RCI Class Action Lawsuit

mike1536 wrote:

amandaa39 wrote:

Interesting. Never heard of this lawsuit at all. We own a week (1 bedroom) at Las Vegas and usually put in for an exchange 1 year or less in advance. We've never had a problem getting in at the resort we'd like to travel to and have even been able to upgrade to a 2 bedroom at times. Of course, we're usually pretty flexible about our dates. But so far, no complaints here!

============ What's really amazing that I can go to Endless Vacations (www.wyndham-vacations.com) and basically rent a RCI timeshare, but that same unit is not available for rent through the RCI Vacations link.

ken1193 wrote:

In some RedWeek forums (and, to be fair, elsewhere as well) I have seen publicly stated misunderstandings and/or misrepresentations regarding this legal action.

To be clear, I'm NOT involved in (or associated in ANY way with) this litigation. Nonetheless, I thought it might be helpful and/or informative to provide an ACCURATE portrayal of this legal action. To that end, I am quoting VERBATIM (word for word) in pertinent part from the web site established by the plaintiff representatives:

"A class action lawsuit has been filed against RCI on behalf of all members of RCI's Weeks Program.

The lawsuit alleges that RCI improperly skims a large percentage of the timeshares from the RCI exchange bank system, including many prime timeshares, and rents those timeshares out to the general public for profit and also uses them for promotional purposes and as fringe benefits for its employees. The lawsuit further alleges that as a result of these practices, the actual experiences of many RCI Weeks Program members is that they simply cannot find any comparable exchanges." [End of quote]

I believe I have copied every word quoted above exactly, completely and accurately, but apologize if I have inadvertently made a typo error of any kind.

If the lawsuit is going to be discussed and debated, here or anywhere else, it should at least be discussed with some actual understanding of what the lawsuit alleges in the first place. Whether you agree or disagree with the legal action being initiated, or with its assertions, the above at least clearly identifies exactly WHAT this lawsuit is all about....

I own timeshare through Starwood at Harborside Atlantsis, Nassau Bahamas and they do exactly the same thing. I have expressed my distain at both Starwood and Kurshner Corporation for this type of action. Other members and myself are looking to organize an independent board at Harborside to address this and other problems; particularly the maintenance which only a portion goes to the Harborside and the lions share goes to Atlantis or Kurshner Corp.

I have noted while looking for timeshare trade-ins with RCI that the units available on Extra Vacations through RCI are the good weeks. We have been able to use our traded in weeks only at our home resort, at the Mayan Palace and at Morrit's Grand in Grand Cayman (both MP and MG were mass bankings). The only weeks that are readily available tend to be the All-inclusive timeshares. To be fair we can find a lot of availability in lesser timeshares but not in comparable Gold/red week units, for winter use in warm places, not holiday weeks.

We started with RCI back in June 2006 after the class action lawsuit took place. Since October 2006, we have been calling Rci on a regualer basis trying to use our banked week.

As of today still no such luck. We can not go anywhere, and the banked week expires on 12/31/2008. I just had to pay $167.00 to extend that week out until July 2008.

My last call to RCI on 8/4/2008 and apoke to Caleb. He actually told me that he could not exchange my week, but if I wanted if could rent a week from RCI directly and pay RCI $ 1500.00. I was irate and he knew it. I can't use my banked week any where,but I could rent from them directly. I have made a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

I just found out today from this forum that therewas a class action lawsuit going on.

froliger states in part: >>My last call to RCI on 8/4/2008....actually told me that he could not exchange my week, but if I wanted if could rent a week from RCI directly and pay RCI $ 1500.00. I was irate and he knew it. I can't use my banked week any where, but I could rent from them directly. I have made a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.<< ================================================

Unfortunately, your complaint to BBB was a waste of your time and effort, since RCI can do whatever RCI WANTS to do with any / all weeks voluntarily deposited with them. That indisputable fact is clearly stated in writing within the printed terms and conditions of RCI membership.

That said, your recent experience really speaks right to the heart of the basis of the lawsuit. RCI was originally established as an exchange company, but the plaintiffs in this case clearly feel (and openly assert in their complaint) that RCI has increasingly abandoned that model, with direct rentals of prime weeks being far more profitable for RCI than the mere collection of an exchange fee.

"Let's see now..." (RCI might very well ask itself) "...should we rent out this deposited week we have for $1,500.00, or should we instead offer it to a RCI member as an exchange and collect only a $169 exchange fee in the process?" Do the math here --- at nearly TEN TIMES the profit for a rental (vs. an exchange fee), the answer is painfully obvious...

Personally, I don't like (or trust, or use) RCI. Accordingly, I have "no dog in that fight". Nonetheless, being interested (and formerly employed, before retirement) in matters of law, as well as being a long time interval owner myself, I will be VERY interested to read the court order and/or the terms of settlement, when available...

I am also an owner at Harborside with concerns. If you plan to pursue any further action, I would be eager to participate.

km160 belatedly states in part: >> If you plan to pursue any further action, I would be eager to participate. << =================================================

I have posted a series of updates on the details and status of the Murillo vs. RCI class action lawsuit in this same General Discussion forum of this (RedWeek) site. I believe the subject of the initial post was "Update on lawsuit against RCI", with the most recent post dated 12/29/08. You can easily find that "Update" thread by scrolling down about a dozen "topic" threads right here within in this "General Discussion" forum.

