Florida legislation cracking down on timeshare fraud

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TALLAHASSEE — Legislation aimed at protecting people from timeshare fraud won the endorsement on Jan. 31 of the American Resort Development Association and the American Resort Development Association Resort Owners’ Coalition. Both groups lent their public support for a bill now before the Florida Legislature known as the Timeshare Resale Accountability Act.
Sponsored by state Sen. Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, and state Rep. Eric Eisenaugle, R-Orlando, the bill aims to protect Florida consumers and help put an end to deceptive marketing practices by fraudulent timeshare resale companies that have been targeting consumers under the guise of offering a service to help sell their timeshare product.

If the bill makes it through the full Legislature and is signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott, timeshare owners would be able to hold resale companies that use deceptive business practices accountable for their actions. The legislation, originally proposed last October by Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, seeks greater transparency and will require, among other things, that timeshare resale companies disclose all terms and conditions of their business relationship with a consumer, provide for a right of rescission for consumers to cancel a contract for resale services, and impose penalties on companies who continue these deceptive practices.

Bondi, Gardiner, and Eisenaugle should be commended for their commitment to consumer protection and transparency, said Howard Nusbaum, president and CEO of ARDA. He added that both associations “support their efforts to ensure that these important safeguards are put into Florida law.” The bill is now before a legislative committee.

The current legislative session runs through March, and the bill needs to be approved by both the Florida House and Senate before then. According to ARDA, nearly 25 percent of all timeshare resorts in the United States are located in Florida and represent a large and growing share of Florida’s tourism market. The association issued a release calling the Timeshare Resale Accountability Act “proactive legislation that is vital to ensuring the long-term health of a key sector of Florida’s tourism industry.”

Nusbaum called the bill a needed first step by state authorities to take action against dishonest companies whose actions taint the industry’s reputable resale companies. Similar legislation has already been enacted in Colorado, and has been proposed in South Carolina as well. ARDA says the timeshare industry continues to work with its members to ensure transparency on both the buying and selling process.

Over the years, ARDA and its members have provided information on the resale process to consumers, monitored resale company practices, held symposiums for its members, and created think tanks with industry leaders to discuss the best solutions to ensure consumer protections and adherence to resale standards.