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Class Action Against Diamond Resorts?
I was wondering how to become involved with this Class Action Lawsuit. My family owe points through DRI but we feel that we have been lied to by the company on many occasions and would like to know how to get involved with any procedures against the company.
Valerie S.
Join the https://www.facebook.com/groups/DiamondResortsOwnersAdvocacy/
We seek to provide Diamond Resort members a way to proactively address membership concerns; to advocate for timeshare reform; to obtain greater disclosure from the company; to advocate for a viable secondary market; and to educate prospective buyers.
Julia M.
Valerie Your Diamond contract has a clause that bans class actions - forcing the member to go to arbitration. There has been a billion dollar class action filed in the state of Nevada. The class is only for the US collection and the member had to be age 60 or older when the contract was signed. If you go to our DRI member sponsored Advocacy FB posted above you can request a copy of the 55 page complaint. A class action takes years and if you win there will be an appeal that would take at least another year. Most can't afford to hang on that long. The other problem with class actions is the complaints are not all the same like in a medical device case. You are not alone though. Our Advocacy FB has helped about 50 owners either resolve issues, obtain a hard fought refund or had loans cancelled if the agent committed deceit, concealment or "bait and switch", relinquish, or walk with the member through foreclosure helping to write letters to the credit reporting agencies if their credit score is otherwise unblemished.
Irene P.
Diamond resort tried to selling me "points" today for my 2 bedroom unit purchased since 2002. Unfortunately, I was so busy with life and didn't realize how much Diamond took advantage of us. With that all written, we must not give up and look to place complaints to regulators, websites, social media, personal friends, family, and Florida attorney general.
Never give up.
Abraham A.
Thank you for using the Better Business Bureau's Online Complaint System. Your complaint has been assigned case # 90140505. Correspondence regarding this complaint will be emailed to : richardhaydensmith@hotmail.com Please print a copy of this for your records.
Filed on : May 10 2017
Filed by : Richard Smith
Filed against : Polo Towers Villas
Complaint Description:
Unable to use my Time Share weeks due to the management company Diamond Resorts using the weeks for their own purposes. For the third year in a row, I have called in the Spring to reserve a week at the Villas at Polo Towers during the Summer, with no villas apparently available. I have two deeded floating red weeks, NOT points. Now this is an interesting situation in that I had NEVER EVER had any issues getting rooms prior to Diamond taking over this resort. Not EVER. And I have not converted to the point system.
When I ask what is going on , the answer given by the booking people at Diamond is that "The Company" owns so many units that they "utilize themselves" to have the opportunity to sell POINTS, that if I don't make plans a year in advance it is now likely that I will be unable to ever use my points again. This is possibly the most outrageous manipulation and egregious misuse of their power I have ever heard of. I was told that they MAY be willing to take my weeks from me and alleviate further annual fees for me for the price of zero. So basically the company takes down my weeks, with the intention of filling them with free or cheap deals to stay in my unit to suck more unsuspecting people into the "points" based trap, before they even have actual reservations. And all the while, my annual maintenance fees continue to increase with no possible explanation other than padding the management fees.
I've reviewed the financials at Polo Towers. If you have an accountant, have them look at it. It is amazing what has happened since these guys took over! Anybody wants to buy these two deeded weeks from me, feel free to let me know. I'm going to try my luck in a Virginia Court. My argument isn't going to be the lies and deceit used on us all during the presentation, but the inability to use the deeded weeks themselves and how Diamond ties up the weeks to keep me out.
To:Diamond, you have plenty of money and lawyers. Get ready to use it. You have a FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY to the owners, which you have NOT honored.
Your Desired Resolution: They should be free to either BUY my units, as opposed to their current stance of stealing them from me for zero compensation, or immediately stop their practice of reserving rooms for sales promotions. I own deeded weeks, not points in their corrupt system.
