The Wyndham Timeshare Scam

05/08/2012

A Notorious Name in the Timeshare Industry

The Wyndham timeshare scam is an infamous subject for timeshare consumers. The reviews and complaints made about the Wyndham timeshare scam are often more scathing than any other timeshare scam. The Wyndham hotel group is a massive conglomeration of hotels such as Ramada, Baymont, and Howard Johnson. These are respected names in the hotel industry. How does Wyndham have such trusted names in the hotel industry yet have such a notorious reputation for their timeshares?

The Wyndham timeshare scam is unique in the industry, and works quite differently than typical timeshare scams. The heart of the Wyndham timeshare scam is the timeshare presentation, which is also the primary difference between Wyndham and other timeshare scams. Nearly all timeshare presentations work in a somewhat similar fashion. Attendees are promised wonderful gifts or free getaways for attending a simple sales presentation.

However, these presentations are not nearly as harmless as advertised, and this is especially true of the Wyndham timeshare scam. Timeshare presentations typically run much longer than advertised, and attendees are put through high-pressure sales tactics, falsified information, and empty promises. Customers are told that timeshares are a fantastic investment, while this is nearly always untrue. Most timeshare contracts are signed without even being read, because consumers are so worn down through the presentation process.

The Worst Timeshare Presentation One Could Ever Attend

Wyndham Timeshare Scam

While these tactics may seem terribly underhanded and cruel, the Wyndham timeshare scam takes the harsh timeshare presentation to an entirely new level. Reports have emerged of consumers being verbally assaulted, insulted, and even ejected from the presentation when it became apparent that they would not purchase a timeshare. The Wyndham timeshare scam is so heavily based in the timeshare presentation, few complaints are made about anything else.

This is what is truly astonishing about the Wyndham timeshare scam. Nearly all timeshare complaints made about specific resorts or timeshare groups deal with the timeshare contract. While the timeshare presentation process is certainly mentioned in many complaints, it is not typically the main focus of consumer backlash. Consumers are usually much more concerned with the incredibly high hidden fees and maintenance costs forced on consumers due to the unbreakable timeshare contract. Other typical complaints with timeshare scams come from the depreciating value of timeshares and the depressed market for timeshare resales.

The primary point to be made here is that consumers are usually outraged over the damage to their checkbooks. This concern usually greatly outweighs the brutality of the timeshare presentation. However, the Wyndham timeshare scam is targeted by consumers specifically because of these presentations. This means that these presentations are so horrific, the experience causes consumers to be more concerned with attending a presentation than being forced to make payments on terrible investments.

The firestorm of consumer backlash against the Wyndham timeshare scam should be enough to keep any potential attendee away. It is always a good idea to do background research on a company before accepting any gift or vacation offer to hear a sales presentation. A small amount of research should keep any consumer far away from the Wyndham timeshare scam.

Comments

Sara

12/06/2012 5:35pm

I agree 100% on all that was described above. I recently went to a presentation while vacationing at the wilderness water resort in the smokies. It's a very bad idea to buy this timeshare and if they noticed that you are not being convinced they pretty much insult you and kick you out!! We were shocked! ....and the "gifts" are a scam too...you end up paying more in "processing fees" that buying on line...We will never stay in one of this hotels again.

Kim

08/11/2013 11:38am

We also signed a contract at Wyndham Great Smokies Lodge in May 2013. Long story short (and you can see my complaint on here) I called corporate a month after we bought because we could not make the payment and they had told us we could splt it in half and pay half early and half on time and this would cause our payment to be less. Well, I was told that I could not do it. A corporate liaison was assigned to investigate and my old contract with them has been reinstated and they are going to remove any negative remarks from mine and my husband's credit report. They also will be refunding the money that was paid up front and the two month's of maintenance fess that were taken out of my checking account before I stopped the automatic withdrawals. So I am back to being a happy Wyndham owner. I have never had a problem before and enjoy my vacations at Wyndham. I just make sure I book early and online so that I get what I want. I usually book a one bedroom then upgrade to a two bedroom when I am eligible. I also cancel and rebook and get 25% of my points back. You have to learn how to work it and you can get what you want and when you want.

Mike

12/26/2012 3:59pm

I agree as well. Ii think back and wish that I uld hve walked ou. But their presentation sounded legit. now I ccant seem ttto book anything that owned by Wyndram. I seem to alwys pay out of pocket in additioon to using points. Itried staying iin Key West and Puerto Rico witth my kiis and nothng was available except for a 1 bedroom with 1 king size bed (for 5 people). I wwant to get rid of this nnow. Its nothig wht they said tis would be. I want to get riid of this ASAP...Can anyone help?

Ryan

02/19/2013 6:54pm

Hello Mike,

We are incredibly sorry that this has happened to you. It is unbelievable that these companies make their accommodations unavailable to their own paying clients. We do know of a few organizations that can help you get rid of the timeshare as quickly as possible, and we will contact you shortly on how you should move forward.

Donna

01/08/2014 9:35am

Ryan, if you can provide me with the organizations that can legitimately get a person out of a contract that they were coerced and defrauded to get into in the first place, I would greatly appreciate it.

Doris Skeens

01/24/2014 12:18pm

My sister and I bought into the Wyndham nightmare in Myrtle Beach in 2012. We have never been able to use this useless thing and are paying monthly payments. We want to get out of this contract ASAP . We are very limited on funds as we are seniors and both single.Just so afraid of being scammed again. Please help us. Thanks

Email not published

03/15/2014 11:12am

If you could tell me how to get out of a Wyndham contract, I would appreciate it. Their presentation made it sound like a good investment (in fact, that's one of the things they said: It was a good investment), and I was too stupid to check it out before I bought it. I would like to cancel the contract without messing up my credit score. If this is possible, could you tell me what company or companies could do this? Thank you for your time.

Nancy

08/26/2013 11:57am

I would like to know if there are companies out there that can truly help a consumer get rid of timeshares. I have experienced several companies want money upfront. I was told this is a scam when any company want money upfront.

Gie

12/27/2012 6:04pm

My husband and I traveled to Las Vegas. We stayed at the Flamingo Hotel (happend on 22 December 2012). On our very first day, we never even step in to our room. We were approached at the lobby of the hotel with one of your representative. He asked for a $40 dollar deposit and promised a lunch for us. My husband told me that is fine, they will be selling us a vacation and it’s legitimate. They send us to another place, and after that a lady approached us to fill up some form…. for about a hour, no body talk to us… some people are arriving and keep arriving but they received good treatment by calling them one by one….

Well, I do not understand…. It’s an insult to us! I am thinking that you didn’t treat us good because you’re thinking that we do not have money to buy one of your vacations…

You know what, after what we experience… we will never buy any of your vacation and one thing we will not recommend you to any of our friends.

SUSAN T

04/13/2013 9:02am

I know how you feel. My husband and I went to Las Vegas last nov 2012 and we were basically attacked by these Whyndham crooks. Now after 7 hrs of listening to this crap we were so tired I wanted to go back to our hotel. We were only there for a vacation not to but a timeshare of a property that we suppose to own but what property we dont own anything and when we wanted to cancel this sales rep name Kelly was rather rude and told us you should of cancelled within the 5 days if you already knew that. But here's the thing we didnt know we have 5 days to cancel. So we are going to a company name timeshare-answers. we arent done yet but go to their website and check it out, we are going into the 5 month now and now we are waiting for a response from Whyndham. Good luck to you and me!!!!

Dorie

01/27/2014 10:27pm

Timeshare Answers has complaints against them at the Better Business Bureau. Don't go that route.

Jenee

12/28/2012 9:58am

I just got off the phone with the "HIgh Balance Team" Collection Department at Wyndham since I sent them a Cease & Desist letter stating why I would no longer be paying them and wanted my contract voided. When I re-explained that their sales people deceived me with false promises about their product and listed them, he said, "Well, sales people in any industry are in to sell a product and may use any means necessary to make the sale". They actually are giving their sales people a green light until the very end to lie and intimidate their customers. This is a horrible company. I told him the product should speak for itself and no sales person should need to lie or bully people.
To other owners who find themselves in this situation - You do not need to keep paying this bill for life. Research Deceptive Trade laws and Consumer rights.

Paula

01/11/2013 8:10pm

I too own a Wyndham timeshare and I simply despise them and have been conned for yrs. I decided that I am no longer going to pay for this even if it hurts my credit because it has been draining my ban k account for yrs. Can you please give me a bit of advice on what you did? thank you

Sylvia

02/12/2013 9:04am

I too would like to know more about reporting a high pressure, demeaning sales process that was full of lies. We are just finding out how bogus our purchase was, and would like this company to be legally FORCED to stop ripping people off!!!

Ryan

02/19/2013 7:14pm

Gie, Jenee, and Paula:

Here at Timeshare Consumer Bureau, we feel the exact same anger towards these deceitful companies as you do. This is what we love to see! Passionate and justified backlash against these companies that prey on honest consumers every single day. They engage in deceitfull business practices and have wielded all of the power for far too long.

The first thing I suggest is leaving timeshare reviews online. Every passionate review is another place where potential victims can be warned against being taken advantage of. At the same time, you hurt their business by speaking the truth. We have an official resort review section where you can detail your experience.

We also recommend filing an official complaint with us. Based on the specifics of your situation, we can offer solutions or refer you to someone who can help you. You can find our complaint form link in the upper right hand corner of your screen.

Stay passionate, and get involved! Joining this fight against the power of massive timeshare companies is an important one, and we can use all the help we can get.

We thank you for your awesome replies.

Jenee

06/17/2013 10:26am

Hi Paula - Stop paying. I was given this advice and it took me a year to take it. I wish I had done it sooner. #1 Stop paying and send Wyndham a letter explaining the points on which you were deceived. #2 Send letters to the 3 Credit Bureaus explaining what is going on with Wyndham #3 get ready for them to call you and pretend to care and offer payment plans to you - explain to them that their sales people mis represented their product - they will get snippy #4 eventually they will offer a deed in liu AND YOU ARE DONE WITH THEM!!! no credit affected

Joe McDonald link

02/22/2014 4:40am

Hi, I'm interested to know if you stopped your payments to Wyndham and what happen? I'm a timeshare owner too please write to me on my email

Rita Storie

06/06/2013 3:41pm

Exactly what happened to us, LYING SALESLADY at the Williamsburg office. I wrote down what she said as soon as we left the meeting and in brief, she stated that ANYTIME I had a question, that I could call her.... I am your agent... and I quote... Now she will NOT talk to me at all. Promised to call.. never called. I have called six times and no luck talking with her!! I will never recommend this to anyone... What crooks!

