Complaint Review: Thousand Trails Orlando - Clermont Florida

BELOW IS A LETTER SENT TO ELS CORPORATE IN ATTEMPTS TO RESOLVE THIS ISSUE. AT THIS TIME THE ISSUE IS STILL UNRESOLVED AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED.

This report is in reference to (2) citations written by Ranger Ric Silvera at Thousand Trails Orlando Resort. The alleged violations of rules were as follows: 1. The first "ticket" violation was given for having a 10' x 20' MaxAP Canopy with sidewall enclosures made by ShelterLogic (photo evidence A). 2. The second violation was given the following day for having duct tape on the black water tank of our RV to secure it better. It is important to note that the tank valve stays closed until time to empty. The dispute in both cases is that no violation of rule took place and BOTH tickets were issued without justification provided by any understood rule or expectation. Here is a summary of the entire complaint.

Ranger Ric told other guests at the pool area that he intended to issue us a ticket for the tent when he returned from leave, but failed to provide us any foresight that the tent was unacceptable or that it needed to be removed. There was absolutely no warning or understanding that the tent was a violation of any rule of TT or the property itself and for Ranger Ric to discuss this with other guests and not us is premeditated discrimination, which is intolerable in any relationship. The second dispute is that, while there is absolutely no rule against the type of tent we had erected in the Thousand Trails Member Rules, there is a definition of what TT interprets to be a "tent", leaving little room for alternative interpretations. The definition provided in the Rules we were presented at the time of contract consideration is found on page 1 of the Member Rules and states; "Tent" means a portable shelter of canvas or other fabric which is supported by poles and which does not have a motor and/or is not designed to be pulled as a trailer behind a motor vehicle. The MaxAP Canopy meets the definition provided during contract consideration and we were never notified that TT Orlando has expectations or definitions conflicting with the TT Membership Rules. We are under the understanding that the Membership Rules are a contract between us and TT and is enforceable on BOTH PARTIES to obey. The first paragraph of the Member Rules clearly states that, "It is a contractual obligation of the members to comply with these rules". We would assume that the contract is legally binding upon all parties involved, including TT Resort Staff. Furthermore, the Membership Rules seems to be exempt of any regulation that defines the use of duct tape or other measures used to ensure the safety of the community, as was used on the black water tank.

The Member Rules do, however, state the following; "The maintenance of natural beauty and safety considerations dictate that all personal clotheslines, tie downs, and similar potential hazards be confined to member's campsite pad area" "Any member who willfully or negligently defaces, injures or destroys any of our property or equipment will be held liable for the full value or replacement cost thereof." Furthermore, State and Federal Laws prohibit the dumping of any sanitation fluids on the ground. Because of these reasons, we felt it was proper to use duct tape to add additional support to our tank connection due to our RV having an odd fitting that does not attach as securely as we would like. We felt that taking this added measure prevented negligence on our part and/or any potential damages to the property. Lastly, there is no rule in the Membership Rules against using duct tape (or any other fix) to prevent leakage or damages from occurring. Due to the lack of any rule against either of these alleged "offenses" we had no prior knowledge of a violation and thus cannot be held liable for violating unwritten and unknown rules. No warning or advice was given by Ranger Ric Silvera pertaining to either offense and to add insult to injury, the second ticket (for the duct tape) was presented the day after the first, yet the duct tape was present when the first was issued and, even at that time, Ranger Ric failed to advise us that the duct tape was unacceptable and, if that wasn't enough, I was on the rear porch of the RV playing with my 4 yr old son while Ranger Ric covertly issued the ticket and he never notified us at any time. Because we had absolutely no foresight into these expectations and were never presented a warning or advice, there is no way for us to have prevented the issuance of the tickets and leaves us in worry that another Ranger may issue an unreasonable and improv citation at some point, making (3) separate violations and grounds for membership suspension.

Also, because of the lack of any official documentation advising us of the rules that we violated we were unable to have "knowledge of the rules", and as stated in the first paragraph of the Membership Rules, "Members are expected to have knowledge of these rules" While this may not be the case, it appears that we were discriminated against for some unknown reason and TT Staff failed to give proper notification of any unacceptable actions prior to issuing an official citation on the matter. We are disputing the aforementioned violations and wish that they be removed from our Resident File and a notation provided to us in writing that the violations were issued improperly and were diligently removed to avoid future complications.