POLICE ACTION IN SPAIN – YOUR HELP REQUIRED

Dear Owner,

Towards the end of January, the Spanish police raided the offices of Global Vacations Limited, a marketing company selling Club Class Concierge holiday club membership, arresting sixteen people on suspicion of fraud.

Victims of this alleged fraud will have been approached by resale company ETOO telling them that a buyer had been found for their points or week. They would have been told that the transaction would have to be concluded in person in Malaga. Once there the owners were met by Global Vacations Limited representatives who try to sell them Club Class Concierge membership. This may well have been alongside a cash-back offer through CashBack Europe Plc.

To assist the authorities in Spain with their investigations, evidence is now required from timeshare owners and the purpose of this email is to call on OTE members to inform their staff, post messages on their websites or their newsletters to encourage as many victims as possible come forward. A case can only be built up if sufficient evidence is provided!

In this instance, rather than forwarding complaints to OTE’s enforcement team in Spain, we have been informed that evidence should be sent to the complainant’s local European Consumer Centre, details of which can be found on the ECC website http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/redress_cons/docs/ecc_network_centers.pdf

Photocopies of all documents, a brief statement providing details about their case and photocopies of proof of payments made should be provided.

UK based consumers should send their complaints to:

European Consumer Centre

1 Sylvan Court, Sylvan Way

Southfields Business Park

Basildon

Essex SS15 6TH

Tel: 08456 04 05 03, Fax: 08456 08 96 00, email: ecc@tsi.org.uk

February 12, 2009 · Filed under Club Bena Vista, El Marques, Lanzarote, Las Brisas, Las Casitas, Las Rosas, Los Claveles, News, Sueno Azul

  • Mrs Dot Coppack

    Hi there,
    Thanks for this e-mail concerning Global Vacations. We too are going to Malaga with them in June this year. We have told them that under no circumstances are we selling our time share at Los Claveles.
    We have paid them £99 for accomodation at Miraflores Club House and restaurant, but have got our own flights.
    We have been on a number of these holidays before. We do have to give them half a day for their hard sell meeting.
    We have had various reactions to our refusal, from extreme rudeness, to throwing papers around and them having a tantrum and storming out.
    Hope we will be ok!
    See you all in two weeks.
    Dot

  • John Jackson

    I have not been involved with Global Marketing but we were ‘caught’ by a similar scam by Elite Travel in Tenerife,
    We enjoyed a cheap holiday at Golf Le Sur and after a meeting paid £3950 for membership of Club Class Concierge,
    Although we have yet to use Club Class we have no quarrel with them
    Our complaint was with Elite Travel who promised our money back after 51 months. We never received the Voucher from Reclaim. We got no satisfaction from Elite Travel and the matter is now in the hands of the ombudsman as NatWest have
    refused to honour their obligation under the Consumer Credit Act.

  • heatherarmstrong

    we have been approached by this company who were very demanding on the phone and said they could offer us the best deal on our time share. this was if we signed up on the night they rang and we paid a fee to go ahead. we declined the offer as we had already booked for tenerife for jan and we could not finance another so quickly. needless to say we have not been contacted again.

  • Evelyn Byrne

    We made the foolish mistake of paying Club Class £8,000 a few years ago to join their ‘so called’ superior holiday vacation club with the promise of a reclaim a couple of years later which never materialised. It was via a ticket tout in Tenerife and we had to pay £4,000 on the day and the remainder when we got home which we did, thinking we had got a great deal. We were very badly let down by Club Class when we took a holiday in Bali and we never used them again as a result. We were then contacted in 2004 by a company called Key Property Advisory who offered to take them to court with a whole host of clients who had fallen for the same trick having paid various different amounts. Well would you believe it we were foolish enough (again) to pay them for their services and they have never done anything on our behalf – fobbed us off every time we made contact. We must have had ‘mugs’ written on our faces on both ocassions!
    So please be advised do not pay any money up front to any company who offer to take Club Class to court unless you are absolutely sure they are bona fide.
    As you have guessed we have now given up and conclude that we have lost our down payment but very happy RCI members!