Todd

01/02/2013 8:30pm

I must consider myself one of the lucky ones. My wife and I agreed to the presentation for discounts at the Wilderness Resort in the Smokies for a short 3 day trip. The Sales Rep (to his credit) did not seem to overly interested in the missed sale when we explain that we could not afford it at this time. He then informed that they had an exit questionnaire that they needed us to go though. Another Rep (the one supposed to doing a questionnaire, though she NEVER asked us a question) presented the pitch of a TRIAL version. For $1440 ($199 down, $96 per month for 15 months), they would let us have 157,000 points to use in the next 20 months. When she returned with all the paperwork to sign, I begin reading the contract BEFORE I signed anything (I always do). The fine print said I had to be paid up at least $900 (at least 7-8 months into the payments, unless I wanted to pay more up front to use it sooner) before I could even begin to use the points, and it was limited to only 1/3 third of the resorts that they listed for the "full version". I told her that this was NOT what she had told me, and proceeded to leave the sales office. I was directed to a desk by an exit door. When I asked the girl at the desk for my voucher, she asked where my sales rep was, as he was suppose to walk me to her desk. I told her that's what I thought they would do, but they had only directed me to her. She gave me my voucher and let me out the door. Glad I happen to read the fine print before I signed, as it sounds as if it might have saved me a lot of money long term.

Jesse

10/22/2013 9:39pm

Todd, you were a smar man. I did read about the nine months but I was ok with it because I was planning to go to Maui around that time. They told me Maui was available but they do not have Wyndham in Maui. They I figured maybe I use my points for my European vacation which they told me I could use. I found out I can only use my trial membership for domestic travel. Staying positive I decided to use my points in Oceanside near San Diego, a beautiful location. No luck getting in during the summer. So I booked for Nov 2013, but they took pretty much all my points for 3 nights. So basically it cost me $1300 for 3 nights. So now I pursuing a way to get my money back or at least additional points.

Timothy Cross

01/03/2013 4:52pm

Accurate, accurate, 100% accurate! This PERFECTLY describes what happened to my parents. Wyndham preys on couples on vacations for such happy events as anniversaries, being well-aware that people on such emotional "highs" are more willing to agree to less-than-favorable deals than they would be in their normal, everyday lives.

Not to mention that, but they lied to my parents on many occasions in person and over the phone, promising things like "the timeshares will pay for themselves" and guaranteeing they would be able to help my parents in many ways. They helped in: ZERO WAYS. Scam!!!

Dwain

01/20/2013 7:04pm

My father passed away in September, 2012. He and my mom own 4 contracts with Wyndham and recently upgraded to Wyndham Plus VIP Gold members with 605,000 points.

I've helped my mom learn what I can about the program from papers we found in dad's office and my family stayed as a guest this weekend in North Myrtle Beach. When I checked in at the Wyndham Ocean Boulevard, the "parking pass - hospitality" lady Gina took 15 minute just to get my parking pass while trying to play nice to my 9 year old daughter and insisting that I fill out the "demographic" information (I refused). The next day she called ("courtesy" call) the room and I explained that I had no interest in being sold anything but that I would be interested in gathering information to help my mom since dad had passed away. I explained that dad made all the reservations and understood the timeshare but mom needed me to help her. Long story short, she offered to help me find out about the contracts but ended up being just another sales meeting where she noted on my paperwork " free shot, handle with care". She and the sales guy Troy and his "supervisor" just treated me as a prospect with a problem that they could help me fix by adding me (with my mom's permission) as the primary owner. I realized immediately that they were not interested in helping me or mom. I explained that I only stayed here because the rooms are nice and mom needed to use her 605,000 points but that I had no interest in being on any deed or an owner because the high pressure deceitful sales and "parking pass" people negatively outweighed any benefits that ownership would bring, from my experience and perspective.

Mom and dad were already VIP plus 505,000 point members when they were deceived and pressured into buying a $17,700 upgrade to Wyndham Plus with 100k additional points. Melissa Monday is the Smokey Mountain sales rep that would not respond to my dad's calls when he realized how much she had deceived and lied to him in January, 2012. Now my mom is stuck with a $228 per month payment for the next 10 years to pay for the $13k that Wyndham financed at 16.9% and the $3k left on the Bill Me Later financing that was not mentioned to them. It was represented to them as a bonus 100k points that would be offset by a great RCI credit card that would pay the maintenance fees, but it was never mentioned to them that it would cost anything or that they didn't qualify for the card.

I'm pretty much disgusted that the Wyndham Ocean Boulevard sales and hospitality staff in North Myrtle Beach don't have the common decency to help a widow understand her ownership without using their sales tactics on me and trying to add me to the deeds. They just told me to call the 800 number. They also pointed out to me that I would probably end up taking ownership when my mom died because most states require you to take ownership if a deed is willed to you. Who knows if this is true but it is insensitive and sick sales tactic and motivates me to want to help mom to will the Wyndham deeds to some non existent entity when she dies to get away from these insensitive, disgusting practices.

I plan to follow through and make calls to Wyndham with my mom to see if there is a human that really cares in the Wyndham Company. I'm not optimistic, but I will try. If anyone knows a decent Wyndham person or department that might explain to my mom her ownership and options without creating fake issues or trying to sell her on more upgrades, please let me know.

Ryan

02/19/2013 7:02pm

Hello Dwaine,

Wow, thank you so much for taking the time to tell us what has happened to you. That is simply appalling behavior, and no business should take part in such heartless actions.

We do know of a few organizations that can analyze the timeshare contracts and give your family a better understanding of what she can do with them. We will contact you will a reference soon. In the meantime, your story really shows how heartless these companies can be. If we may ask, can we use this comment as one of the reviews for Wyndham? You, in detail, described exactly why people should not engage in business with this company.

Please feel free to write us anytime if you require any further help. We want to do everything in our power to help you and your family.

01/28/2014 9:34am

Can I have the contact information of the organization. I have trouble in cancelling the time sharing contract.

06/25/2013 7:26pm

Hi Dwain

I am actually a Sales Rep for Wyndham in North Myrtle Beach. Many of my family members own, and love the product, which is what led me to become a part of it.
I can tell you that "Free Shot" means that the Rep won't be charged for the tour since every tour taken effects the Reps average... in turn effecting the Reps job. I didn't want you thinking it was something negative. Your mom does have a good program and can do a lot with it. If you feel more comfortable not speaking to a salesperson, most of the info you need is in your blue Wyndham book. It should help you navigate through the program. The website has a lot of info as well.

I really am surprised to find so many negative comments about bad experiences. I have a great time with my tours whether they buy or not, and I keep in good contact with my owners. Also, many of the sales reps are owners themselves so they really do BELIEVE in the product they sell.

Not everyone is out to get you :)

Rita Storie

06/25/2013 11:08pm

J
If you are for real, then why not start some type of "revolution " within Wyhdham.. or is that not acceptable. If you do what you say, (keep in contact with my owners), you must understand you are a "different type of salesperson" than all the folks posting. If you like your work and want it to continue, I suggest you work to improve the entire company... Otherwise, you may be looking for another job based on the angry comments I see on this site..

Rita Storie

06/25/2013 11:08pm

Rita Storie

06/25/2013 11:08pm

amy zemek

07/31/2013 10:17pm

Just bought a timeshare under one of these high pressure sales meetings and after reading all these negative reviews, I am having buyers remorse. Is there a rescind period for these contracts...this is your chance for an honest answer. I look forward to hearing from you.

Brad

08/01/2013 5:36am

Amy - 5 to 10 days, depending on the state you signed up in. Check your paper work. One of the big contract docs has the form you need to complete and return in the back of it.

After that period has passed....your stuck with it!

Joel Butler link

08/30/2013 11:01pm

Dear J,
I had a Fairfield/ Cendant/ Wyndham timeshare for the last 16 years. I have met hundreds of good people that work at the resorts .
But I can honestly say that the people that work for Wyndham's sales
force are the lowest form of human beings I have ever met in my 57 years. They give used car salesmen a good name. If I were you I'd quit Wyndham and get a real job. I'm glad I'm rid of them!

cathy

10/16/2013 8:04pm

I recently purchased at Myrtle Beach. Was lied to on several points. Trying to get out of contract. Do not buy Wyndham Vacation Ownership. If you really want timeshare chevk out ebay

10/29/2013 7:27pm

I purchased at Myrtle Beach and was scammed!!
Maybe you were my salesman!! Keep up your lies.

Doris

01/24/2014 12:40pm

We bought into this nightmare in 2012 and as of yet been able to use it due to being told all the time nothing available. We started a search back in August of 2013 for Fall 2014. Still the same old bull. Nothing has been true since 2012 in North Myrtle Beach. The deed was suppose to be at Oceans Boulevard which is what we were told. After looking over contracts when we returned back to Ky. It is at Sea Watch Plantation further south than where we wanted. Now that was a flat right out lie. So yes they do take advantage of people especially senior ladies. Not good. I want out.

Joe Lewis

02/01/2013 5:11pm

I would consider myself lucky also. I attended a presentation and after a shady sales presentation I did not trust what I was being sold. I was offered the place for 40k (184,000 points) and they later came down to 25k. I logged into my trusty smart phone and found the same thing on Ebay for $600 (this included transfer costs) and bought that instead. Everytime I use it there's a sales presentation to try and sell me an upgrade package so I can get all the "Wyndham benefits." It's simply not worth it. I would just stress people to educate themselves and don't believe the "if you don't buy at this rock bottom sales price it will never be available again" sales line. Their sales reps are scum and the company has very little moral standards. Just check out every states BBB where they are located. The have an F, and that F doesn't stand for "Fantastic." You can also check out ripoffreport.com

Jodi Gray

03/17/2013 3:26pm

PLEASE HELP!!! My husband and our family were in Hawaii in February of this year. We decided to go to one of their presentations and we defintely got scammed. What we were told we were buying, what rooms we would get, the length of the time we could stay, ect was nothing but a total lie. The worst part is he lied right to our childrens' faces (ages 9, 5 and 2). We did not read the whole contract. We trusted the guy - he told us he was a liscensed real estate agent with the State of Hawaii so we never thought that this was a scam or that he would be outright lying. The amount of points he sold us will get us nothing. He told us we would get two weeks a year but the points would only get us a trip once every three years for one week. We were never showed any books as to how the points were used or how the points were determined. When I contact Whyndam's 1-800 number I was basically told we were screwed because we signed the contract but to email the agent who sold us the time share and continue to do so for several months. he told us he would probably never respond. If we did not hear back from him in "several" months we could then bring up the issue again. Thing is they made us put a huge deposit down on our credit card and we cannot challange that charge because mastercard told us we signed a contract. We are to have a high payment come out every month as well as a payment for maintenance. We do not know what to do or where to turn to. We are from canada and if anyone has an advice or where to turn to please let me know. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Jenee

06/17/2013 10:30am

HI Jodi - My best advice is to stop paying and write to Wyndham to let them know why you are not paying. If you wand to protect your credit send the 3 credit bureaus letters about your dispute. Eventually Wyndham will prefer to give you a deed in lieu than have you foreclose. I've gone thru it myself. It's painstaking but you can get out of it - but they will not take you seriously until you stop paying. Don't worry - consumers have rights too!!

Zack

08/15/2013 10:29pm

After writing these letters, don't they end up suing you? And garnish wages?

Kim

08/16/2013 7:55am

Call Wyndham Corporate office and they will assign a corporate liaison to work with you. My situation was different. We were already owners and loved it. Never a problem booking what we wanted. We went to The Great Smokies Lodge and were talked into going into "the Trust". Bottom line a few more points but a much higher payment. They lied about how I could split the payments in half and pay half early and half on time and that would lower my payments and also the length of time I had to pay. Well, when it came down to it that was not the case. I contacted this site and also called the corporate Wyndham office. I was assigned a liaison and now I am out of the contract and my old contract has been reinstated. Also, I was told from people on this site you could stop paying and give it back in lieu of the deed. Then write letters to your credit bureaus regarding the dispute. Good luck!

