Bluegreen Resorts Deception in direct violation of Michigan Consumer Protection Act Novi Michigan

I purchased Bluegreen points in 2005 and upgraded 3 times, I am now a platinum member. I have never been lied to or had the program misrepresented. There may be some overzealous sales people but I was so impressed with the company I even invested in the company stock, BXG through a stock broker. The phone support staff have always been very helpful,,,Try again.

"sorry RT you are wrong $1022 is not going to get a family of 4 a weeks holiday it does not give you and your other half a week in a decent hotel."

Oh, I think you can get a week's holiday at a fairly nice place for a family of four through a timeshare rental for $1022. OTOH, if you live close enough to a Bluegreen resort and can get time off within a few weeks of requesting it, you can sometimes get a week's holiday for a family of seven at a nice resort for $480 using Bonus Time. That's seven nights at $80/per night for a good sized three bedroom condo. While these opportunities are fairly rare within the Bluegreen system, I have not found those kinds of deals At All outside of Bluegreen.

And what people who argue that it's cheaper to rent *from* timeshare owners than to own a timeshare forget is that people rent timeshares out for two reasons - (one) to make a profit or (two) because they're hoping the rentals will pay some of their maintenance fees. Either way, what they charge will be tied to the yearly fees. Generally, Bluegreen rentals go for ten cents per point, while most Bluegreen owners are paying nine cents per point or less (the main exceptions to the roughly ten cents a point rule being Christmas Mountain Village and I would assume Shenandoah, although I've never checked, because people who own the older UDIs there can stretch their points, and The Fountains, because Oasis Lakes owners are under a different maintenence fee system).

And of course most timeshares are offered only on a weekly basis - my family tends to want to hit the resort Sunday through Friday or Monday through Thursday. Since Sunday through Friday skips Saturday, a points pricey day, even rentals charging nine cents a point and offering to rent by the day are either more expensive than what we would pay through Bluegreen, or about the same price. And if we expand our package as we plan to next year, we'll be paying closer to six cents a point, so we'll be saving a considerable amount going Bluegreen.

Which is not a defense of the lying salespeople. However, going on my experience Bluegreen requires every buyer to intial a contract summary that says (among other things) "sales persons are not authorized to make verbal or written offers that represent modifications, alterations, or additions to such documents. Please list any promises or commitments that were important to your decision to purchase that have not been covered in writing." Then someone reads that contract to the buyers and records them agreeing to the various terms. If it was important to use the "sell back to Bluegreen" option, then you needed to get it in writing, or at least list it in the summary as crucial. Bluegreen cannot catch every dishonest salesperson in the act of lying, but they do try to give the buyer the opportunity to expose that lie and get it cleared up.

Just as you said, the Attorney General in PA has just (as of Oct. 14, 2008) filed suit against these idiots. I know it's LONG overdue but, better late than never! Anyway, with enough consumer complaints, the consumers in your state may benefit from a suit as well. I am absolutely ELATED that this is underway. Bluegreen has lied to and decieved too many people and now it's time to face the music- so to speak. Here is the info from the PA Gov's Website:

Attorney General Corbett announces lawsuits against Florida timeshare & vacation companies accused of advertising, real estate, and telemarketing violations

HARRISBURG - Attorney General Tom Corbett today announced lawsuits today against four Florida-based companies accused of illegally marketing vacation packages, using "free" airline ticket offers and other worthless prizes to lure consumers into aggressive and deceptive timeshare presentations.

Corbett said consumer protection lawsuits were filed against Bluegreen Corporation, Bluegreen Resorts, Bluegreen Vacations Unlimited, Inc. and Great Vacations Destinations, Inc., all of Boca Raton, Florida. Bluegreen contacted consumers by phone and through kiosks at shopping malls, fairs, and festivals throughout Pennsylvania, and also operates full-time sales facilities in Hershey and King of Prussia.

