Complaint Review: Holiday Inn Club Vacations

In March of 2012 my husband was talked in a deal with Holiday Inn Vacation Club in Orlando at Orange Lake Resort.  We got three nights at a Holiday Inn for $199 to be returned if we would listen to a presentation.  At the time. My husband was preparing for retirement and we really did not know what we wanted to do since we were in transition at the time.  We knew that we were tired of the cold KY winters.   At the presentation, they told us if we purchased a week at the Orange Lake River Timeshare we could use the points and stay at other RCI locations and Holiday Inn Vacation Club location on the ocean or gulf during the cold weather months (December thru April).  They told us for our points of 191,000, we could stay on the beach for four or five weeks by just paying the booking fee and we could use their specials to stay even longer.  We trusted this company because it is Holiday Inn, and my husband has been a Priority Club Member for years.  They took advantage of our situation since we were very stressed out about retiring.  

 I told them that Orlando was not a place I would use very often because we are beach people.  They quoted us a price and we said "NO" but they kept at it and came back and made another offer.  Someone had just let a two bedroom go and bought a three bedroom or so we were told.  We asked if they could resale it if we later decided that this was not something that we wanted to keep.  We were told by our salesperson that they would resale it for a 30% commission. So we thought OK we can sell it back to them if it doesn't work out.  We had to take it right that minute with no time to think it over and research it.   (It was verbal, not in writing by our representative.)

We thought with value going up, we could get a large part of our $34,000 investment back or least within the $25,000 range.  When I inquired about selling it back to them, I was told that they have not done resells since 2008.  They gave me the name of Timeshares Only.  I contacted this company and contracted with them 11/5/14 for $299 since Orange Lake recommended it.  NO LUCK selling the timeshare and we have lowered price already to $28,000 OBO.  So far at almost 6 months NO takers.

They give you 10 days to refuse, but you do not know how they operate until you really try and use it for the propose you purchased it for.  (They do not tell you that you have 10 days to refuse.)  This info is in the back of your Purchase Agreement.  They pressure and lie to hook you without giving time to think about it.  Since we retired, we are on a fixed income and the fees we pay for this product is dishonest.   I went to book a trip for our 25th anniversary at an all-inclusive resort through RCI.  By the time you give them your points, booking fee, $160 per day per person And pay air fare, you can book for less at a better location through the web.   

We really did not try and book the winter months until the fall of 2013 because my husband, Jack,  was retiring on December 31, 2013.   This is when we found out that what we were sold was not actually accurate.   We can book Orange lake just about anytime, but the beach resorts stay booked up.  Holiday Inn owns one at Port Canaveral & Panama City Beach that are impossible to book.  We were also told last year that they were going to open one at St. Marrtin and another somewhere in the Caribbean but it did not happen.  They will not put you on a waiting list so you have to check the site constantly, and I might add with no luck.  (Got tired and gave up.)   

 The RCI resorts that we were able to book, we got by being put on a waiting list for resorts in area( one was booked for July and one for October)  no high demand months.  The Two RCI resorts that we have used have been very dated and we were put on a waiting list to get into the location.  You cannot just pick a resort because you would never get a vacation when you wanted it.

Every time we book Orange Lake, Holiday Inn/Orange Lake tries to sell us more points but we have refused due to not being happy.  They told us our week was worth something like $2,500 for our week 26 (July 4th).  We found out by contacting Timeshares Only that it is worth about a $1,000 Per week.  Last year we paid $883 maint. Fee plus $156 in property taxes.  We could rent a week at their resort for the amount we pay in fees and taxes.  We also have to pay booking fee every time.  How can they charge to buy a week and this excessively high maint. fee?

I have E-mailed Corporate and someone was suppose to contact me but did not.  I emailed again and was told someone would contact me.  A third time I was told to call Holiday Inn Club Vacations and ask for a manager.  I called early morning 11/17/14 and was put on hold for a long time and asked to call back.  I asked to leave call back number  morning of 11/17/14.  I was finally able to get to take to someone and they just basically told me sorry for my luck and told me to call Timeshares Only.

I filed a complaint with the Consumer Protection thru the Attorney General's office, but Holiday Inn refused to do anything and it is just my word against theirs, but how did I know how much they use to charge commission unless I was told this by our salesperson.  I have also contact the Orlando BBB but was told the same thing but I did not accept their response.
 
Another thing we were told,  You never lose your points.  Since, we have found that you have to pay (I think $69 per 100,000 points), and you have to save that years points by October  1st or you will lose them if you do not use them by the end of following year.  This is a racket that needs to be stopped.

I started trying to find a week on the gulf or ocean for my grandkids spring break ( Wk of April 6th) in October and have failed, so I guess that was the last straw for me with this company.  We finally booked a few days at Orange Lake because that is all I could get. So many people their you couldn't even find a chair to sit in (we left a day early).

While at Orange Lake to use of some of our points that we will loose at the end of the year if we do not use,   they pressured us into going to one of their consultations.  We went to tell them what we thought of their organization.  They told us that our week was worth $49,660 now.  I told them that I would sell our week back to them for $25,000 and we paid $34,000.  They were not interested.

They told me that if we sell our week to someone else that they could not use the 191,000 points for anything but the  week 26 at Orange Lake (the week we own), so they have you locked into giving them the high fee every  year unless you want to give it back to them for free.  I beginning to think this is the object of their game to get the week back for free and resell it for another big price.