Marine

10/22/2013 10:07pm

I am old school and my credit score is very important to me.
In now days do not worry too much about your credit. Stop the payments even if you have to cancel the credit card. The credit score will go back up sooner than you think, and for major purchases such as houses, cars, boats, it does not hurt you much, except for small purchases or credit card applications. I did it, and since then, I bought three cars, a new house, but yes, they turned me down when I tried to purchase a TV. But guess, what, I am free from those thieves. Keep your notes on anything they said.

Des

11/07/2013 7:05pm

My advice is to cancel your credit card immediately. Then ask your bank for a new card with new number and expiry date. This way they will not be able to obtain more$ from you. While you might have lost what you ave paid you are stopping further loses the worst that can then happen is that they can sue you for the balance,,,you then indicate deception and unconscable conduct and alert local media

Stacey

03/18/2013 2:22pm

I thought my experience was unique but it's terrifying to know they are getting away with this. Call action law suit anyone? I even called to complain to the headquarters and was mocked and hung up on! I look forward to dissuading everyone I know from ever staying in one of their establishments.

We were there four hours. Promised a hot breakfast and given individually packaged Sarah Lee bread items. I'm gluten free and couldn't have anything to eat the entire time because they wouldn't let me leave. They involved nearly everyone on site to give me additional pitches and when they finally said we could go we just had to meet with one more person to sign our papers and get our 'gift' ($150) that involved another 30 minute pitch. I was finally able to escape by giving up all hopes of getting any money for this experience and literally sneaking out with the excuse that I had to get my husband (who had walked out a long time earlier out of disgust and frustration because he was also required to sign the papers). I never went back. Oh and did I mention I had a 3 and 5 year old with me the entire time! Where ethics fails there should be laws to protect people from business practices like these.

Tara

02/01/2014 9:54am

Same thing. We were in Orlando, and offered breakfast and $100. I had my 7 year old with me. No breakfast, but packaged crap ( my kid was starving ) and we were In th middle of nowhere. The rep actually felt a little bad and went to find my kid some Cheerios and milk, but not until after the dreadful presention. The rest is like everyone said, high pressure sales and when you say you have to go they literally insult you and tell you you are not getting your gift. I had to go Aggro New Yorker on them and threaten to write an OpEd In NY Times... Etc. but they don't care. There is absolutely no monitoring of them, everyone is out for himself, and they will go to no ends to make a sale. Beware- vacationers, no NOT waste a minute of your precious vacation going to ANY timeshare presentation. You will feel abused and regret it.

J. Tyler

03/21/2013 2:56pm

I recently entered a contest to win a car and several days later I received a call from a Wyndam representative to inform me that I was in the final drawing and had qualified for a free one week stay at any Marriott Hotel. However, I needed to attend a 2-hr. timeshare presenation and pay $100 for the sales tax for the one week stay. As much as I would enjoy spending 7 days at a Marriott it just doesn't ring true to me. What's that saying, "if it sounds too good to be true, it's not." So after reading the stories on this website I have decided that I won't go for fear that I will end up being there all day. And still not have a certificate for the one week stay.

Thanks to everyone who shared your story.

Greg

04/04/2013 3:00pm

I recently attended a job fair where Wyndham had a booth looking for employees. i was initially intrigued, as I have been unemployed for a few months. The people operating the booth were very nice and after receiving some initial information, they scheduled me for an interview. So, today, after giving more thought, I decided to find out what was going on, and started doing a bit of research. I came across this, and many other places on the web describing the business practices of Wyndham. Needless to say, I am very shocked and appalled, and I will no longer be attending their interview. No amount of money could ever coerce me into working according to those business practices

Nick

04/13/2013 5:06pm

Sounds like we should start screwing these companies and sales meetings. Pay the $40, find out where the presentations are taking place and wait outside to pass out leaflets on these bastards! Hit them where it hurts...their wallets!!!!! If I was about to walk into one of these and someone handed me something will all of this information on it, there's no way I would ever keep going inside. I recently put down my $40 for tickets to the Zoo/Aquarium, a tour/cruise on the lake, and $300 in dining. Needless to say thanks to you guys I'm more likely to just show up and pass out fliers. lol

Rita Storie

06/06/2013 3:52pm

I like this idea! Where do I sign up?
I will file a complain with the BBB. My main issue is lack of integrity!! I have been in real estate sales for 16 years and always carefully not to promise anything I cannot deliver... Guess I am from the old school and glad of it!! How do these Wyndham sales people sleep at night? I am ready to "Stalk" the one I had...

cathy

10/16/2013 8:11pm

This is what I plan to do. Also, might make the salesman the bene on my contract so HIS family pays the fees for the rest of their lives.lol

Jesse

10/22/2013 10:00pm

I like your idea Nick. I am stuck with my trial membership and I am staying in Oceanside Ca. in Nov and I am pretty good talking to people, and believe me, I am going to work on hurting their marketing and letting people know about their scam. After my trial membership I am done with Wyndham, resort and hotel.

Harriet Mendler link

05/01/2013 10:30am

Wyndham resorts are absolutely beautiful and modern; however, the company does not have the best reputation regarding timeshares, which is not surprising being that they have an F rating on the BBB. Most complaints are about the deceitful business practices and insulting behavior on the part of Wyndham timeshare salespeople. According to the BBB, they have a total of 1475 complaints:

1040 about the sales practices
128 about collection issues
3 about delivery issues
304 about problems with the product/service
http://www.timesharescam.com/

search public records link

05/03/2013 4:06am

This blog is really very interesting and easy to understand the information provided in it. It is very nice to view this blog and it's nice to see the best information cited here.Thank you.

Jessica

05/14/2013 9:39am

I attended a seminar and walked out with two $50 visa gift cards and a $50 dinner card u register online. As well as two seperate 7 day day stays to any of their hotels like days in and ramada. Has anyone done this before? I'm scared because it asks for a $100 deposit that goes towards the tax... I just don't want to get screwed the site were supposed to register on is a 3rd party with no information. After reading this blog i'm terrified of losing $200

. Tyler

05/14/2013 3:06pm

Jessica,

I also attended a seminar and was given gift and dinner cards which were great but the thing that I wanted the most was the 7 day stay at the hotels but that never happened. I sent in a deposit and then spent a number of months trying to schedule a stay but there was always some reason why my dates weren't available. I finally gave up and sent a registered letter (which I cc'd to the Better Business Bureau) in which I requested that my deposit be returned and it was returned. One of my friends had a similar experience and was never able to book a stay. I think the company hopes that people will get so weary of it all that they will fail to request a refund for the money. And if I recall correctly, there is a window of time during which you have to request that the deposit be refunded. Otherwise, it's their's for the keeping.

Truth

06/08/2013 5:41am

Wyndham is so shady and this company are a bunch of deceiving jerks. We paid off all of our timeshares, but if you are late on any their fees they charge you more or freeze your account so you can't travel. They never said anything about all their fees, promised we could use their rental service, they keep 40% of that fee. They lie all day long, I hate Wyndham I really do.

Rita Storie

06/08/2013 8:08am

Well, if you are already in what can be done? I am willing to do whatever it takes for changes to be made. The LYING SALESPEOPLE need to be stopped. In reality, if we own a timeshare with WYNDAM, they work for us!! We as owner need to step up and demand higher integrity from ALL employees!

Kim Phillip

06/17/2013 9:23am

We have been long time timeshare owners and have always enjoyed our stays. However, in May we went to The Great Smokies Lodge and was told we needed to go into the "Trust". We would get more points, but our payments would almost double. I told them I could not make that kind of payment. They then said I could split the payments in half and pay twice a month and pay it off sooner and also lower my payment by about $100. They told me I could use some of my points to pay my monthly assessment fees. We were shown on the computer how splitting the payments would be beneficial to us. So being stupid, we signed the paperwork. Oh, we were also promised three weeks vacation (to be mailed to us, which we never received). Well, the first assessment came out on May 17th, the second just came out today, June 17th. We were back at the resort last week and I tried to find out why my assessment fees were coming out. They said it takes 91 days before you can use your points to offset your assessments. Of course, this wasn't mentioned at the sales meeting. I then asked about splitting my payments in half. I was told that this program was no longer available as of May 15th. I asked about the 3 weeks vacation and was handed an envelope with 3 RCI certificates. We are with II and can not use them. I returned them and was told they would mail the II certificates (yeah, I really believe that). I have been on the phone for over 2 hours trying to get an answer to why I was lied to and deceived. I have not gotten an answer yet. I will be putting a stop payment on the payment that is to come out on the 21st. They can have their timeshare. I am fed up!!!! If you know of anyone who can help me, please let me know.

Kim

08/11/2013 7:56am

This is a follow-up to my comment above. After calling Wyndham Corporate, I was assigned a liaison who very diligently worked to satisfy my complaints. As a result, they are cancelling the contract and re-instating my old contract, refunding the money that was taken out of my account, bringing my Wyndham account current and taking any negative reports off of mine and my husband's credit report. As I stated above, we have always enjoyed our Wyndham timeshare and have never had any problems getting what we want as long as you book far enough in advance or if you decided last minute you take what you can get. Other than the experience at Wyndham Great Smokies Lodge, I have never felt pressured or lied to before by Wyndham.

angela campbell

06/23/2013 10:38am

Learned how not to sell..treat customers..or in general ever treat another person yesterday. I am so naive and attended a 90 minute presentation for Wyndham yesterday. What a shame and a totally exhausting scam...too bad the properties are beautiful. I just met the bottom feeder salesmen who give salespeople everywhere a bad name. Wow. I must be the only person in the world who did not know that these guys are cockroaches. BEWARE

Redemption

07/06/2013 9:49am

After five hours of interrogation, I signed.
However, I took the following actions to cancel and it WORKED!:

1) I filed a complaint with my state Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection.

2) I wrote the following letter 5 days after signing. Make sure you send it with delivery confirmation. I did this through FedEx.

To Whom it May Concern, October 1, 2012

This letter is to inform you of my intention to exercise my right to rescind my timeshare contract number: [your contract #] purchased on [date] by [your name].

Please confirm that you received this legal timeshare contract number rescission in writing. In an event that we do not receive a confirmation in writing within 14 days of reception, I assume that this contract is cancelled. Then print & sign your name along with a date.

Redemption

07/06/2013 9:57am

http://tn.gov/consumer/complaint.shtml
http://datcp.wi.gov/File_Complaint/index.aspx
http://www.800helpfla.com/complnt.html

Doris

01/24/2014 1:02pm

Can this also accure if a person has had the timeshare for a year and a half? Thanks

Ben

07/08/2013 7:31pm

I have one of these semi ars tomorrow. If anything I'll be gong to get my $20 deposit back. We're going in with only my drivers license and a "NO" attitude. I'm ready to get kicked out and knew that everything was too good to be true. But hey, it burns two of the hottest hours of the day in Myrtle Beach and I'm a ginger, so I would be inside anyway!

