the FCBA.

Let us know how it turns out if you dispute with Amex.
 

DeniseM

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PayPal has notified me that the second (the personal one) cannot be rescinded.

Paypal has NO control over what AMEX does - dispute it with AMEX and you will get your money back.
 

Saintsfanfl

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Paypal has NO control over what AMEX does - dispute it with AMEX and you will get your money back.

Which will charge back PayPal who will then charge back the "personal" merchant. I guess PayPal says no rescinding personals for any reason to prevent merchants from being tempting to try and use it.

PayPal doesn't even openly allow vacation rental transactions and at least one Tugger has been warned or banned from using it as an option. I still do it for an initial deposit if the buyer or renter wants to but I also have very low volume.
 

DeniseM

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The ability to dispute the payment with Paypal is a "service" for which Paypal charges 2.9% of the gross. On a Personal payment there is no fee - thus no service.
 

denverbob

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I actually paid the fee when I sent the money. It was added to the requested amount.

I completed the refund request yesterday with AmEx. We'll see how that goes.
 

denverbob

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Diamond Resort Properties Scam Warning

I am now convinced this is a scam. I have had no contact with Casey (the only person in the company I have had contact with - and maybe the only person IN the company) in almost two weeks. I have no actual address for this company and only a couple of phone numbers (calls not returned) and one email with no response.

Ads are still running on Craigslist, so hopefully others will see this posting and think twice about responding.
 

Saintsfanfl

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I actually paid the fee when I sent the money. It was added to the requested amount.

I completed the refund request yesterday with AmEx. We'll see how that goes.

The fee is because you used a credit card and it was to a "friend". If you used paypal balance or bank transfer then there would be no fee. If it was for goods and services rather than "friends" then there is always a fee but the seller pays it.
 

denverbob

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I received notice today that American Express will refund my money sent through PayPal using the 'Friends and Family' section. I am pleased.

In their letter they noted:

"We contacted MARK PAYPAL for you to give them the opportunity to provide any additional information. As of today (Nov 3), they have not given us the information we need to resolve this matter."

I am hoping that this company is gone for good. I have not seen their Craigslist postings recently, and their website and 888 number are disabled.
 
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