# DRI announces lawsuit against Timeshare Freedom Group



## TUGBrian (Sep 23, 2020)

and another exit company lands in the crosshairs of the DRI legal team









						Diamond Resorts Files Lawsuit Against Timeshare Freedom Group, Molfetta Law & Others in Timeshare 'Cancellation' Ring for Allegedly Scamming Consumers
					

/PRNewswire/ -- Diamond Resorts®, a global leader in the hospitality, vacation ownership and entertainment industries, has filed a lawsuit against a ring of...




					www.prnewswire.com


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## csalter2 (Sep 23, 2020)

Why does it bother me so much that DR is taking other companies of fraud and deceptive practices which is a mainstay in their own sales departments. Worse yet, they do nothing about it and by not addressing it, they encourage it.


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## AwayWeGo (Sep 23, 2020)

csalter2 said:


> Why does it bother me so much that DR is taking other companies of fraud and deceptive practices which is a mainstay in their own sales departments. Worse yet, they do nothing about it and by not addressing it, they encourage it.


Wouldn't it be great if both sides could lose ?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​


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## csalter2 (Sep 23, 2020)

AwayWeGo said:


> Wouldn't it be great if both sides could lose ?
> 
> -- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​



Absolutely!


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## dioxide45 (Sep 23, 2020)

Diamond did settle with the Arizona AG several years ago for $800K for deceptive sales practices.



			https://www.azag.gov/press-release/attorney-general-brnovich-announces-800000-settlement-diamond-resorts


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## csalter2 (Sep 23, 2020)

dioxide45 said:


> Diamond did settle with the Arizona AG several years ago for $800K for deceptive sales practices.
> 
> 
> 
> https://www.azag.gov/press-release/attorney-general-brnovich-announces-800000-settlement-diamond-resorts



Should have been for much more.


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## lindaswain (Sep 24, 2020)

Do you know why the relinquishment program applies to owners who purchased after 2011? We purchased years before.


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## pedro47 (Sep 24, 2020)

How many timeshare exit companies are there remaining for Diamond to take to court?


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## dioxide45 (Sep 24, 2020)

pedro47 said:


> How many timeshare exit companies are there remaining for Diamond to take to court?


I am sure there are plenty. They already are targeting Timeshare Exit Team. I haven't heard of them going for Wesley Financial or Loan Star Transfer yet.


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## DannyTS (Sep 25, 2020)

Wesley financial group advertises heavily on the satellite radio. I was wondering the same, they seem to be immune so far, maybe Diamond keeps the best meal for last. I checked their reviews online and most are very good although I am not sure they are not written by the staff lol. Below is one of them. If they had a mortgage, how did they get out? Did they just default? And if so, what did they need the exit company for?

Jim Burnett
1 review
4 months ago-
My wife Kelli and I was so excited to purchase our time share. We THOUGHT Wyndham Timeshares had done us this huge favor helping us with our travel plans.  We purchased our timeshare while vacationing in San Antonio Texas.  A few weeks later we got our “Freebies” in the mail, so we started planing our first trip using our free points.  So we called a resort in Myrtle Beach.   I called for reservations.  Turns out we have to pay a cleaning fee.  And we have to schedule a sit down meeting, two hours.  I said I wasn’t interested.  They said it was mandatory.  We declined.  I tried another resort, samething.  I told them I paid for rooms not more meetings.  Then I get a $98+ MONTHLY BILL, for resort maintenance fees.  I was not aware of monthly fees, I thought they were yearly fees.  So I started adding all these fees and cleaning deposits, and my $4800 a year mortgage payment.  I will not ever see a FREE vacation until I am 70 years old, and I will still have a cleaning and maintenance fee.  So I called Wyndham back to cancel.  They said I had to cancel within nine working days.  In our entrance meeting they told us THREE MONTHS!   I argued and the were not budging.  I told them they could keep the freebies, as they are not free, and the money I had already paid, they said no!   I hung up.  A day later a customer specialist calls offering me to buy out at half price, what a crock!  $12,000 and not once did I use there service.  I am so mad I could, well let’s just say I am mad. I talked with some lawyer friends, they said Wyndham has done their homework, many have tried, but it is almost impossible to get out of it.  My wife Kelli heard the Wesley Financial commercial on the radio.  I didn’t want anything to do with putting out tons more money.  Kelli set up a phone call with the VP of Wesley. I listened in for the first few minutes.  He told me everything I was upset about because we were victims with the same issues as all his other clients.  So long story shorter and about one year later Wyndham  Resorts let us go!  Wesley Financial is now helping us get our credit back, as Wyndham was sure to let the credit reporters know we didn’t keep up with our payments.  Wesley Financial promised to get us away from Wyndham and they did.  Wesley Financial is not cheap, but they kept their promise and save me over $60,000 over a ten year process if staying with Wyndham Resorts.  Trust me people, saving for vacations is cheaper than belonging to a vacation club of any kind. Do the math before you sign on any dotted line. There are no guarantees in life that you will live  ten to fifteen years to fully enjoy a vacation club.  If you die, your estate still owes for the mortgage!   Again do the math and the homework before  joining.  If you did sign, call Wesley Financial and see if they can help you get out of debt!   Five stars Wesley Financial and their team of experts.


