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Your last paragraph will bring a lot of worms out of the woodwork
I won my money back plus interest using what was the Financial ombudsman's Service and Sect 75, it took 2 years of fighting, but I did it. Lots of emailing, letter writing, phone calls and covert recording of conversations at the resort.
Like you Charlie I also have been calling for licencing now for the last couple of years. The body managing the license would be Governments Trade & Industry Departments or Ministries responsible for tourism.Initial funding would come from registration fees (Paid annually) and there after by collection of fines by transgressions.This recently occurred in Scotland recently with the Property Factors Bill Scotland (And I did have some input, making ammendments to the 2nd draft), the Bill was brought about to bring order to an industry that had been self regulating for a couple of hundred years with loads of well established a c[/b]ompanies. The same could be applied to the Timeshare business.
What about Resales Companies staff who deal with the consumer? They could play a major role?Resale/Reclaim Companies and thier representatives or agents will be required to obtain a licence as any other individual or company as previously memtioned, with the same penalties for failure to comply. No monies will be exchanged or requested before succesful sale or reclaim being awarded. Fees will be capped at no more than 5% of resale price or 20% of reclaim awarded. The above are just a few ideas and as such are open to debate and modification. They may seem draconian but this would curtail some behaviour within the industry. These are just a base line than would go some way in protecting the consumer and redressing the balance.
Some interesting points and valid as always.Best Practice.Some developers or their reps/agents will work out you deal showing the pro and con's of timeshare v normal holidays, this piece of paper showing the cooked figures and false representations is almost certainly destroyed, for it would hang them. Any signed brief would have to be duplicate for the benefit of Developer and Client.Any overseeing body would have to have lawful power to compel developers to obey any legislation that is in force.Self regulation very rarely works so enforcement is required coming from outwith the industry.
Currently outside the La Nina complex there are OPCs operating who seem to have licenses and clear identification. They have tee shirts on which clearly show Crown Resorts or Hotels - I will check. In the complex where the lifts are there seems to be another operation running out of the offices formerly occupied by {banned word/phrase}. I have not seen any OPCs on the streets from this team but they will be around somewhere and the set up will probably be a reincarnation of the former scam.If OPCs are licensed then that should not be a problem providing that obtaining the licence to operate is a rigorous procedure and that officialdom makes regular checks on their performance via mystery shoppers etc. and fines, withdrawal of licenses and other enforcement initiatives are part of the ongoing processes.The lead has to come from somewhere and it would be great if it was begun by the Spanish authorities who have always seemed to shrug and say. "It is happening to visitors and not our native people so it is not our problem."