This case will be reviewed by a complaint specialist at the Better Business Bureau, and then forwarded to the business for their response. It is our policy to allow the business 30 working days to respond to your complaint. You will be notified when the business has responded. The text of your complaint and the response from the business may be publicly posted on the BBB web site (BBB reserves the right to not post in accordance with BBB policy). Please do not include any personally identifying information. By submitting your complaint, you have represented that it is a truthful account of your experience with this business. BBB may edit the complaint or responses to protect privacy rights and to remove inappropriate language.
Richard S.
Richard: I greatly dislike DRI and firmly believe that their operational practices are truly despicable (to which I would also add Westgate and Wyndham as well). I wish you luck.
That being said, the truth and fact of the matter is that BBB has absolutely NO legal authority whatsoever and is of NO significance to a deep pockets corporation like DRI. Some less than stellar "ratings" might result from unresolved BBB complaints, but big corporate outfits like DRI couldn't care less about such an insignificant little PR "blip".
Bear in mind that BBB is essentially just a toothless "paid membership" organization --- a "club" of sorts. I doubt that many corporate giants belong to (or care one little bit about) anything that BBB has to say. After all, how many people ever look at BBB ratings BEFORE voluntarily going into a sales presentation, signing on the dotted lines and paying obscene amounts of money to DRI, Westgate, Wyndham, etc.? Precious few, you can be sure.
Anyway, give 'em hell. I hope that your efforts get someone's attention and somehow produce results for you, but don't expect anything at all meaningful to result from complaining to the toothless and impotent "paid membership club" known as BBB.
P.S. I suggest that you edit your post above to delete your email address from the opening lines of your complaint copy. Otherwise, you are just openly inviting assorted spammers, scammers and other such parasites to contact you with offers of magic beans and "escape" secrets and other bogus scams that you surely want nothing to do with. They will also SHARE your email address with other parasites of similar ilk. Forewarned is forearmed.
KC
Last edited by ken1193 on May 12, 2017 05:45 AM
Do not expect any help and do not wast your time! You need to higher an attorney and file litigation against DRI. BBB will forward your complain to DRI. DRI will respond with the statement: "owners have equal rights and developer -DRI have pool of inventory which is separate from owners", which is not true statement. DRI selling owner's inventory all over the internet: Expedia, TripAdvisor, Holes.com, Diamondresortsandhotels.com etc..... BBB will forward you the DRI response with the statement: "If you are not satisfied with the answer you need to higher an attorney". I know all these steps because I already filed complaints with BBB, FTC, CPFB, AGs for states AZ, CA, NV & HI, Real Estate Departments for these states and etc......... The only authority left is the Pope... I have litigation against DRI....
Julia M.
Last edited by juliam181 on May 10, 2017 07:52 PM
I will offer a slightly different "take" on the advice provided directly above.
Rather than attempt to reinvent the wheel, starting from square one, entirely on your own --- at considerable personal expense with dubious chances for success --- I would instead suggest reading through this entire thread VERY thoroughly to first see if you can perhaps identify and then get on board with organized others who may have already initiated and pursued some legal action and efforts. DRI is a big, deep pockets corporation; no individual is going to exert any sway or influence with DRI by acting alone. There is strength in numbers, so why be a lone "Don Quixote", ineffectively "tilting at windmills"? Just my own thoughts. In the end, it is of course your decision, your time --- and your money.
If you are still bound and determined to forge ahead and hire your own attorney, Mike Finn (Finn Law Group) in Largo, FL knows the timeshare industry inside out. He is no fan of sleazy industry practices and has written extensively regarding their deceitful operations. I'm not endorsing Mr. Finn nor advertising for him nor encouraging you to hire ANY attorney, but I've met Mike Finn and he certainly knows his stuff regarding the timeshare industry. If you hire ANY attorney, at least make sure it's someone who doesn't need to be educated from "square one" regarding the timeshare industry and its' sleazy practices. You certainly don't need or want to be paying "billable hours" just for an attorney to educate themselves enough (on your dime) to THEN be able to initiate action on your behalf, that's all I'm saying.
