We used to own at Play del Sol Grand in Puerto Vallarta, but "traded in" what was left of our limited time time share to buy into BelAir Collection many years ago. We are happy with BelAir and still have use of the original resort that was Playa del Sol. We have NOT tried to sell this timeshare at any point.
We were recently contacted by BUFETE JURIDICO ALCALA INFORMATION / B.C.S. TRUST LEGISLATIONS and Consulting and Investment Solutions llc stating that there was a lawsuit agains the original developer, David Kimball who now wants to develop another property. The Mexican government is requiring Mr. Kimball to compensate the people who traded in Playa del Sol to get Bel Air because there was no notarization process completed at the time of that transaction back in 2012. The compensation would be just over 20K, which was or payment to Bel Air plus interest. To get the money we must pay $2400 for that notarization process to be completed, which will be added to our 20K compensation. They want us to sign a document waiving our compensation since we have refused to pay the $2400 up front.
Has anyone else been contacted on this? Surely we aren't the only ones they are scamming, but we can't find any reference to this particular scam anywhere.
Hello, I just received a similar, much BIGGER indemnization and compensation offer in this scheme. Here’s what I have learned.
I received emails from a legal firm in Baja, Mexico, followed up with an hour long call in which the rep answered every question I could imagine.
This firm was selected by a very large Mexican construction firm that now owns all the former Playa del Sol properties. The legal firm was reportedly selected to mediate between this new owner, the Ministry of Tourism, and all owners who were defrauded by Playa del Sol, which had changed its name, and subsequently went out of business. The main owner of Playa del Sol is now DEAD! The scheme to defraud was designed and orchestrated by an American team, registered in Mexico.
This Mexican legal firm has selected the Realty Department of Gateway Industries, in Missouri, to facilitate communications with U.S. owners who were defrauded. I don’t know if similar realty firms have been selected to correspond with defrauded owners from across Canada, the UK and other countries. I have also received correspondence from the designated Realty’s team leader, and from Gateway Industries’ legal department in Missouri. The Realty’s team leader has stated several owners contacted have accepted and successfully closed their compensation and indemnization offers, but he is legally prohibited from offering proof. Gateway’s legal team has denied my authorization to share my contact info with owners who have reportedly closed their deals, in an effort to verify what the Realtor reported.
The lawyer in Mexico says the Mexican government requires the new owner, a major construction company, to secure notarized indemnization releases from no less than 51% of owners who were defrauded. Not sure if this is a global or less than global (e.g., US only?) requirement. The up-front fee to participate in this offer is for the Mexican government’s reportedly stringent notarization process, which is quite different from the rather lax US notary process. It apparently requires the Notary Officer to register several documents with various entities, and to clear the path for funds to be released. This includes notification of the U.S. Treasury of the pending funds transfer so owners will not be suspected of laundering money, and will not be taxed on their ‘reimbursements’. According to Mexican law, the notary fee is 10% of the value of the transaction being processed. In this case, it is 10% of the construction company’s amount offered, and formerly agreed by the defrauded owner. The realty company in Missouri would reportedly ONLY receive its 6% commission from the defrauded owner AFTER the owner is compensated via international wire transfer. So the total cost to the timeshare owner would be 16% of the final offered and accepted amount. Moreover, owners can pay the notary fee either via this legal firm, or return to Puerto Vallarta and pay the selected Notary Officer directly.
So this entire deal appears to be the Mexican government’s recognition of the ‘stakes’ defrauded owners retain in these properties, and the need to acquire their ‘legal releases from ownership’ from a majority (51%), and to indemnify the new owner of these properties (the construction firm) from any future legal action against it. If so, God bless the Mexican government!
Playa del Sol reportedly submitted fraudulent versions of the purchase contracts to the Ministry of Tourism. So the initial offered amount from the construction firm is very likely based on erroneous records in the Ministry. The mediator thus urges owners to submit to his company, copies of their contracts so this firm and the Ministry of Tourism can jointly ascertain what owners actually signed and paid, including any/all subsequent fees paid to Playa del Sol (e.g. special assessments) and its successor, Bel Air. Moreover, the mediator is urging the construction firm to INCREASE its offer to include a more accurate, much higher rate of inflation over the years of ownerships, plus allowances for “Civil and Moral compensation”. The latter is for the financial and mental stresses owners experienced, as well as their missed ‘opportunity costs’ to have used their money for other, more productive purposes! With these changes, my offered amount increased by ~570%. Of course, I remain highly skeptical.. But of any of this is true, it could signal the increasing desperation of the construction firm to reach the 51% threshold demand from the Mexican government, a requirement that reportedly is blocking the new owner from initiating any work to redevelop/upgrade all of the properties it has acquired.
In case this may be what’s happening, in my next exploratory communications with both legal groups, I may suggest they aggressively seek permission from the construction firm and the Ministry of Tourism to find much more effective ways to CONVINCE doubtful/highly skeptical owners, of the legitimacy of this scheme! Otherwise, defrauded owners (like me!) will lean on the ‘once burned, twice shy’ and the ‘if it walks, quacks and looks like a duck, IT’S A DUCK!’ adages.
