Original Message:
Re: If you've been scammed by Sell My Timeshare Now .... (by Lisa B.):
Thats a valid question, and one I've given great consideration to. I mentioned that I had contacted numerous agencies (i.e. BBB, Florida Attorney General, New Hampshire Attorney General, Dover BBB, etc.), I even contacted an attorney to prepared to litigate the situation. Besides talking to these agencies, I spoke to some of the agents at various resorts that had previous dealings with SMTN. At the end of the day, the majority of the parites that I consulted with didn't have negative transactions to report. Some even went so far to assure me that if SMTN vowed to make the deal right, they had faith in them. Others said that of all of the resalers of timeshare rental weeks there are in the market place, SMTN is strong enough and big enough to financially stand behind their deals. The BBB told me that while there were complaints against the company on record, the number of complaints weren't any higher than the industry norm. However, their records indicated that they did have a high percentage of resolving their disputes to the customers satisfaction.
This year, I've contacted numerous vendors. Oddly enough, the majority of them tell me that they have inventory available. I know how hard inventory for spring vacation at the Grand Mayans is to secure. So, when somebody tells me right away that they have the inventory without expressing any challenge to obtaining it, I know they're yanking my chain. A couple of days later, they end up contacting me sadly to inform me that the inventory doesn't exist. When I called SMTN, James told me up front, he has some dependable suppliers that if they say they have it that they will have gone through all verification procedures to ensure the accuracy BEFORE they lead me to believe they have it. He also told me up front that the inventory is very limited and it's going to take diligence to secure the rooms that I was requesting and that he wasn't sure what he would be able to get at this late date. It has taken numerous calls over several days between him and me, and to date I have all but one of the rooms that I'm requesting.
Believe me when I say, at the end of my transaction with SMTN last spring, my initial attitude was "never again" and that I just narrowly escaped a disaster. But then when I objectively reflected on the outcome, I thought they deserved a second chance since they did come through. And, that I would rather take a chance with them versus an unknown shark in a very large sea of scammers.
I spent so much time with so many different people at SMTN last year, from the receptionist all the way to the President and Vice President of the company. Every person that I spoke to convinced me that they were personally working toward a solution to my problem. The truth could only be one of two things, either 1) I was really gullable or 2) they were sincerly trying to resolve the situation. They did perform, you can't deny then of that.
Time will tell if my intuition is right, I guess.