KC
Last edited by ken1193 on May 12, 2017 05:43 AM
I will let you know if Class Action will be approved. If not I will refer you to good attorney...
It this time I will advice you to join the face book page which run by DRII owners: https://m.facebook.com/groups/255017114909998?src=email_notif
This group helped a lot of owners exit timeshare by dealing with DRI's legal department directly. Post your story and I will ask the group to work on your case.
Irene Irene95051@att.net
Julia M.
We seek to provide Diamond Resort members a way to proactively address membership concerns; to advocate for timeshare reform; to obtain greater disclosure from the company; to advocate for a viable secondary market; and to educate prospective buyers. INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO FILE A COMPLAINT https://www.facebook.com/groups/DiamondResortsOwnersAdvocacy/287107495034293/
Julia M.
http://albrightstoddard.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/2017-2-3-Diamond-Resorts-International-Timeshare-Marketing-Class-Action4.pdf
Diamond Resorts International Timeshare Marketing Class Action Did You Buy a Membership in a Diamond Resorts International Vacation Product? The attorneys at Rose Law Group pc; Albright, Stoddard, Warnick & Albright, P.C.; and The Tarics Law Firm, P.C. are investigating complaints by elderly consumers who purchased memberships (points) in timeshare/vacation products from Diamond Resorts International. We are interested in speaking with consumers who purchased memberships in Diamond Resorts’ U.S. Collection or its other collections within the last four (4) years and were at least sixty (60) years of age at the time of purchase. If you are not an employee or agent of Diamond Resorts or any of its affiliates, we would love to speak with you about our investigation and the pending lawsuit as well as any rights you may have to seek compensation or other relief because of your purchase. To speak with an attorney or learn more about the lawsuit or your rights, please click here to complete our online “Send Us a Message” form or send us an email. If you prefer to speak with a live person, feel free to call us at 480.505.3936. For more information about Rose Law Group’s Class Action Department, click here. *Submitting your contact information does not create an attorney-client relationship, but does grant permission to the attorneys at Rose Law Group pc; Albright, Stoddard, Warnick & Albright, P.C.; and the Tarics Law Firm, P.C. to contact you. Please do not share any confidential information with us in the “Send Us a Message” form. Technology can sometimes be unreliable, so feel free to call our offices if you have not received a personal response within a few business days. Rose Law Group pc; Albright, Stoddard, Warnick & Albright, P.C.; and the Tarics Law Firm, P.C. are law firms not affiliated with Diamond Resorts Holdings, LLC. Diamond Resorts® and Diamond Resorts International® are registered trademarks of Diamond Resorts Holdings, LLC. Attorney Advertising Address: 7144 E Stetson Drive, Suite 300, Scottsdale, AZ 85251 Phone: 480-505-3936 Email: info@roselawgroup.com © 2016 Rose Law Group, pc. All rights reserved.
Julia M.
Thank you for this update on the DRI class action Juliam180. I met with three of the attorneys involved last month. I posted your update on our Diamond member sponsored advocacy Facebook. I'm told they are receiving many inquiries. This is at least a real class action that fits this thread as it involves more than one or two families, if it proceeds.
Here are the results our Advocacy group has achieved thus far not counting not having to pay legal fees which helps DRI as well. DRI has been responsive and has responded appropriately every now and then. Of course not as frequently as we would like.
75 Inquiries for assistance 55 Formal interventions complaints filed or assisted with
$xxx,xxx resulting loan cancellations and refunds posted on our closed group
Reasons for 75 complaints
34 Sold by deception and bait and switch 09 Barclaycard upsell/predatory lending 02 30 cents to convert to MF relief (non-existent program) 06 Switch back from HI to US Collection or vice versa 06 Maintenance fees increases 02 Survivor benefit program (non-existent as already available) 08 Bought more points told it was the only way to exit the timeshare 08 Lack of Availability
Irene P.