Cumbira natives Marilyn and Reginald bought a membership of Palm Oasis Club while on holiday in Gran Canaria 25 years ago. The couple felt pressured into making a decision on the day. They remember being given false and misleading information about how they would be able to use the product.
“We were with our daughter and her fiancé at the time, who were getting married in 2001. We kept telling them we were not interested in buying a timeshare but they kept on and on,” says Marilyn.
“They did make it look like a good thing and asked our daughter when she was getting married. They said she would be able to have a honeymoon of a lifetime using their exchange system, also showing some amazing holiday destinations. This did not happen when the time came as when we tried to book something there was nothing available that was suitable. They therefore had to book a honeymoon, last minute, through the travel agent.”
Over the years it became more and more inconvenient to use the timeshare that they were locked into. “Grandkids came along, and Reg became ill. We just knew we were not going to be able to use it,” says Marilyn.
Fed up with paying annual fees for a product that no longer worked for them, the couple got in touch with European Consumer Claims (ECC) for help.
“We went to a meeting in Sterling with a lady called Ellie. She explained that we would be eligible for compensation and we trusted her. These days we probably would have been a bit more careful, I mean there are scammers around, aren’t there?
“Luckily for us we made the right choice with ECC. This whole process took a lot longer than anyone expected. But ECC and M1 Legal, to their everlasting credit, never gave up. Now, seven years later, the award of several thousand pounds has finally come through.
“We are really grateful to ECC for never giving up. And in particular to Mark Jobling who managed the final part of the process for us.”
Expert comment
“These days claims are generally resolved much more swiftly,” notes Greg Wilson, CEO of ECC. “Back in 2017 we were breaking new ground and timeshare resorts were resisting more. These days legal precedents have been established that mean it is not worth the time and expense for timeshare companies to fight the inevitable. “
“There remains a huge amount of people who bought timeshare in Spain or the Spanish islands (Canaries, Balearics etc) who bought under duress, or false pretences who have the right to financial compensation.
“Those people would be well advised to seek expert advice.“
