SCAM! This will be long,as I want you all to know why YOU NEED TO STAY AWAY FROM THIS SCAM.
My bf and I went to Sheraton Brooklyn NY Hotel for Sears Vacations presentation on Feb 25,2017.The visit promised us to a guaranteed free vacation, a $25 Sears card,a $100 restaurant.com coupon + potentially sweet deal leading us into a world of cheap(er) vacations! After a presentation by a Sears Regional Manager named Mindy, each couple (4-5) was seated at a separate table for a more detailed presentation and questions.We were glad to get Mindy,as she was a manager, so we thought she was more qualified and will give us complete answers to all questions. WRONG! SHE ENDED UP BEING A TOTAL LIAR - but first things first.
We were indecisive, so we asked a LOT of questions.Mindy was smiley in the beginning, but with every further question that smile faded away.It was getting late (+it was pouring that evening) and it was over three hours since we came there. After long discussions, and more questions Mindy said that if still undecided, we can cancel this membership at any time.I asked her if we can think about it and give her the answer later next week. She said NO, that if we want this membership and all the perks that come with it, we need to sign up today, and then if we change our mind we can cancel anytime.I asked her if there is a penalty for cancelation and if we get all our money back. She said that there is no penalty,and that we will get all our money if we have not used any of their services. She said that if we ended up taking a trip and decided to cancel after, the full market price of this trip will be deducted from us and (1)either the difference will be returned to us, or (2)we will have to pay out of our pocket, as the price of the trip could be higher than our combined monthly payments (which makes sense).
So we decided to sign up, and do the math at home after being given a Direct Access to their trips,and decide to ourselves if we want to continue our membership.We read the contract and signed it. Interesting enough (as it looked to us then),it did not mention cancellation terms,so we asked Mindy about it, and she said "I promise you that you can cancel anytime".This seemed to be very odd, as this has to be in the contract and not be given as a promise.But stupidly enough, we took her word for it.
After a month of research, we decided that we do not want this membership because it is not as cheap as it seemed, and that there are a lot of hidden fees which overall make a trip even more expensive than buying it from any other travel website (like Expedia).So I called them on March 20th and requested to cancel. Worth mentioning that when you call them, they don't have a phone option to cancel your membership or even speak about your account - all choices are for potential/existing trips, so it's hard to get to cancellations dept. The lady I spoke to tried to convince me not to cancel it, and got a bit rude after she realized that there is nothing that can change my mind.She told me that it will take up to 10 business days for the cancelation to be in effect. On April 5 (16 days later),I called Sears Vacations to find out about my refund as I did not hear anything from them, not even an email. However I did notice that they blocked my Direct Access.
So after 30 mins of back and forth with a travel agent and the finance dept rep, I finally got to the right person in Cancellations (Stephanie (Gutierrez?) ext#4019). She told me that we do not qualify for a refund as my contract states that we only have three days to cancel, she told me where to find it on the contract and indeed, after I looked at it again it does say on the other side of a signature page in tiny letters, almost like a watermark that we only have THREE DAYS TO SEND A CANCELLATION REQUEST VIA MAIL. I told her that Mindy who signed me up told me that I could cancel at anytime without any penalty to which she said that this is not a penalty.I said that Mindy told me that I will get my total refund unless I do take a trip and I never did, to which the rep told me that this contract overrules any oral promises. WHAT?!! They even outline this in their contract that all promises given to you are nothing! So I asked her how can a legit representative of your company lie me in my face and you are now justifying it, to which she said that she understands my frustration and that I should've read the contract better! I honestly have no words to describe this company.
I told her that I need my total refund, otherwise I will report to BBB, post negative reviews in all social media and go to the small claims court to fight for my money.She then said that she will contact NY Sales division for a refund request, and will call me back within the next two days. Of course she never did-so I called myself, but it was impossible to get to her as she was always busy and I was told by another rep that she will call me back, which never happened.
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