Beware holiday club pitfalls This week tourism fever has hit the country with expositions and world-class conferences whetting appetites for greener horizons and idyllic getaways. But buyer beware, especially where the promise of a dream vacation at discounted rates and glittering prizes are concerned. This important consumer lesson was to be learned the hard way by holiday hopefuls Ester Franken and her friend Chrisinda Heydenrych, who both fell for a nefarious “trap” set by multi-national time-share promoters African Club Innovations (ACI) from South Africa. Last week the disgruntled holiday-club members approached Informante in an effort to warn other gullible Namibians. According to Franken, she was lured to a meeting by sales agents with a phone call promising her a prize, back in September last year. Upon arrival she discovered that the prize on offer was a voucher for African Club Innovations members to receive considerable discount on the cost of holiday flight tickets. Before the evening was over she had signed, paid a deposit of about N$10 000 and was locked into a debit order paying over N$1 000 a month, for the next ten years. Since the order was initiated from South Africa, her bank informed her that it cannot be cancelled from here, she explained. “We tested the voucher for a flight to Mauritius,” she explained. “The flight alone was N$27 000 but with a normal agent (Air Namibia) it was about N$10 000 cheaper!” she said. Numerous e-mails and telephone conversations have not yet yielded any results and every month deductions from her bank account continue. Heydenrych, who signed up from the same initial ‘prize-giving’ demonstration, became unhappy when she learned that Namibian destinations are largely excluded from the ACI packages. “We as Namibians cannot use the holiday club points in Namibia,” she wrote in complaint. “Before I signed on, I specifically asked whether we are able to use the holiday club in Namibia, and especially places like Erindi Game Reserve and Etosha, because I have not been to places like these in my own country,” Heydenrych wrote on 8 May when she also announced her desire to, “cancel this contact with immediate effect.” She has not received any reply but debit order deductions continue. Upon enquiry, Paul Edkins of VRS said that he would revert back with answers in due time. VRS is the managing agent for ACI which belongs to the ACI Trust under the guidance of a board of directors. Known board members as of 2012 include Marjorie Forssman, Carly Ballan, JW Meyer and Belinda Gelderbloem. (Informanté)
Posted on: Thu, 06 Jun 2013 06:33:56 +0000
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