5 useful tips from timeshare law experts

If you’re stuck in a timeshare agreement that you think may be in breach of timeshare law, it’s difficult to know how to identify the breaches and then pursue a compensation claim. The timeshare companies make it as hard as possible for you to prove their immoral and often unlawful practices.

We always advise talking directly to a timeshare lawyer, but in the meantime here are some simple tips from timeshare law experts to help you take your first step towards justice.

Don’t try to do it alone

Trying to take on the timeshare companies on your own is a bad idea.

Regardless of the cost, stress and time of pursuing compensation from a large company, timeshare companies simply do not want to give you anything. To this end, they lay all kinds of obstacles in your way.

Without an experienced timeshare law expert, you’re likely to be tripped up and thwarted by the conniving nature of timeshare companies.

Don’t be hasty

Embarking on a timeshare compensation case without preparation is a surefire way of losing the case.

It is very important to do your research into timeshare agreements, timeshare law and timeshare lawyers before moving forward with your claim. It is essential to double check and then triple check whether your contract contains clauses that are in defiance of the law. Only when you’re as confident as you can be that the timeshare company has broken the law should you press on. If you are having trouble understanding the contract, then ask a timeshare law expert to help untangle the riddles.

Spot the breaches

To fully understand the elements of a timeshare contract that step over the line between immoral and illegal you must consult a timeshare lawyer. However, there are a couple of things that you can look for to get a decent idea of where you stand:

• Does your contract last more than 50 years? If it does, and you signed it after 1998, it is likely unlawful.
• Did the timeshare company take money from you before the end of the agreed cooling-off period? If so, the contract may be null and void.
• Is your timeshare contract based around a floating week, otherwise known as Flex-time? It means that your week in the timeshare property is not fixed as the same every year. If so, it may be unlawful

Fairness

As well as contract clauses that are unlawful, it is also the responsibility of the timeshare companies to comply to a scale of fairness when selling timeshare agreements.

“Good faith” within timeshare law is a general rule of “fair and open dealing”. In other words, all contract terms should be expressed fully, clearly and legibly. It also means that any elements of the agreement that may be a disadvantage to the consumer must be appropriately prominent in the contract.

If the contract you signed did not reach this standard, or you signed an abridged contract without being offered access to the full one, there may be grounds for a compensation claim.

There may be counterclaims

Be warned, if you file a suit against a timeshare company, there is a good chance they will fire back with a counterclaim.

They will try and claim that by refusing to oblige by the terms of the contract you signed with them, that it is actually you that is breaking the law, not them.

Timeshare companies will be strongly represented by well-experienced lawyers who will be difficult to outwit. Sometimes the counterclaim will be genuine, but other times it will be an attempt to derail your progress by throwing a claim at you that they already know won’t stick.

They do this in the hope that it will scare you off, cost you too much money and ultimately result in the claim being dropped.

So there you have it, some basic pointers from our timeshare law experts. If this list has left you confident that you’re entitled to compensation, it’s time to hire a timeshare lawyer to help you fight your case.