Anyone a ATC (Asian Travel Club) or RCI member??

[shalom73]

I and my gf was persuaded to buy a Trial Membership in Phuket ATC costing us SGD 800.

Before signing the trial membership, this Miss Emma and Mr. Paul Larsson persuaded us by indicating to us ATC will be able to provide us accomodations at our honeymoon destination at Munich, Florence and others (from USD 99 to USD 599 for 7 nights stay)

Recently, we decided to make a reservation on accomodations in Munich and Florence as we have already put a flight reservation.

To our surprise, they said neither they nor their affliated partners have any accomodations in Munich and Florence for us. They in turn given us some ulu ulu locations either in some Italian islands or German-Czech border towns.

Isn't this a way they usually use to cheat us of our money???

I keep demanding explanation but no one bother to entertain me.

Can I know if anyone know someone we can talk to cos our honeymoon is in jeopardy?

Can contact me at 65-98291713.


Thanks,
Bernard & Priscilla

 

[blurlamb]

Hi Bernard & Priscilla,

I am an ATC member and also has RCI membership. I think usually for timeshare accomodations in those popular destinations, you will have to book quite a few months or even one year in advance for those highly rated resorts. The url for ATC is www.asian-travel-club.com, you can look up the site for the list of accomodations that you can request for.

If you have also signed up with RCI(www.rci-asia.com), you can also deposit your ATC week into RCI. Think they have a much larger list of accomodations to exchange for. But same thing, for highly rated resorts and popular destinations, will have to book months in advance. You can call up RCI Singapore directly to request for your accomodation and check with them which resort is available. Have booked our accomodations through RCI a few times and so far so good.

 

[citizen]

Hi, I have a $11k package with ATC/IRN last year. I have stopped paying after reading all the bad stuff abt timeshares (paid abt $3k so far). Im determined to terminate. I have stopped my payment a few months back.

I have approached IRN to terminate citing financial reasons but was rejected and have to pay a termination fee of $3k if I really want to.... I mean what the hell, right!! They also constantly harressed me for payment and also threatened to sue me.

I went to CASE for help and to my surprise, within a week, my agreement was finally terminated without incurring any charges!!! And the only fee I paid is application fee I paid to CASE.

Finally, Im free ..... Hope the info helps expecially those who are in the same shoes as me.

 

[stevy]

Hi all,

There is a company called Don Martin & Assoc wanting to buy my membership.They claimed they are a property company wanting to buy some time shares for their clients.

They will pay about 60-80% of the total cost of the timeshare. I am skeptical about this, nevertheless, will be meeting them to find out more.

Has anyone heard about this company before?

 

[alabone]

iceman,
did u manage to get back e 3k u paid?

i have a 20k package w RCI and i also stopped payment. they sent reminder letters as well n threaten to send lawyer letter too. said i got financial probs n they still insist i pay. btw, when i signed, there was a contract too. did yu? i hope case can help me too...

 

[edfck]

hey steve
i was approch by the same company wanting 2 buy bk my timeshare. think its another con job. when i told them i needed time to think over, they told me tat the cash back after 3yrs has only a few slots left. if i come bk another day, i may hv to take the 6yrs cash bk programe. damn fishy, i told them to change tactics as timeshares r using to same pressure selling mentods. anyone with similar expriences?

 

[stevy]

Hi .(edfck),

What was the duration of the talk? After 1.5 hours meeting with them, I knew it is another con company.

1)They will arrange to meet you at Park Royal Hotel lobby area and bring you to their office. The reason being, their office information was not found in the building directory! Hence this lead me into thinking that the office is a temp office area.

2) The Office was too neat and small for a property Company! And the 3 meeting rooms comprises of only a table and a computer. NO shelves and files.

3) The guy in charge of my porfolio kept asking me questions about my ATC membership and TRY very hard to make me look stupid. WTF. First, they already have a profile of my membership and they are now trying to ask me back what they already know. They are wasting our time and want to drain us out so that in the later part of the meeting we are "brain dead"

4) When you tell them you are not interested, they will try to bullshit you and tell you the amount we will be paying to ATC will inflate over the years and its better to take up their program etc.

5) They will again make you look stupid by telling you what their company is investing in. Talking about the so called "BIG" companies and banks in australia supporting their portfolio. Ans also their "so call" project in Australia. How do we know if they are tell the truth?

