This is the letter I sent to my Mayan palace timeshare that made it possible for
me to back out of my contract - even after the 5 day limit. - - I
will replace the name of the timeshare with "my Mayan palace".
Request for Cancellation of my Mayan palace Vacation Club Agreement CRPxxxx Dated xxx 28th, 2004
04/07/04
Membership Services
Desarrollo Marina Village
dba xxxxx Resorts
PO Box 27701-464
Houston TX 77227
We are hereby requesting cancellation of my Mayan palace Vacation Club
Agreement CRP xxxx since it was based on illegal sales practices and
fraudulent information.
We arrived at my Mayan palace in the Riviera Maya on XXX 27th, 2004
through an RCI exchange and attended a timeshare sales presentation on
Sunday XXX 28th.
We previously owned two weeks of time each year at the Casa Maya in
Cancun purchased in 1995, and one week each year at Morritt’s Tortuga in
the Grand Caymans purchased in 1997. We have had wonderful experiences
with these two timeshares and I have been to Mexico each year since
1995. But, we explained to our Mayan Palace sales representative, Troy
Bolden, we actually had more timeshare weeks than vacation. Troy showed
us how owning at the Mayan Palace was actually good financial
investment. We purchased.
I am hereby requesting you to rescind our contract since it was based on
illegal sales practices and fraudulent information:
1) I was told I had to waive my right to rescind to take advantage of an
Equity Exchange. In fact, I discovered that by Mexican law, this right
can not be waived.
We actually sold our Casa Maya timeshare to the Mayan Palace for 9,700
and then was allowed to purchase the time share back for $1. The Mayan
Palace could then take could take the loss on their taxes, and it would
reduce of cost on my Mayan palace timeshare.
Because of this "Equity Exchange Agreement" we had to waive our right to
any cancellation or cool down periods. I even said "why don’t I get the
normal 3-5 days" and Troy Bolden explained to me we must waive this
right due to our great "Exchange Agreement" and using that agreement was
not under the same rules. We were asked to initial section 12, General
Provisions, of the Recitals page stating we were told we waived our
cancellation period; I would like to point out that the other 11 items
on the Recital pages did not require initials. My husband and I also
recall signing a separate waiver agreement, but a copy of that page was
not in our documentation package.
At the end of our visit when we were given copies of all of our
documents by Members Services Representative, Kathy Kingsley, who again
repeated that we have waived our cancellation period because that was
not an option with our "Equity Agreement". Troy Bolden even stated again
that when I walk out of the sales office, my account will become active
and I cannot cancel the agreement.
And although I had a few sleepless Mexican nights in the days that
followed worrying that I could trust what I was told in the
presentation, it was stated very clearly by both Troy and Kathy that I
could not cancel. If I thought I had the right to cancel I would have
done some internet research from Mexico and if what I was told in the
sales presentation on value and rental prices was not accurate, I would
have cancelled.
When I returned home from vacation and reviewed my documents (7 days
after signing the agreement) I noticed I did not have the waiver, and
just had initials next to number 12 on the Recital that says I did have
5 days to cancel. That seamed odd. Then upon doing some research, I
discovered on www.teimesharebeat.com/mex-fraud.htm that the cancellation
rights can not be waived according to Mexican law. I was intentionally
lied to, to make me believe I could not cancel this contract, (thus my
actual rescission period would expire).
This item alone is reason to grant a cancellation of the agreement. This
practice is illegal. I am also in contact with several other people that
have been placed in the same or similar situations.
2) I was told that a one week rental of a 2 bedroom unit was renting for
$2500. Splitting the units would result to the same amount. Actually,
weeks like this are renting for $500 at the Time Share User Group
website, and Ebay has units for $650. (Maintenance fees alone are $569
plus one maintenance fee each five years for new furniture making it a
loss basis just on maintenance fees.)
