Apparently, this company charges timeshare owners an upfront fee claiming to have a buyer waiting to purchase their timeshare. However, once the company received the money, the buyer never materialized and the sellers never heard from the company again. The BBB has already sent several notifications requesting this company to verify its techniques and to provide the name and contact information for customers who have successfully sold their timeshare through their services. However, Midwest Timeshares has yet to respond to any of the requests.

The BBB president commented, “If you want to sell your timeshare, contact a real estate agent. Do not pay money to a stranger that you have only spoken with over the phone that you have never seen nor met.”

The state states, “I understand that our economy has been struggling, and some timeshare owners may be desperate to rid themselves of their investment and make some money. Unfortunately, scammers are capitalizing on this desperation. And by the time they realize that they were scammed, it may be too late to get a refund through their credit card company.”

The CEO of On Call International, Mike Kelly, commented, “We get reports fairly regularly about wallets going missing and things being taken from purses. It seems to happen a lot in heavy tourist zones in London, Italy and even some Asian countries. One expert believes that in Rome more than 300 tourists get their pockets picked each day.”

Travel bands were created as a way to store important documents under your clothing. The travel band is a waistband that is meant to wrap around your hips while the Travel Wing is worn over your bra against your back. These items weren’t meant to replace money pouches or purses but are used to store valuables that do not need to be accessed. These items are available at Dovetail Travel in Peace as well as other websites.

Pickpocket-proof pants were also created as a way to safe guard valuables. These pants provide the same kind of security as the money-belt. Though these pants are only available in men’s sizes, a women’s line is currently being created.

Adam Rapp, creator of pickpocket-proof pants, commented, “All our hip pockets have the ability to be single or double secured and our rear left cargo pocket has an internal passport-sized pocket which would give you triple security. In order for a pickpocket to get into that pocket, they would have to undo two zippers and two buttons.”

Pickpocket-proof skivvies were created by Johanna Denize, who had been the victim of pickpocketing during her years of travel. The pickpocket-proof skivvies are a line of underwear with hidden pockets and is currently available as boy shorts for women and boxer briefs for men as well as T-shirts, tank tops and long johns. Each product has two pockets with secure zippers.

Denize commented, “I had tried money belts, neck pouches and even hiding my money in my socks, but wasn’t happy with those solutions. Panties with hidden pockets work because no one but the person wearing our clothes will ever know where the valuables are hidden.”

Transfer America hopes that all travelers are equipped with the right items while traveling across the country or overseas. Losing valuables is never a good experience.

Transfer America reports on nine people who were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly being involved in a $2.4 million mail fraud conspiracy. This conspiracy involved timeshare mortgages and those arrested are scheduled to have their initial “court appearances in Florida, South Carolina, Virginia and the U.S. Virgin Islands before coming to New Jersey to answer for the charges in complaints”.

The investigation revealed that the defendants were working through the VO Group and from 2009 to 2011, “participated in a fraudulent scheme in which representatives of the VO Group, often using false identities, telephoned owners of timeshare vacation properties purchased from Flagship Resort Development, Wyndham Vacation Resorts Inc., and other timeshare developers”.

These representatives convinced timeshare owners that they could pay off the mortgage balance at a lower price by mailing their payments to the VO Group. Instead of using the money to pay off the timeshares, the representatives would use the money for personal items. The investigation also revealed that there was approximately 225 victims and most of them were elderly.

Transfer America reports on a Virgin Atlantic flight that made an emergency landing at Gatwick Airport last week. The emergency landing resulted in four injured passengers. Officials stated that the London-to-Orlando flight was experiencing technical problems and had returned two hours after takeoff. The plane was carrying 299 passengers and thirteen crew members.

Virgin Atlantic commented, “The captain decided as a precautionary measure to immediately evacuate the aircraft. All passengers and crew disembarked the plane.”

According to the Gatwick Airports Twitter page, the airport is slowly resuming flights in and out of the terminals. Though there still may be some delays until everything is fully functioning again.

