Hard as it may be to believe, there is one thing more frustrating than being lied to by your timeshare company. And that’s being BLAMED by your timeshare company for simply believing what their sales agents said. As if the outright lies and cagey omissions were somehow your fault…not theirs. Westgate tried to blame Kevin and Helen from Wappinger Falls, New York… … But Kevin and Helen have had enough!! We found their reply to Westgate’s response to their concerns among the 4,256 pages of complaints against Westgate in the Florida Attorney General’s office. And they are…quite rightly…outraged! “There was NO misunderstanding of what your sales representatives said to us. We will not allow you to misconstrue our testimony.” “You spent most of the letter doing that unnecessary explaining of the package and avoided addressing the lies and misrepresentations of your sales representatives.” There isn’t enough space here to include the full litany of lies Westgate agents told Kevin and Helen – believe us…it’s loooong – but no worries, we have the highlights. “They led us to believe that this was a real estate purchase. We now know that it is NOT real estate and instead is a very expensive vacation membership.” “They presented it as something we could rent to help cover costs. There is no resale market for timeshare and there is no demand for renting out units...” “They said there would be no fees for anyone else to use it. When we let our son use the unit, we discovered there was a fee.” And that’s only part of what Kevin and Helen were told. What Kevin and Helen WEREN’T told: That they “could cancel the contract within a state-specific time frame” or “maintenance fees would increase.” “We were constantly lied to, deceived, and manipulated by your sales representatives.” “These predatory lending practices persuaded and coerced us into agreement each and every time.” “We know the contract is designed to protect your company from the lies and dishonesty of your sales representatives, but that does not mean that those things did not take place.” “Your sales representatives DID lie to us, and they DID violate the law by doing so, and we will not allow you to discount our testimony.” Absolutely! There’s not much we can add to Kevin and Helen’s list of outrage…but we can ask Westgate to stop the victim blaming and shaming. Let’s start with Westgate CEO David Siegel. His email is david_siegel@wgresorts.com. We wonder if he thinks blaming the victims of Westgate’s deceptions is really that good for business. And let’s see if Jason Gamel thinks Westgate’s victim shaming is good for the timeshare industry. Jason is the President and CEO of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), which represents timeshare companies in Washington, DC. You can email Jason at jgamel@arda.org It would be interesting to know what the leaders of your timeshare company think of Westgate’s “blame the victim” attitude. Use this list of ARDA VIPs to contact your company’s leaders to find out. If your timeshare company blames you for their bad behavior, tell us about your experience at info@timesharefacts.com PS: Follow us on social media. Twitter Facebook Instagram |