Chantal

10/30/2013 4:13pm

How dod it go? My husband and I signed up for one and are scheduled to go Friday. Now that I have read these comments I am a bit nervous...

Kim

10/30/2013 4:38pm

Chantal,

I would go just to get the gifts, but say NO!!! I am the one that had the problem at Great Smokies Lodge in Gatlinburg and they assigned me a corporate liaison who was going to get my old contracts reinstated. That was in June. Here it is almost November and everything is not fixed yet and I am getting collection calls. I can't reach the liaison by e-mail or phone and I refuse to pay for something that is not right. At this point, I really don't want to pay for it anymore. I can buy a nice RV for what I was paying to get maybe 3 weeks with the points I have and that is in a one bedroom. I would take whatever gift they promised you if you don't mind spending a couple of hours listening to their presentation, but again say NO!

Kim Phillips

10/30/2013 4:38pm

Andrew

07/17/2013 5:53am

My wife and I purchased a timeshare in Hawaii about a year ago, a bad move on our behalf. We are Australian and find it very difficult to communicate with Wyndham, especially since they don't respond to e-mails. Is there a way out of this contract? If I default on my re-payments will they pursue us with legal action?
Any advice would be great!

Jenee

07/17/2013 6:20am

Hi Andrew - sorry it has happened to you as well. You don't need to default on your payments. You should stop paying because they lied to you about the product they sold you. Write them a letter pointing out all of the ways in which they deceived you. You have rights. Look up the Consumer Deception Law. I don't think they have the time to go after you legally because there must be thousands of us.

brad

07/22/2013 12:17am

Hi Andrew,

Sorry for you situation. My parents have just returned from a US holiday and have told me they bought into the Wyndham timeshare. 5 mins of research tells me this is probably not a good thing. :(. Can you expand on your experience with the scheme to date, and why you consider it a 'bad move'.

I'm also very keen on any advice on how to cancel. My parents felt pressured to sign, but accept that it's their fault for not walking out, as opposed to being tricked. Any help greatly appreciated!

I'm also

Iceman

07/21/2013 1:13pm

Whatever you do, steer completely clear of these scammers. They told me it was an investment in entertainment. At 15% with excellent credit, I just laughed at them. There are so many moving parts to the contract and so many things they don't tell you up front. Don't even let them entice you with money, food, gambling chips, free shows, extra points...don't even walk in the there. Save the 3-4 hours of your life on something better.

07/22/2013 11:38am

Bought a $1800 trial membership. Points were purged from my account before I was able to use them and was told there is nothing they can do. I asked for a manager to call me back. When I didn't hear from them I called again and was told a manager did try to reach me but my voicemail was full. I checked and no call had come through my cell phone from Wyndham. I am disgusted. They are a total scam.

nick yale

08/08/2013 10:45am

I want some sort of "do not call" consumer right that whenever I stay at a Wyndham property they will not solicit me for another owner update or celebration.

In that way I can at least enjoy the benefits of the VIP membership without being subjected to another sales pitch in the lobby or phone calls or knocking the door of the room to coax me and my wife to another ridiculous meeting to try and increase our monthly fees.

At the last meeting I was told I could be "pink slipped out" so I would never be bothered again when I stay at a Wyndham property if I called the customer service number . Then when I called that number they denied that this was something I could do. Wyndham lies about everything.

LilShortRib

08/10/2013 11:16pm

I can agree with all the posts here. Had nothing but problems from Wyndham. Got tired of the lies, increasing costs, and harassment. Other non-owners can stay for cheaper rates and in better units than owners can. I ended up stopping payments and asking for a deed in lieu of foreclosure. Nothing showed up on my credit report for about a year. I've been told that this should show up on my credit report as a consumer debt not as a foreclosure. Does anybody know anything about this and how to get it changed? Regardless, I would suggest that anybody who wants to get out of their Wyndham timeshare and isn't overly concerned with their credit taking a moderate ding for 3 years (which in a lot of ways more financially feasible than continuing to shell out money) look into getting a deed in lieu of foreclosure. I'm glad I did even if it is on my credit - it'll be 3 years at most and it's not looked at as badly as a foreclosure...

Brad

08/11/2013 1:15am

Hi. Had you paid out your principal amount or were you on monthly payment plan? I thought they would chase you for the initial purchase cost while canceling your entitlement. How much did you buy in for?

LilShortRib

08/11/2013 5:11am

I was on the payment plan. I don't remember how much I bought for but I still owed them a few thousand dollars and I had two contracts.

zack

08/15/2013 10:44pm

I have been an owner for about over a year, I have read comments and wondering about writing to Wyndham and stop paying. Ask for the deed in lieu, but do you have to pay the remaining balance? and what happens legally and fees? And we haven't even used our points or vacationed

LilShortRib

08/20/2013 7:35pm

As far as when we did the deed in lieu, we just asked them over the phone to do it. If I had to do it all over again, I probably would ask them to write a letter and I'd ask them in writing because it will show up on your credit report so it's nice to have a letter just in case. I think you need to stop paying for a certain amount of time before you do it. We didn't get charged any extra fees or taxes. You just file a 1099 on your taxes and make sure that your accountant knows what to do with it since it counts as income. Legally when you do this this means that they take back ownership in exchange for all your property/points with wyndham.

Eric

08/23/2013 6:48pm

My husband and I were scheduled to go to one of these presentations tomorrow with a promise of 4 airline tickets and a $50 Amex gift card. We had no plan to buy one of these timeshares--just wanted the "free" tickets. But after reading these horror stories here, needless to say we are not going. Why isn't this illegal? Thanks to all of you for your informative experiences with this crooked company. I wish you success in getting out of the greedy grip of these scammers.

Mia Thompson link

10/15/2013 10:48am

Jesse

10/22/2013 9:55pm

I agree with how beautiful their resorts are, but if Wyndham was to stay in business, they need to stop this scam, because it is a matter of time decent people will not stay there. In the mean time, we should stop going there and let them know we do not appreciate their business.

Jesse

10/22/2013 9:29pm

I turned down the Wyndham timeshare membership during the presentation but I was offered a Discovery membership which is a trial membership. I paid $1295 for 154,000 points and I was told is equivalent to two weeks in an average location. I was planning to go to Maui and they lied telling me I could go there, but they do not have a Wyndham in Maui. Then I asked about Europe, and they mentioned I could use their sister hotels. I was told later on that Discovery members can only use domestic travel. I finally settled for San Diego Oceanside resort which it was impossible to book during the summer. so I booked for November but they took all my points for a three day weekend. So basically I ended up paying $1300 for 3 nights.

Jessica Bratz link

10/23/2013 11:34am

Timeshare industry is well known for being very vulnerable to scams; consequently, vacationers and timeshare owners should be aware of timeshare investments, phony offers to rent or resell timeshares or practically anything that sounds too good to be true.

Chantal

10/30/2013 4:50pm

Thanks to all the very informative comments. Thanks Kim for the personal advice.
My husband and I are going to attend Friday, because we paid $20 and want it back, and we want to get the free gifts.
Until we get there, we will practice saying NO.
:-)

Brittany

11/04/2013 1:42pm

Hello everyone. I have been extremely stressed out regarding this timeshare. My husband and I took out the timeshare in May 2013 and we felt very pressured and now very dumb. We are paying and an outrageous amount of money a month to keep the timeshare. Then in September we went and stayed at my father-in-laws timeshare and got suckered into a owners meeting we thought it was just going to be about updates well boy were we wrong. The sales guy said lets go over your contract and said we need to get your contract refinanced and we thought It was a good idea because it was so expensive well come to find out we UPGRADED!!! We ended up taken out another loan when the whole time we thought we were refinancing on the one and only loan we had with them. I have been freaking out because I am pregnant with twins and could end up losing my job and have no way of paying for this crap we should of never done in the first place. I feel like the sales guy completely lied to us and has ruined our lives I just cant believe the whole time we thought we were refinancing when I called they said there was NO SUCH THING!!! What happens if I stop paying completely will they sue us and garnish my husbands wages?? anyone ever been through this and just stopped paying. I can take the hit on my credit. I much rather sacrifice my credit for my kids so I can keep food on the table and a roof over their heads. HELP!

Kim Phillips

11/04/2013 2:28pm

Brittany,

No you do not have to keep paying. Send Wyndham a cease and desist order and write a letter to all 3 credit bureaus and explain the situation. I am still dealing with corporate at this point, but I do not intend to pay them another dime. You can read what happened to us up above. My total payments with assessment fees are almost $800 a month. My thoughts are I can save that money or part of it each month and take a great vacation and/or I can invest in a RV and go as much as I like. We love to camp anyway! You don't need the hassle being pregnant with twins either! Funny, just got a call from Wyndham and they are transferring me to owner care! LOL

Brittany

11/05/2013 7:57am

I did send one letter just last week saying I wanted to end the contract but then Friday I had learned that I had the 2nd loan should I send another letter because now their are two contracts. Have you ever known anyone to get sued over this kind of stuff.. I am keeping copies of my letters just incase things get ugly. I feel like they shouldn't be able to do this kind of stuff to people. I never thought about sending letters to the credit bureaus that's a good idea but will it work on keeping my credit out of harms way??

LilShortRib

11/07/2013 7:49pm

Brittany read my post above. I asked them for a deed in lieu of foreclosure. They agreed to do it. It does show up in my credit report but it hasn't made as much damage as I thought it would on my report. When you ask for the deed in lieu ask them to put in writing that they won't report it to the credit bureau. They probably won't agree to that but it's worth a try. I wished I had known about a deed in lieu way before I did but I'm glad I did it because they take back ownership and you don't owe them anything. You do have to stop paying for a few months though before you can do it. Good luck!

Sarina

12/31/2013 3:55pm

My big question is WHO do I call for the "deed in lieu"? Wyndham? Which number? There are a ton of numbers and I'm tired of the run-around! Help!?

Des

11/07/2013 10:05pm

I attended a Wyndham presentation after being offered $100 myer gift card. At the end of the presentation I gave the salesperson my solicitors card and asked them to send the contract to my solicitor and I would make a decision after he had advised me. They were not interested in this and said I must decide this night. Ok the answer is no I said. Prior to leaving they gave me a $50 myer card...when I told them i was promised $100 card they gave it tome...enough said

Brad

11/08/2013 2:29am

How much did you guys all pay up front? Or are you all on the payment plan?

And what are your monthly maintenance fees?

Kim Phillips

11/08/2013 7:01am

We had bought a Discovery Package (Trial Package) and they used the amount we bought it for as a down payment for our first contract. The second contract we put $500 down but it was for a small amount of points. Our maintenance fees on both contracts is $110 per month but the total with maintenance fees and both contracts is $784 a month.

Brad

11/08/2013 2:30am

How much did you guys all pay up front? Or are you all on the payment plan?

And what are your monthly maintenance fees?

Rita Storie

11/08/2013 7:10am

Sure wish I had Googled before I went to that stupid meeting. Of course, I am the STUPID one. We bought in Williamsburg VA in 2012 for 6000.00 with 43.00 monthly fees. Using for the first time today but seems the points do not get you much. We will see... Wish I could get my 6000 back! Any hope for that?? I heard someone say leave the timeshare to the sales person's children... I like that idea..

