Orlando TV Investigative report: Timeshare Exit Scams

[TUGBrian]

Had a nice long chat with Todd on this topic, and he has done numerous stories on Timeshare scams over the years.

I hope this latest story saves some owners from being ripped off by upfront fee exit companies!

‘Frustrating as hell’: Timeshare owners feel trapped by companies promising a way out

Action 9 exposed companies that targeted timeshare owners who want to end their contracts and expenses. These firms charged thousands of dollars then did not deliver and left owners feeling trapped.

www.wftv.com

 

[pedro47]

Maybe he need, to share this article with all the Florida elected officials across the state.

 

[RX8]

Multiple people in the story state that they were told that there was a buyer lined up for their timeshare. As many here know that is a common tactic of true scammers who cold call and then steal as much money as they can before disappearing. That isn’t a typical spiel by exit companies. While I consider exit companies to be a scam most toe the scammer line right to the edge. It may very well be that while exit companies are certainly bad, the people in the article may not have even been dealing with an exit company.

 

[TUGBrian]

Im fairly sure the one part of the story claiming a 6500 "money back guarantee" involved an exit company.

fact is, these sorts of folks will say anything they think you want to hear to get you to fork over money.

 

[LannyPC]

Multiple people in the story state that they were told that there was a buyer lined up for their timeshare. As many here know that is a common tactic of true scammers who cold call and then steal as much money as they can before disappearing. That isn’t a typical spiel by exit companies. While I consider exit companies to be a scam most toe the scammer line right to the edge. It may very well be that while exit companies are certainly bad, the people in the article may not have even been dealing with an exit company.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who was confused by the article. The upfront fee scammers tell their victims that they have buyers lined up ready to pay tens of thousands of dollars for their zero-resale value TSs whereas the exit companies simply promise to get owners' TSs canceled without any sale.

So were the victims in this article victims of upfront fee resale scammers or exit companies?

 

[TUGBrian]

not sure there is much distinction between outfits who solicit owners for the sole purpose of helping them end their ownership, regardless of which lie they choose to tell.

all have a special place in hell, and all share the same truth that anyone who knows not to pay large upfront fees wont ever become a victim of any of them!

as was explained to me, the gist of the story was that with the pandemic limiting travel/vacations/bank accounts/etc, more folks were getting more desperate to otherwise end their ownerships...and thus resulting in more victims for the scammers.

 

[chaparrusa]

THERE ARE SOME LISTINGS WITH TIMESHARE OWNERS NAMES THAT ARE SOLD TO ANYONE INTERESTED . IF YOU WERE SMART ENOUGH TO BUY A TIMESHARE YOU WILL BUY ANYTHING , SO ,COMPANIES TARGET TIMESHARE OWNERS , EASY CATCH . THE SAD PART IF THAT MOST TIMESHARE OWNERS RATHER KEEP QUIET AND PRETEND THAT THEY SCORE A DEAL , THAT IS WHY THERE IS STILL PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS SCAM .

 

[dioxide45]

We actually went to a presentation for one of these exit schemes. Free dinner at RED LOBSTER! Kinda yuck, but anyway I told myself it was research. No disrespect intended, but these guys are pretty convincing to the uneducated timeshare consumer. None of the other people in the room really knew what they owned. One said they owned with Interval International. Another with Bluegreen, but no idea how many points they owned. You could tell they were watching and knew who their easy marks were when they finished their short presentation. They went straight to those people first. There was also a couple that seemed like a plant by the company. I will be doing a full roundup of my "research" during a livestream on my channel tomorrow (Sunday March 6, 2022).

 

[LannyPC]

THAT IS WHY THERE IS STILL PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS SCAM .

That's true. There are, sadly, many TS owners who do not know about this scam. I've always contended that it would be nice if the resorts in their quarterly/biannual/yearly letters sent out to owners would include information about these scams (rather than how to save $10 on petting zoo admission) and how to protect oneself from these. I realize that some resorts do do this and that it's ultimately an owner's responsibility to beware, but a little warning from the resorts would go a long way to curtail these scams.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

That's true. There are, sadly, many TS owners who do not know about this scam. I've always contended that it would be nice if the resorts in their quarterly/biannual/yearly letters sent out to owners would include information about these scams (rather than how to save $10 on petting zoo admission) and how to protect oneself from these. I realize that some resorts do do this and that it's ultimately an owner's responsibility to beware, but a little warning from the resorts would go a long way to curtail these scams.

This is an excellent idea!



.

 

[TUGBrian]

I actually offered to pay for mailings to owners to warn them against upfront fee resale scams at an ARDA meeting many years ago.

can imagine how excited they were to take me up on my offer.

 

[mkimber]

As a new TS person myself these stories make me so mad. Really heartbreaking that first dishonest salespersons sell these products without any thought or care in the world for the consumer and then even more dishonest people come along to take another bite at the reeling consumers. I tell everyone I meet don't don't don't buy anything from resorts unless you want to put cash in the trashbin. There are so many alternatives. TS should only be attempted by super sophisticated consumers with a lot of time on their hands to research the pants out of things to get any economic value.