In the past years a great number of questionable Holiday Clubs have sprung up around the world, including Singapore.  Over here, they are particularly aggressive in recruiting along Orchard Road. 

Timeshare vs Holiday Club

Holiday Clubs differ from Timeshare in that membership of the club is not linked to any rights in a particular property. Members are therefore at the mercy of the company's ability to fulfill requests. 

1) Timeshare Resale Scams

If you're stuck with a timeshare that you have no use of and think of reselling it to get back the money you have invested, be very careful. There is hardly any market for timeshare resale and those who offer to sell it for you are merely sitting on your money and doing nothing. At worst, they run away with your money. It's a scam. Do not fall for it. Click here for the way it is done in UK. click here for USA and see also Resale scams in Spain

Resale Scams in Singapore

Resale scams have been reported in Singapore, with complaints against John Tan of ITRC  (International Timeshare Resale Consultant). People who approached ITRC have been asked to pay an upfront amount of $388 as membership fee. ITRC then claimed they are unable to resell unless the customers upgrade to a larger accommodation(3 bedroom) for $2500. They were promised monthly payments of $291 for the next 3 years.  When resale still failed, they were told to pay another $2500 to convert existing plans to new destinations. Efforts to recover the money have proved useless, as John Tan has converted his company into a private company and he is no longer personally liable. His office has also closed and his contact number is no longer valid. 

2) 　Upgrading scams (of membership of timeshare to holiday club)

Be careful if the timeshare company that sold you the product comes back to you years later to tell you you have to upgrade to a holiday club, as the maintenance fees are going to go up and you will be sued to bankruptcy if you don't pay (and your children will be sued too). They tell you the advantages of a holiday club as it does not come with maintenance fees. It is a one time payment with no maintenance fee and you don’t need to pay subscription fees if don’t want to travel on that year and can renew back again if you wish to travel. 

This upgrading involves another large investment and they will arrange an attractive installment plan or bank loan for you. 

Be careful also if they tell you to add in more money for your timeshare in order to increase its resale value, or if they tell you you have to pay up in full in order to sell. They are merely trying to get you to pump in more money to fatten their purses. 

See also advice for Trial Memberships

3) Cash-back scam

They tell you you have the option to participate in the cash-back programme, where you can get back everything you have put in after 5 years. They also tell you you have to pay in full now if you wish to participate in this programme. They say since you get back 100% of what you have invested, there is no investment risk. However, there is no guarantee that the timeshare company will even exist in 5 years. Further look at the cash-back contract states that you get back up to 100%, which means it can be as high as 100% or at worst, 0%(most probably the latter). Do you really want to take this kind of risk? The caveat to a successful cash-back claim is that you have to send the documents to the bank in 4 years 11 months after signing (within 1 month of expiry). If not, you won't get back a single cent once the deadline is passed. There cannot be any mistakes on the cash-back document either, otherwise it is void. 

If you are not a victim yet:  

In order that you not make yourself susceptible to timeshare/holiday club scams, 

• Do not respond to unsolicited invitations, either by mail, email or via telephone, that tell you you've won a prize at a lucky draw and that you have to come down to collect it. be extremely skeptical. Don't be tempted. Tell them "You can keep the prize for yourself, I don't want it". Slam the phone after that. 
• Do you respond to people with scratch cards along Orchard Road asking you to do that survey on "which is your favourite shopping centre". It's their means of recruiting potential victims. Do not sympathize with the kids who tell you they need to earn that commission from each survey. Just brush them away or tell them in the face, "I know your company and everything it does". 
• Even if you have done the survey, and done the scratch card, do not believe them when they tell you you've won a prize. They are extremely good actors/actresses..
• If you find you have been tricked into going to the presentation longer than what you have agreed(45min), follow your instincts and walk out. They have no right to detain you. You can report them to the police for false imprisonment. 
• If they threaten you (eg. "give me your money or you can't leave"), you can report them to the police for assault. 
• Do not leave sight of your credit card at any time..esp when they say they need your card to check if the last 4 digits correspond to their lucky draw numbers, or if they say they will help you check your credit limit. They may have swiped your card without you knowing. 
• Do not give them your credit card before you have examined the contract and decided you wish to sign. Their trick is to swipe your card first and then force you to sign (afterall, the money is already in their hands). If they took your card before you have seen the contract, you still have the right to refuse to sign. 

• Be careful about accepting drinks which could affect your judgment.

• Remember that gifts which appear to be valuable (e.g. free holidays) may not be "free". Closer inspection of those 1 week free vacation passes reveal that you have to attend another timeshare presentation once you are there. 

• Do not sign on the agreement on the spot, without taking it home to analyze. Consult your family and friends and be sure you know what you are buying. 
• Do not sign without read all the fine print (on both sides) and don't sign unless everything your salesperson told you is included in writing. If he said you can utilize the membership after 25% of the contract sum has been paid and it says 50% on the contract, ask them why and insist on having that term on the contract. Do not believe them when they say it's already in their computer system. If your salesperson did not mention maintenance fees and you see it on your contract, do not sign, as you have not been given sufficient information at the point of sales. 
• Ask lots of questions and don't stop until you're completely clear on all the details. This is a big investment, so take your time and not let anyone rush you. If at any time, you feel things are not right, just walk out and leave.