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## CPNY (Sep 25, 2020)

DannyTS said:


> Wesley financial group advertises heavily on the satellite radio. I was wondering the same, they seem to be immune so far, maybe Diamond keeps the best meal for last. I checked their reviews online and most are very good although I am not sure they are not written by the staff lol. Below is one of them. If they had a mortgage, how did they get out? Did they just default? And if so, what did they need the exit company for?
> 
> Jim Burnett
> 1 review
> ...


Wow. The VP of the company huh? Is this like Jake from State Farm? Where everyone who answers the phone is “jake from State Farm”? Sounds like they advised them to not pay their mortgage, they foreclosed and their credit took a hit. They probably don’t care about that because they think Wesley will help them fix their credit, which they won’t. But the customer doesn’t really care about that because a hit to their credit is less severe to them than owning an expensive  TS they regret buying in the first place. Fact is, they are now out of their timeshare and they could have done it for free but they don’t even realize it.


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## DannyTS (Sep 25, 2020)

CPNY said:


> Wow. The VP of the company huh? Is this like Jake from State Farm? Where everyone who answers the phone is “jake from State Farm”? Sounds like they advised them to not pay their mortgage, they foreclosed and their credit took a hit. They probably don’t care about that because they think Wesley will help them fix their credit, which they won’t. But the customer doesn’t really care about that because a hit to their credit is less severe to them than owning an expensive  TS they regret buying in the first place. Fact is, they are now out of their timeshare and they could have done it for free but they don’t even realize it.


And for that advice they probably paid 5k or so. I just do not see anyone that naïve to write such a positive review in these circumstances.


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## dioxide45 (Sep 25, 2020)

If you look at any of the complaints for these outfits on BBB, many are paying way more than $5K. One reported $13K for the owner to write a letter, then the exit company proof it and made some changes and asked the owner to send it to the company. It seems that after four letters the timeshare company relented and let them out of their timeshare (don't know if there was a loan). That was it, four letters for $14K. The owner likely could have contact the timeshare company themselves and asked for a deedback.

If you watch a lot of YouTube without ads blocked, you will see all kinds of ads from these outfits.


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## Grammarhero (Sep 25, 2020)

dioxide45 said:


> I am sure there are plenty. They already are targeting Timeshare Exit Team. I haven't heard of them going for Wesley Financial or Loan Star Transfer yet.


Diamond going after Wesley. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-...ROUP-RESPONDS-TO-DIAMOND-RESORTS-LAWSUIT.html


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## tschwa2 (Sep 25, 2020)

csalter2 said:


> Should have been for much more.


Another provision from that settlement was that owners who purchased in Arizona or own a Diamond resort in Arizona can use their deedback program and be charged no more than $250 per contract/deed whereas all other Diamond owners are on the hook for $1000 per deed or contract if they want to use the transitions deedback program.


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## Pathways (Sep 25, 2020)

DannyTS said:


> Wesley financial group advertises heavily on the satellite radio. I was wondering the same, they seem to be immune so far, maybe Diamond keeps the best meal for last. I checked their reviews online and most are very good although I am not sure they are not written by the staff lol. Below is one of them. If they had a mortgage, how did they get out? Did they just default? And if so, what did they need the exit company for?
> 
> Jim Burnett
> 1 review
> ...



This is clearly a made up review - or just an 'easy mark'.  The first clue is him saying that they are calling the 'resort' at each location to make reservations. We all know that's not how it works.  Then complains about a 'monthly' fee.  'Oh gee, I wanted to pay annually" .  Duh - multiply by 12 and write the check.  Oh, and he just listened in on the 'first few minutes' of a call supposedly to get him out of a 60k debt.  Right.


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## TUGBrian (Sep 26, 2020)

Id be far happier if DRI would allow resale buyers to use their Transitions program.  Those ownerships are nearly impossible to sell or give away in the current market.


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## dgganott (Sep 26, 2020)

tschwa2 said:


> Another provision from that settlement was that owners who purchased in Arizona or own a Diamond resort in Arizona can use their deedback program and be charged no more than $250 per contract/deed whereas all other Diamond owners are on the hook for $1000 per deed or contract if they want to use the transitions deedback program.


