Consumer Alert – Former VO Group Employee Convicted of Timeshare Fraud
Thursday, July 24, 2014
As a resource for both the industry and timeshare owners, TheTimeshareAuthority.com is here to provide you with the most crucial industry news – including timeshare scam alerts.
It has come to our attention that a New Jersey-based organization has victimized several timeshare owners in a dishonest scheme. We’d like to alert timeshare owners of this recent event and how to react if you have fallen victim to this, or any, timeshare scam.
On July 21st, 2014 Eric Reilly, a former employee of The Vacation Ownership Group, LLC was sentenced to 36 months in prison for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. We would first like to inform our readers that VacationOwnership.com, SellMyTimeshareNow.com, ResortRentals.com, and Vacation Innovations, LLC are in no way affiliated with “The Vacation Ownership Group, LLC” a.k.a. “VO Group, LLC..
Although the names are similar, Vacation Ownership Group, LLC and our brand VacationOwnership.com, LLC are not related, nor have they ever shared an affiliation.
Second, we’d like to remind consumers that it is crucial to understand the signs of a timeshare scam and how to avoid them. It is important to educate and protect yourself, especially when it comes to timeshare sales. As an informed consumer, you should understand what makes a timeshare company a legitimate business, and which organizations to avoid.
How to avoid timeshare scams
1. Do not submit untraceable forms of payment
If a company or an individual requests that you submit an untraceable form of payment, this is a red flag. Untraceable forms of payment include money packs, money orders, and in this particular case wire transfers. A legitimate company would allow you to pay by credit card to protect yourself and the company.
2. Verify the organization and point of contact
Unfortunately, one of the most prevalent timeshare scams occurs when a dishonest company contacts consumers posing as a more reputable organization. In this case, Reilly contacted owners claiming to work on behalf of Wyndham Vacation Resorts. He contacted timeshare owners claiming that he was responding to some complaints with the resort developer, when he had no legitimate connection to the company.
The easiest way to avoid this type of scam is to contact a company directly and verify the information. For example, if someone contacts you claiming to be from SellMyTimeshareNow.com but makes a suspicious request (like a wire transfer), contact the SellMyTimeshareNow.com customer service team immediately through the main line listed on the website.
3. Research “get out quick” schemes
In this particular case, Reilly contacted timeshare owners offering to help them pay off their timeshare mortgage or have their memberships canceled. After the recession period, the only company that can cancel your contract is your timeshare resort. And as deeded timeshare agreements are perpetual, life-long contracts, it is extremely rare that this will happen. To be released from your timeshare, you must transfer ownership to a new owner. Typically this transfer is through a timeshare resale transaction.
What to do if you’ve been taken by a timeshare scam
The easiest way to avoid a timeshare scam is to work with an established, reputable company. If you have fallen victim to a timeshare scam, please contact your attorney general.
If you have any questions, please contact the SellMyTimeshareNow.com customer service team at 877-815-4227.
