| The end of year holidays usually mark a time of generosity, kindness and goodwill. But if you peek into the 4,256 pages of complaints Westgate Resorts has racked up in the Florida Attorney General’s office, you’ll realize that Westgate disappoints and deceives its owners all year ‘round. This is where we found and begin the story of Susan and David in Simpsonville, South Carolina. “We started our timeshare fiasco in December of 2018 when David and I were vacationing in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for Christmas.” This won’t be a merry Christmas tale, we’re guessing. David and Susan were lured into a Westgate sales presentation in which they purchased an “every other year” timeshare for vacations in Gatlinburg. A nice Christmas gift to one another…but not nice enough for Westgate, apparently. “Several weeks before we left on our vacation, we started getting calls from Pamela [LAST NAME WITHHELD] at the Westgate corporate office. She was saying that they could give us a really good deal to be able to use our timeshare every year instead of just on the even years.” “I told her very clearly that when we purchased our timeshare in Gatlinburg in 2018, they took us way up the mountain into the actual timeshare we would be using every other year. This particular timeshare had a large hot tub in the living room and when you stood out on the patio/deck you had a beautiful view of downtown Gatlinburg.” “I clearly told Pamela that we wanted that same view of downtown and she assured us that we would have that in the upgraded timeshare.” A bright shiny new timeshare package, all tied up with a bow…until Susan and David tried to take a closer look. “Upon arrival in Gatlinburg for our vacation the first thing I wanted to do was look at the timeshare that we upgraded to.” “We had a very hard time getting someone to give us the unit number that we purchased for the upgrade that we were promised would be a beautiful view of Gatlinburg like our previous timeshare did. They said things like corporate used different room numbers than the actual room numbers are.” That’s odd. Lots of people hide presents before Christmas…but not whole timeshare properties. “They had every excuse in the world, but we were finally able to get the unit number and we drove up the mountain to view it and what we saw was a view of the parking lot.” Are you kidding? That sounds more like a white elephant than a present! “We felt extremely ripped off by Westgate. After viewing the timeshare, I immediately called Pamela at the corporate office, and told her that this was not acceptable and that we were not going to purchase the upgraded timeshare.” Pamela quickly rewrapped Westgate’s timeshare package. “So, we met with someone and they assured us that we had supposedly a floating week and as long as we made the reservation ahead of time, we ought to get a timeshare with a beautiful view instead of the view of the parking lot. On the last day of our vacation we were finally able to meet with a timeshare representative who went over the contract with us and we signed and initialed it.” And here’s where the fiasco part comes in. “After finishing our vacation and being home for a while we started thinking about what we had done…After we totaled everything, we realized that this was not a good deal at all and that we were paying $545.00 a night to use our timeshare of 7 days.” That’s a really expensive present – even if David and Susan gave it to themselves. “I can get a beautiful cabin in Gatlinburg with a gorgeous view for about $135-$150 a night. On top of this, we aren’t even guaranteed the view we were promised.” The Grinch didn’t steal Susan and David’s Christmas – but Westgate sure did! David Siegel should know Westgate has nothing to celebrate. He’s the President and CEO of Westgate and you can email him at david_siegel@wgresorts.com Maybe Jason Gamel can convince Westgate to spread more holiday cheer to its owners. He’s the President and CEO of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), the trade association for timeshare companies. Let’s email Jason at jgamel@arda.org and ask if he can help. Disappointed in any timeshare packages you have received? Use this list of ARDA VIPs to contact your timeshare company’s leaders. Had a timeshare holiday experience that’s been less than merry and bright? Gift it to us at info@timesharefacts.com PS: Follow us on social media. Twitter Facebook Instagram |
