Legal Articles

Timeshare Industry Report Due Soon

The National Consumer Commission’s report on the timeshare industry may be completed soon. 

The report hopes to deal with the issues faced by many frustrated consumers who have felt trapped by contracts and ripped off by the timeshare industry as a whole. 

As we await the full details of the report, some have decided make use of the service of attorneys who specialise in consumer law in order to get out of their timeshare contracts. 

Timeshare Contract Cancellation

The results, however, have been divided with some timeshare companies accepting the contract cancellation while others have chosen to instead not respond at all. 

Whatever the case, as long as the foundation for your cancellation is legally sound, then you contract will be cancelled as soon as the cancellation letter is sent. This does not depend on if the cancellation is accepted or not. 

The contracts are structured in such a way that they can’t be terminated. This means the process of getting out of timeshare obligations can thus be very difficult for the average person.

In order to do so, a consumer will need to prove that there has either been a breach of contract by the timeshare company which is a common occurrence, or that there is a defect in the contract. 

When the cancellation letter is sent it is not strange for the timeshare companies to make promises to the consumer in hopes of trying to keep them. 

However, in most cases the customers would have spent a substantial amount of money on the timeshare and never even used it.

When the NCC’s report is complete many attorneys will be given a much better chance at trying to reclaim the money that their clients have spent on the timeshare.  

Timeshare Contract CPA Compliance

As the Consumer Protection Act only came into effect on 31 March 2011, many consumers who had signed contracts before that are at a disadvantage because the wording in the contract wasn’t required to be in compliance with the Act. 

Luckily for such consumers, they were still entitled to a response about the cancellation of their contract, as well as, good service under the CPA. 

Van Deventer & Van Deventer Incorporated - Timeshare attorneys Johannesburg & Cape Town

Ultimately, any individual who wishes to get out of a timeshare contract needs the assistance of an attorney in order to do so. 

And since there are more than 750 000 South Africans who currently have a timeshare it is very important for the NCC to reach a decision on resolving the issue. 

One thing’s for sure, South African consumers definitely need it. Contact us for assistance with your timeshare contract.