Complaint Review: Velas Vallarta Suite Resort - Promotora Turistica Las Velas

We were scammed into purchasing a fractional timeshare with Velas Vallarta, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, February 27, 2009. We are senior citizens and after 6 hours of a 90-minute presentation we were exhausted and not focusing on details. Having owned another timeshare in Mexico for many years--with no trouble of any kind--we were unsuspecting dupes.

The day after signing we began to question some of the selling points that had influenced us to sign. It soon became apparent that their sales pitch was a pack of lies and misrepresentations.

The "offer" they made on our other timeshare weeks as trade-in to help pay upfront costs was just a trick. It turned out to be an open listing with a broker, not a real offer. Their rental scheme is nothing but another pie-in-the-sky ruse. Just ask current owners who are still waiting for their promised rentals. Their "trade weeks for cruises, pay only port taxes" is another bold-faced lie. It is only a part-payment trade-in of highly questionable benefit. But the worst deception of all was that we were told at the sales presentation that we had to sign a waiver of our right to our 5-day right of recision because we were purchasing a "resale". We later found out the waiver was illegal and a clear violation of our contract, which states that such amendments or supplements must be approved by PROFECO (Mexican consumer affairs). WE WERE TRICKED INTO BELIEVING THAT WE COULD NOT BACK OUT OF THE DEAL--THAT WE HAD NO RECOURSE. Clearly we were victims of fraud.

Unfortunately, we did not learn until we returned home and accessed PROFECO that in Mexico a 5-day right to rescind is given to all purchasers and CANNOT BE WAIVED. We also found that the waiver of our right of recision that we signed was missing from our documentation package--not surprising since it was in violation of Mexican Law!

We placed our VISA payment to Velas Vallarta in dispute--our 30-year record with VISA vouches for OUR honesty. We then sent a registered letter to Velas Vallarta rescinding our contract and demanding return of our funds.

We feel that it is our duty now to get the word out about the fraudulent practices of this company any way that we can. We have sent a formal complaint to PROFECO describing all of the details and asking their help. We have requested assistance from the U. S. Citizens Consular Services and are emailing a copy of our complaint to the U. S. Consular Agent Vallarta.

As a next step we feel an obligation to warn other travelers like ourselves and would like to join with anyone else interested in making the travel industry aware of the fraudulent practices of this company.

Daniel
Des Moines, Washington
U.S.A.