"Virtually any consumer with a checkbook and a pulse allegedly qualified as a 'winner' in these promotions," Corbett said. "Unsuspecting consumers who believed they were contest winners were actually drawn into a high pressure bait-and-switch campaign designed to push timeshare vacation packages costing thousands of dollars."

Corbett said more than 5,700 Pennsylvania residents purchased Bluegreen timeshares, with many paying $20,000 to $40,000 or more for packages that violated Pennsylvania's Consumer Protection Law, the Real Estate Licensing and Registration Act, the Telemarketer Registration Act and other consumer regulations.

Phony Prizes
Corbett said that Bluegreen representatives allegedly called consumers who believed they were entering contests and other promotions promising cars, cash and vacations.

According to the lawsuit, consumers were told that they had not won the "grand prize," but had been selected to receive other items, like free airline tickets. Consumers were also promised free gasoline and meals when they collected their prize, if they attended a 90 minute timeshare presentation.

Corbett said the lawsuit alleges that consumers who were contacted by Bluegreen were not actually randomly selected prize winners. Instead, virtually everyone who entered the contests was contacted and falsely told that they were a prize winner.

In one case, Corbett said a consumer informed a Bluegreen representative that the person they were trying to reach did not live at that address. The consumer was told that it wasn't a problem - they would give her a prize too.

High Pressure Sales and False Advertising
Corbett said that in order to collect their "prizes," consumers were required to schedule an appointment with a Bluegreen sales representative. In some cases, consumers who believed they would be attending a 90 minute timeshare presentation were actually subjected to relentless marketing pitches that lasted five hours or more.

According to the lawsuit, numerous deceptive statements were made to consumers during these presentations in an effort to get them to sign contracts immediately, including phony claims that prices would increase the next day, misrepresentations about when and where consumers could travel if they made a purchase and false statements about certain fees being waived.

Corbett said that some consumers bought vacation programs because they were told they were entitled to a one-week stay in Hawaii, only to learn afterward that the program they purchased could not be used in Hawaii.

According to the lawsuit, consumers who sat through the timeshare presentations received "prizes" that were nothing like what they had been promised. The "four free airline tickets" were actually booklets that offered two airline tickets with each hotel room reserved, at high prices, in a limited number of cities. In some situations, consumers were required to commit to a 10 night stay at overpriced hotel rates before being able to select a local airport for their flight.

Corbett said "free" gasoline and meals that consumers were promised turned out to be coupons or certificates with lengthy terms and conditions. For instance, consumers who were promised $40 in free gas were required to submit written requests to obtain a series of gas coupons. The coupons required consumers to pay for their gas first and then mail a receipt for reimbursement, with each coupon limited to a $5 purchase, with no more than one purchase per month.

Illegal Contracts
Corbett's said contracts used by Bluegreen failed to properly inform consumers of their right to cancel their purchase. Pennsylvania law requires that consumers have five days to cancel any timeshare or campground purchase. Bluegreen is also accused of violating a state law that requires all consumer contracts to be written in easy-to-understand terms.

Do Not Call Violations
According to the lawsuit, Bluegreen made numerous calls to consumers who were on Pennsylvania's Do Not Call list, allegedly basing those calls on referrals from other customers. Additionally, the companies are accused of making repeated calls to consumers who clearly told them not to call again.

"Bluegreen took advantage of hardworking Pennsylvania residents eager to find an affordable getaway," Corbett said. "Using deceptive contests, relentless sales presentations and misleading contracts, consumers were pressured into paying thousands of dollars for vacation packages that don't meet their needs or their budgets."

Corbett said the lawsuits seek restitution for consumers who suffered financial losses because of these deceptive or illegal practices.

Additionally, Corbett says the lawsuit asks the court to void all illegal consumer contracts and give consumers the right to cancel any agreement that did not include the state-required notice of cancellation.