George Frazier

11/11/2013 12:24am

Very informative.

Mia Thompson link

12/03/2013 8:46am

Nowadays is becoming a harder challenge for the timeshare companies to maintain their timeshare sales increasing. People are gradually realizing that getting a timeshare is not a good deal nor an investment and that is a big hurdle for the timeshare companies, so they target people who probably don’t have much access to internet or any other kind of information. Also, they use alcohol as an incentive in their timeshare presentations in order to get the guests alcoholized. Trying to convince to buy a timeshare someone that is under the influence of alcohol is a lot easier than convincing someone that is not and can think objectively.

Brittany

12/10/2013 8:08am

I posted earlier about having twins and wanted to update on my situation. I sent Wyndham a hardship, because I have lost my job and they finally got back with me today. They told me on my 1st loan they would give me an extension till February, but that the monthly matiness fees would still occur like normal and then on the 2nd loan the one that they told me I was "refinancing" on with my first one said that I could settle for 1500 within 14 days and it would be canceled. I disagreed to everything. I tried to get them to accept the deeds back because A) no matter what I cant pay so I don't know why they think any of that is going to help us. B) the 2nd loan was beyond a scam they lied and manipulated us into thinking we were refinancing when they took out a second loan. So now they are turning my account over to collections and I am filing a complaint with the bbb! these people are such crooks and could careless about helping their customers. The sales guy even said if we lose our jobs that wyndham is really good about taken deeds back. WHAT A JOKE!!!

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 8:30am

Brittany,

Send letters to all three credit bureaus as well with any documentation you have from Wyndham. Even if it is just what was discussed over the phone. Good Luck!

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 8:30am

Brittany,

Send letters to all three credit bureaus as well with any documentation you have from Wyndham. Even if it is just what was discussed over the phone. Good Luck!

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 8:30am

Brittany,

Send letters to all three credit bureaus as well with any documentation you have from Wyndham. Even if it is just what was discussed over the phone. Good Luck!

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 8:30am

Brittany,

Send letters to all three credit bureaus as well with any documentation you have from Wyndham. Even if it is just what was discussed over the phone. Good Luck!

LilShortRib

12/25/2013 11:25am

They lied to me about one of my deeds and I had it cancelled. This was a few years ago so I don't remember details but they let me out of it. I have filed several complaints with the BBB they didnt do anything. It was easier to fight on my own. Definitely look into a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 8:25am

I am starting the process to request a deed in lieu of foreclosure. These people never give up. That call us at 15 minute intervals several times a day. We don't answer, but it is very annoying. My husband says it borders on harassment since we told them we aren't going to pay them another dime. LOL! I'll keep you all informed on how it goes!

Brittany

12/10/2013 8:43am

Kim, That is defiantly harassment geez! I guess that's what I have to look forward to. So i am guessing this is a collection agency that is calling you so much? So did they finally call you or send you a letter stating they wanted to do deed in lieu of foreclosure or did you send a letter requesting it. I told the lady on the phone you might as well send me to collections and then after that its just going to foreclose so. I was not nice I feel like these people were just trying to test me. I cant pay for it now and I cant pay for it then. So I will send letters to the credit bureaus... I just got to find their addresses. I have lots of questions regarding this though do I explain about the deceitfulness and manipulation they have cause and also my job loss?? Again do I need to wait a couple of months before requesting a deed in lieu of foreclosure

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 9:18am

Brittany,

No the Wyndham Collections Dept. calls. It has not been turned over to a collection agency and I don't think they will. I think they use their own Collection Dept. I haven't sent the letter yet, I have it typed up...my husband wants to read it and see if we need to add anything. I also will be sending all the emails I exchanged with the Corporate Liaison and the paperwork I finally received the Friday after Thanksgiving dated Sept. 25th. Yet, they want me to pay starting from June. I told them in every conversation I would not pay until my points were correct and I had paperwork. Definitely explain everything to the credit bureaus as it will become a part of your credit report. Although you may take a hit on your credit scores at least there will be a reason why you quit making payments. I would go ahead and make the request for a deed in lieu of foreclosure to Wyndham. Part of me is just stalling because I can...LOL! I don't care how many times they call and leave messages for us to call them, I still will not answer the phone nor return their calls. I am done talking to them! That extra money has sure been a blessing to us during this time of the year and I am actually able to pay extra on my mortgage.

LilshortRib

12/25/2013 11:29am

Tell them to stop calling you or you will report them for harassment. My husband did this they were calling his phone nonstop. There is some law/rule that says bill collectors cant call you like that but they do because most people don't know they're not supposed to. It was like magic the calls stopped instantly.

Brittany

12/10/2013 11:10am

Why do they want you to pay in June??

Kim Phillips

12/10/2013 5:56pm

They want us to pay from this past June (2013) when our old contracts were reinstated and the new one was cancelled. Yet, my points were not correct until November and I didn't receive any type of paperwork until November either.

Gloria Maloney

12/16/2013 12:05am

We went to the Wilderness Resort in the Wi. Dells just for a Saturday night stay. We enjoy the great wave pool with the plastic sun dome so that we can get some sunshine in the winter.

We were approached in the lobby by Wyndham reps and agreed to a two hour presentation at 8:30 AM Sunday morning. By after 1 PM I was asking for the financial figures and begging to leave as I was hungry and exhausted. They gave us two bones with a little barbeque meat and two corn muffins. Then they finally put the numbers in front of us. My husband said "no".

Earlier, I had explained to the rep that I had broken my neck and that it is fused and wired together. My arms are weak and so I have not been working. On the way out the door, she followed us. I was walking behind my husband as we tried to get away.

The rep slapped me on my back just below my fused and wired together cervical spine. It was a hard hit and not friendly at all. I was not physically harmed by this although it didn't feel good. It was mean. I felt nauseated for hours after this high pressure ordeal.

I am going to complain to the Wilderness Resort about this because we go there often and I don't believe they want their customers treated like this. The only reason my husband and I consented to the sales presentation is because we thought we could save some money as we go to the Dells often.

We did not want to be saddled with increasing maintenance fees for the rest of our lives as we approach retirement and pass this expense on to our children. Somebody needs to tell that woman to keep her hands off people. That was a mean hit on my back just below my fragile cervical spine. She is lucky she didn't get arrested.

Kim Phillips

12/16/2013 7:24am

I don't think complaining to the resort would help. I would definitely send a letter to Wyndham's Corporate Office and described the incident. That is just plain unacceptable behavior from a "professional". You probably should have called the police! My husband has a permanent pain stimulator inserted in his back and has several fusions. I have been there with him during the pain and if someone had done that to him, I would have been on them like you can't imagine and they would have called the police on me! LOL

12/16/2013 9:31am

We were locked in a room so we couldn't leave! These sales people will do ANYTHING to make a sale.

Britt

12/16/2013 11:40am

They are horrible. I don't know a decent person that could do what they do for a living. They truly are horrific. Glad you didn't go through with the sales pitch. I would defiantly be contacting the bbb and write a letter to corporate. That person wouldn't have a job and I would of thrown them in jail

Kim Phillips

12/25/2013 11:36am

Well, faxed a letter with all the emails that had been exchanged between me and a corporate liaison to both financial services and corporate office. I requested the deed in lieu of foreclosure. Have not received any more collection calls and nothing yet from Wyndham. Will keep you all updated!

Sarina

12/31/2013 12:12am

I just got married November 1, 2013. While on our HONEYMOON we were approached for a Wyndham presentation and the $100 gift card sounded nice at the time. The presentation was a bit long, but the woman we were "assigned" to was very nice and personable. My new husband and I had no problem sharing our future plans with her and about how this was something we would only be able to afford in another 6 months or so due to needing to pay off our wedding.

Dayna, the rep, had us speak to a financial guy and he explained some options, including how there would be a 6 month grace period where we wouldn't need to pay any payments -except the maintenance fee of $76 a month. I read some, but not all of the contract, and from what I read the guy was telling the truth. I only wish we had a smart phone that we could have looked them up before buying.

We didn't find out till a week after we returned from our honeymoon that we had been lied to. Not only had we not received the cards necessary with all of our owner info on it, we also hadn't received the credit card that was supposed to be receiving the payments monthly. After calling and talking to 5 different people, one of which left me in tears as he told me it was "my fault" for not reading through the whole contract (even though I had read a good chunk of it and none of the numbers were now adding up with the verbal promises) and I would have to "eat it" before he hung up on me. My husband almost called the guy back to demand an apology for treating me the way he had.

I finally was told that the credit card company was given the wrong address and that's why we hadn't received our cards. Even though I was very upset about the payments starting without the grace period (otherwise we could afford it) I felt better knowing where the money was going and how to pay it... Now imagine my SHOCK when I get a letter from Wyndham/World Mark, about how my charge of $265.93 was DECLINED by my credit card (which Wyndham set up for me and had $1,000 spending limit) and that if I didn't re-enroll that I would have an increase of interest fees!

I called the number and tried to find out what was going on. After calling back and forth, I STILL don't know all of what is really going on, but got in touch with a woman named Debra who is looking into what happened. Apparently, from what I understand, due to the credit people having the wrong address, they canceled the other card when they sent out my new one, which is why the next charge was denied. I told her I wanted out. She said there was no way out of the contract unless I sold it to someone else. Yeah, like I want to pass this headache to someone else!

My husband found this site and now I'm reading up on everything here trying to find an answer to GETTING OUT OF WYNDHAM! Forget about the points and the possible cheaper vacations we may have due to hotel stays. I can't handle this roller coaster with them anymore. It's been a month and a half and I already feel like this is making me have a nervous breakdown! Can anyone help us out? I don't get the whole: Send letters and deny payments and they will give up for a settlement of a deed (what is that)? Or something like that? Any help?

Kim Phillips

12/31/2013 11:06pm

Sarina,

It is called a deed in lieu of foreclosure. You need to write it and fax it to both financial services and Wyndham Corporate Office. The numbers are on the website....if you can't find them I can look them up and post them for you. In the letter, you state all the problems and lies that were told to you. You need to send a copy to each of the three better business bureaus. I also sent mine to the Secretary of State in Florida (where Corporate is located), Georgia (where I live), South Carolina and Tennessee (where we owned). I received an email that an executive liaison wants me to call her. I responded that I am out-of-town and will call when I return home, but that I did not see a resolution that would satisfy us. You need to stop paying anything also. Hope this helps!

Sarina

01/01/2014 9:37pm

Kim,

Thank you so much for explaining it a little better for me. I really feel out of my element with this and have no idea how I need to write out these letters. I'm currently making a list of the lies and issues we are having, including the numbers and names of those that "helped" us.

I would like to make sure I get the correct numbers for everything (when you have time) and is there any way that you can help me organize these thoughts into a proper letter for me to send out? I've never had to do anything like this before and I don't want to sound like an idiot -even though I feel like one for getting suckered into this. I also plan on stopping payments in a few days and we, thankfully, haven't spent much on these people; the quicker we don't have to pay the better, both mentally and financially. I would love to receive your help if you don't mind maybe emailing me (at your convenience of course)?

