Cold-caller timeshare scams are on the rise in recent years, coinciding with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. With everybody trapped at home for longer periods of times, scammers have been increasing in droves to target those who may be vulnerable to them. With travel to many countries across the world is heavily restricted, timeshare owners have frequently been unable to even visit or make use of their holiday properties. This has led to a lot of people missing out on their time away, but even more frustratingly, timeshare companies have continued their billing processes for maintenance and annual service charges.
Many timeshare owners tend to be in the more mature age demographic, a group who have had to be extra cautious about travelling during the pandemic due to their vulnerability to COVID-19. This demographic can also exhibit higher anxiety around flying or travelling generally, even without the increased risk of the virus. As a result, many owners are feeling trapped into a timeshare contract that they aren’t even able to make use of, leaving them desperate to get out. This is the sentiment that the cold-calling scammers are taking advantage of.
There are a number of different tactics employed by scammers to convince you to part with your own money. Here are some of the strategies to look out for that might tip you off that you are about to be scammed:
Resale
This type of scam involves the caller using either a fake name or a real name they are not actually affiliated with in order to convince you that they are a timeshare realtor who has a buyer lined up for your timeshare. The supposed offer will likely come with a very short deadline that includes an upfront fee for legal fees or some other expenses. The goal of the scammer here is simply to collect payment from you and for them disappear.
Class Action
This scam is typically rarer than the resale tactic, but nonetheless has duped a significant amount of people, and so bears keeping in mind. In this timeshare scam, the cold-caller will claim that you are eligible to join a class-action lawsuit against your timeshare company. The goal here again is to convince you to make an upfront payment, usually for supposed legal fees towards the case. They will try to entice you with promises of great reimbursements once the case is won, of course, the case in question never actually existed and you will never hear from them again.
Timeshare Exit
Again, this scam will typically have the cold-caller claim they are from a well-known legal institution, this is in order to gain your trust that they can use their “expertise” to get you out of your timeshare, due to its apparent illegitimacy. They will often tell you that they have a 100% success rate and that it is a guaranteed result for you. This is only in order to gain your trust so that they can take an upfront payment and disappear.
Compensation
There have been a number of recent, successful compensation claims made against certain timeshare companies. Cold-calling scammers may use this fact in order to convince you that they represent an agency that can make a similar claim on your behalf. Always try to verify the identity of anyone claiming to be a lawyer or solicitor before handing over any of your money.
Scam Tactics
The way these timeshare scams are approached over the phone can vary widely in tone. The scammers are extremely good at what they do due to how much practice they get. They may be friendly and affable, or they may even be stern and threatening. The key thing to keep in mind is that genuine timeshare solicitors would have no need to cold-call people to attract clients. If there is a call from an entity you do not recognise or cannot verify, you are in no obligation to speak to them. Hang up and block their number, don’t fall for their lies.