The lawsuit also seeks up to $1,000 in civil penalties for each violation of the Consumer Protection Law, or up to $3,000 for each violation involving a senior citizen.

The lawsuits were filed in Commonwealth Court, in Harrisburg, by Senior Deputy Attorney General David Sumner of the Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection.

Corbett says the investigation began after consumers contacted his office to report these practices. He encouraged other consumers who have problems with Bluegreen to file a complaint by calling the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-441-2555 or submit an online consumer complaint.

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Dave C., Please write to MI Attorney General. I did and his response was that he needs more complaints about this company. On October 14, 2008, just two days ago, the PA Attorney General filed Consumer Protection Violation lawsuits against Bluegreen. Please look that information up online to get the details. With enough complaints to our AG we may start the same kind of lawsuit. The problem with going to a private attorney is that Bluegreen's sales tactics (telling falsehoods about this product and services) boils down to our word against theirs. We need the support of each other in order to prove that we're not making this up. We all went through the same high pressure sales tactics laced with false embellishments. Please write to our Attorney General immediately.

Dear RT in Howell, My wife and I bought about 5 years ago and upgraded to silver about 3 years ago and thats when the bottom fell out our maintenance fees are going up so fast that we may as well just rent a house some where when we want to take vaction. We started at about $550.00 a year now we are at $1,233.00 a year.
The reservation process is very difficult you need to plan a year in advance. We got into Hawwi'i but it took two years to get it. As to getting any answers about the Maint. fees I get the same old thing ( smoke & mirrors ) nobody has a real clear answer as to why just a bunch of this went up and that went up in cost.
Their is no way out either, who would like to buy this mess, We have alot of money invested in this plan and I see no way of getting anything back out of it. Just as you said they can't sell it like they said and you can't rent it either. I'm in with a class action anything to try and get these people to live up to their end of the deal.

Why did we buy, asks Smithiekid. We bought because we were lied to about what we were buying. We didn't know what we were going to hear or what it would cost when we arrived for the presentation. Although it sounded very nice, we told the salesman that we did not have the money and couldn't obligate ourselves until our pending real estate sale went through (which didn't happen, the sale fell through 15 days later). The salesman specifically told us that this purchase was "just like any other real estate purchase" and would "appreciate just like any other real estate". He said that Bluegreen would sell it for us if we found that we couldn't use it and we "have nothing to lose". After four and a half hours of listening to him with nothing to eat we were ushered to a room where some other people shoved papers in front of us and distracted us from reading any of them. We had no idea that these people were getting us to sign for something other than what we were sold. If we were told the truth to begin with we wouldn't have made the purchase. If the salesman and his manager hadn't been high pressure sharks, they would have listened to us when we told them we couldn't afford it.

We were invited to a presentation. We had no idea what we were going to hear or how much it would cost. We told the salesman and his supervisor at least twice that we could not afford the package on that day. We explained that we had a sale pending on a property and we would feel more secure if we waited until the sale went through but they laid on more pressure. The salesman TOLD us several times throughout the presentation that this purchase would be like any other real estate purchase and WOULD appreciate in value. He added, and I quote, "you have nothing to lose". Our sale did not go through and after three years we still haven't sold that property. We walked in at 11 am, knowing zero about timeshares and staggered out at 3:30 pm, owners. WITHOUT the money to do so. We were distracted from reading the documents we were signing but were duped into believing we were buying what the salesman pounded into us for four and a half hours.

sorry RT you are wrong $1022 is not going to get a family of 4 a weeks holiday it does not give you and your other half a week in a decent hotel.

you say a lot of the 150000 bluegreen owners are unhappy which is very strange since all the owners I have seen at the resorts which at this time of the year are full seem to have smiles on their faces, which is a strange way to be when you are so unhappy with your ownership.

