Sucessfully canceled: Westin Lagunamar Cancun Timeshare
We successfully canceled our timeshare. Thank you.
First we would like to say thank you to
TUG members for providing us with the information we needed. We are much better informed now, and will be better prepared when we eventually purchase a timeshare.
I wanted to post this so that it will help others who have bought or trying to cancel their timeshare.
Here is our story:
We went on Vacation in Cancun Mexico and decided to attend a timeshare presentation at Westin Lagunamar Resort. This resort is owned by Starwood Vacation. We personally think Starwood has a great product and their timeshare pitch was very low pressure. We respected that. But we were not prepared in terms of doing our research about timeshares, prices etc. so we ended up purchasing a timeshare with Starwood. Only afterwards did we poke around on TUG to find the wealth of information about resale’s and other timeshare companies. We wanted more time to research first before buying a timeshare that best suits our needs.
We purchased timeshare on a Monday. And decided we didn’t want it anymore by Wednesday. Reading through our contract, we found our that we had 5 days. Our hearts were racing and we started to freak out.
In our contract we had a line saying:
“YOU MAY CANCEL THIS AGREEMENT WITHOUT ANY PENALTY OR OBLIGATION WITHIN 5 DAYS AFTER THE DATE YOU SIGN THIS AGREEMENT ("CANCELLATION PERIOD") OR THE DATE ON WHICH YOU RECEIVE THE LAST OF ALL DOCUMENTS REQUIRED TO BE GIVEN TO YOU PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, WHICHEVER IS LATER. IF YOU DECIDE TO CANCEL THIS AGREEMENT, YOU MUST NOTIFY THE SELLER IN WRITING OF YOUR INTENT TO CANCEL. YOUR NOTICE OF CANCELLATION SHALE BE EFFECTIVE ON THE DATE SENT AND SHALL BE SENT TO: WESTIN CANCUN SVO MEXICO, INC., AT 9002 SAN MARCO COURT, ORLANDO, FLORIDA 32819; ATTENTION: DOCUMENT ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT OR IN MEXICO AT BOULEVARD KUKULKAN KN. 12.5, LOTE 18, ZONA HOTELERA, 77500 CANCUN, QUINTANA ROO, ATTENTION: DOCUMENT ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT. ANY ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN A WAIVER OF YOUR CANCELLATION RIGHT IS VOID AND OF NO EFFECT. WHILE YOU MAY EXECUTE ALL CLOSING DOCUMENTS IN ADVANCE, CLOSING BEFORE THE EXPIRATION OF YOUR 5-DAY CANCELLATION PERIOD IS PROHIBITED. THE REIMBURSEMENT OF ANY FUNDS RECEIVED BY SELLER WITH RESPECT TO THE INITIAL DEPOSIT MUST BE MADE WITHIN A MAXIMUM OF 15 BUSINESS DAYS FOLLOWING THE CANCELLATION DATE.”
We started to panic and wanted to go back to the sales office to cancel. But my suggestion is to remain calm. Re-read the cancellation instructions. We realized we didn’t need to go back to the sales office. So, took a leap a faith and followed instructions in our contract.
In the contract it says 5 days after the date of signing. Since we purchased on Monday, the 5th day AFTER the date of signing would be Saturday. 5 Days is 5 Business Days, which means we really have until Monday to cancel.
We had a flight back to Toronto on Friday. Wrote a letter and mailed it out Saturday. About 2 weeks later we got our refund. We didn’t mail back the materials and books they provided us (again read the contract, it doesn’t say anything about returning materials)
So to help those in a situation similar to us, here’s what we did
- 1. Get home (if time permits) and write a cancellation letter
- 2. We sent the letter via CanadaPost Registered Mail with Advice of Receipt. Costs less that $20. Registered mail a must. Advice of receipt (which is proof they received it is optional. But we like to had a proof just in case)
- 3. CanadaPost will timestamp your envelope and mail it away. (Remember it is not about when Starwood receives the letter, it is more important that you send the letter within the 5 days.
- 4. It took CanadaPost/USPS 6 business days to get the letter down to Orlando. The tracking number they provided us is not really accurate. Until today, it shows the mail has not yet been delivered. We freaked out a few times until we got the Advice of Receipt letter returned in the mail to us. Meaning they have received the letter.
- 5. Within 3 days, Starwood vacation refunded our money. YEY!
Our Advice
Now that we have gone through canceling, our advice is to stay calm and follow the instructions on the contract. We resisted the temptation to spam them with emails, phone calls, going back to the purchasing office and freaking out. An advice I have is to have faith in the Law.
We mail our cancellation letter to the US address. As our contract says, we can mail our cancellation letter to Mexico or Orlando. We chose to mail to Orlando, because we felt the mail system was more reliable with the hard working folks in Canadapost and USPS.
Another lesson learned was to do your research first. TUG forum has tons of information. Timeshares are not scams. They are timeshares. And really, you just have to find one that suits your needs and budget. It’s a commitment that needs time and thought before purchasing. I’m glad we were able to cancel. Thank you everyone.
