There is an old saying that says, “forewarned is forearmed.” In this case, we present to you pertinent information that will assure you if your timeshare offer is real or a scam.
You can spot timeshare fraud a mile away when you look for it!
For those who keep their eyes open, you will begin to spot timeshare scams a mile away. The following tips will give you a roadmap of warnings to help you separate the fake timeshare companies from the real ones. So read through the tips bellowed to become an informed consumer about the many ways to detect timeshare fraud.
Intuition can set the alarm bells ringing
We all know that most people don’t pay attention to their gut feelings about things, but most of the time our gut feeling is accurate about a given situation. So, when your gut is signaling that something is wrong, you are more likely to be right than mistaken. Therefore, it’s important to pay attention to your inner voice because that will be the earliest sign you have that your timeshare opportunity may be fake. Once your intuition has raised the red flag about timeshare fraud, you can go on to consider the following signs to make sure your intuition is correct.
White lies and stretching the truth
While sales is a whole industry based on painting a beautiful picture of what you are selling, you can still tell a timeshare fraud by judging its honesty. Decide if your timeshare company has been doing business with you honestly. If they start out lying about little things, most likely the company is not a real timeshare company. For instance, if you get inconsistencies in information concerning the presentation, you can stop there because those are obvious signs of a company that is not honest with you.
Can you find information about them
A timeshare that has no information to research is a warning sign of a scam. If you can’t find anything about the company—complaints either—then you are most likely dealing with a fake company or timeshare fraud of some kind. If the company is less than ten years old and has no researchable history, you may not want to attend that company’s presentation.
Registered and licensed
You should be able to verify any agency registered and licensed with the local government to tell if it is a timeshare fraud. If you don’t have time to do this, you can still spot legitimate agents by their ID. A legitimate agent can be seen working the malls and airports. They will have their ID on them which permits them to work in the streets. If they don’t have an authentic ID, then you may be looking at a potential scam.
Interval and RCI Exchange networks
If the timeshare company is not connected to any international exchange network, then most likely it is a timeshare fraud or scam of some kind. If your agency is not connected to a network such as Interval International or RCI, you should be skeptical because these two companies always work with legitimate agencies. Always do your research to see if the agency you’ve chosen is connected to a real exchange network.
A picture can paint a thousand scams!
The most obvious sign of a timeshare fraud is not getting an invite to visit the resort where the timeshare is to be bought. You should never base your decision to buy a timeshare on a picture, architectural model or presentation (unless you know for certain this resort is from a well-known established timeshare chain). In addition, it helps to confirm that the type of unit the agent allows you to see is the type you are going to receive with your contract.
What is your opinion about timeshare fraud? Share your advice and any past experiences.
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