  • Geoff Fildes

    Well i was stupid enough to get caught 3 times each time I was told I would be helped through and everything would work out. We lost about £13.000 altogether. By Global world Travel andIncentive Leisure Group I hae all the paperwork but can get no help on it.Cashback does not pay up . I claime in December for £11,000 went through the procedure correctly received aletter saying all was correct and i am still waiting for payment … Incentive Leisure are now operating in UK they get in contact by using acompany called Transglobal Holiday services who offer to give you legal assistance if you take all paperworwork certs and deeds with you to there branch. When we arrived we were shocked to find Incentive Leisure Offices we were quickly shown the door after a confrontation with the manager… These offices are I Manor Road Walton upon Thames Surrey We have tried the Daily Mirror and Trading Standards but no-one seems all that interested. And still stuck with unwanted timeshare as we now trust no-one

  • http://www.bestessays.ca/ buy essay

    That stories are terrible! How could thus happened?

  • tracey

    I too have bought into cheap holidays..the company is clubclass.
    we also encountered rudeness when we refused to go to their meeting on our last holiday…we didn’t recieve what we were supposed to..

    then i was contacted by a company called keypropertyadvisory.com to get our money back..

    i am embarrassed to say i put up 680 euro’s up front it was about 18 months ago..

    in the past couple of weeks clubclass heve asked if i want to sell..i refused.

    this week keypropertyadvisory.com have rung saying i got a court date but they need another 320 euro’s i will copy/paste the email

    Re Contract: 106014
    Dear Mr Mrs Greenway

    We are duly informing you that Fuengirola Servicios and Key Properties Town Advisory are preparing to present a Denuncia for presumptive fraud, on behalf of our clients against the following companies:
    Club Class Holidays, Club Class Holdings, Club Class Concierge, Club Class Corporation, Club Class International, Club Class Alliance and the various marketing companies they used to promote their holiday products.
    After trying to reach a successful out of court settlement on behalf of our clients, we find that the defendants concerned are unwilling to reach this agreement with us.
    The lawyer; Mr Tovar Oliver Hernandez Riverol Lic. Nº 5991 has now drawn up the necessary paperwork for this Denuncia and it will be lodged with the Headquarters of the National Police Force in Fuengirola and Málaga respectively.
    In order for you to be included in this Denuncia, we need the following from you – if you have NOT already sent it to us.
    1. The original documentation sent to you by Club Class and the marketing company or if this is not possible a copy.
    2. The proof of payment made to the marketing company, being a Credit Card / Bank Statement or the counterfoil they sent to you.
    3. The anticipated provision of funds for the lawyers to present this Denuncia will be 320 €

    In the case of not having kept the Credit Card or Bank Statement, you may send this to us at a later stage when the Bank issues you with it.
    We have enclosed a letter of refusal should you decide not to proceed with this Denuncia.

    Yours sincerely,

    Marcelo Ramírez
    Director

    i don’t trust anyone anymore and have been well and truly conned

  • Brian Moodie

    Three or four years ago (can’t be sure as I wrote off the experience in disgust) I responded to an ad I found in an inflight mag for ETOO to sell my time share weeks. I paid just over £500 (returnable as part of the sale) to register the weeks with a guarantee of a “private or corporate sale” within 12 months. Just before the twelve month limit I was told there was a buyer and another £800 was required for admin costs etc. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to pay but I did. Then I was invited to travel to Spain to complete the deal in person. Thankuflly at that stage I got wise. Later I was offered a “bond” for £3600, which was redeemable after 36 months of passing ownership of my weeks to ETOO or one ove their associated companies. I backed off at this point and put it down to a lesson well learnt.

  • june

    does anyone know a phil bird? working out of tenerife was associated with club class@ please contsct me if you know him, many thanks

  • patricia lane

    we brought a hoilday in 2004 from incentive leisure with apromise of cash back in five years but we have heard nothing from them

  • tracey

    I am still getting calls asking if i want to sell my holiday membership i’m getting calls every other week i keep say NO!
    i even got a call two days in a row asking to sell.just ten minutes ago i got my usual weekly call asking if i want to sell.when do they actually give up.they had enough money out of me already.i even told one phone operator that i know i am being conned thinking they would leave me alone but they dnt seem to be bothered are they above the law?

  • http://www.lawbird.com Lawbird

    Hello

    Anyone wanting to join a case against the person behind KPTA, Fuengirola Servicios and Ramirez and Ramirez, please get in touch with us on http://www.lawbird.com/services/contact.