Thank you so much for your help!

Sarina

01/01/2014 9:37pm

Sarina

01/01/2014 9:37pm

Kim Phillips

01/04/2014 10:39am

Sarina,

The fax numbers are: Financial 702-304-4217 and Corporate 407-626-6328. I have received an email from an Executive Liaison wanting me to call and try to work something out. However, I responded that I did not see a resolution. So, today I got another email wanting me to call so we could talk. I don't know if I will even bother. Keep you posted!

Yvette

01/04/2014 8:43am

I have been reading all of the comments posted and this site. I just want to know one thing. How do we get rid of the Wyndam time share that we purhasaed. It is worthless. We are going thru finanical difficulties right now and I can not keep this. PLEASE HELP!!

Brittany

01/04/2014 8:56am

So far I have the same issue. They screwed me and I am going through a lot with being pregnant and Jobless. I told them what was going on and they sent me hardship packets which was worthless. They just wanted to extend one payment to start back in Febuary and then the other the bull shit loan they wanted 1200 within 10 days which I couldn't do that at all!! As of right now I stopped all payments with Wyndham. They call me like 10 times a day but I have it on auto reject so the call doesn't actually go through. I'll let you know what happens to me. so far they just call and send me the bills refusing to take back the timeshare. Its impossible to sell cause they are worthless and wyndham is impossible to work with or understand they don't care what happens to people, Im sorry your going though this I totally understand. I stressed and stressed and continued to stressed till finally I gave up and said this is enough this company doesn't care at all they are ruthless liars so I decided I can barley make my regular bills that I damn sure am not gonna let this company ruin me.

Kim Phillips

01/04/2014 10:35am

First, if you are making payments, stop making them. They will call like every hour on the hour sometimes one right behind the other. Then fax a letter to financial and corporate office stating that you want the collection calls to cease and desist. Also, tell them you no longer wish to own and that they can take the deed in lieu of foreclosure and that you can not pay due to financial problems. Make sure to send copies to all three credit bureaus and to the Secretary of State in the state you purchased in, the state you reside in and Florida because that is where the corporate office is located. Once I faxed my letters the calls stopped. I have received an email from an Executive Liaison but I have not called her back yet. The fax numbers are: Financial: 702-304-4217 and Corporate is: 407-626-6328. Good luck!

Doris

01/24/2014 12:30pm

Any help is wonderful to get out of the Wyndham nightmare. How about a persons credit report is it affected negatively? Thanks

Raj

01/17/2014 6:42pm

Wyndham Timeshares = Don't buy it, it is a SCAM. Just keep your money and travel the normal way using legitimate travel agents or websites.

Linda Rogers link

01/23/2014 11:52am

Another common complaint is that maintenance and assessment fees increase very constantly; to the point lots of timeshare owners are no longer able to keep paying them. Many of them decide to stop paying, which is a huge mistake, being that their debt is taken to a collection agency and it ends up affecting their credit score very badly.

LilShortRib

01/24/2014 2:35pm

I stopped paying and my credit wasn't affected as badly as I thought it would be. You can still even be approved for certain types of home loans as I was looking into buying a house this summer. would say that if you aren't planning on making any huge moves in 2-3 years where your credit needs to be spotless, then go ahead and stop paying and get a deed in lieu. Having a ding on your credit for 2-3 years will be a better deal than continuing to pay through the nose and/or puy yourself into enormous debt for Wyndham's worthless crap...

Brit

01/27/2014 6:49am

Did they ever send you an irs form??

01/27/2014 11:15pm

What does a IRS form have to do with a complaint against Wyndham Timeshare lies??????? Don't see a connection!!!

brit

01/28/2014 9:38am

The reason I am saying that is because when u foreclose you don't just take a credit hit wyndham will also send you a 1098 form and you will owe taxes unless im sure you have a great accountant that knows what they are doing. THATS the connection mr.

01/28/2014 11:01am

Thanks for explaining about the IRS. I am sure I wasn't the only one wondering about the question.Anything else you can tell us about this nightmare with Wyndham would be appreciated. Any input about getting out of it?

Doris

01/25/2014 12:26pm

Wyndham timeshare owners,it is nothing but a nightmare unless you are a big person with big money or one of their sales reps. You can never get into one of these things when you want contrary to what they tell you at the presentation. Nothing but fraud,fraud,fraud. My question is what if you are owners with someone,like my sister do both of us have to do the same to get rid of this nightmare? We both are just sick of this. Thanks

LilShortRib

01/25/2014 5:07pm

I think as long as both of you agree to sign the necessary paperwork to get out of it that it shouldn't matter if it's your sister or not.

Doris

01/28/2014 10:44am

Thanks for the insight. All the information a Timeshare Owner can get to get rid of this headache will be greatly appreciated.

01/28/2014 10:50am

Thanks for explaining the IRS question. I am sure no one knew this and could not figure out why someone would ask a question about it.

Lin link

01/30/2014 8:21am

Just found this website. Really informative. When did it start and can you find free resources for help?

01/30/2014 10:31am

Trying to get some resources myself. If anyone can give us Wyndham Owners any resources and Advocacy groups that don't ask for money up front please share it with us. Thanks

Kim Phillips

02/22/2014 7:28am

I have not found any companies that do not charge, so I stopped making the payments. Of course, I was getting phone calls many times a day. I finally faxed a letter to corporate and finance telling them to cease and desist and that I wanted to give up the timeshare in lieu of the deed. The calls stopped. I got a certified letter that they are foreclosing and my credit did take a hit but it is worth it to me to get out of this mess. My husband's credit did not take a hit and he is the co-borrower. Can't figure that one out. Good luck!

Lin link

01/31/2014 6:09am

I was so excited to read comments for people going through same thing as me that I didn't read all the info from the tabs at top of page so I understand more about this website now. Has anyone filed a complaint on this website and gotten help or advice from them? This site talked about legally canceling timeshare with help of a timeshare service company. Can they give you name of one that isn't a scam? Has anyone used one they recommended? Sorry to be so skeptical but at this point I'm wanting to grasp at straws and afraid to believe there is actually help at the same time.

Brit

01/31/2014 6:42am

I went to the bbb about my issue bc they had told me I had refinanced on my one and only loan and they instead took out a whole different loan as well as opened a credit card with an almost 900 dollar charge as well as a bill me later of 1000 dollars. I was able to back my story up with emails between the sales man and I as well as phone records. They are gonna cancel the one loan they lied about, but not the one I first established with them so I am foreclosing on it bc well im pregnant and no job but still they are liars and thief's even if I had the money I would not give it to them. I want nothing at all to do with this company. They need to be reported and seriously the government needs to shut them down I mean how many complaints will it take for them to see this company is so unethical and horrible ruining peoples lives, credit, and stealing their hard earn money.

01/31/2014 9:57am

Would love some information myself. Lots of complaints here but haven't seen any actual help. Please someone give us some places or names we can go to for help on this nightmare with Wyndham. People are desperate for the right help. I only saw one thing about not paying upfront fees. Give us names of people that will not ask for upfront fees and get paid only when the problems are solved. Names,places please. Thanks

Jodi G

01/31/2014 10:42am

There is no good way to get out of the contract. What I can say is DO NOT go to one of the companies who tell you that thru can get you out of it for a fee. We paid almost $2000 to get out of ours and they lie just as bad as Wyndham. Do send a cease and desist letter so they cannot phone and harass you. You can phone and try to get a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure. You will lose your deposit and still need to pay any fees already due including maintenance fees. This will hurt your credit but we found that we are still better off doing it this way. Just keep on fighting.

01/31/2014 10:46am

Thank you

Brit

01/31/2014 11:39am

Yes Dj, unfourtnely there is not much you can do besides maybe keep complaining to the BBB especially if you can back up any evidence against them that could get you out of your contract. I had to stop paying and they will call you 12 times a day so make sure you write that cease and desist letter so they stop. They are pretty ruthless and known for not letting people out of contracts whatever the case may be. They are seriously a problem that needs to be stopped. Also like they said don't go to one of these places that tells you they can get you out of a timeshare too many times have I read about people getting scammed by them and then they are out more money. I am taking my chance by taking a major credit hit and next year I will receive a Irs form and end of owing a little back but I never wanna pay them another cent. There are too many people like you and I that have gone through this. Its simply not fair.

01/31/2014 11:47am

Thank you for the insight. These people are very money hungry and thrive off hurting the little people.

Lindsay Stewart link

02/13/2014 3:35pm

Timeshare industry has experienced a considerable growth over the last years. On the surface, it looks like it is a reliable market and an innovative way to vacation; on the other hand, timeshare frauds are happening on a daily basis, putting thousands of families in a critical financial situation and taking millions of dollars each year. Such conflict has created lots of misinformation about timeshares, and most timeshare myths come from timeshare salespeople.

Lin

02/18/2014 10:22am

Need help!
My husband and I are long time owners of Fairfield/Cendant/Wyndham. Our Weeks are paid for but the maintenance bills are becoming too much since we are now retired.
Our wonderful "investment for the future" has been anything but. Over the years our vacations have become not where we want to go but where something is available. Usually put into the older buildings at resorts so people who are renting can have newer ones. What happened to trading for like units to ours. By the time we pay for maintenance fees, exchange fees and RCI membership fees we could have gone cheaper paying outright and kept our "investment in the future" money.

The promise of your children and grandchildren benefitting from this timeshare investment does not happen because there is seldom availability to match their schools schedules. Everyone knows you can't sell these timeshares and who wants to pass the burden on to their children.(This inheritance was a stressed selling point at the time we bought.)

At an" update to the industry" meeting aka sales presentation at a resort recently I mentioned we thought we would give back our weeks to Wyndham soon. GIVE BACK! Not sell back. The salesman said very forcefully that we could not do that and that Wyndham was aggressively going after people who didn't pay their maintenance fees. We felt very threatened, like it was extortion. I thought "My God, who are these people, Mafia"?

These people have gotten their timeshares paid in full and several years of maintenance. They have not lost money on us. Why can't we give back our weeks and not have to worry about our credit being ruined? We have spent our whole life protecting our credit and I guess that they are counting on, but enough is enough

Kim Phillips

02/22/2014 7:31am

You can give back the timeshare I lieu of the deed. They will harass you for the maintenance fees. But, you can send a letter to cease and desist to corporate and financial. Your credit will take a hit. There are charities that you can donate your paid timeshare to. I don't know how this works though. But, you might check into that and it maybe a better solution for you.

LilShortRib

02/22/2014 8:38am

I did the same thing except they never asked me to pay maintainence fees. I've even heard some people say they have actually gotten Wyndham to write a letter to credit bureaus saying they won't report. I would imagine that part may be a little difficult to do but we did a deed in lieu of foreclosure and asked them to cease and desist with the calls. Although it does show on my credit it didn't get affected as badly as I thought and I can still qualify for a mortgage so I'm glad I did it to get the skyrocketing bills off of my back.

Lin

02/22/2014 12:06pm

Is this the way you word the letter, give back the timeshare in lieu of deed? And then ask to be relieved of any future maintenance fees?
Also is it a good idea to discuss this on the phone with them or just send a letter? I realize everyone on this site can only make suggestions.