Troy also said that members were getting great rental prices out of
Resorts Int’l Marketing which was on their list of referrals. I was even
given a discount off of the timeshare base purchase price of 12,500 if I
sold my next 5 years of Value Fair weeks back to my Mayan palace. (But
now it seams odd that my contract does not mention selling the weeks
back to my Mayan palace). RCI has bonus weeks offered to my Mayan palace that is less cost than my maintenance fees. I am rechecking, but
in the past I have been told these are developer weeks. If this is the
case, my Mayan palace would be renting units at my cost.
3) I was told that the two Mazatlan weeks could be rented for $1700
each. Timeshare User group have these weeks listed for as little as $500
and you still need to pay maintenance, http://www.tug1.org/tugads/1-8dname2.html#ad26709
4) We were concerned with resale value and Troy said the value increases
because of the new resorts that are being built. He also stated that to
control prices you must use the my Mayan palace broker when selling your
time share. I discovered this is false and your account only as to be
paid up and in good standing. I also discovered an assignment fee of 10%
of purchase price to transfer assignment that was never mentioned. Ebay
recently sold a two bedroom unit for less than $6500, http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=15897&item=2389925191&rd=1
5) We purchased red weeks but it excluded Christmas, New Years, Easter,
and Holy Week. It was never discussed that the two weeks in Mazatlan
also excluded the months of February and March.
6) Even though we do not golf, Troy threw in the Golf package saying "it
would be hard to rent a timeshare without the 20% off golf package." He
failed to inform us that the Mazatlan resort does not even have a golf
coarse.
7) Troy never mentioned that once I became a Mayan palace owner I can
not trade into my Mayan palace and Grand Mayan palace resorts through RCI as I
previously could. my Mayan palace resort has placed restrictions that
current owners cannot exchange, even if I use weeks from my other
timeshares.
Excerpt from RCI listing: A MAXIMUM OF TWO UNITS PER WEEK ALLOWED PER
MEMBER ACCOUNT IN 4 YEARS *** NO CONSECUTIVE WEEKS ALLOWED*** 2ND UNIT
MUST HAVE A GUEST CERTIFICATE *** CAN NOT CONFIRM SPACE TO MY MAYAN PALACE
OR XXX XXXXXX MEMBERS **EXCEPTIONS TO THESE RULES CAN BE CANCELLED**
]RESORT ENFORCES 1/4 YR RULE]
My Mayan palace Resorts had a great reputation and I was very excited
to make my first stay with you at the Riviera Maya resort. Your resort
is beautiful and according to reviews, so are some of your other
locations. I believe you have the most impressive pool I have ever seen.
I am sure you are working on all of the recent complaints I have seen
about your sales tactics, I know you have settled some of them, and I
hope you can straiten out the remaining complaints very soon. But after
the outright fraudulent lie about the cancellation period, other lies,
half truths and omissions - your sales practices reflect on your entire
chain as being "questionable" to put it mildly.
Please grant my request to cancel agreement CRPxxxx and send me
verification of cancellation. Also please credit the $6872.00 down
payment. I will then return any original documents you so request. I
will be sending this document through the mail and carbon copy the
addresses below.
I feel it is my duty to tell you I have started a Dispute with my Visa
card, and have started a claim with the Wisconsin Attorney General
Consumer Protection Agency who will be contacting you directly in the
next few weeks.
I will also be filing a case with Profeco, Texas Attorney General, US
Dept of Justice, and the Federal Trade Commission, RCI, Travelocity,
Delta, ASTA, and a few others in the next few weeks or so.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation. I hope this unpleasant
situation will be resolved in the next few weeks.
Cc
Administrative Center
Attn International Sales
Desarrollo Marina Vallarta S.S. DE C.V
Ave Lazaro Cardenas 3422, 2 Piso
Col. Chapalita C.P. 45040
Guadalajara Jalisco, Mexico
Cc
International Sales
My
Mayan palace
Carretera Cancun – Playa Del Carmen
KM 48 Municipio Solidaridad
Q, Roo Mexico C.P. 77710
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