Most people firmly believed that the timeshare industry was one of the worst around when it came to shady companies, and it was quite incredible to see that it only became regulated following EU intervention a short while ago.
Unfortunately, that's not the end of the saga. Now, several companies have gotten around the new regulations and started to take advantage of leisure credit schemes. The fact that complaints about these schemes rose by no less than 140% last year says everything about their reputation, as we investigate just what you need to know about the modern timeshare replacement.
What are leisure credit schemes?
The difference between your standard timeshare and leisure credit schemes is minimal to say the least. While the former will guarantee you 'x' weeks every year at a set of resorts, the leisure credit scheme is a little vaguer. Instead, it just promises free or heavily discounted holidays - all of course for an initial joining fee. This fee is usually in the region of £15,000, so it's certainly no minor investment.
What are your rights?
While the above might sound perfectly acceptable, here’s the part where the leisure credit schemes take a turn for the shady. The timeshare industry has become much more reputable over the last few years, with the EU Timeshare Directive protecting anyone who purchases one. However, the nature of leisure credit schemes means that they are not covered by this and anyone who does pay for one, will not have that legal protection.
If we compare the typical leisure credit scheme to a major, regulated timeshare company, the differences are terrific. Whether it is a firm that brokers timeshares like Travel and Leisure, or one that sells them directly like Wyndham Worldwide, both are governed by the EU directive and this means that consumers are protected no matter what. It’s also the reason why the timeshare industry has practically eradicated any ‘dodgy’ companies, as it’s simply not possible to function outside of the new guidelines. Instead, leisure credit schemes almost fall into a cowboy industry and while there will always be plenty of reputable companies, some will try and bend the rules as they are only regulated by the basic Trading Standards requirements.
What can go wrong?
To answer this question bluntly, anything can go wrong. We'll instead look towards a case study that was recently published by The Guardian, although in essence this was quite a mild breach and the customer was "at least" able to cancel.
Nevertheless, it came at a cost. Having bought a leisure credit timeshare in Tenerife, two women paid out a £1,710 deposit by a debit card. There was a further balance of over £19,000 due but after experiencing a change of heart when they arrived home, they attempted to cancel. Even though the £19,000 was written off, their deposit was not refunded and this left them significantly out of pocket.
To highlight the differences between typical timeshares and leisure credit schemes again, the above would not have happened with the former. The regulations dictate that there is always a 14-day cooling off period, meaning that the women in question would have been fully entitled to a refund. Unfortunately, the pedestrian nature of this industry means that it could be some time before instances such as the above are prevented and leisure credit schemes are appropriately governed.
Unfortunately, that's not the end of the saga. Now, several companies have gotten around the new regulations and started to take advantage of leisure credit schemes. The fact that complaints about these schemes rose by no less than 140% last year says everything about their reputation, as we investigate just what you need to know about the modern timeshare replacement.
What are leisure credit schemes?
The difference between your standard timeshare and leisure credit schemes is minimal to say the least. While the former will guarantee you 'x' weeks every year at a set of resorts, the leisure credit scheme is a little vaguer. Instead, it just promises free or heavily discounted holidays - all of course for an initial joining fee. This fee is usually in the region of £15,000, so it's certainly no minor investment.
What are your rights?
While the above might sound perfectly acceptable, here’s the part where the leisure credit schemes take a turn for the shady. The timeshare industry has become much more reputable over the last few years, with the EU Timeshare Directive protecting anyone who purchases one. However, the nature of leisure credit schemes means that they are not covered by this and anyone who does pay for one, will not have that legal protection.
If we compare the typical leisure credit scheme to a major, regulated timeshare company, the differences are terrific. Whether it is a firm that brokers timeshares like Travel and Leisure, or one that sells them directly like Wyndham Worldwide, both are governed by the EU directive and this means that consumers are protected no matter what. It’s also the reason why the timeshare industry has practically eradicated any ‘dodgy’ companies, as it’s simply not possible to function outside of the new guidelines. Instead, leisure credit schemes almost fall into a cowboy industry and while there will always be plenty of reputable companies, some will try and bend the rules as they are only regulated by the basic Trading Standards requirements.
What can go wrong?
To answer this question bluntly, anything can go wrong. We'll instead look towards a case study that was recently published by The Guardian, although in essence this was quite a mild breach and the customer was "at least" able to cancel.
Nevertheless, it came at a cost. Having bought a leisure credit timeshare in Tenerife, two women paid out a £1,710 deposit by a debit card. There was a further balance of over £19,000 due but after experiencing a change of heart when they arrived home, they attempted to cancel. Even though the £19,000 was written off, their deposit was not refunded and this left them significantly out of pocket.
To highlight the differences between typical timeshares and leisure credit schemes again, the above would not have happened with the former. The regulations dictate that there is always a 14-day cooling off period, meaning that the women in question would have been fully entitled to a refund. Unfortunately, the pedestrian nature of this industry means that it could be some time before instances such as the above are prevented and leisure credit schemes are appropriately governed.