    I think it’s time that someone stops this gentleman, who believes he can continue deveiving people with total impunity: http://belegal.com/blog-by-antonio-flores/ramirez-and-ramirez-hires-andalucia-biggest-law-firm-to-protect-their-activities/ .

    Regards

  • D. S. Henderson

    We too have been contacted by KPTA in the last two years, about a “Class Action” and a “Denuncia” both requiring money up-front, for action to be taken against Club Class, TENSLANZ, etc. Still have received NO luck in receiving any money back through this company!

  • Alison

    I am in the process of claiming my parents £5,000 back. I am not hopeful of getting it but feel so angry that they pounced on my 80 year old parents and took complete advantage but being a really friendly guy.

    If I don’t get it for them I will pursue whatever routes possible. Any advice would be very much appreciate. I live in Canada and my parents live in UK.

  • vincent booton

    duped big time by club class paid £6000 for membership holidays we want never available and they want £50 a year for admin i will not pay it after 5 years supposed to have tour money back what a joke ive heard this company is in america and they have been taken to court and ordered to pay back millions there is talk of a company in europe who are building a case against club class if i find out i will let you know

  • L Jackson

    We were already members of club class and they arranged a cheap holiday for us in Tenerife for us to meet their rep and offer feed back.
    We were met and taken to AFS concierge offices and told about a new membership offering seven weeks dreamstay holidays anywhere of our choice in Europe and free flights along with a cash back scheme. we were assured over and over again the details were genuine until we fell for it. Seems flights are to the value of £50 and the holidays are limited ‘freestay’ and not the standard offered. Cash back is not to the value promised and I’ll be amazed if anything is forthcoming. The club class website also disappoints as the discounts are nothing like was suggested. I have no idea the first step to take against them and feel angry and rather stupid. The experience has cost us £8000. Seems we are not alone though. Can’t we compaign in numbers to stop them!

  • steve

    I too parted with £2456.00 to supposedly upgrade my holiday membership with club class holdays. I was meant to give a further £5600.00 as part of a cash back scheme, but after reading other peoples experiences i can see ive been fooled! I feel stupid but grateful to have been warned.

  • M White

    No fool like an old fool, so they say, joined Club Class concierge in aug 2004, only managed to get one holiday so far, not what was descibed, can only say the hotel was the pits, met up with reps, who sweet talked me into taking a platimum membership for another £3,500 on top of the £5900 previously paid, scammed big time, have been unable to obtain a holiday when suitable to me, plenty of off peaks available till you try to book, they suddenly become unavailable, have also sent my “cash back” reward scheme, fully completed in January this year and would you adam and eve it, the paperwork was returned this week, ripped to shreds and in an envelope marked returned to sender. Got on to Post Office as this was sent registered as requested, again told that the paperwork had been successfully delivered to Gibralter and signed for. No one will take the blame for the torn paperwork and now ive been told that because of this the cashback cannot be claimed. thats what i call a 7 year itch that just wont clear up

  • M White

    can anyone tell me if they have successfully sued club class concierge for the return of their cash and who they used to do this, I would be really interested to know. thanks

  • Kath Wilson

    We joined CCC in March 2008 after they “took on” our Diamond Resorts Membership. We paid a considerable sum of money for the priviledge and are still being hassled by Diamond for unpaid fees! We too, like M White, have had our claim for cashback declined as they say we have not conformed to the t & c, i.e. we did not send our documents to them to complete the registration stage 3 years ago! We are unable to find the proof of posting given at the time but after reading M White’s experience, I don’t think it would’ve made a great deal of difference! As we feel this product was mis-sold, our only hope of receiving any “cashback” is to try and claim a refund from our credit card company, who we paid the initial deposit through, under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. Has anyone gone down this route? Any comments welcome. Thanks.

  • Raymond Hughes

    I require information regarding Club Class Holidays, Global Travel Concepts and ETOO. I Need to find out if any of these companies are in any way linked either under a company umberella or by a family relationship or any other type of relationship. I am at present attempting to win back my fees from the credit card company under section 75 of the consumer credit act, but must establish a link to these companies

  • mandy

    i have just paid 8000 to club class in may, through tescos finance. i still have all my receipts on how we paid. is this a con? they told me id get 7 free holidays/pls tell me ive not been conned.. i am a single parent. surely tescos finance will be able to help us.. please help me after reading these comments i feel very ill.