Sellers beware, you too can be victims of Mexico timeshare frauds

Buyers were definitely told to be on the back foot while dealing with an unknown agency for buying timeshares due to the fear of being trapped in a Mexico timeshare fraud. However, there has been an evolution of sorts in these scams, much to the disadvantage of the other party of course. Now, even those who are interested in selling timeshares are potential targets of fraudulent agencies who are experts in duping the person owning the timeshare and snatching it away from him for less than half the price!

These companies have their own means of finding out who is interested in selling timeshares, and then approach him most often through phone, and sometimes through mail as well. The most common trait of such Mexico timeshare fraud schemers is that they pose as an agency that looks after the rights of timeshare sellers. Let me tell you upfront, there is NO such agency. And even if there be a legitimate body of the same, simply ask them that you want to visit their branch office and website. If neither of the two is available, you can be sure that it is a fraud. Other signs include they asking you for a joining fee, guaranteeing a sale in return, promising you the best rates and then selling you a lemon, and so on. Beware of such offers; they can trick you into losing thousands before you know it!

What to expect in Mexico – Personal injury legal hassles

Very often, while travelling to foreign lands, personal injuries are not an uncommon incident, even though they are always avoided, as in one’s own country. But the main problem that happens with the same occurring in a foreign land is that while in your home country you will have health insurance and all the legal benefits of your attorney, the same does not happen in exotic countries like Mexico. Personal injury attorneys are thus very important to make sure that you do not pay for someone else’s mistake. 

The most common personal injury disputes happen in case of road accidents, slip and fall and similar incidents when two or more parties are involved. Generally, a mutual consensus is reached upon by everyone, and the expenses are shared. However, when that does not happen, you need personal injury lawyers, to ensure that the ones responsible for the accident are held accountable. There are many kinds of legal hassles that are involved, with both the parties blaming each other mainly because of an initial instinct to avoid taking the blame, and also to protect oneself from the possible fine and compensation in case their guilt is proven. A good Mexico personal injury attorney makes sure that you get the best protection while travelling to the exotic land by giving you sound advice over the course of action to be followed, as there are different laws in each country, with even some cities having their own modifications in the same as per their jurisdiction.

So, the next time you are off to exotic destinations like Mexico, a personal injury lawyer’s contact details must be on your list of things to pack!

Importance of purchasing timeshares from reputed companies

 Now that we know all the common types of Mexico timeshare frauds, it’s time to emphasise on the need of signing timeshares only with companies that are recognised and known for a certain time period. This minimises the chances of you falling for fraudulent activities significantly. Following are the reasons why:

• The first advantage of signing a timeshare with a recognised company is that you can be sure that there are a high number of present as well as former clients of the same, since if that was not the case, the company would have long been in the news, and would have easily been blacklisted by regulatory authorities.
• Another aspect, as an extension of the first point, is that the company would obviously be having an office with a contact person whom you can get in touch with. In case he does not pick up your calls, which is what generally happens in case of Mexico timeshare frauds, you can easily approach him face to face. This is obviously not possible in case of a small scale company, since many of them, genuine or otherwise, don’t even have an office.
• Thirdly, established companies would not have tricky clauses or terms and conditions that can rob you of money in their contracts. Although it is always advised to check the contract thoroughly before going ahead with the payment, the chances are significantly lower in case of established companies.

Types of Mexico timeshare frauds – Part III

These kinds of frauds are exclusively (pun intended) for those who have landed at the Mexican airport without any prior travel arrangements, with the idea that they would get accommodation by searching around hotels. This is most often seen in the slack season, but since quite a few people have this notion, the slack season also does not remain so for the hotels, as well as the fraudulent companies.

 This ‘airport fraud’ is mostly occurring with couples, wherein personnel of different companies would offer free lunch, dinner or sight-seeing just for you to sit through a small presentation. As is the case with everyone, you might think that this is just a publicity stunt, and that it’s no big deal for a hotel to provide free lunch/dinner at the prospect of having more guests. However, this is not the case when we are talking about Mexico timeshare frauds. You would be taken to a room where you will have to sit through a 3-hour long presentation, which would basically be about timeshares and their benefits. The catch here is that the speakers of this presentation would be so well trained in convincing you that this is the right thing to do, that you would truly feel that timeshares are a great thing!

 Following this, you would be asked (rather forced) to sign a timeshare contract, where they would also ask you for your credit card no. and SSN number, the only LEGITIMATE thing in the entire process, as happens with every hotel. But even this would be for their benefit. After this, they could either send you to a cheap property, thus closing another chapter in their long list of Timeshare frauds in Mexico, or they could open up a new line of credit under your name, which could set you back by thousands of dollars! Easily, this is the worst kind of timeshare fraud, and one must avoid such presentations at all costs.

Types of Mexico timeshare frauds – Part II

 Continuing on the thread I had started in my last post, the next in line are ‘travel agent’ frauds. As mentioned in the previous post, the primary source of getting information for fraudulent companies is the telephone. Another vital part of their so-called strategy is e-mail addresses, which the main tool of trapping an innocent traveller in case of ‘travel agent ‘frauds. I have had a couple of friends who have been victims, but were thankfully saved by Mexico attorneys, who were contacted just in time to save the day.

What happens in this situation is that you get an e-mail or a phone call encouraging you to become a travel agent as there are lots of freebies and other monetary benefits which you can easily get. Of course, this is given as a part time occupation, and you are told that you can earn big money by just investing 1-2 hours of your free time every day, or for some days a week. The only prerequisite is that you have to pay a joining fees, which is of course where the catch lies, since there is no travel agency, and certainly no timeshare slots and properties to sell. Further, there is also a possibility that you would have to pay more than the money, since the company might have you helping them in duping other people without your knowledge, which could obviously land you up in jail. Of course, you would not know that you are involved in illegal activities as you would be thinking that you are earning points for availing freebies or an additional income. This is where sound legal advice can come handy, and consulting a good Mexico attorney can certainly help in a big way when it comes to saving your skin in case you are already trapped.