6) They claim that their program is very popular and only a few slots are left. And we need to make a decision soon. AND if we take up the program on that very day, we will have an additional cash rebate of $3000.

7) Also, the sales rep will talk a lot of stuffs, how the program will earn us back our intial investement. But will not tell you exactly how you will get back your money.

8) When he realised he is getting nowhere with you, he will get his manager to talk to you.

 

[edfck]

hi steve
i got excactly the same bullshit! the manager gave us an attitude when i persisted in thinking over. they claim they only started a last yr. but i read the forum and apparently its bn going on for yrs. WTF!!! BS after BS!!!
im not saying timeshare is crap but the way they go abt selling u sucks. suprisingly with all the bad press, they're still surviving till today! its like a virus with no cure!!! anyways, think i'll go to case for help. prob hv to forgo whatever i've paid n canx my membership. maybe i can offer that sales rep to take over my membership for free, its almost fully paid for.. then ask him to take up the bonds thingy his so call company is offering so tat he can make some quick bucks. n see wat he says.

 

[edfck]

n if he declines, well guess it'll b pretty obvious wats going on.

 

[edfck]

btw steve, when did u sign up for yr timeshare?

 

[stevy]

This time share was taken up in 1998. Now,I bo chup whatever letters they sent us.

 

[tryphena]

hi i hv membership wif ATC (IRN) too and 2 mths ago i wanted to book for my honeymoon paying USD 99 for the resorts they have bt no one get back to me then a lady called me up asking for payment and threaten tat they cnt reduce the mthly instalment as it had to be completed within how many mths... thn i told her tat i hv no money and that they didnt service me properly... and I had since stopped making payment so tink will try and go to CASE and see if they can help me to withdraw my membership...

 

[vodafone]

Anyone else facing the same problem as the others?

Im also thinking of going to CASE as they also keep asking me to upgrade to another plan when i enquired about my current one.

Please email me at [email protected] if anyone wants to go CASE with me.

 

[tryphena]

hi dericko, i had went to case in march and recently they had resolved my case as IRN had agreed to terminate the agreement and with no liabilities.

 

[summer1979]

hi all,

Me too got a IRN contract.Me & hubby paid total 5k liao for a 12k contract.
We wanna stop payment cos we find so diff to make booking so mean to say we have not even use once of their service / stay at their hotels at all.

They even threaten us to pay 3k to terminate otherwise take action or court against us.

Can we go CASE for help?How much would be the price?

They keep asking us to go down, but we not yet go down find no point cos they sure 'physo' us to even make min payment of $50/mth knowing that we got financial difficulties.

COs now me & hubby into family planning, we dun wan to be tied down by this 'holiday scheme' which we dun even use at this moment.

Haiz really regret y sign up with them oso.

 

[summer1979]

HI dericko,

Have u went down to case already?
I dun mind go gg down together with u..

Pls reply to [email protected]

 

[summer1979]

Hi Jazol,

When did u went to case?
How much u spent in total..
I wanna go down with my hubby t resolve this problem asap.

*sad & trouble*

 

[vodafone]

Hi Summer

I havent go to CASE yet. Was quite busy recently. Will be going overseas next week.

Do u mind if we go early or mid june?

Dericko

 

[summer1979]

Hi all,

Me jus went to ATC on 26/5 to meet the manager.
He actually wan me to pay 3.5k termination fee otherwise refer to their legal dept.
I told him refer to the legal dept since i am not gg to pay anymore $$$
Now rather feeling scare , tot maybe jus wanna pay 3.5k to settle once & for all.
Cos till now we still servicing the monthly installment as bank paid lump sum to ATC liao.
Me so angry & cant do much oso.

haizzz..summer

 

[summer1979]

Hi dericko,

Thks for yr invitation.
Yeah maybe can go down with u bah
I have PM to yr email.

Cheers,Summer

 

[stephen]

Anyone still holding ATC under the trust of Hutchinson?

They are winding up the trust structure with them.

 

[summer1979]

Hi stephen,

How would u know that we are holding on to Hutchinson trust?

Why u get the infor that they winding up leh?

cheers,summer

 

[stephen]

I know because it was stated in the contract and Hutchinson sent me a letter personally to inform me about it.

