AMERICAN RESORT DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
CONSUMER ADVISORY III ON RESALE COMPANIES
January 14, 2010
ARDA recently learned of
a new scheme involving timeshare resales that not only preys upon
consumers but falsely cites ARDA as a reference. ARDA does
not contract with, become involved with, authorize, or endorse any
company’s resales activities.
In the latest scheme, a
consumer was contacted by a fraudulent resale company and told that the
reseller was “acting as ARDA’s agent” to disburse
refunds collected by the Florida Attorney General in the state’s
legal actions to assist consumers who were victims of fraudulent resale
practices. The consumer was asked questions by the caller, put on hold
while the caller claimed to “contact ARDA,” and was further
told that ARDA had authorized an amount to be refunded to the consumer.
The consumer was then told that “ARDA required” the reseller
to collect a nearly $2,000 up-front fee to “process the
claim.”
These statements
regarding ARDA are totally false. Although
Florida’s
Attorney General has filed actions against resale companies
in Florida,
ARDA is not involved in their
efforts to obtain refunds for consumers, nor would ARDA authorize such
fees or refunds.
Any consumer who may be
eligible for a refund based on the Florida Attorney General’s
actions should contact the AG’s
office directly. Do not rely on claims by telephone solicitors or others
that their companies are involved in refunds authorized by the state
of Florida or any
other government body. If you receive such a call, please
contact ARDA at
407.245.7601, email us at resales@arda.org or contact your own
state Attorney General’s office.
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