Fleeced! Timeshare pitch at Lake Tahoe
Oct 7th, 2006, 10:18 AM
#1
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Fleeced! Timeshare pitch at Lake Tahoe
I got fleeced before I even finished my morning coffee today!
We called the Wyndham in Milwaukee to look into a room for a friend's wedding, and the rep asked if I wanted to hear how I could get a free three-day, two-night stay at my choice of resort... "sure" I said. D'oh!
So the story is, $149 down on my credit card, our choice of Fairfield resorts (I selected Tahoe) and it wasn't until AFTER my credit card was charged (though I didn't know this) that the fine print was read and I was informed that we had to go to the 120 minute timeshare presentation ("a fun walk through the resort's amenities").
Has this happened to anyone else before? (I'm not yet 30- obviously still green or naive.... or both)
Anyone's opinions on the Fairfield South Tahoe? I now know that North Tahoe is preferable, but what can I expect of the Fairfield in South Tahoe? :-<
We called the Wyndham in Milwaukee to look into a room for a friend's wedding, and the rep asked if I wanted to hear how I could get a free three-day, two-night stay at my choice of resort... "sure" I said. D'oh!
So the story is, $149 down on my credit card, our choice of Fairfield resorts (I selected Tahoe) and it wasn't until AFTER my credit card was charged (though I didn't know this) that the fine print was read and I was informed that we had to go to the 120 minute timeshare presentation ("a fun walk through the resort's amenities").
Has this happened to anyone else before? (I'm not yet 30- obviously still green or naive.... or both)
Anyone's opinions on the Fairfield South Tahoe? I now know that North Tahoe is preferable, but what can I expect of the Fairfield in South Tahoe? :-<
Oct 7th, 2006, 10:39 AM
#3
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Fairfield Resorts is the name of the Umbrella organization. Do you have the address of the place they are putting you up? I've seen Fairfield Resort vacations with the timeshare requirement that put you up at the Horizan.
If you will be in one of the timeshare units you will most likely be way up on top of the mountain above Tahoe off 207/Kingsbury Grade. You would not be within walking distance to anything.
If you will be in one of the timeshare units you will most likely be way up on top of the mountain above Tahoe off 207/Kingsbury Grade. You would not be within walking distance to anything.
Oct 7th, 2006, 12:02 PM
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They said it was free, but you had to give them a credit card number? That should have been the first clue. Then you seem to know that there was a $149 charge. What was this for if it was free? Did they really make you agree to the charge before telling you about the requirements?
I am assuming you told them after they read the fine print that you weren't interested and they refused to refund it? If so, call your credit card company immediately and tell them that this was falsely represented and they refused to refund the money after they explained the conditions. That's one of the benefits of charging things on a card.
I am assuming you told them after they read the fine print that you weren't interested and they refused to refund it? If so, call your credit card company immediately and tell them that this was falsely represented and they refused to refund the money after they explained the conditions. That's one of the benefits of charging things on a card.
Oct 7th, 2006, 12:21 PM
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Agree, naive.
Those deals are all over the place.
See if you can get out of the time share presentation. Call Fairfeild and tell them you didn't realize you had to sit through 2 hours and you will not have the time.
If you try and skip out on the presentation, they will charge your card for the room.
Good luck!
Those deals are all over the place.
See if you can get out of the time share presentation. Call Fairfeild and tell them you didn't realize you had to sit through 2 hours and you will not have the time.
If you try and skip out on the presentation, they will charge your card for the room.
Good luck!
Oct 7th, 2006, 03:05 PM
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Let me make sure I understand this...You knew about the $149 charge, and it's the two hour presentation you're upset about? I'd just suck it up and go. The presentation could actually be fun. However, I'd let them know in no uncertain terms, early on, that I'm not interested in buying.
And make sure you leave your credit card and checkbook in your room
And make sure you leave your credit card and checkbook in your room
Oct 7th, 2006, 03:39 PM
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Am I right in assuming that you will get the $149 deposit back if you sit through the two hour presentation?
I don't like the presentations, but I have a brother & his wife that have taken many trips & had many 2 & 3 night stays in such timeshare presentations.
They have no intention of buying.
I don't like the presentations, but I have a brother & his wife that have taken many trips & had many 2 & 3 night stays in such timeshare presentations.
They have no intention of buying.
