Be VERY WARY of who you are renting from!

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

This is sad but part of the renting game going on now!

The more owners that are becoming greedy and want to rent the more low-lifes join just to scam the honest people.

If you have somethng nice going on there are the low-lifes that will take advantage to make the mighty buck!

PHILL12

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

We're very sorry to hear that this happened to you. I wanted to make sure to make notations on this owner's account of the problems you encountered but was unable to find a Theodore Tu in our data base. Could it have possibly been under a different name that you contacted on RedWeek.com?

Thanks, Marty

Dear Jack: I'm so sorry you had such a bad experience. I've been using Redweek for three years and never ever had any problem. I'm even so greatful to redweek for all the friends I have made through it. Give all the information possible about that person to Redweek may they can tracking him back and get canceled his subscription plus never let him back. Any way, I already wrote his name in my agenda and I'll be aware if I ever see his name. Do you remember his Redweek ID?

Yes, Jack, if you can help us track down this owner we at least will put some notations on his account of your experience. If you have his email addres or RedWeek.com username this will be most helpful. I checked the owners that you contacted directly through the posting pages and none of the names are Theodore Tu or anything close to that.

This is a good reason to use a rental escrow company so you have something to fall back on if you don't get exactly what you paid for.

Thanks, Marty

marty8084 wrote:

Yes, Jack, if you can help us track down this owner we at least will put some notations on his account of your experience. If you have his email addres or RedWeek.com username this will be most helpful. I checked the owners that you contacted directly through the posting pages and none of the names are Theodore Tu or anything close to that.

This is a good reason to use a rental escrow company so you have something to fall back on if you don't get exactly what you paid for.

Thanks, Marty

Marty, Thanks for your interest. I am sure the overwhelming majority of Redweek users are happy about their experience. Nonetheless I think it is great that you monitor the site for people who are less than honest in their dealings. By the way, I have a voicemail from Mr. Tu documenting his 50% refund offer that I can play for you as well as other email information to substantiate the facts I have already laid out. I am sorry that you haven't been able to identify this individual so let me share what information I have: 1) he uses either Theodore or Ted for his first name and Tu for his surname. The Redweek.Com posting # was R304159. Hopefully you will be able to identify him from this information. Thank you again for your concern and thank you also to phill112 and ofelia4 for their words of support. Jack

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

Yes, Jack, if you can help us track down this owner we at least will put some notations on his account of your experience. If you have his email addres or RedWeek.com username this will be most helpful. I checked the owners that you contacted directly through the posting pages and none of the names are Theodore Tu or anything close to that.

This is a good reason to use a rental escrow company so you have something to fall back on if you don't get exactly what you paid for.

Thanks, Marty

Marty, Thanks for your interest. I am sure the overwhelming majority of Redweek users are happy about their experience. Nonetheless I think it is great that you monitor the site for people who are less than honest in their dealings. By the way, I have a voicemail from Mr. Tu documenting his 50% refund offer that I can play for you as well as other email information to substantiate the facts I have already laid out. I am sorry that you haven't been able to identify this individual so let me share what information I have: 1) he uses either Theodore or Ted for his first name and Tu for his surname. The Redweek.Com posting # was R304159. Hopefully you will be able to identify him from this information. Thank you again for your concern and thank you also to phill112 and ofelia4 for their words of support. Jack

Hi Jack,

Yes, that email address came up. The name on the account is Steve . and username is jim1432 so that's why Theodore Tu didn't come up at all in a search of our data base. I will definitely put notes on his account of your bad experience in dealing with him and also let my manager know. Keep the voice mail about the refund he promised you. Keep after him.

I've edited out this owner's personal information for privacy reasons but again we really appreciate you letting us know. This owner doesn't have any other negative comments and has been with RedWeek.com for 3 years.

Thank you, Marty

ofelia4 wrote:

Dear Jack: I'm so sorry you had such a bad experience. I've been using Redweek for three years and never ever had any problem. I'm even so greatful to redweek for all the friends I have made through it. Give all the information possible about that person to Redweek may they can tracking him back and get canceled his subscription plus never let him back. Any way, I already wrote his name in my agenda and I'll be aware if I ever see his name. Do you remember his Redweek ID?

Dear Ofelia, Thanks for the kind words. His username is Jim 1432.He is registered with Redweek as "Steve". He gave me the name Theodore Tu. I am not sure if he has any other identities out there floating around.

Redweek can only do so much here and people need to understand this!

They will check it out and kick the person off of this site and lecture you on what you should have done and that is about it.

If this person wanted to come back on they will just use another e-mail address and name.

Sad part is they will say they are sorry but this gets no one their money back when they lose out. At least you did get another unit.

