Ten Regulatory Complaints Filed Against Wyndham Vacation Resorts, Inc., on Behalf of a 79-Year-Old Disabled Veteran Alleging Elderly Exploitation, Deceptive Business Practices & Fraud

  United States, Florida, Venice - 10/03/2019 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

Timeshare Cancellation Attorney Susan Budowski has filed ten regulatory complaints on behalf of her client who is a disabled Vietnam veteran, alleging elderly exploitation, deceptive business practices and fraud by Wyndham employees and licensed sales agents.

Her client, under sworn affidavit, attests that he was misled and coerced into signing four contracts in 2018, all within six months of each other. Her client initially purchased 77,000 points in the resale market, and in March of 2018, he bought his first upgrade while in Las Vegas. His salesperson communicated the following misrepresentations to her client about the 64,000-point upgrade:

• He would have better trading power to make reservations;
• He would have accessibility to more exclusive resorts;
• His salesperson would act as his personal concierge whenever he returned to Las Vegas;
• His salesperson stated he was going to run his credit and then informed him he was approved for PayPal Credit.  Her client, who had no knowledge of what Paypal was, realized later that Wyndham had charged the entire purchase of the timeshare to a Paypal Credit account in his name.

Six weeks later, her client was solicited by telephone in April 2018 by a Wyndham sale’s agent out of Washington state, to sell him more points. The sales agent informed her client that a purchase of 30,000 additional points would be in his best interest, and the Wyndham Plus Plan membership would allow him to have better deals and vacations. The sales agent wanted to email her client the purchase documents, however her client does not own a computer, nor does he have an email address. The sales agent asked if he could email the purchase documents to a relative. Her client electronically signed the documents at a relative’s home and the sales agent was not there to answer any questions her client may have had about the documents. 

This same relative that received the April 2018 contract to her email from the sales agent, received a call in July of 2018 – without any knowledge or permission from her client – and was told he had paperwork for him to complete. The sale’s agent told her that she could sign on his behalf – the relative declined. “We are in process of acquiring a sworn affidavit attesting to the Wyndham sale’s agent attempting to have another person execute a contract on his behalf, which in my legal opinion in itself is a fraudulent act.” Attorney Budowski said. 

The sales agent then contacted her client directly and said Wyndham was making changes to their point system and now that Wyndham is on the NYSE, his ownership would be more valuable. The sale’s agent asked if his relative could sign for him, and he agreed, however without knowledge that it was for, yet another upgrade of which the sale’s agent failed to inform him of and failed to review the financial terms of the agreement with Ms. Budowski’s client.

Her client was asked to attend an owners meeting at Wyndham’s Skylight Towers in September 2018. The appointed sales agent informed him that for an additional $8,000 he could upgrade giving her client a total of 400,000 ownership points and would be eligible for an interest free credit card. The sale’s agent failed to mention that $8,000 was only the down payment. For this fourth contract:

• The financed amount was for $48,602.87;
• His loan payments increased from $347 month to $757 month;
• Maintenance fees went from $108 month to $211 month;
• These monthly charges were taken out of his checking account without his knowledge;
• All of the documents were electronically signed. However, her client was in fact never in front of a computer with Wyndham’s closing representative to electronically sign his name on any of the purchase documents. 

Attorney Budowski stated, “What is most disturbing to me is how multiple Wyndham agents preyed on an elderly disabled veteran who lives on a fixed income; completing four upgrades over several years is excessive in my opinion, but how four upgrades in just six months did not raise a huge red flag to Wyndham I find shocking.”

A 12-page letter of the fact pattern relating to this egregious elderly exploitation was provided to Wyndham, of which Wyndham has refused to provide her client just relief. 

Ms. Budowski’s client is extremely fraught with disappointment that an organization of Wyndham’s magnitude would allow their employees to operate in such a deceitful manner. Her client seeks a full release and refund as a result of all of these fraudulent transactions. 

“I find the actions and behavior of these Wyndham sales agents exhibited not only to an elderly person, a Marine that served our country in Vietnam, to be shameful conduct and should be dealt with accordingly. At this stage the reward for said actions is these Wyndham sales agents being able to keep the sales and their commissions, which I personally find unconscionable” Attorney Budowski adds. 

The egregious predatory nature of these transactions warrants action at the highest state level. Complaints have been filed with the Attorney Generals in Nevada, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Florida. "Let's hope at least one of them step up and protect our seniors to put an end to such abusive practices," Budowski adds.

About Attorney Budowski 

Susan Budowski is the leading timeshare attorney in the United States. Operating out of Florida, considered the timeshare capital of the world, Attorney Budowski has helped thousands of timeshare owners since converting her law practice to exclusively handle timeshare matters in 2010. Ms. Budowski has been selected for AVVO’s Client’s Choice Award 7 Years in a Row. 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, and 2013, and she was honored with the Guardian ad Litem Award of Excellence 2016, volunteering for abused and neglected children by the Orange County Bar Association.

She was admitted to the Florida Bar May of 2004 and was added to the Roles of the Law Society of England and Wales in August 2012 as an English Solicitor, allowing her to practice law in nearly 40 countries.

Attorney Budowski is also the Chairman & CEO of Hope City United, Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit corporation to bring awareness and the eradication of human and sex trafficking.

Ms. Budowski previously worked at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Langley Virginia where she received multiple Exceptional Performance Awards from high-ranking members of the CIA, including former CIA Director Robert Gates, who also served as Secretary of Defense for both President Bush and President Obama.