That is correct and it happened to us.   We were able to deed back our Arizona DRI for $250  about 2 years ago, and now I am in the process of deeding back our Beachwoods Resort, in the Outer Banks, which DRI bought a few years ago, and it is costing me $1000.   Ridiculous, but they do all the work and it's cheaper than the annual maintenance fee that is due by Jan.  BTW, both timeshares have been paid off for years.   We'll be down to our Wyndham and that's it for us.


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## gerena (Sep 26, 2020)

Wow, this is the first time that I have seen an explanation as to the difference in the $1000 and $250 Transitions program fees.  I had kept reading these was $1000 fees and when I contacted Diamond, their email said $250.  I guarded that email with my life.  We did own at Los Abrigados in Sedona as a result of Diamond buying out ILX----------and we got taken with that deal...couldn't do anything with the mandatory every year use they converted us to.  So last October I applied to the Transitions................FINALLY in JUNE, after MANY on hold calls and emails, we were relieved of our Diamond timeshare.  I was relentless in pursuing.  But I had to ask for a written confirmation.......they weren't going to even let me know when it happened.

The timeshare had been paid for since 1998. So the poster who has indicated a 2011 (purchase date).  This is strange. That didn't seem to be an issue for us.

Thanks to all on TUG who gave me hints, etc. etc.


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## gbf (Sep 26, 2020)

dgganott said:


> That is correct and it happened to us.   We were able to deed back our Arizona DRI for $250  about 2 years ago, and now I am in the process of deeding back our Beachwoods Resort, in the Outer Banks, which DRI bought a few years ago, and it is costing me $1000.   Ridiculous, but they do all the work and it's cheaper than the annual maintenance fee that is due by Jan.  BTW, both timeshares have been paid off for years.   We'll be down to our Wyndham and that's it for us.


We bought our TS from Epic Resorts, that was bought by Sunterra, and eventually Diamond. We used it for many years but maintenance crept up to almost $1800 a year, not worth it. We are in process with the Transitions program. Didn’t like the $1000 payment but I can confirm it is a pretty pain free process. We still have a Hilton TS which has much lower maintenance fees and reservations seem easier to make.


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## SandyO (Sep 27, 2020)

CPNY said:


> Wow. The VP of the company huh? Is this like Jake from State Farm? Where everyone who answers the phone is “jake from State Farm”? Sounds like they advised them to not pay their mortgage, they foreclosed and their credit took a hit. They probably don’t care about that because they think Wesley will help them fix their credit, which they won’t. But the customer doesn’t really care about that because a hit to their credit is less severe to them than owning an expensive  TS they regret buying in the first place. Fact is, they are now out of their timeshare and they could have done it for free but they don’t even realize it.


Where are people going to be able to deed back for free?  This is news to me.


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## CPNY (Sep 28, 2020)

SandyO said:


> Where are people going to be able to deed back for free?  This is news to me.


Doesn’t take an upfront payment to default on loads or HOA payments. This is all Wesley advises them to do anyway


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## tschwa2 (Sep 28, 2020)

SandyO said:


> Where are people going to be able to deed back for free?  This is news to me.


Wyndham, Holiday Inn, Marriott, Vistana (only in the 50 US at this time).  These will accept even most crappy weeks- high MF and off season or very few points.  They all have a criteria and probably 95% of sold inventory qualifies for a free deedback without any credit implications -provided there is no loan and the fees are up to date.  Most require the deedback process to begin 90 days or more before the end of the year (in order to not have to pay the following years MF- with the exception of Wyndham that pays MF's monthly and you have to pay until transfer is complete.

In terms of taking back a deed for free that has a loan, most timeshares will eventually offer a deed back or deed in lieu of foreclosure or simply foreclose if you stop paying.  It may take a year or it may take several years.  Many timeshare companies that are willing to negotiate a settlement with a timeshare exit firm would also be willing to negotiate directly with the owner if they are persistent enough.


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## peaceandquiet (Dec 12, 2020)

CPNY said:


> Wow. The VP of the company huh? Is this like Jake from State Farm? Where everyone who answers the phone is “jake from State Farm”? Sounds like they advised them to not pay their mortgage, they foreclosed and their credit took a hit. They probably don’t care about that because they think Wesley will help them fix their credit, which they won’t. But the customer doesn’t really care about that because a hit to their credit is less severe to them than owning an expensive  TS they regret buying in the first place. Fact is, they are now out of their timeshare and they could have done it for free but they don’t even realize it.


How do you get out of your timeshare for free?


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## AwayWeGo (Dec 12, 2020)

peaceandquiet said:


> How do you get out of your timeshare for free?


We offered ours on TUG & also advertised at Kijiji.  Plus, we deeded 1 back to the timeshare resort & deeded back 1 more to the timeshare company.  (Timeshare resort & timeshare company are not always the same thing.) 

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​


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