As a reputable vacation ownership company, we want to help you protect yourself and your valuable investment with some education resources so that it is easy to protect your Villa del Palmar timeshare from scams. The resources below come directly from our legal department and industry partners. We are working hard to assist you in identifying and avoiding scammers of all kinds. Please feel free to share this information with friends and family, no matter which timeshare membership they may be enjoying. The advice is the same for all reputable timeshare companies not only Villa del Palmar timeshare.We hope the information provided here will help you to avoid deceitful operations that target even the most well-established timeshare companies, so together we can fight scammers and protect the industry at large.
How to identify timeshare scammers?
Sadly, you cannot always know for sure if you have come into contact with scammers; it’s hard to know just who is on the other end of the phone when you receive a call. Nonetheless we have some tips which could help.
First and foremost, you should trust your gut; if something seems too good to be true it usually is. Scam artists are generally good at what they do, and are very good at seeming genuine (after all this is how they make their money). Sometimes the scammer will provide you with a company name that seems legitimate, or even pose as a reputable organization (whom they claim to be calling ‘on behalf of’).
Usually they will provide little more than a name and a telephone number; if they claim to be calling from a specific organization that you’ve heard of you should find a way to contact them independently.
Please note the following:
First and foremost, you should trust your gut; if something seems too good to be true it usually is. Scam artists are generally good at what they do, and are very good at seeming genuine (after all this is how they make their money). Sometimes the scammer will provide you with a company name that seems legitimate, or even pose as a reputable organization (whom they claim to be calling ‘on behalf of’).
Usually they will provide little more than a name and a telephone number; if they claim to be calling from a specific organization that you’ve heard of you should find a way to contact them independently.
Please note the following:
- Villa Group timeshare or our affiliates will never contact you to sell your timeshare without solicitation.
- Villa Group timeshare or our affiliates will never contact you in order to rent out your timeshare.
- Villa Group timeshare or our affiliates will never contact you to demand undisclosed fees or “Mexican Taxes”
- Villa Group timeshare or our affiliates will never share or sell your information; it is safely encrypted on our systems and accessible only to certain, authorized personnel.
The Villa Group and its affiliates consider the safety and security of your information to be paramount at all times. As such we protect your information from outside companies.
What should I do if I believe I have been contacted by a scam artist?
If you have reason to believe that you have been contacted by a scammer there are a few things you should do:
- Keep the scammer on the line and try to get as many details as possible about them and their organization.
- Save all correspondence and emails you receive, and take the dates and times of any phone calls you receive.
- Do not forward any suspicious emails as you may spread viruses, and don’t offer any information about your membership. Never give bank details, and do not agree to wire money if a deal seems too good to be true!
- You should file a report with local law enforcement; the more information you provide the agency, the better.
- Law enforcement will not let us file a claim on your behalf, but we can certainly help you to organize the details you need to give them.
- Once you have all the information you need tell them to remove your contact information from their list and hang up.
- Consult any available lists of known scam artists. ARDA offers a helpful library of fraud and scam articles which is regularly updated and can be seen by clicking here. (http://www.arda.org/advisories/)
How do I make a complaint regarding a scam artist?
- Contact the Business Fraud Division of Federal Trade Commission by calling 1-877-382-4357, or file a complaint online by clicking here. (https://www.ftc.gov/)
- Report the incident to your state’s Attorney General. Look for the agency on the internet by typing, for example, “Arizona Attorney General’s Office”. Usually the complaint link is one of the first you will see.
- You may not know of this new agency, but the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau(“CFPB”) is aggressive in its pursuit of scammers and sensitive to the needs of consumers. File your complaint by clicking here. (https://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/ )
Knowledge is power, and the best way to protect your Villa del Palmar timeshare from scammers is through awareness and education.
