Warning about timeshare rip-off in the Canary Islands

Timeshare companies offer different types of contracts. On the one hand, there are fixed week ownerships in the same resort. In this case, the guests are entitled to the same sized accommodation unit in the same week every year (fixed week ownership). Normally, these can be reserved online or at a call centre up to two years before arrival. For example, for 30 years you have always paid for flat no.73 in the Spring Hotel Vulcano on Tenerife in calendar week 15, whether you come or not.

Ultimately, there are then classic long-term timeshare contracts with ownership rights, where fixed time slots are available every year again. They cost a lot of money, comparable to flat purchase prices in the home country. Such investors in the club are then real co-owners, registered in the land register, and may also inherit or sell their share. They also have to pay into a maintenance fund to cover running costs. And what may come as a surprise - despite the high initial investment, they even pay something extra per stay on site. In return, they can rent out their fixed period of use or exchange it in the exchange market of an umbrella organisation (e.g. RCI) for stays in facilities of other members elsewhere, if they get tired of the same destination over and over again.

On the other hand, there are also dynamic models (floating week ownership) where the available period and a flat of the same category can vary annually with certain details.

In this article, however, we mainly warn against short-term contracts of up to one year. Strictly speaking, this is not a "real" timeshare, but very similar to the dynamic variants described in the previous sentence.

The right of withdrawal is not explained when the contract is signed and no cancellation options can be found on the ANFI homepage. Withdrawal from the contract is refused on the grounds that there is no right of withdrawal, cancellation or termination. If the contract period is less than one year, consumers are indeed not protected by the EU Timeshare Directive. This circumstance is, of course, deliberately used by wedgers.

Otherwise, for long-term contracts of more than one year, the EU Timeshare Directive has clearly enshrined a right of withdrawal in Article 6.

If ANFI staff did not provide you with a separate withdrawal form (see Article 5(4)) when you signed the long-term contract, which should have been prescribed, completed and provided to you in writing on paper or on another durable medium (e.g. by email), the law even extends the withdrawal period by one year.

According to Article 9 of the Timeshare Directive, any deposits made before the end of the withdrawal period are prohibited. Thus, you are also entitled to a refund of the deposit paid. If you make use of your right of withdrawal, according to § 8 (2) you may not incur any costs and you do not have to pay for any services that may have been provided before the withdrawal.

Nevertheless, even if you have signed a contract for less than one year, the right to withdraw from the contract under the Consumer Rights Directive and the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive applies. A declared withdrawal within 14 calendar days from a contract concluded away from business premises is thus based on one of the aforementioned guidelines, as these have also been transposed into Spanish law. If necessary, you should use the following sample letter (German language):

• Stay away from commercial info events! It is difficult to avoid the aggressive sales practices.
• Do not let yourself be persuaded to sign a contract on the spot and do not sign anything hastily! Once the contract is signed, it is difficult to cancel it. Sometimes they trick you into signing a contract for less than a year so that the protection of the European Timeshare Directive no longer applies.
• Do not pay a deposit. Not by credit card, not by debit card and under no circumstances in cash. Especially if you pay in cash, it is almost impossible to get your money back.
• Contact the police if you are harassed in any way, put under pressure or harassed with phone calls during or after the contract negotiations.
• Check the information and contract conditions carefully and consider whether the product offered really suits you. Think carefully about whether you want to make a long-term commitment to a resort and facility. What happens if you don't get a holiday at the planned time, fall ill or want to travel somewhere else after all? Depending on the contract, you may lose all your payments to date.
• Take your time to calculate whether the price is actually advantageous. Include flight, transfer and meals on site!
• Watch out for the mention of "limited availability" in the contract! Even if you were told otherwise on site. This may mean that you cannot use the booked flat at the desired time. In such a case, document such unavailability over the year!
  Watch out for unfair contractual clauses - for example, if they prohibit withdrawal from the contract, stipulate an excessive contractual penalty or the jurisdiction of courts that are far away from your place of residence.