You dont seem to want to listen to any positve side to your ownership or how to use it, the question arises -- why did you buy in the first place

Another point I can never get my head around is that in the US timeshare has been around a long time and it uses the same rules that my parents in law used 30 yrs ago when they bought their timeshare, why people think it is an investment that will grow is beyond me , the only investment is in vacation time and never as or ever will be a $$$$ investment

I read a comment posted by an employee of Bluegreen who stated that there are 150,000 Bluegreen owners. One important thing to remember is that many of them are UNHAPPY about their ownership. I would like to know the percentage of unhappy owners. Bluegreen should be concerned about ANY unhappy owners. Another point to mention is that with my $900+ MF and $122 annual dues, I could have a nice vacation for a week anywhere I'd like, anytime I'd like. What did I pay the additional $20,000 for?

Sorry to have to tell you but you are wrong
Once you have paid your MF you can borrow your points with out any extra cost
This is true since I have just done the very same thing.
Our points are due Sept 1st I have made a reservation for July 18th in Miami the only way I could have done this is to borrow my points

All you need to do is to phone BG and they will tell you

PLEASE GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT BEFORE YOU POST PORKIE PIES

My post was to help this person by showing them how to use the system yours is the complete opposite.

And have I have said many many times I work for a Textile printing company in the UK please check out our website

www.standfast-barracks.com

Except any time you borrow points from another year, you have to pay the maintenance fees and dues ahead of time. Being a Bluegreen employee, you'd think you would've mentioned that. Oh sorry, I forgot you're not an employee. Just a really concerned and caring Bluegreen owner who sits on these pages and tries to help everyone. You're so sweet.

You will be able to go to Florida for Christmas and the way to do it is as follows

Once you have paid your 2009 MF in November 2008 you can borrow your June 2009 points and make your reservation at the 11 month point (there is no extra cost for doing this)

how many points do you have?
I have made the assumption that its at least 15000 since Sunshine 2 will be 15 and The Fountaints will be 16.
If I am correct then that makes you bronze members and you can go on the wait list 12 months out and if you have 20000 ie silver then it is 13 months out.
You do not need to have you points in your account untill the 11 month out date

If you do it like this each year then you can go to Florida every year (if the points stack up)

In the end if you do want to sell then I am sorry to have to tell you that you will only get 30 to 50 cents per point and that is with Pinnacle with any other resale agent you will get less. This is because you will not be able to transfer any benefits with those points and they then become unqualified points. This is true for all timeshare it should never be looked on as a $$$ investment but an investment in Holiday time.

For more info join the Bluegreen group on yahoo

My husband and I also got scammed by Bluegreen in the summer of '04. Just like everyone else, we went to the "90-minute" presentation and four hours later we signed on for a sampler package just to get the heck out. When we used the sampler package, we were then subject to several more hours of bullying and finally just caved in. Not an excuse, just the reality of the situation. It would truly take me several hours to share all that we've been through with these despicable people in the past four years.

I just wanted to concur with your comment that our voice needs to be louder than theirs - I've searched the internet a million times over trying to find out about class action lawsuits against Bluegreen but nothing has ever materialized as far as I can tell. It seems like there is no recourse - as you said, you can't sell it and unless you can get your worst enemy to buy it, there isn't anyone you would want to curse with this! Now you can't even rent your points. I wish we had realized that for the REST OF OUR LIVES, long after our initial purchase is paid off, we would have to pay ridiculous maintenance fees for vacations that we are unable to take because of the semi-annual program we're on.

Until something better comes along, I am going to use every single point I can, and while I am laying by the pool and a little tour group walks by and the greasy salesperson asks "How are you doing today?", I am going to respond by telling every potential victim not to fall into this trap! Heck maybe I'll even have a beach towel made that says "Ask me why I hate Bluegreen". I feel as though that is my only option right now - to tell everyone I possibly can never to get stuck in this never-ending nightmare!

I am more than willing to join any class action suit or other action against Bluegreen. Unfortunately I don't have the expertise in this area, so hopefully someone with some legal experience will see the validity of all the claims against this company.