Inside Timeshare last week had a request from a German reader about a company operating out of Holland, the Company is Timeshare Stop. Not much was known about them apart from they promise to cancel timeshare contracts and reclaim money paid. They operate the websites timesharestop.nl and timesharestop.de, and appear to target mainly German speaking clients.
It was not an easy task to find out about them, they do seem to be rather elusive, but after a lot of research this is what has come up.
The company is run by Ewald Ter Harmsel and Rob De Vos, another name that has cropped up is Mike Dunn, who is listed as Sales Director. The company is registered in the Netherlands with the company number KvK62000136. The address is given as Hardwareweg 4, 3821 Amersfoort, Nederland. This is located in a Regus owned office complex offering office space and other facilities.
Ewald Ter Harmsel
Their websites in Dutch and German didn’t really reveal very much, possibly because of translation. They do not even explain how they will get clients out of their contracts let alone how they will get the money back.
They do however give a lot of hot air about how good they are, why you should put your trust in them and how everyone else is going to rip you off. Nowhere did we find what they charge for their services apart from the fact they will take 25% of any money recovered. The impression is they are doing it out of love. So what is the catch, there must be one?
They do appear to be very good at propaganda though, they seem to have influenced a TV channel into broadcasting their opinions on the timeshare industry, as well as having them broadcast on youtube. But again, there is no evidence of them having actually achieved anything, after all they have only been registered since the end of 2014. They even talk about contacts with various law firms but again no mention of where or who these are.
Surely , if they were totally legitimate they would publish how they intend getting the money back, how they will get you out of the contract and most of all list the law firms they use. Not giving this information makes them look very dubious indeed.
One thing was very clear from the websites (remembering translating from Dutch and German into English) was their constant attack on the timeshare industry, the RDO, Mindtimeshare and others. They also give the impression they alone are the good guys and everyone else is there to take you for a ride. They do come across as ex-timeshare sales people, even the videos come across as a presentation in the old timeshare sales technique. Personal contacts have revealed they are indeed ex-timeshare, one contact even stated he believes that Ewald is ex-Resort Properties.
What prompted the German reader to contact Inside Timeshare was actually rather strange, they are clients of another company and were very concerned about what Timeshare Stop are publishing. It was putting doubts into their mind that they may have gone with the wrong firm.
So who is this other company?
None other than Canarian Legal Alliance. Inside Timeshare has published many times about the victories that have been gained by them at the Supreme Court. So what is going on?
It is nothing new in the timeshare industry to berate the opposition, to gain credibility for your own company, but what I came across was down right disgusting.
One one hand they attacked the RDO and Mindtimeshare, (which even published a warning about them in 2015 https://mindtimeshare.me/2015/01/08/timeshare-stop-a-new-disposal-company-from-holland/) then use mindtimeshare articles in order to attack CLA. Everything found, was out of date, unproven and totally unconfirmed. It directed readers to other websites without any regard for the truth, other than to gain credibility for themselves as timeshare crusaders only there to help you. Sorry, that should be themselves.
The thing is, it is not just CLA that they attack, it is all legitimate companies and law firms that are not located in Holland. Their website clearly states the only company that can be trusted is one registered there, as only Dutch law can protect you, and who is that? Timeshare Stop.The reputation of other companies is put into question, yet no evidence of what they say or do has yet been found, even the so called testimonials just don’t sound true. No proof of verification is shown, no mention of how they have got the money back, just how wonderful Ewald and Rob are. Everyone’s best buddies. (Timeshare sales technique No1, you are the Ups best friend).
It is one thing to bring things to people’s attention, but to blatantly lie and use dubious publications to gain credibility for yourself in order to get trade is something else.
At least our German reader has seen through this, as well as contacting Inside Timeshare, they have also informed their lawyer at CLA. They believe this company is upto no good and wanted others to be warned. So this does go to show that you must be careful, question why this company is berating that company, what are they trying to gain? Are they trying to influence your decision in order to get your money? Do they actually have your your best interests at heart or just your cash?
Inside Timeshare will be keeping a close watch on this lot, if they do what they say then fair enough, but to use other firms successes and attacking them in order to gain business is dirty to say the least.
The post Are They What They Say They Are? appeared first on Inside Timeshare.