PHILL12

This is a very sad thing that happened to you! I am so sorry you were treated in such a way by this man. He is a criminal and stole money from you and the other family. There must be a way for you to contact the resort, give his personal information that Marty provided, and report him to his resort. This put so many people in a situation where problem solving was the only thing that could be done.

Always verify with the resort that you are working with an owner and not a renter of an II or RCI exchange. So many people are breaking the rules here. When people rent for much less than the maintenance fees, you know something underhanded is going on.

Hi, Phil, I'll see you on TUG!

Our transactions are between owners and renters, that is why we encourage ALL rentals go through First American Title... where we have an arrangement that gives us dispute-resolution powers. If this same situation had happened with escrow, the renters would have received all of their money back. Fortunately, the situation that Jack experienced rarely happens on our website.

Again, Jack, we really apologize for your very negative experience with this owner.

Marty

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty, I have no idea why you are finding the dates to be Sep 1 - Sep 8. The reservation was made through Redweek for July 8-15 2007. The Redweek listing was R304159. I have numerous emails from Jim 1432,aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu confirming these dates(which I would be happy to forward to you). In addition the Marriot Newport Coast Villas reservation #88514909 also confirms these dates (again I would be happy to forward these to you). Finally, I work as a cardiologist. I take very little time off partly due to the fact that I need to get other cardiologists to cover my practice while I am gone. The idea that I along with my family somehow may have gotten confused and showed up 2 months early for our vacation seems more than a little unlikey.

marty8084 wrote:

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty I'm impressed with what length you seem to be following up on this possible scam!

If this is true it is sad but what I wonder is if this Steve has been a member here for three years you would think he would respond to these charges.

I say respond on here only because the charges have been posted on Redweek! This should have been handled in private but if he has blown off the renters then its out here for all of us!

If this person isn't scamming the renters and it was a honest mistake then you would think he would gladly pay them the agreed amount! If he isn't in the wrong then why agree to pay this family $1200.

Hope after all this you do get answers and can do more than inter this in his file!

Sorry but putting a scam notation in a file just seems like slap on the wrist!

Keep up the good work!

PHILL12

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty, I have no idea why you are finding the dates to be Sep 1 - Sep 8. The reservation was made through Redweek for July 8-15 2007. The Redweek listing was R304159. I have numerous emails from Jim 1432,aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu confirming these dates(which I would be happy to forward to you). In addition the Marriot Newport Coast Villas reservation #88514909 also confirms these dates (again I would be happy to forward these to you). Finally, I work as a cardiologist. I take very little time off partly due to the fact that I need to get other cardiologists to cover my practice while I am gone. The idea that I along with my family somehow may have gotten confused and showed up 2 months early for our vacation seems more than a little unlikey.

Hi Jack,

I apologize, Jack. I think that once this week was rented that possibly the owner changed the dates to September which he has the ability to do. The dates on this posting is as follows:

Marriott's Newport Coast Villas Rental Posting (R304159) Marriott's Newport Coast Villas, Newport Coast, California, United States, North America This posting is not active. Price: $2,000 ($286 per night) Length of Stay: 7 nights Available: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007 Owner: steve . (jim1432)

I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a mix up of some kind.

Thank you, Marty

phill12 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty I'm impressed with what length you seem to be following up on this possible scam!

If this is true it is sad but what I wonder is if this Steve has been a member here for three years you would think he would respond to these charges.

I say respond on here only because the charges have been posted on Redweek! This should have been handled in private but if he has blown off the renters then its out here for all of us!

If this person isn't scamming the renters and it was a honest mistake then you would think he would gladly pay them the agreed amount! If he isn't in the wrong then why agree to pay this family $1200.

Hope after all this you do get answers and can do more than inter this in his file!

Sorry but putting a scam notation in a file just seems like slap on the wrist!

Keep up the good work!

PHILL12

We still haven't heard back from him. The whole difference in names, etc. is pretty strange in itself. We care that our company will be reflected badly by owners that aren't honest with the buyers/renters. There isn't a whole lot we can do when an escrow company isn't used but we will do as much as we can.

Thanks, Marty

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty, I have no idea why you are finding the dates to be Sep 1 - Sep 8. The reservation was made through Redweek for July 8-15 2007. The Redweek listing was R304159. I have numerous emails from Jim 1432,aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu confirming these dates(which I would be happy to forward to you). In addition the Marriot Newport Coast Villas reservation #88514909 also confirms these dates (again I would be happy to forward these to you). Finally, I work as a cardiologist. I take very little time off partly due to the fact that I need to get other cardiologists to cover my practice while I am gone. The idea that I along with my family somehow may have gotten confused and showed up 2 months early for our vacation seems more than a little unlikey.