Oct 7th, 2006, 03:43 PM
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Sorry this happened to you. We got caught up in a time share presentation in Puerta Vallarta which offered half priced tours in exchange for our time 1.5 hours of our vacation and no money. It was a very unpleasant 1.5 hours, but when it was over (which seemed like forever) we were able to buy the half-priced tours we wanted.
Maybe you could just go with this deal, sit through the presentation, then be very firm in saying no, you're not interested in buying this. You will have to say no several times, but once your 2 hours are over, you are free to walk away and you have fulfilled your end of the bargain. I know, it's a bummer to be stuck in those presentations, but you CAN say no and walk away when the time is up.
Maybe you could just go with this deal, sit through the presentation, then be very firm in saying no, you're not interested in buying this. You will have to say no several times, but once your 2 hours are over, you are free to walk away and you have fulfilled your end of the bargain. I know, it's a bummer to be stuck in those presentations, but you CAN say no and walk away when the time is up.
Oct 7th, 2006, 04:01 PM
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I would call your credit card ASAP, explain what happened and cancel the charge. This was clearly deceptive and fraudulent and there is no reasons for you to go through this if you don;t want to.
Oct 7th, 2006, 05:35 PM
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Hi again. Just returned to all these responses!
The thing is, they say that they refund your $149 in cash after you go through the "resort walk through" or "presentation" or whatever it turns out to be. So I'm confident that we will get our money back- it's just that I didn't know they were charging the credit card before/ at the same time as they were reading the fine print to me. I kind of assumed that I'd have the opportunity to opt out after hearing all the details (sorry I hadn't made that clear).
We're not 5-star travellers (we can't afford to be!), and we don't even own a home yet- we live in LA and can't afford $575,000 for a "fixer" home, much less a vacation home! So we definitely don't feel like we're going to get suckered into actually buying a timeshare.
They just made the whole promotion sound like there was nothing to it, UNTIL they read the fine print - then as soon as they finished reading that part to me, they told me my card was "accepted" or "processed." I felt skeptical the whole time, but figured I'd hear the offer through to the end.
Anyways, my concerns are A) we'll be painfully uncomfortable and bored listening to this lame pitch, and B) when I call their "customer care 800#" to confirm our booking, they'll tell me "Memorial Day weekend isn't available for this promotion" even though the rep on the phone today told me those dates WERE available.
Oh well, as the first response told me-- live and learn!
The thing is, they say that they refund your $149 in cash after you go through the "resort walk through" or "presentation" or whatever it turns out to be. So I'm confident that we will get our money back- it's just that I didn't know they were charging the credit card before/ at the same time as they were reading the fine print to me. I kind of assumed that I'd have the opportunity to opt out after hearing all the details (sorry I hadn't made that clear).
We're not 5-star travellers (we can't afford to be!), and we don't even own a home yet- we live in LA and can't afford $575,000 for a "fixer" home, much less a vacation home! So we definitely don't feel like we're going to get suckered into actually buying a timeshare.
They just made the whole promotion sound like there was nothing to it, UNTIL they read the fine print - then as soon as they finished reading that part to me, they told me my card was "accepted" or "processed." I felt skeptical the whole time, but figured I'd hear the offer through to the end.
Anyways, my concerns are A) we'll be painfully uncomfortable and bored listening to this lame pitch, and B) when I call their "customer care 800#" to confirm our booking, they'll tell me "Memorial Day weekend isn't available for this promotion" even though the rep on the phone today told me those dates WERE available.
Oh well, as the first response told me-- live and learn!
Oct 7th, 2006, 06:08 PM
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Lots of deals like this. We took advantage of one to go to Maui this spring, basically the package(Marriott Kaanapali Beach, 5nts incl car $699) was a good deal. The "pitch" was very low key, one on one with sales guy sitting outside, no pressure and in fact it was quite pleasant and interesting. No, we didn't buy anything
Doing similar on Kauai next year
Doing similar on Kauai next year
Oct 8th, 2006, 04:36 AM
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There's something else no one is considering. The people who run those presentations are experts. They know how to convince people who walk in positive they won't buy a thing, that it is the best investment of their lives and they will walk out owners. If you fell for their simple sales pitch on the phone, you are prime candidates for falling for their clever and high pressure tactics in the presentation. I have an uncle who was the cheapest guy in the world who went to one of those for a free dinner knowing there was no way anyone could talk him into buying. He came out owning a timeshare in Tennessee.
