Tenn. AG sues timeshare club Festiva

January 9, 2014 9:59 AM
By BRYAN COHEN

Cooper

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Legal Newsline) – Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper announced a lawsuit on Tuesday against multiple entities operating a timeshare and membership vacation club that allegedly used deceptive techniques to market the operation’s products.

The lawsuit against the entities operating Festiva alleges the operators used fraudulent and deceptive telemarketing and direct mail tactics to lure Tennesseans into attending high-pressure sales presentations to buy vacation memberships. Festiva allegedly misled consumers into believing they won or were selected for a valuable prize, but the company failed to disclose multiple requirements, including the lengthy sales presentation.

In December, the states of Louisiana and Maine also filed suit against Festiva.

“If you are tempted by a travel or vacation company that uses high pressure sales, it’s probably best to take your time and do your homework before you pay thousands of dollars and commit to paying maintenance fees and special assessments,” Cooper said.

Festiva also allegedly used confusing terms and conditions to make membership to the vacation club difficult to use and to sell more products, made it almost impossible to book a vacation at Festiva resorts and surprised consumers with bills for increasing maintenance fees and special assessments.

The lawsuit, which was filed under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act and the Federal Telemarketing Act, named multiple associated businesses, affiliates and principal operators as defendants in the lawsuit.

The defendants include Escapes! Inc., Escapes Travel Choices LLC, Etourandtravel Inc., Festiva Development Group LLC, d/b/a Festiva Adventure Club, Festiva Real Estate Holdings LLC, formerly known as Festiva Resorts LLC, Festiva Resorts Adventure Club Members Association Inc., Human Capital Solutions LLC, formerly known as Festiva Resort Services LLC, Resort Travel & Xchange LLC, also known as RTX, formerly known as Festiva Travel & Xchange LLC, also known as FTX, Patton Hospitality Management LLC, formerly known as Festiva Management Group LLC, Zealandia Capital Inc., formerly known as SETI Marketing Inc., Zealandia Holding Company Inc., formerly known as Festiva Hospitality Group. Inc., Donald Clayton, Herbert Patrick and Richard Hartnett.

Get Yourself Out - The Timeshare How To Book for Getting Out

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It includes letters you need to cancel your autodraft, stop harrassing collection calls, contacting the proper government offices and how to get help from the media. 


You will start by sending a dispute letter stating your intentions, and informing them to stop the auto payments and you will be sending evidence to back up your claim.

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Don't pay some company 1500-2000 dollars to get you out of your contract. You can do it just as effectively at a fraction of their cost. Besides most of these companies list in their fine print, if you are foreclosed on, then they have gotten you out of your timeshare.

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Robbery at Westage Resort in Branson, MO

Remember when you were on tour and the salesperson assured you the resort was secure and safe?

This is from KY3TV in Springfield, MO


BRANSON, Mo., -- Branson police are investigating a report of an armed robbery at the Westgate Resort, on 220 Roark Valley Road, that happened early yesterday morning.


Police say a man with a T-shirt around his face approached three people sitting at a picnic table around 2:15a.m.


According to police, the suspect displayed a handgun and told the victims to leave the area and leave their belongings behind. He took a woman's purse and electronics that included an iPod and cellphone.

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Get Out Now

Most timeshare resorts will refund a member if it means stopping lots of bad publicity and a nasty lawsuit that will make public, their dirty little secrets.
They don't want you to know this, and will make you sign a "gag" agreement not to disclose any settlement. And they will sue you if you break the agreement.

I have helped owners get out of their contracts using the Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing clause.  I also will list your timeshare for sale for NO Money up front. You pay a 6% commission when it sells and you have the money in your hands. If you wish to just get rid of the timeshare and give it away, I charge nothing. No tricks, no scams. Email me at notimeshare@gmail.com


This is why we are so successful, we research every aspect of the resort, from business dealings to background checks on salespeople. We find the information that will get you, your money back.

Timeshare Relief, Inc

Montpelier, VT (July 3, 2010) — Timeshare Relief, Inc., a Torrance, California, company, will offer over $91,000 in consumer refunds and pay $50,000 to the State of Vermont to settle claims that it violated Vermont law in three different ways in arranging for the repurchase of timeshares. Commenting on the settlement, the second of its kind in the past eight months, Vermont Attorney General William H. Sorrell again warned out-of-state companies offering a financial benefit to Vermonters not to violate the State’s consumer laws, or “they will find that doing so is an expensive proposition.”
On eight occasions between 2007 and 2010, representatives of Timeshare Relief came to Burlington to solicit consumers to transfer ownership of their unused timeshares and thus relieve the owners of timeshare maintenance fees, taxes and other costs. The company advertised these meetings with a mailing that invited Vermonters to find out about the “Guaranteed Timeshare Relief Solution.” A number of consumers who met with Timeshare Relief understood the invitation to mean that the company would offer to pay them for their timeshares; in fact, they had to pay several hundred to several thousand dollars to transfer ownership of their timeshares. The Attorney General considered this to be a deceptive trade practice.
In addition, many of the consumers were also given a “Financial Benefits Worksheet” that indicated that they might be eligible for a tax deduction as an offset against their payment to Timeshare Relief, when in fact such a deduction is available only in those rare cases where the primary reason for buying the timeshare was for investment. The Attorney General also claimed this to be a deceptive trade practice.
In addition, through June 2008, Timeshare Relief did not comply with the requirement of Vermont law that whenever goods or services are sold at a transient location like a hotel, the buyer must be given specified notice of his or her right to cancel the transaction.
Under the settlement, Timeshare Relief will:

• Offer those 28 of its customers who did not receive proper notice of their right to cancel an opportunity to cancel the transaction within ten business days and get all of their money back. Letters to this effect will be sent out in the next month, and Timeshare Relief will pay up to $84,000 under this provision.
• Send to another 28 customers a check in the amount of $250 to compensate them for the time and money they spent traveling to attend the company’s presentation.
• Pay the State of Vermont $50,000 in civil penalties and costs.

For more information on the settlement, please contact Elliot Burg, Assistant Attorney General, (802) 828-5507
SOURCE: Office of the Attorney General of Vermont

Two Red Weeks - $1500

Check out our resale page, an owner is selling 2 weeks for only $1500 at Fairfield Glade in Crossville, TN. Fees for 2011 are paid weeks are #26 and 27 (4th of July).
Do not contact us if you are a resale company, I will only forward your name when I can verify you are an interested party, not trying to get a listing fee from these owners.

Bluegreen's Big Cedar Points

If anyone wants to get rid of Big Cedar Points, I know someone who will take them. They may buy but with the high maint fees probably wouldn't be able to pay much. But if you want to get out from under the fees, they will take them. They use Big Cedar but do not try and trade or go anywhere else. Let me know and I will put you in contact with them.