Hi Jack,

I apologize, Jack. I think that once this week was rented that possibly the owner changed the dates to September which he has the ability to do. The dates on this posting is as follows:

Marriott's Newport Coast Villas Rental Posting (R304159) Marriott's Newport Coast Villas, Newport Coast, California, United States, North America This posting is not active. Price: $2,000 ($286 per night) Length of Stay: 7 nights Available: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007 Owner: steve . (jim1432)

I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a mix up of some kind.

Thank you, Marty

Hi Marty, Thanks for all your hard work. What does the term "inactive" mean? Does that mean that Jim 1432, aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu has already rented this week? Or that he listed it and then stopped listing it? Also for his previous listings did he use the same listing #(R304159) or did he have separate listing numbers? The reason I am asking this is that his actions confused you by apparently making the posting that he used to rent to me, in effect, disappear. Thanks, Jack

phill12 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty I'm impressed with what length you seem to be following up on this possible scam!

If this is true it is sad but what I wonder is if this Steve has been a member here for three years you would think he would respond to these charges.

I say respond on here only because the charges have been posted on Redweek! This should have been handled in private but if he has blown off the renters then its out here for all of us!

If this person isn't scamming the renters and it was a honest mistake then you would think he would gladly pay them the agreed amount! If he isn't in the wrong then why agree to pay this family $1200.

Hope after all this you do get answers and can do more than inter this in his file!

Sorry but putting a scam notation in a file just seems like slap on the wrist!

Keep up the good work!

PHILL12

Hi Phill, I agree entirely that putting a notation in his file is not adequate. First of all it does absolutely no good to the next person (victim?) who does business with him. He might as well have a perfectly clear record for all they know. E-Bay is much more transparent and allows you to see feedback on both buyers and sellers. This at least allows for a much more informed transaction. From the purchaser perspective the only way you are going to know that someone like Theodore Tu is a bad actor is when they are excluded from the site. This would be akin to having a justice system where no one got punished unless they received a life sentence or greater.There needs to be a way to get feedback to customers as someone is accumulating complaints. Also the idea that someone is "clean" because apparently no prior complaints have been lodged against them has serious flaws. For one, numerous studies show that for every person that takes the time and trouble to lodge a complaint there are many others who are equally unhappy but don't bother to formally complain.Also, if someone is clever they may be able to mask their identity, making it difficult to actually identify them for the purpose of making a complaint. When I lodged my complaint against Theodore Tu, Redweek had no idea who he was. Once I supplied additional info Redweek finally tracked him down under the name "Steve". I think that the idea of making transactions more transparent on Redweek might be worth addressing in a separate forum.

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty, I have no idea why you are finding the dates to be Sep 1 - Sep 8. The reservation was made through Redweek for July 8-15 2007. The Redweek listing was R304159. I have numerous emails from Jim 1432,aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu confirming these dates(which I would be happy to forward to you). In addition the Marriot Newport Coast Villas reservation #88514909 also confirms these dates (again I would be happy to forward these to you). Finally, I work as a cardiologist. I take very little time off partly due to the fact that I need to get other cardiologists to cover my practice while I am gone. The idea that I along with my family somehow may have gotten confused and showed up 2 months early for our vacation seems more than a little unlikey.

Hi Jack,

I apologize, Jack. I think that once this week was rented that possibly the owner changed the dates to September which he has the ability to do. The dates on this posting is as follows:

Marriott's Newport Coast Villas Rental Posting (R304159) Marriott's Newport Coast Villas, Newport Coast, California, United States, North America This posting is not active. Price: $2,000 ($286 per night) Length of Stay: 7 nights Available: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007 Owner: steve . (jim1432)

I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a mix up of some kind.

Thank you, Marty

Hi Marty, Thanks for all your hard work. What does the term "inactive" mean? Does that mean that Jim 1432, aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu has already rented this week? Or that he listed it and then stopped listing it? Also for his previous listings did he use the same listing #(R304159) or did he have separate listing numbers? The reason I am asking this is that his actions confused you by apparently making the posting that he used to rent to me, in effect, disappear. Thanks, Jack

Hi Jack,

Perhaps this owner had another week in September at the same resort so after he rented the week to you he could edit the date to a future rental if he still had time available on his posting which he did. Owners of postings can edit everything except the name of the resort and they can't change it from rental to sale, etc. The posting number would remain the same - (R304159). The posting has expired so that's why it's now inactive. He could renew the posting for another 6 months and keep the same number as longer as it was still a rental posting at the same resort.

We have heard back from this owner and he says it was a system error at the Marriott, and he resolved it very quickly.

There isn't a lot more that we can do, Jack. Again, we apologize.