Transfer America reports on the South Florida couple who conned timeshare owners into paying $1,996 in upfront fees for a service that doesn’t exist. The Federal Trade Commission has intervened and stopped all telemarketing and businesses owned by this couple. The way they conned timeshare owners into paying an upfront fee was by convincing them that they had a buyer waiting to purchase their unwanted timeshare. Once the sellers paid the company, they realized that what they “received was a contract to market and advertise their timeshare”.  The contract was nowhere close to being a sales contract and many timeshare owners signed the document believing that it was a legitimate sales contract.

Lisa Tumminia-Pappalardo and her husband, Pasquale Pappalardo, “agreed to settlements with the FTC that permanently ban[ned] them from telemarketing and taking apart in timeshare resale services”.

Timeshare owners started complaining when they realized that they had been scammed. However, all calls and emails were unanswered and it was almost impossible to get a refund. In the twenty months that they have been in business, the agency estimated that the company conned $2.7 million from timeshare owners around the nation.

In October 2010, the company’s operation and assets were frozen by the federal court and the couple now faces the crimes they have committed.

Qantas is partnering up with OnAir this month to test out the satellite internet service. Japan’s JAL intends to make internet service available to their passengers by summer and United Airlines is currently exploring internet service on international flights. Delta Airlines is partnering up with Amazon to offer their passengers a way to shop while flying to their destination.

If you wish to take a vacation somewhere without having to worry about your timeshare, contact Transfer America today.

Transfer America found an article on MSNBC about a Delta aircraft rolling off a taxiway last Tuesday morning. The aircraft was being tested by two workers when the incident happened. Shortly after 5 a.m. the breaks failed and the plane started to move forward. The plane continued to roll off the taxiway and into an embankment at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

The spokesman for Delta Airways stated that there were no passengers aboard the plane when it crashed but the plane itself sustained some damage. The extent of the damage is still unknown but the runway adjacent to the Taxiway was closed until the plane was moved.

The TSA head of Transportation Security Administration, John Pistole, stated that the full-body scanners are now catching almost all of the prohibited items. These items include ceramic knives as well as exotic pets strapped onto the body. In almost all cases, passengers did not plan on using the weapon onboard the plane.

Some of the items that have been discovered at the New York-area airports are spear guns, utility knife, double-edged daggers, BB guns, hand grenades and many other items.

Pistole stated that “TSA plans to continue expanding its Pre-Check Program, which allows passengers who submit information about themselves in advance to get faster airport screening”. The PreCheck program is currently at nine airports and is expanding to 45 others by the end of this year.

Transfer America hopes that all passengers will use PreCheck and refrain from bringing prohibited items aboard the plane.

TSA commented, “From February 2011 to June 2011, the OIG assessed the manner in which TSA inspects, maintains and operates backscatter units used in passenger screening. The OIG found that TSA was in compliance with standards regarding radiation exposure limits and safety requirements.”

These machines are checked and tested every six months to ensure safety. Subsequently, if a machine is moved or needs any kind of maintenance they are also subjected to a full check and test. The OIG stated, “No accidental radiation overdoses of backscatter units have ever occurred”.

Transfer America is a company that many timeshare owners have trusted. This company legally helps timeshare owners escape from their timeshare so that they are able to enjoy vacations again.

The suspects in the case are being accused of contacting different timeshare owners and offering them lucrative terms in buying their timeshare, promising to pay them much more than the owners thought they would be able to get for the timeshare. Then the scam artists would tell the timeshare owners that there was a small transfer fee and several small taxes, all of which do not actually exist.  After they would pay these fees, the scammers would split and were never heard from again.

The area in Spain where most timeshares that were involved in the scam were located

The timeshare properties of course never actually changed hands once and the men were not heard from until they would all regroup to begin another scam in another area. Authorities eventually arrested 23 German men, one Polish suspect, and one Swiss suspect last week.

With the assistance of the German Embassy in Madrid, detectives were able to find the suspects, who were mostly located on the Tenerife Island. The men are currently facing up to six years in prison if they are in fact convicted of the fraud.

Many owners have tried to sell their property, usually finding depressed prices, not the lucrative terms that the suspects allegedly offered to the German timeshare owners which is the biggest reason why timeshare owners are so often scammed in this way.