ITRA (International Timeshare Refund Association) loses another court case
A consumer was awarded a total of £9765.90 at Workington County Court in March in a case against ITRA. The amount included a full refund of all monies paid to ITRA, plus costs and interest. The judge ruled that ITRA was guilty of misrepresentation in the sales process, deceiving the consumer by making false statements and promises and breach of contract for not carrying out promised work. She stated that ‘there was a complete failure by ITRA to comply with the Consumer Rights Act.’ This is the third case that the Task Force has provided free support to consumers making claims against...
Consumer wins case against ITRA in Weston-Super-Mare County Court
On 19 January 2018 a member of the public was awarded £4,802.60, the judge stating that breaches of contract by International Refund Action Ltd (ITRA) were “completely unacceptable” and that ITRA had not provided the services promised. The judge also commented that the “breaches were as fundamental as they could possibly get” and that there had been “so little done for so much money”. The consumer had approached KwikChex, which manages the Timeshare Task Force on behalf of RDO, after ITRA failed to clearly respond for over a year to requests to detail what ITRA had carried out on the consumer’s behalf. KwikChex provided free...
EZE Group guilty of scamming consumers
On Friday, 17th November, EZE Europe Ltd, Dominic O’Reilly (described as the CEO of EZE Group) and his daughter Stephanie O’Reilly, a director of EZE Europe Ltd, appeared at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court. All pleaded guilty to offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. These related to misrepresentations regarding the selling of ‘Leisure Credits’ or ‘Concierge Services’ a ‘holiday and lifestyle’ product and connected purported legal assistance to timeshare owners. Leisure Credits have been the subject of official warnings by the UK authorities. Because of the scale of the offences, the case has been sent to Birmingham Crown Court...
Letter from America
I have always wanted to write that as a headline having been a great admirer of the late Alistair Cooke who sent out his “Letter from America” on BBC Radio every week from 1946 to 2004 and most memorably was in the lobby of the Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles and witnessed the assassination of Bobby Kennedy. So that was all just by way of introducing the fact that I was in Washington last week, at the ARDA Fall Convention to make presentations, along with Declan Kenny, to the ARDA ROC and ARDA Boards. As explained at the RDO AGM in Marbella in September,...
Timeshare Association (Timeshare Owners and Committees) Limited – TATOC – is wound up
On 20th July 2017 Timeshare Association (Timeshare Owners and Committees) Limited - TATOC - was compulsorily wound up on a petition presented by TESS (Timeshare Exit and Support) Services and the Official Receiver was appointed as provisional liquidator. The petition presented by TESS follows on from the proceedings instigated by TESS against TATOC which, as a result of TATOC being unable to fund the high costs of defending itself, resulted in TESS obtaining judgment against TATOC. The directors of TATOC have thanked their members and affiliates for their support over many years. TATOC achieved a great deal to protect consumers and promote the...
Four charged over alleged holiday fraud
Frank Madden, Claire Garland, Keith Furneval and Jean Furneval have been charged in connection with an alleged holiday fraud and appeared at Poole Magistrates’ court on Thursday 13th July. An initial hearing takes place in Bournemouth Crown Court in August. Consumer complaints were made to the RDO Timeshare Task Force, which is managed by KwikChex, about the activities of Frank Madden and his business Glenleigh Consultants and information was subsequently provided to Trading Standards about the activities taking place. The complaints centered on what were described as ‘Holiday Clubs’ (or ‘Long Term Holiday Products’), where consumers had paid upfront fees for promised discounts on future holidays. KwikChex...
New consumer helpline launched
A new consumer helpline is being launched by KwikChex today for members of the public with queries or complaints about companies that are not in membership of RDO. This follows the decision taken by the TATOC directors last month to close their helpline service. This will complement the existing advice website, www.timesharebusinesscheck.org, provided for consumers by KwikChex. The assistance given over the helpline will, like the website, be entirely free to consumers – providing a unique and invaluable service, with advice on concerns and complaints to timeshare consumers. All requests for help will be responded to in detail. The funding for the helpline will...
ITRA sued by timeshare owners and ordered to refund payments in full
ITRA (International Timeshare Refund Action) was taken to court by a retired couple this June and having considered the evidence, the judge ruled that the contract signed by the consumers was invalid. ITRA was ordered to refund the couple’s payments and to pay their costs. Harold and Brenda Walker were cold called by ITRA in 2014 and invited to attend a presentation to discuss how to take part in a no-win, no-fee claim for compensation against their timeshare resort. The Walkers were falsely told during the presentation that their timeshare contract was in perpetuity and their children would become liable for the...
ASA ruling on European Claims Centre LLC, trading as Timeshare Advice Centre
KwikChex, as part of the Timeshare Task Force initiative, challenged whether the claims on the website for Timeshare Advice Centre that the team had "a wealth of experience” in helping [timeshare] customers and "had already helped a high number” of timeshare, points and fractional owners looking for a way out of their contracts were misleading and could be substantiated. The ASA considered that consumers were likely to interpret the claims to mean that Timeshare Advice Centre had significant experience in assisting timeshare owners to solve issues regarding their timeshares, including contractual issues, and that the assistance was given solely by TAC...
ASA adjudication on Easy Consulting SL
KwikChex, as part of the Timeshare Task Force initiative, recently challenged whether the following claims on www.theultimateholidaypackage.co.uk - Easy Consulting SL, trading as The Ultimate Holiday Package - were misleading: "The Ultimate way to holiday! As the single largest provider of promotional holidays in Europe, we strive for excellence in every way ...