Marty

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

marty8084 wrote:

jackm129 wrote:

Timeshare transactions especially over the internet require a high level of trust. I recently rented a week at Marriot Newport Coast that I found on Redweek. I paid $2400 in advance to Theodore Tu. When I arrived at the resort, I was told at check-in that my family would be sharing our condo with another family that was already checked in... they had also been rented the the very SAME condo that week by Mr. Tu. After much confusion, we ended up having to move into 2 separate rooms for portions of the week-- ultimately staying in poor rooms which were not in use for a VERY GOOD reason-- namely, they were very poorly located (the nearest room next to the "Tot-Lot"). Mr. Tu said he would refund 50% of the rental price to make up for the poor accomodations and for the fact that he had assured us of a very different room (upper floor/ocean view). When I returned home, I contacted him and he basically blew me off regarding the refund. This is my first timeshare rental experience. My advice is: 1) Get it in writing. 2) Be extremely cautious of whom you are renting from. Jack Madowitz, M.D. San Diego, CA.

Hi Jack,

After checking into this a little more, please help me to understand why the posting you contacted this owner for is available for the dates of: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007. This is the only posting this owner has for Marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Did you go earlier then you were suppose to? Am I missing something here? When did you use this rental?

Thanks, Marty

Marty, I have no idea why you are finding the dates to be Sep 1 - Sep 8. The reservation was made through Redweek for July 8-15 2007. The Redweek listing was R304159. I have numerous emails from Jim 1432,aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu confirming these dates(which I would be happy to forward to you). In addition the Marriot Newport Coast Villas reservation #88514909 also confirms these dates (again I would be happy to forward these to you). Finally, I work as a cardiologist. I take very little time off partly due to the fact that I need to get other cardiologists to cover my practice while I am gone. The idea that I along with my family somehow may have gotten confused and showed up 2 months early for our vacation seems more than a little unlikey.

Hi Jack,

I apologize, Jack. I think that once this week was rented that possibly the owner changed the dates to September which he has the ability to do. The dates on this posting is as follows:

Marriott's Newport Coast Villas Rental Posting (R304159) Marriott's Newport Coast Villas, Newport Coast, California, United States, North America This posting is not active. Price: $2,000 ($286 per night) Length of Stay: 7 nights Available: Sep 1, 2007 - Sep 8, 2007 Owner: steve . (jim1432)

I just wanted to make sure there wasn't a mix up of some kind.

Thank you, Marty

Hi Marty, Thanks for all your hard work. What does the term "inactive" mean? Does that mean that Jim 1432, aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu has already rented this week? Or that he listed it and then stopped listing it? Also for his previous listings did he use the same listing #(R304159) or did he have separate listing numbers? The reason I am asking this is that his actions confused you by apparently making the posting that he used to rent to me, in effect, disappear. Thanks, Jack

Hi Jack,

Perhaps this owner had another week in September at the same resort so after he rented the week to you he could edit the date to a future rental if he still had time available on his posting which he did. Owners of postings can edit everything except the name of the resort and they can't change it from rental to sale, etc. The posting number would remain the same - (R304159). The posting has expired so that's why it's now inactive. He could renew the posting for another 6 months and keep the same number as longer as it was still a rental posting at the same resort.

We have heard back from this owner and he says it was a system error at the Marriott, and he resolved it very quickly.

There isn't a lot more that we can do, Jack. Again, we apologize.

Marty

Hi Marty, Thank you again for all your follow up on this. First of all he claimed it was not his fault as soon as we contacted him while trying to check in. The Marriott people including the manager told us it was indeed his fault and they were the ones that initially contacted him via cellphone. Mr. Tu and I had several phone contacts. After Mr. Tu contacted Marriott reservations he contacted me to apologize. In each of these conversations he again claimed that it was not his fault but nevertheless he promised to refund 1/2 our rental fee of $2400. Not once did he say he would renege on his promise. In fact while I was at the Marriott he called once to specifically assure me that he would "honor" his commitment no matter whose fault it was( this is not an allegation, I have a voicemail that documents it). Unfortunately he obviously was lying. As to his claim that he "resolved this very quickly" I couldn"t disagree more. He still hasn't resolved it!! My family and I wanted a quiet vacation and asked for a top floor ocean view room. He assured us that this would be no problem. Instead we arrived to chaos at check in and being told that he had rented the same unit to two different families for the same week. After an hour and a half of check in and having to move from the room we were supposed to be in to another and then the next day moving again to another room room we spent the vacation in a first floor room right next to the TOT LOT (can you say screaming kids from dawn to dusk). I realize that Redweek can't compel Theodore Tu to pay me the money he promised. I realize now I was lied to. However, I went into this transaction not knowing anything about him. I believe that sunlight is the best disinfectant. I f I can alert even one person and save them being victimized and lied to as I was then this will be a worthwhile endeavor. I also feel the sight needs to be more transparent so that feedback on people is accessible such as is done on E-bay. People can then decide if they would feel comfortable doing business with someone who "resolves" problems like Jim 1432, aka Steve, aka Theodore Tu does.