I am writing this letter to give others hope against a company that has been conducting fraud in Fort Mill for years. These guys are professionals at scamming innocent consumers out of their hard earned cash! Here are a couple of red flags that you should note when you walk in the door. I am giving you this information as a form of hope and to help put these scam artists out of business once and for all.
1. No Computers anywhere in the office
2. Offers sound too good to be true and it is.
3. Promise access to properties that they know they will have a hard time getting
4. NOTHING IS GUARANTEED
5. Their contract promises nothing in return for what you are paying.
6. They front themselves as a Condo Sales office to make consumers believe they have recourse after the sale. SC does not consider them a Timeshare, therefore they are not regulated and Article 38 does not apply.
7. They make you sign a No Cancelation Policy
8. They use an invalid BBB accreditation to lure you into believing they are legitimate. They are not ... It is a lie ... and they are a scam. The BBB is a tool that many of these company's try to use to make them look legitimate.
Our story begins with getting a "Free Trip Offer" in the mail. Now I know I have seen several of these in the mail and thrown them out and I should have again but honestly, we thought we would just try it to see what this whole thing was about. We have been to other legitimate Timeshare sales and 1 day, we may look into something like Disney or Hilton but for now, it is not apart of our 10 year plan. Anyway, we were told all about this awesome place in Myrtle Beach that we could get for a fraction of the cost we normally pay during prime season. They make everything look incredible. The problem is that no one can get the properties. You end of adjusting your vacation time frames to their availability - this is not convenient and it was very shady in how they represented this information. You don't find these details out until you go home and do a simple search on these scam artists. They say they can save you money on hotels too but this is also a lie ... they don't get you any better deals than what is on expedia or Travelocity.
After coming home and being excited about the possibilities, I started to see how we would be able to reserve the property in Myrtle Beach. Well, you can't online and everything I was seeing on their property list was gross, had awful reviews, and would be a place I would not send my worst enemy to in many instances. The site is an ancient relic from 1999. I felt bamboozled. I had been taken for a schmuck - OR SO THEY THOUGHT. I then started looking into the reviews of this place online and discovered the many lies that they had told. The red flags were everywhere.
These scam artists are very good at what they do. Dressed in their fancy suits, trying to look legitimate while spewing lies in every other sentence, but be warned. This is a prime example of a wolf in sheep's clothing. They will play hardball to keep your hard earned cash. I followed these steps to get my money back. And just so you know, we paid $6995 for their 4 week package.
So then it was my time to act. Here are the steps you need to take to defeat these jackwagons.
KEEP YOUR COOL - do not get angry or they win. You think better with a cool head.
ACT QUICK - Time is on your side. The quicker you react, the better chance you have at beating them.
Contact your Credit Card Company and file a dispute IMMEDIATELY - Claim they are Frauds and you thought you were buying a timeshare.
Go to the website Office of Consumer Affairs with SC and File an online Dispute
Call the local authorities in Fort Mill. The York County Police Department and File charges against them for Fraud.
File a claim with the Federal Trade Commission against them for Fraud.
Call the BBB and file a complaint. They won't do anything about it but it will be recorded online.
BE VIGILANT with the cancelation and Dispute Process. It will be long because they will fight it with as much vigor as they used to sell you your fake timeshare.
Use Article 38 as a means to cancel their fake contract. I sent them all within 5 days of the presentation
b. Write a thorough Response of why you thought this was a timeshare as apart of the documentation for the 1st round of information for the dispute.
c. DO NOT GET UPSET when Grand Discovery fights the dispute and 1st chargeback. They will lie and use anything against you to make them look legitimate. STAY THE COURSE. Keep Fighting. IT is worth it in the end!
d. Take a few days to calm down and then start writing your second response for chargeback. I also will share this letter with you if you need it to help you save your time with fighting these jackwagons.
e. Grand Discovery has their merchant account with First Citizens Bank. Contact Virginia with their Fraud and Risk department and file a complaint against them. virginia.gill@firstcitizens.com
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