Kim Phillips

02/22/2014 5:37pm

No, you can call them but I would also fax a letter to corporate and financial so that you have something to prove that you requested it. And, it is called deed in lieu of foreclosure. Again, your credit will take a hit and they will continue to call and send you letters but in your letter for a deed in lieu of foreclosure you can tell them to cease and desist collection attempts.

Lin

02/22/2014 12:17pm

Maybe you would say you no longer wished to own and wanted to deed-back your timeshare. You would want to get in writing that you were no longer responsible for future maintenance tho.

Dee

03/03/2014 9:37pm

My husband and I bought our Wyndham Vacation Ownership in Branson, MO on our 1st year anniversary. We actually had 2 great Salesmen and a great financial guy for the final signing. So far, our first trip went well, but there was a very unprofessional Rep that came to supposedly welcome us at the condo and give us a coupon book. He started a conversation about our ownership right in front of our guests which was actually supposed to be private information. That pushed my button instantly. Asking if we were aware of all the advantages, I told him I had been doing all the research to make sure we are getting the full ownership. He then had the audacity to say that our ownership was only worth $10 and could never be sold, why he brought this up, I have no idea as we just have had it a few years now, but we definitely told him we are not upgrading as we are lucky to take a vacation once a year as it is. We like it because ours is Global and gives us access to numerous destinations. But, if I had thought about it the day of the contract signing, I would have asked them for a disclosure that no one at any resort location would be able to try and talk us into upgrading for at least five years. The fact is, you cannot technically sell it, but you can will it to family members. But, we bought in for vacationing not to get to our destinations and be hounded to upgrade when they know we just started using it. I have not had a problem yet with booking where we want to stay if I call at least 6 months in advance.

Mickey

03/04/2014 1:44pm

I was called over the phone and agreed to attend a 2-hour session this weekend having been offered a $50 voucher ( redeemable at www.diningdough.com) and 4 round trip tickets among a choice of 25 destinations. I will not buy timeshare -- can't afford it even if I wanted to purchase -- but getting the four air tickets seems attractive. The person on the phone was nice and said there is no obligation to buy anything.

Does anyone have experience with this kind of offer? Can you sit through the "presentation", say "no" and get the tickets?? This is what they said in the e-mail they sent after the phone call:

"...A Vacation Your Way certificate valid for 4-trip round trip airline tickets to your choice of over 25 destinations OR a per night discount on up to 7 consecutive nights at specified hotels. Ground transportation, taxes, airfare/airport taxes and fees, room services charges, resort fees, meals and any other incidentals are not included. Retail Value $700-$6000 depending on travel dates, destination chosen and room availability. ..."

LilShortRib

03/07/2014 6:56pm

Mickey,
Trust me when I tell you probably 75% of the people in this thread had the same idea. Yes you can say no but it's not that easy - you WILL work for it. They hold you hostage for hours, keep you waiting for long periods of time and wilk keep pitching different offers. My first deal was after at least 4 hours of continually saying no. These people are used to it so they don't give up easily. The 'free' stuff you will get will probably have so many restrictions it'll be practically worthless. Trust me, save your time and sanity and don't do it.

LilShortRib

03/07/2014 6:56pm

LilShortRib

03/07/2014 6:56pm

Rita Storie

03/13/2014 4:59pm

Just had my first Wyndham "scam" update meeting to go over what I purchased back in September 2012. My daughter had used my points to this date and, of course, that had NOT tried to get her to upgrade. I saw a thread of similarity in the presentation at Old Town Alexandria to the original salesperson at the Williamsburg resort. Disgusting... come to find out the agent at Old Town was a good friend of the original sales person in Williamsburg.. Apparently they had had the same deceptive sales training... the agent in Williamsburg asked our children's names... and said that was her first choice but the child was a girl... so she could not use that name... the agent in Old Town asked my husband what he did for a living (we are both retired... he a General Contract, I a teacher and real estate agent)... Well... guess what... She always wanted to be a contractor... and she had been a real estate agent... I am so sure that these people study your history and make up these stupid stories to hook you in... So anyone out there... watch out... they will do ANYTHING to try to connect personally to you, making you feel connected to them in some way.. This site has made me so AWARE of their scams that it was SO... easy to say NO!! When the agent at Old Town told me that what I had was worthless... I did not take it gracefully. I told her I was going to deed it to her then or just stop making payments. She said I was disrespectful... I said NO.. just blunt... She stormed out and I go my 100.00 and left. I was told 45 min and when that time was up, I demanded to leave and take my gift with me. So stand up to these nasty people... take their gifts and run... I felt pressured by front desk to attend so finally decided to go but went with a strong attitude of resistance. Like the guy in front of us said... "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me"... If what she said is true, (oh, you only bought 1/2 a membership. Your bonus points have run out. Let me show you why you have to upgrade. Look at the fees you will pay if you do not upgrade)....My reply... if what you say is true, I will just stop paying maintenance fees and see my attorney.

Liliana Wong link

03/19/2014 2:36pm

It is very important to take into consideration that time shares should never be considered as an investment, but only as a purchase. An investment means the possibility of financial growth and resale, and no one is likely with time shares.

Dana

03/30/2014 1:29am

Just went to the "new" owners update yesterday. Supposed to be just a 1 hour breakfast with no sales pitch-just a presentation. They changed it because of all the complaints with the sales department. The breakfast was great and the presentation was just informational with a little nudge to buy the new Margaritaville Club. Not bad until..."we have a few tips for you". 3 hours later I left pretty pissed at my husband for signing us up and more pissed that I put up with any of it. The "new" update is the same old pressure cooker. Don't fall for it. I am still pretty happy with what we bought ten years ago, but if the product is good it will sell itself. Obviously Wyndham doesn't sell unless they take you hostage.

You are all weak link

04/05/2014 6:37pm

Babies crying is what I'm reading on here. Just a bunch of bantering little babies crying to each other. Take a stand for yourself good lord!

Kim Phillips

04/05/2014 7:20pm

In reply to You are weak: First, I am not a weak person and I did stand up for myself and received a deed in lieu of foreclosure. Second, when we bought into the timeshare, we were not held hostage or coerced in any way. We may a decision to buy because we like to vacation in nice places. The only reason I requested the deed in lieu of foreclosure is because Wyndham lied to use when we went to an update meeting and we bought more points, but they lied to us on several issues. So, I stopped payment and entered a dispute with the corporate office. They offered me my old contracts, but wanted me to pay thousands in back payment which I did not have. So I requested the deed in lieu of foreclosure and received it. You must be an employee of Wyndham to make a statement like you are all weak.

Rita Storie

04/06/2014 2:52pm

Was told by salesperson that what we had was "only half a timeshare" and that we needed to buy the other half... Well, that went over well!! To be told that what you bought last year was pretty much useless?? When I replied, "Fine! I will just stop making payments and see my attorney", I was told that I was rude and disrespectful!! Oh, well!! Sales lady got up and left the room!! We took our 100.00 gift card and left. You can cut short these obnoxious meeting if you CUT TO THE CHASE!!!

Rita Storie

04/06/2014 2:59pm

And to "You are all Weak", Yes, humans can be swayed by slick salespeople... Both Wyndham salespeople we have talked with used these tactics.... First one, "Oh, that is what I was going to name my first child but it was a girl" (In reference to our son's name) The second one, "That was my first choice as a career, to be a General Contractor" (In reference to my husband's occupation).. Funny! Both of came from the Williamsburg site!! One now in OLD TOWN Alexandria..

Kim Phillips

04/06/2014 4:39pm

Way to tell them Rita Storie! I guess they didn't want to hear that you would stop making payments and contact your attorney? Did you get a deed in lieu of foreclosure?

james garman

04/07/2014 2:37pm

Recently went to a presentation in the Smokies. Did'nt sign a contract but said we were interested in the offer if my wife found work within 30 days even though we were not. Gave them credit/debit # and now worried they will still try to take payments from account. They "froze" their offer for the 30 days.

Kim Phillips

04/07/2014 4:13pm

James Garman, did you sign any contracts? If not, no worries. If you did then you need to cancel the contract if it has been less than 3 business days. If you did and has been longer than 3 business days, then yes they will deduct payments.

Ana

04/17/2014 11:52pm

Jamea garman, they cannot and will not enforce your contract. That's illegal.

Wyndham employee

04/18/2014 12:02am

Lin,

You're fine. Your credit won't be hit. You can sell your ownership back to Wyndham. Yes, sell.

Meg link

04/22/2014 1:58pm

What does Wyndham ask for when trying to recruit people for these jobs? Are you a blood sucking leech with no morals or integrity...this is the job for you!
This sounds like an absolute nightmare & I am terrified to go to the "presentation" that I have already paid $199 for. My husband is already pissed at me for buying this so I can't imagine how mad he will be after being tortured but unfortunately I didn't read this before signing up.
I'm seriously thinking of eating the $199 but on the other hand thinking maybe we could withstand the torture & get our money back at least (I was promised a $200 American Express card & an extra nights stay). I definitely don't want to go through all the hell everyone is talking about & then never even get the "gift". Can they deny you the gift if you've had enough & either walk out or tell them to stick it where the sun doesn't shine?

Des

04/22/2014 3:59pm

I have been to three why dam presentations in sydney and Gold Coast,australia. I have accepted the $100 department store gift vouchers and discount hotel vouchers,valid for one year...these are gifts for attending. Sure it is a scam,entertaining and it appears that of about 30 attendees 3or 4 sign up. Not me I politely indicate that I could be interested ,give them my lawyers details and ask them to send the contract there for him to check. They never do,for two hours listening to their scam I receive about $100 hour value in gifts. Be strong....do not yield

Meg link

04/22/2014 4:38pm

Thanks for the advice. If we go through with it I'm keeping mental notes of all the advice & tricks everyone has shared on here hoping to escape without being exhausted & abused & try to actually enjoy our stay :)

pauline

05/01/2014 10:33pm

I have been a Wyndham owner for about 10 years. Before that we would go to various placesjust for thefreebies. We were on a budget but took family vacations every other year that way. When we were ready to buy we alrea knew the routine. We let the sales person go to the best offer and several closers.We were well prepared because we saw all the options. If you aregoing to waste time going listen yo everything. Then, make sn educated decision. Do not talk to people who don't use it. If they have not used it, there may be two reasons why. 1. They couldn't afford it from the start and trusted a commission based sales person to convince them otherwise. 2. They did not read anything until they realized that they shouldn't have trusted the sales person with their financial responsibilities. When first started out, we would over extend our cards to enjoy family vacations. Note we research resorts and check reviews by consumers. I take 2or3 local trips per year poconos atlantic city virginia, orlando.

Barbara

05/02/2014 4:21pm

My husband & I just returned home from Maui. We attended a Wyndham presentation to stretch our vacation dollar. We were greeted by the sales rep, taken to a cubical, asked what kind of work we do, then she started a side show on an ipad while she disappeared to get another woman. Together they decided that my husband working for our city & my recycling did not qualify us to make 75k a year. Then a man was called in & he asked us to leave...stating that there was no way we could afford the time share!! I said to him that most of the people in the room couldn't afford it & I was told I couldn't judge people on how they look...BUT isn't that what they were doing to us????We made sure we received the promised discounts before we left & YES we were escorted to the front door. These people could not have been more rude if they had tried!!!!

