I was scammed just 2 days ago when I received a phone call telling me I was 'chosen' to receive this dream vacation package through Ramada Plaza Resorts. I had filled out a ballot for something like this about a month ago so I thought it was legit. Of course, I was really excited since I hadn't won anything before in my life and agreed to put down the $798US which translated to $960CDN.
At first, I hesitated because it was so pricy but the guy Jason transferred me to his manager Don, who assured me that they would only charge $399US for now for the 1st person and charge the remaining $399 when I decide that I actually wanted to take the vacation. Did he do that? No! When I checked my Visa account online later on, I saw that $960CDN had been charged so how does that equate to the $399US that he said he was going to charge me. He had already charged me for 2 ppl. What a liar!
Luckily for me, I told my friend about this and she said the exact same thing happened to her boyfriend except he was sensible enough to look them up on the net while he was talking to them on the phone and so didn't get scammed. She told me to check out this site, which saved my life! Thanks to all of you who told your stories and gave tips on how to get your refund back. Before I found this site, I thought for sure I was going to lose almost $1000 of my hard-earned money and considering I was only a student, this was ALOT!
I called today to cancel my package and the 1st girl hung up on me so I called again and got a different girl who transferred me over to the customer care specialist, Phil who tried to downgrade my package so I would only have to pay $74US now and the rest later. No way was I falling in that trap again. I just told him firmly over and over again that I was a student and my tuition is due next week and the only way I could pay it off was through my Visa, which meant that I would need a refund so I would have room on my visa to charge my tuition.
He sounded sympathetic and finally gave up and said he would credit back the full amount to my Visa. It would take 7-10 days to process, I'm still worried that he won't refund my money but if I still don't see the money on my card in 10 days, I'm calling right back to tell them that I'll be filing a formal complaint to the Florida Attorney General Dept of Consumer Services as well as be forced to take legal action. Hopefully, I won't have to do that.
Here are some laws they violated according to the 'Florida Sellers of Travel Act'under section 559.932 that I compiled for my case, I didn't have to use most of them but maybe they'll be useful for some of you out there:
(1) It states that the purchaser may cancel the contract without any penalty or obligation within 30 days from the date of purchase or receipt of the vacation certificate, whichever occurs later so it is unlawful for them to fail to honour this request of cancellation
(2) It is a violation knowingly state, represent, indicate, suggest, or imply, directly or indirectly, that the vacation package offered by the seller of travel cannot be purchased at some later time or may not otherwise be available after the initial contact or that callbacks by the prospective purchaser are not accepted, when no such limitations or restrictions in fact exist
They told me that this was a one-time deal and that it was 'now or never' thereby, pressuring me into getting it. They leave you no time to think. This is so wrong of them! If it's a one-time special deal for a select number then why are tons of people getting phone calls that they have been selected and tons of vouchers sent out in the mail.
(3) It is a violation to knowingly request, encourage, or suggest, directly or indirectly, that payment for the right to obtain a vacation package must be by credit card authorization or to otherwise announce a preference for that method of payment over any other when no correct and true explanation for such preference is likewise stated
I guess this would only apply if you paid by credit card but the guy made it sound like this vacation package was a collaborative deal done with Visa since he asked if I still used my visa regularly. That was another reason why I trusted him because he kept mentioning Visa and it is a reputable credit company. He indirectly lead me to believe that the only form of payment I could use was my visa.
Well, this was a long read but hopefully it does help some people who are gathering evidence against these scammers. I will update when I do receive my refund.
Good luck to everyone seeking refunds, be FIRM and don't GIVE IN!
Jen
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada
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