LAST year, the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) received 2,456 complaints against timeshare companies, up from 2,363 in 2006.
During the same period, Case managed to recover nearly $2 million from the timeshare cases it helped to resolve - more than double the amount recovered from timeshare cases in 2006.
Timeshare members typically pay thousands of dollars to enjoy memberships at resorts worldwide.
The consumer watchdog is hopeful that the number of complaints will ease if it succeeds in its drive to have timeshare industry regulations tightened.
Meanwhile, consumers should take note of these tips:
1) Do not attend a timeshare presentation only for the 'free' gifts.
These include shopping vouchers or free one-night hotel stays.
Very often, there are many restrictions and the free gift is seldom worth the time you spend.
Go only if you are interested in a timeshare holiday deal.
Do not be pressured to sign up for timeshare at the presentation. Take your time and inform the sales person that you want to go home to consider the offer.
2) Do not buy a timeshare scheme for investment purposes.
This is because you will often have difficulty in re-selling them.
3) Do not buy timeshare solely for the right to travel to other resorts.
There are sometimes tiresome conditions to meet before you are allowed to change your resort choice for another.
4) Before signing, read the contract carefully.
Watch out for:
- How termination is to be effected. Companies will usually request that termination be effected in writing.
- The time required for notification, or the period required between the request for termination and the date that it takes effect.
- What penalty or costs would you incur upon termination.
- Annual maintenance fees and if they can be raised annually.
- Contracts which purportedly state that the agreement is for life and/or cannot be terminated.
5) Failure to inform you of the three-day cooling-off period means the period is extended.
This is so even if the three-day cooling-off period has expired.
The period is extended until you are informed of it.
6) Be wary of companies which claim to terminate or re-sell or lease timeshare contracts on your behalf.
There are several things to look out for if consumers want to sign up for these services:
- Such services do not have a three-day cooling-off period, so consumers must take the initiative to check with the company on the length of time required to offload/lease previous timeshare.
- Whether there is a clause in the contract to state that consumers will get a refund should the offloading/leasing of previous timeshare prove unsuccessful.
'In our view, the chances of a consumer having his timeshare successfully terminated, re-sold, or leased by a timeshare-related company is very slim as the right to agree to a termination of a timeshare membership rests with the timeshare company itself and not the resale timeshare company,' cautioned Case executive director Seah Seng Choon.
For those who need assistance, Case's hotline is 6463-1811.