This is for those who brought timeshare much earlier where ATC sell TS by having Hutchinson as a trust.

This is a good news if you have or suppose to have Hutchinson as a trust; to use this infor to terminate your contract via CASE.

 

[summer1979]

Oh really..

I bought mine at year 2005 (Oct) but inside didnt state that...but i thk i heard them told me b4..

Cos maybe i didnt pay in full, that y i wasnt informed abt it.

Cheers,Summer

 

[stephen]

You have to read the contract carefully - word by word. You should also receive certification from the trust. Make sure it is tally.

2005 should be under Hutchinson.


They sent me the wrong cert trust company, so I use this strong point to fight my case & won.

 

[summer1979]

Did u pay full amount?

Cos till now coming to 2yr i still
not yet rcv the cert of trust from Hutchinson.

Me so far only pay 4k still balance 8k..which i intend to stop liao.

So happy u able to terminate yr contract with them, u oso go thru CASE?

CHeers,Summer

 

[stephen]

Paid Full amount.

Go CASE to solve my problem. Try not to go to Lawyers, they really know how to suck you dry. Lawyer will be last option for everyone here.

My advice to you & everyone who face the same problem, is to read through your contract in detail. Try to find the trust company; Hutchinson for this case. If your contract has the word Hutchinson as Trust, you will have higher case to claim your money back from them for breach of contract.

Try my best to help.

 

[summer1979]

Haiz my contract didnt state that Hutchinson was my Trust.

 

[jen_bibi]

Hi

If u all decided to forgo yr $$$ then ignore their letters demand payment cos they will not sue wan. Dat's wat my parent did n initially, they threaten lawyer letter ect but my parent ignore them and e letter never came at all.
Finally, they just terminate e whole thing.

Dun think they will sue, their main objective is to suck $$ not lose $$. Till now, there are so many cases n i ve never read 1 that was bought to court by them for not paying.

so if u decided u dun wan yr $$ back then can ignore after a while they will ignore u existed too. Till they next timeshare comp who will called you to transfer the membership to them with additional $$ then e whole circle will repdeat again.

 

[stephen]

Jen_bibi,
Did they send your parent a mail stated that the contract has terminated?


Summer1979,
In that case who is your trustee?

Did you remember signing an acknowledgement that you understand what they are trying to present to you & that they did not force you to purchase or anything like that?

All this information is important to fight your case.

 

[jen_bibi]

HI Stephan

Not sure, need to ask them but dat was like 2 or 3 years ago liao...now they dun even bother to send reminders letter or any form of warning letters.
initial will for abt 1year then they give up.

 

[summer1979]

Hi Stephen,

There is this acknowledgement but inside didnt state my trustee is who lor.
Oh my god, i thk they only verbally say.
Maybe its ignorance on my part..shud i maybe call ATC up & check with them?

Thanks for helping me

Hi Jen,

I am willing to forgo my $$ jus that dun wanna continue with the installment anymore. I jus wanna end this whole thing lor.

Been feeling down becos of this matter..and yes u r right! They threaten to sue the lawyer letter lor say anything will be on court case lor. Deep in my heart, was scare, but still i told them off " Go ahead, as I am not going to continue my contract anymore"


Cheers,Summer

 

[stephen]

Hi Jen,
This is important. As long they did not receive a written confirmation that their contract is terminated, your parents are still under their mercy. Years down the road, they may bring the matter up again. You see, maintainance fee still have to pay.


Hi Summer,
The acknowledgment form is for you to find out any
information there to help in you fight the case.

If you want to seek redress, you need to do your homework to find evidence that they are either misrepresent or force sell. No one can help you, not even CASE or Lawyer. Once you have all the information, bring it to CASE.

Look through all your forms & contract, study them carefully - word by word. Find out who is your trustee, any mispresentation, etc...

If you need to communicate with ATC, only do it by email ONLY & keep all the correspondence with them (print them out). Be tactful.


I manage to have all the prove to seek my redress. They have no choice but to terminate the contract & refund all the money they own to me. As for now Hutchinson issue is the best to ask for refund. For those who is under Hutchinson Trust for ATC, do so now!

 

[summer1979]

Hi all,

Me jus written email to IRN abt my contract, asking them abt the trustee.

They say only timeshare then have trustee, mine was a vocation club so dun have that trustee.
To me it seem to be the same thing

Haiz...

