FLORIDA — An elderly couple claims they were duped by a major timeshare company and ended up facing a surprise bill of over $50,000.
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As reported on News Center 7 Daybreak, the timeshare was fully paid for when two men showed up with a new offer.
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Right on the water at the Sea Club IV Resort in Daytona Beach Shores, Florida, Sandy and Joseph “George” Parks had the perfect place to enjoy their timeshare.
Sandy told our sister station, WFTV in Orlando, that her parents originally bought it years ago and fully paid for it.
“We actually enjoyed it back when we had no money to take the kids on vacation; they would give us their week,” she said.
Now, in their golden years, they still enjoyed it. So much so that they were intrigued when two men from Capital Vacations suggested a change.
According to Parks, the salesmen told them they could trade out their week for points. It would be a move that would offer more options and flexibility to check out other Capital Vacations resorts.
“They made it sound like this is great. You know, you’re just switching your week to points,” she said.
The couple stated that they were bombarded with information, and despite a lengthy presentation, there was high pressure to sign documents quickly.
“But never once did they say that there was going to be any cost involved,” said Parks.
WFTV’s Jeff Pearl says it wasn’t until weeks later that a surprise bill arrived that made them take another look at their contract. It turned out it was to buy additional timeshares for more than $55,000.
“And we about fell out of our seat. We could not believe it,” said Parks.
Not only did that, but the couple also claimed that the sales agents entered false income information to make it appear as if they made more than they do to get them qualified for credit cards to start paying on their new timeshares.
Pearl said Capital Vacations got just over a 1-star rating on Yelp, with several reviews and warnings when dealing with the company.
Some warnings include:
- “they will FLAT OUT LIE to you.”
- “Horrible. Liars. Do not trust capital vacations... they will lie and tell you anything to get you to buy.”
- “Their salespeople are deceitful, and their contract does not align with what was verbally promised.”
WFTV took those concerns from both the consumers and Parks to Capital Vacations.
The company said, “Thank you for reaching out regarding this matter. At this time, we do not have a comment. However, should something change, we will reach out. Thank you.”
It leaves the Parks stuck with a $55,000 bill they say they can’t afford. The couple believes that Capital Vacations took advantage of their trust and age.
“I don’t know how they could live with themselves. I don’t know how they could sleep at night doing this to people,” Parks said.
They said people should always know everything they are signing.
Their contract was 27-pages long.
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