HOLIDAYMAKERS were given a "hard sell" warning after an elderly couple returned from a trip to the sun distraught and £1,000 poorer.
Trading Standards officials, the Association of British Travel Agents and the Foreign Office said the case of pensioners Myra and Andy Durrant highlighted the potential dangers of holiday club sales techniques.
And, even though the Lancashire Evening Telegraph today secured a promise of a full refund from the company involved, the pensioners vowed never to be so "stupid" again.
The 65-year-old couple, of Coates Avenue, Barnoldswick, went to the holiday paradise of Fuengirola, Spain, for a two week break in March.
They said they were approached by a representative working for Heritage International, of Malaga on the Costa Del Sol.
Myra said: "We were told we had won first prize on a scratch card and all we needed to do was attend a 90-minute meeting and the prizes would be ours.
"After five hours our heads were all over the place and we ended up handing over £1,000 as a deposit. We were told it was timeshare but it turned out to be a holiday club, which doesn't have the same regulations.
"We went back to the hotel that night and I couldn't sleep. I got up and said to Andy 'I don't want to get involved' so we went back that morning and asked for our money back.
"They said to pack my bags and come and stay in one of the villas but I wasn't having any of it. I was stupid enough to fall for it the first time. I wasn't going to let them drag me back in."
The total cost of the timeshare was £6,700 and after being home for just a week they received an invoice stating that the remaining £5,700 should be sent.
Myra added: "If this story prevents just one person from falling for it then it will be worth while."
Julian Edwards, a spokesman for Lancashire Trading Standards said : "Under the Timeshare Act taking deposits up front is totally prohibited. This situation sounds like they have got involved in something called Holiday Club Ownership which has very little protection.
"We need people to contact us if they find themselves in a similar situation so we can pass the information on to make the relevant bodies aware of what is going on.
"If people pay on credit cards, the bank can claw back the money if a misrepresentation has been made."
A spokesman for the Association of British Travel Agents added: "The idea of holiday clubs came about after some people didn't want to follow the regulations of the Timeshare Act.
"The Office for Fair Trading has ruled 20 companies in the UK to be wound up in the last week, which says a lot about these companies.
"The warning is for people not to hand any money over and to get the contract looked over by a solicitor before entering into any deals."
Heritage International today confirmed that they would be returning the £1,000 deposit.
The spokesman said: "There has been a request for a refund and because it was done within the ten-day period, we will refund the money within the next ten to 14 days.
"It is our policy to return any deposit if people change their mind within the ten-day period."
Myra added: "I would like to thank the Lancashire Evening Telegraph for their assistance and just hope that this doesn't happen to anybody else. I will wait for my deposit to be returned."
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