 

[stephen]

What is your next move?

FYI, IRN is a Timeshare. You are buying (undivided interest) units with ATC to exchange with IRN. They can call anything with these units. Units with ATC require a trustee. If they do not have trustee, then where is your protection?

 

[dorygal]

Hi guys,

SO happy manage to get rid of my timeshare finally.
All thanks to CASE

Brgds/Summer

 

[dorygal]

All was done within one mth. Thou 50% of $$ cant be refund but at least no need pay single cent.

They still chasing after my butt for paying 3.5k termination fee..But lucky went to case only $45 as member fee can settle liao.

Phew

 

[gettinmarried]

i also bought a timeshare & find it hard to resell or terminate then mine FH Dad brought me to this Company at Parkmall to terminate it and i actually get refund with about a good % of intrest back,glad that mine FH Dad knew this company from relative.i think there a lawyer at present soo everything itz done accordingly.
ops of cos mine dun have 90min presentation or what present.everithing is clear cut ,well explained.soo lucki me.phew

 

[ethan76]

Hey Stephen,

Your contract was with ATC too??I only have the contract where i sign for total cost and terms of use.Do you think i have a chance to get rid of my contract?

 

[stephen]

Where are the rest of the documents?
Have you paid up full?

Pls provide more information.


PS: Read the fine print.

 

[jennytansc]

Hi...
Anyone is approached by ATC staff again to terminate off their contract by paying $2k fees?

 

[tylee]

Hi Jenny, I was approached by ATC to terminate the contract by paying the $2k plus fees. I didnt do it, as I did not want to waive all my rights before doing all the research. The ATC staff did not allow me to think about it at all, insisted I sign on the spot, which I wasn't comfortable with.

What did you do eventually?

 

[jennytansc]

tylee,
pls ignore them. go to CASE and file for termination since u have paid full for ur membership earlier.
I went thru CASE & managed to get it terminated at a nominal fees.

U check your email for my detailed story...

all the best.

 

[jennytansc]

tylee,
initally when eddie the head of dept told me the same thing as u went thru... i told him i will go to CASE if they cant help me terminate. but he say go to CASE no use cos they do me no wrong.. I was stupid to believe him on the spot cos i got no knowledge abt consumer rights..

So whatever shit they told u they are protecting themselves & just want to continue cheat our hard earned money.

 

[zler]

hello, may i know if anyone has sucessfully terminated and get your money back from timeshare?
anyone has membership from discovery VIII? we are trying to stop paying and get $$ back. can someone give us some advice please?

 

[jennytansc]

zler,
I doubt can get money back from timeshare once we make any pymt to them one lor. Even I managed to get my ATC membership terminated, i was informed that although going thru them I also cant get single cents back.

My brother signed up with Discovery VIII and I brought him to terminate the immed next day (Cooling period). they showed us nasty faces and do not really want to attend to us. Their services really sucks.. We insisited and managed to get the money back lar.

For your case, I will think you just dun pay any money to them anynow if you realli do not want to go on their holidays etc.. Some other frds of mine changed contacts or even ignored their letter etc and eventually they got away with it.. but not with Discovery 8 lar.

 

[zler]

Hello, thanks for your advice .How do we terminated it now? Do we just call them or go to CASE? We called up case actually, but it seems they are not very willing to entertain us.

 

[jennytansc]

zler,
I will think you need to go to file your case. Cos they need to collect a nominal fees in order to process your termination. Since you did n't paid full. i dunno the chances of getting it terminated. No harm going dwn to CASE for advice.

BTW, how much is ur membership?

 

[zler]

17k.. we paid about 7k and wanted to cancel it. and they told us the only want is to resale. so we sign up for the resale which need us to pay in full, and we stupidly sign up hoping to get back the $$. But instead, we are paying more, now already paid like 10k. we just want to stop it immediately. haiz.

 

[jennytansc]

huh??
the membership is $17k. u paid 7K.. in order to sell it away u have to pay in full which mean u are still paying the basic membership fees lor. I think this kind of timeshare got a curse. Let us go in and our mind just go blank even though we are thinking about it and still eventually signed up with it.. Go home regret and it is too late.

Do u think you can just ignore the payment. Since it is via credit card. just terminate the card or tell the bank that the card is misplaced..