Welcome to this week’s Letter from America, it is another “Nightmare on Timeshare Street” story involving yet another Veteran Raymond Mori, who is also a Double Purple Heart Recipient, his story is written by his daughter Teresa Laird, who is also a Veteran.
This story along with others we have been publishing with similar stories from the elderly, seems to point to one thing, these groups are being deliberately targeted by Diamond Sales Agents. It can only be described as totally despicable behaviour, Diamond needs to get their house in order and be rid of these practices with the sales agents losing their licences and jobs.
Diamond is not only to blame in this matter, Barclays is also culpable, after all they are the ones providing the finance through their BarclayCards, which in many cases the clients did not know that one had been taken out in their name, until it is too late.
In Europe we have seen similar problems with Barclays, allowing sales agents to arrange loan agreements on the day with only a cursory credit check. None of the consumers who have contacted Inside Timeshare on this matter have ever had to provide an income and expenditure report, to show that they can actually afford the loan. This is something that would normally be done when taking out any sizable loan.
Usually we report on the week in Europe, suffice it to say it has been rather quiet, with only one court sentence reported this week. It involves the Puerto Calma Group, the Court of First Instance in Maspalomas found the contract illegal and declared it null and void, the clients in this case have been awarded 19,000€ with plus a further 3,600€ as a sanction for the illegal taking of a deposit within the cooling off period.
The only other major news was addressed in yesterday’s article about TESS, which has prompted many readers sending messages of support. One reader, even went on to say that Mr Cox is one deranged man and is obviously very ill, well, that is something we can well believe going by what he has been doing over the past months. There will be more to come on that story.
Now for this weeks “Nightmare on Timeshare Street” article.
Another Veteran, Raymond Mori, Alleges Timeshare Fraud
Retired Marine and Purple Hearts Recipient
Supported by Josh Parker, Army Veteran, Kevin and Brenda Hopkins, Air Force Retired, Roy Simmons, Navy Veteran
Exclusive: ILG explores merger with Apollo’s Diamond Resorts Timeshare Math – $3.5 Billion minus $2.2 Billion = $1.2 Billion
By Teresa Laird, Raymond and Teresa Mori’s daughter
Friday March 23, 2018
I am writing this article on behalf of my parents, Raymond and Teresa Mori, ages 83 and 79. My dad is a Marine veteran having served 23 years. He is 100% disabled. My dad earned two Purple Hearts. I too am a Veteran, an Army medic.
Had I not been at the last Diamond Resorts “Update” March 13, 2018, I am convinced my parents, at age 83 and 79, would have purchased 30,000 additional Diamond vacation points for $234,295. This offer required a down payment of $69,993. I kept the paper of these terms under the table because members are not allowed to walk out with handwritten notes. My dad was not feeling well. He falls asleep in his wheelchair and had spent six months in the hospital after a heart attack. The stress over this expense has caused their health to deteriorate further. Thank you to Whistleblowers of America for advocating on behalf of Veterans. Please consider a donation to WoA if you are not drowning in timeshare loan payments, Barclaycard payments and annual timeshare maintenance fees.
https://whistleblowersofamerica.org/
The sales agent we met with in Las Vegas did not even know how many points my parents already owned. The maintenance fees for 30,000 additional points would have been $4,466 on top of the maintenance fees for the 27,000 points they already owned. I’ve learned my mom’s entire Social Security check goes to pay the Diamond expense. I am beyond angry.
I have joined forces with Angela Simmons Sandstede, Josh and Nichole Parker, Josh a combat veteran, Kevin and Brenda Hopkins, Air Force, battling Diamond.
Angela says her parents were upsold to $2,750 a month in Diamond mortgage payments and are facing bankruptcy because of the up-sells. Angela’s parents live on her dad’s US Postal Service Letter Carrier’s pension.
Angela says her parents owned 52,000 DRI points before being pressured into further up-sells we both feel were fraudulent and criminal. We believe our parents. Angela and I have partnered to become advocates helping seniors needing assistance making a YouTube so the public can see what harm we feel is being done to the elderly, although there are many complaints from those younger as well. Mr. Simmons is also a veteran. He served in the Navy. Angela and Mr. Simmons, Josh Parker and Kevin Brenda’s YouTube:
Roy Simmons and Angela Sandstede Simmons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_nca6lMA4U&feature=youtu.be
Kevin and Brenda Hopkins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAkBlfyhVYQ&feature=youtu.be
Josh Parker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezkJ7GlJN4U&feature=youtu.be
Inside Timeshare has been asked to submit an article to a military down trace that will be distributed to 7,000 active duty army, three divisions, a Buyer Beware PSA announcement, given we have now nine active duty Navy, Homeland Security, Air Force, and a member who works for a defense contractor worried about their Security Clearance alleging they were defrauded by timeshare sales agents.