Kriz Carcamo|Timeshare Cancellation Rights link

05/03/2014 8:52am

Buying a timeshare under the impresion you will save money on the long run on travel expenses such as airfare or cruises equals to being a victim of timeshare fraud. Timeshares will barely provide you a small discount on accomodations and that´s it. Timeshares will not provide you, in most cases, any discounts on your vacation expenses.

Mary Thomas link

05/08/2014 7:56am

Relief for WVR Owners

05/13/2014 10:47am

My suggestion is that Wyndham Vacation Resorts is not a scam - but it is far, far more complicated to really get the full potential out of your points than the salesmen will indicate.

I've had a great experience with WVR. For well over a decade, I've had success using our 2M+ points each year. The simple difference between our experience, and that of others posting here, is that we have really learned to leverage the nuances of "the system." It can work brilliantly.

I am actually looking for "more" points. Not to buy - but to book vacations with, for resale. I've got a simple system for doing this, and 50% of my revenue goes to the points owner up to the full amount of your annual maintenance fees. If interested, reply or text to 5804300 (area code 336). Ideally looking for Platinum owners.

If you consider your WVR purchase a mistake, we can't "undo" that. However, we can mitigate the ongoing pain, and in the process teach you some of the strategies that will allow you to enjoy the full potential of your purchase.

Steve in VA

05/14/2014 7:25am

My wife and I attended a Wyndham presentation in Myrtle Beach in 2011. I went begrungingly because I had heard about the high pressure sales and all the things they do to trap you. Keep in mind that I went in 100% determined not to fall for the sales pitch or buy anything. But, they got to my wife, and after 3 hours (wasted beach time we could have spent with our kids), we ended up buying one. I could spend an hour telling about the methods they use to trap you (such as having the "front man" - the initial person who is dedicated to you when you arrive, be his first or 2nd week on the job, and tell some sad story about how he was just trying to support his family). They told us the location we wanted (Myrtle Beach) was not available, but when we were about to walk, they magically talked to their manager and he "unbelievably - never done it before" agreed to sell us the unit in Myrtle Beach - what good fortune for us. They wined and dined us as we signed the 200 pages of paperwork, and people kept coming by and saying..."Wow...you got Cherry Grove...that's unbelievable!" Anyway....fast forward...we went back to our beach house and immediately called Wyndham to try to book a place for the next summer. Surprise, surprise, we didn't have enough points to stay in Myrtle Beach (the unit we had "bought" in the prme season, but we could go to Baltimore or Williamsburg, VA. (We had been assured by the sales force, the incredible number of points we had "coaxed" them into giving us would give us any place we wanted. Realizing we had been had, we looked online and discovered that we had 24 hours to cancel the contract no questions asked. We filled out the necessary form and faxed it that evening. Done! For those who aren't as fortunate as us, I would recommend going to this site....http://www.timesharecancelprofessionals.com/

Kurt link

05/20/2014 7:31am

Went to Wyndham presentation in FL. Heard all the nonsense tactics... salesman talked about his wake up call (showed pic of his crumpled car from accident where he was 'almost killed')... life is too short.... It's an investment...you're not going to stop taking vacations... blah blah blah. Whole deal was laughable. The points process is so cumbersome the salesperson couldn't describe it with any clarity. When we asked them to show us how it worked, none of the locations we looked at were available on our dates. When we asked to see Maintenance and Assessment fee history for one of the resorts, Mary Jo (one of the closers) got angry and said she'd only disclose it if we let her photocopy my drivers license and fill out a credit application! Obviously I declined. She said we weren't serious 'buyers'. I actually was having fun toying with these deceitful moral-less scum. They eventually had enough... said i was wasting THEIR time!!! Gave us our $200 Amex gift card.... andd sent us on our way. Unbelievable. Won't waste

Marty

05/22/2014 1:51am

Yep...Got me !

Call after call after call to upgrade or recommend people that they may contact. No way would I put my worst enemies name forward.

4yrs member. Received regular (every week) marketing call today.... "for just under $1.00/week we can elevate you to Diamond Level, extra points, no Housekeeping fees, etc, etc, etc"....sounds good.

For $1.00 extra dollar a week....mmm yes, OK.

I was then put through to legal (????)...."Just a few questions Sir "Stupid". Annual income? Spouse income? Weekly spending ? ...? ...?
Hang on....you have all my information, we are not refinancing are we ?

No Sir "Stupid"....Well not really "Refinancing" just extending your term from 86 months back to the minimum 116 months......"

Oh I understand, the $1.00 extra a week Maria suggested is actually $1.00/week for 9.6yrs plus an additional $785.00/month for 3 extra years....$22 500.00......You can go F...Yourself Sir "Legal" !

Of course Maria recalls me after 10 mins to assure me I would be better off and that I don't understand (wish I had recorded the conversations as this would have landed somebody in jail for fraud/misrepresentation).

Don't Go There...You will regret, BIG TIME !

Shanelle Moon|Timeshare Presentations link

05/23/2014 11:43am

Timeshares need to be looked up as a purchase and not an investment. Regardless of how timeshares are presented, they don´t perform as well as a house or stock investment. If you look around the resale market for timeshares on websites like EBay, Redweek, or TUGBBS will find that you can buy a timeshare for far less money than what the first owner purchased it for.

Ashley Murray|Is timeshare a good investment? link

06/03/2014 8:53am

Thousands of International travelers, particularly from the US and Canada, have fallen victims oftimeshare fraud while vacationing in Mexico. Resort developers hire skilled salesmen to represent their timeshares as many different attractive packages, such as financial investments, deeded properties, or vacation clubs, just to increase their sales.

Des

06/03/2014 12:52pm

I feel sorry for those who have enrolled and lost. I have been to four presentations...each time I have taken the $100 department store gift cards and discount hotel vouchers...given them my card and asked them to send the contract to my lawyer as I take his advice,,,,,I am polite but this is my response. Interestingly they ne'er send the contract, be strong you would not buy a house without expert advice,,the sameshouldapplytotiesare.

Sasha Collins link

06/09/2014 2:05pm

Melanie Brown|Timeshare Scam Companies link

06/25/2014 11:17am

The timeshare industry has been into the lion’s mouth for the last couple of years, and it has generated lots of controversy and discussions in many forums and blogs on the web. However, since we’re living an economic downturn, anyone would expect that the timeshare sales collapse, but instead of that the sales seem to be increasing… but this comes with a trap: timeshare scams are increasing too. That leads us to the question: then, why keep people investing on timeshares?

Nate

06/25/2014 4:58pm

Is there any company or law firm out the that can help me get wyndham off my credit report?

LilShortRib

06/25/2014 9:21pm

Nate I am in the process of trying to do the same thing. I have a friend who is helping me attempt to do that. Let me know if you are interested by replying in this forum and I'll give you my email address.

Bill

07/08/2014 8:04am

All you have to do is say this word..."Misrepresented" The sales person misrepresented us, and we are going to file a complaint with the Division of Real Estate against the broker. 9/10 they will let you out of your contract, but you will not get any money back. The rule in real estate is if there is a problem, sue the broker.

J.J. Lanzo

07/09/2014 8:15pm

My personal opinion about timeshares is this. If you want real change in the industry, then it may be necessary to stage a revolt. It's funny how the timeshare developers and scam artist can trick, lie, and deceive people into signing a lifelong contract to legally rob them blind with no chance of any consequences legal or otherwise, and this is totally unethical and immoral (period). If the average person tries things like this, they wind up buried in the legal system so deep it isn't even funny. There is power in numbers though, and the people truly do have the power to get changes made to such a sick and despicable business model but only if large groups are willing to stick together. The timesleaze industry needs to be held accountable by the people, and the people need to take a page out of the timesleaze industries playbook. You want to hurt people and ruin their finances? Fine, power to the people you ripped off. Time for a revolt. A bully keeps on bulling until someone knocks their @$$ off!!!! Screw the timesleaze industry.

LuLu

07/12/2014 10:20am

My husband and I purchased points through Wyndham in September 2013. We can no longer afford it and have actually stopped paying the monthly payment and maintenance fees. I am very upset with Wyndham as they put more money on a Bill Me Later account than they did through the financing and the payment on the BML account is more than we afford It is outrageous. None of this was explained during the buying process. I have contacted Wyndham several times, and they won't do anything to help us. Can anyone offer any advice on how to handle this situation. Come to find out we don't have enough points to stay anywhere for a week, and nothing is ever available when you do want to vacation. They told us we would be able to vacation at any of their resorts. Maybe if you book over a year in advance. They tell you anything to get you to buy.....

Lilshortrib

07/14/2014 9:05am

Lulu,
If I remember correctly I called the compliance department when I caught them in a lie and I was able to cancel a contract with them. It was a while ago so I don't remember the details, but I would recommend calling their compliance dept. and go from there. Good luck!

LuLu

07/14/2014 11:02am

Lilshortrib,
I have spoken to the compliance department, and they pretty much said there is nothing they can do unless I have any kind of documentation that says what they told us. They pretty much said their is nothing they can do because we are out of the rescind period. Thanks!

LuLu

07/14/2014 11:03am

Lilshortrib,

I have spoken to the compliance department, and they pretty much said there is nothing they can do unless I have any kind of documentation that says what they told us. They pretty much said their is nothing they can do because we are out of the rescind period. Thanks!

LuLu

07/14/2014 11:09am

LuLu

07/14/2014 11:09am

kip

07/14/2014 12:59pm

That is what compliance tells everyone. contact timeshareanswers.com

Lilshortrib

07/14/2014 2:32pm

Lulu,
I would then also suggest contacting the attorney general's office. You may have to call the office for the state the property is in.

Olivia Wild link

07/17/2014 2:48pm

Thousands of International travelers, particularly from the US and Canada, have fallen victims oftimeshare fraud while vacationing. Resort developers hire skilled salesmen to represent their timeshares as many different attractive packages, such as financial investments, deeded properties, or vacation clubs, just to increase their sales.

07/24/2014 3:49pm

We sent a formal notarized letter within 4 days of signing our contract with Wyndham. It was received 2 days later. We asked for written confirmation of the cancellation. How long should we wait to receive that written confirmation? Has anyone else rescinded the contract and gotten written confirmation of it? Should we be prepared for a nightmare in a few weeks, because they try to charge our card?

Sai

07/28/2014 1:06am

Wyndham representatives have set up multiple tents at our local flea-market. Lured into the promise of a 2-night stay, I paid the $20 deposit to listen to the presentation but have absolutely no interest in the Timeshare.

Even though I plan on saying no, I'm quite intimidated at the thought of being ridiculed and thrown out. I want to get my $20 back at the least. I have a copy of the presentation confirmation which states "absolutely no obligation to purchase anything" and I believe that should give legal right to not be thrown out. I hope.

Does anyone have experience with getting the deposit back? Does it require sitting through the entire presentation? Or can I show up, demand my deposit and leave?

Has anyone had any repercussions for leaving or not attending? One part of this tour confirmation says that upon failing to attend, wyndham has the right to charge you the full amount for the gifts!