Teresa & Raymond Mori’s Nightmare on Timeshare Street
Like many, my parents used their Monarch Grand Vacation timeshare for years without complaint. In reviewing their documents, I feel there was deception from the moment they encountered Diamond Resorts. Like many, they were told they had to give up their Monarch deed and buy points. I’ve learned they did not have to do that. Since Diamond acquired Monarch, their annual maintenance fees have increased from $2,600 to $4,600. Like Angela’s mom, my mom is also so stressed over this I can’t ask her to participate in a YouTube. I am in college, now facing filing a barrage of regulatory and law enforcement complaints on top of writing my archeology thesis. My parents have not used their Diamond points. They give their points away.
My mom told me they had purchased an investment, I called Diamond Resorts when my dad said they wanted to sell some points. My dad is so angry he doesn’t want to talk about it. When I asked how to go about selling points, the DRI hospitality agent laughed at me and said you can’t sell back points, but you can use them towards merchandise purchased through Diamond Resorts. When I looked into the value of doing this, it was no help to my parents. This needs to end. The elderly need to be protected.
According to what my parents reported, they have been lied to at each up-sell. They told me they were told they were investing in property. They were not allowed to take the contracts to their room to go over them. The agents would not allow my parents to call me to discuss the transaction. They have described high pressure tactics, constant messages to their room, phone calls, increasing gift values when they said no to “Updates”, any tactic to get them onto the sales floor. Once they got them there, they were told they would not get their gifts if they left.
Here’s what happened
4,000 Diamond points purchased 3/12/2013 converting from Monarch to DRI
9,300 points were provided as “equity”
Purchase price: $20,416 now owning 13,300 points
2500 Diamond points were purchased 6/25/2013 at Palm Canyon Resort
Purchase price: $8,325 now owning 15,800 points
2500 Diamond points were purchased 7/29/2013 at Polo Towers Las Vegas
Purchase price: $8,616 now owning 18,300 points
At ages 79 and 75 they were sold a Sampler product. This is a trial program. Why did they need a trial program if they bought points several times?
5000 Sampler points purchased 5/4/2014 in Sedona
Purchase price: $2,995
This was when I realized the predatory nature of timeshare sales. I called Diamond corporate and told them they needed to take back this last Sampler purchase at the very least. They said they would work with us. Instead, they sold my parents 17,000 more points! They said they would attach the Sampler points to another program. I could not believe it. Think how easy it would be to misrepresent or confuse them by selling points by phone. I am infuriated.
17,000 points were purchased at ages 79 and 73, after spending six months in a hospital after a heart attack, now owning 27,000 points
Purchase price: $49,492 told $13,991 was equity from their prior contracts
Amount financed: $47,138
New maintenance fees: $4,780
My mom and dad are good people who worked hard all their lives. My mom worked as an interpreter for the Ontario CA school district. She speaks Spanish. My dad is diagnosed with early Alzheimer’s. To think their lives have been ruined by this company, in my opinion, speaks of unspeakable evil. Angela and I vow to stop. We are advocates now.
From what Angela told me, I will be told by a Diamond Resorts Hospitality agent, working for Diamond Resorts Consumer Advocacy Department, “Sorry, you signed a contract.”
There seems to be no regulation, no enforcement and no one cares.
Elder financial abuse is a type of elder abuse in which misappropriation of financial resources or abusive use of financial control, in the context of a relationship where there is an expectation of trust, causes harm to an older person. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elder_financial_abuse
https://www.facebook.com/groups/DiamondResortsOwnersAdvocacy/
Thank you Teresa Laird for writing your parents story, also once again a very big thank you to Irene Parker and the army of volunteers who are doing a fantastic job in highlighting and help all those who are turning to Inside Timeshare for help.
If you have been contacted by or are thinking of doing business with any company and are not sure if they are genuine, contact Inside Timeshare, we will help you find the information.
Remember, many of these companies are very professional at getting you to believe what they say, they know what you want to hear and will target that.
So that’s it for this week, another Friday is upon us and the weekend beckons, we hope you have a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend, join us next week for more news and information on the seedy world of timeshare.
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