The case is now much closer to an end than to its' beginning, having been originally filed back in March / April, 2006. Accordingly, the only remaining option to "participate" at this late juncture (...nearly three years later) is to provide written, signed comments to the plaintiff attorneys in response to the recently disclosed proposed settlement agreement (which is loosely summarized in other previously referenced "Update" postings on this matter). The original proposed settlement agreement can be found in its entirety elsewhere on the Internet, if you are interested in a lot of reading. If you choose to weigh in on the proposed settlement agreement now, comments must be submitted to plaintiff attorneys in writing, under signature. After class certification is completed (not yet accomplished), all written, signed comments will then be submitted directly to the Federal court hearing this case in Newark, NJ.

The proposed settlement agreement in its current form is a complete farce and is absolutely worthless in the long term to RCI members (in my own personal opinion, anyhow). I state that particular viewpoint with honest objectivity, since I do not "exchange" with RCI anyhow and I really have "no dog in that fight" at all.

Here's a link describing settlement information, www.weeksprogramsettlement.com. Notice that RCI denies any wrongdoing. LOL

Don't spend your $20 all in one place and RCI really doesn't have to change their rental program. As usually the case the lawyers get the windfall. (no offense to you lawyers out there).

Maybe RCI allowing a search prior to doing a deposit is the only good thing that comes out of it, but this seems to be just one of the options.

And then there is the option of a free night with the rental of another night. It sounds like some of the TS presentations I've been on.

Another "great" giveaway is the $100 cruise voucher. It seems like RCI gave these away like candy whenever you made a transaction anyway.

I hope everyone is aware that developers who are still building do have inventory that is not yet sold which they are glad to rent as Extra Vacation etc. This brings new people into their resorts who may become buyers. I have even found that when I called to make a direct reservation with one of our resorts I could not get in, but when I explained that this was intended to be used for an RCI deposit, a unit "from another pocket" was made available for that use. Things are truly a lot more complicated than timeshare owners fully understand. MD

adahiscout states in part: >> Things are truly a lot more complicated than timeshare owners fully understand << ===================================================

And more deceitful than can be easily comprehended, I might add...

We did not purchase our Wyndham (then Fairfield) Grand Desert time share in Las Vegas through their sales staff, but instead purchased 105,000 annual points on on ebay for 1/10th the price quoted at the on-site sales promotion ... and we purchased a second 105k points deed at the same property for even less money on craigslist.com! We've found that it is much cheaper to RENT from an owner than it is to go through RCI in an exchange.

The information on this lawsuit from RCI is very confusing. I am not understanding the so called one of five "extra benefits" that you can choose. I wonder which way to go on this? Choose an option, wait and see what happens? I certainly do not want to opt out on this action. Best case scenario would be reform of their weeks exchange program, refund of all exchange AND membership fees for that period (2000-2008).

cr85 states: >> The information on this lawsuit from RCI is very confusing. I am not understanding the so called one of five "extra benefits" that you can choose. I wonder which way to go on this? Choose an option, wait and see what happens? I certainly do not want to opt out on this action. Best case scenario would be reform of their weeks exchange program, refund of all exchange AND membership fees for that period (2000-2008).<< ===============================================

The best case scenario would have been "injunctive relief" --- a court ordered, PERMANENT reform of RCI practices regarding RCI rental of prime deposits. This does not seem even remotely likely at this juncture. It is now abundantly clear from the proposed settlement agreement that plaintiff attorneys have "sold out" their clients' position and are now willing to settle the case for a "pick one" grab bag of worthless little trinkets and a short term, very minor change regarding access to (some, not all) prime deposits by RCI members (for a defined, finite time period --- specifically, two years).

For now, you don't have to (indeed, you CAN'T) actually make ANY "choice", since this is ONLY a proposed settlement agreement at this point, put forth for class member comment. The proposal is such a laughable joke in its current form that that it could actually be summarily rejected in its entirety by the Court after all comments and objections are reviewed (filing deadline is in April, 2009).

If the proposed settlement survives as is, it won't matter much which particular "trinket" you choose. By any standard or measure, every one of the little "trinkets" offered is actually worth somewhere between nothing at all and about sixty nine dollars, maximum. Big deal --- for a lawsuit in which the attorneys alone are now seeking fees approaching FOUR MILLION dollars!

This lawsuit has, sadly and unfortunately, become a comical farce. Not the least bit funny, but still a farce nonetheless....

I think I read on TUG where someone suggested that the lawyers get paid with the same trinkets being used to pay-off RCI members. Give each lawyer involved $1,000,000 in $100 cruise certificates (only one coupon per trip allowed).

Love that idea, Mike!

I have been a member of RCI since1984 and never had a promblem untill the last 6 years. I even had a search on at 6 different condos in a 4 month range and never could trade for anything in a 18 month period,finally I took what ever I could get,so I wouldnot lose that week.I"m thinking of not rejoin when my membership is up.

So who is paying the lawyers? The persons who started this case or RCI?? MD

I just decided to look up the status of the class action suit this evening, because I am a candidate for a board member at one of my timeshares and have had some concerns for the last two or three years. I have been a red week owner for 24 years and have multiple resort weeks at different resorts. For the first several years, I was quite satisfied with RCIs service, but there seems to be some changes that I don't like. I was aware of the lawsuit last year when I was complaining about the changing status of RCI in the process of supporting my red week trades. I had been complaining to individuals and even by phone to the RCI people that I was not happy about my lack of ability to trade my gold crown red two bedroom week for even a one bedroom unit after putting in the request at least 10 months ahead while finding out that RCI was listing numerous units for rent through their rental listings in those same areas. One of the reasons for my investigation had to do with whether I wanted to extend my contract with RCI for the future or switch to II or just drop the whole thing. I also heard recently that anyone who is extending their contract with RCI is doing it over the phone, as I have, and if there is any paperwork on it, they are putting in a clause that will now get them by the issue of renting out the weeks as stated in the suit. If this is so, they are taking advantage of the 99.9% of the members who don't even know about the lawsuit, and it may be time to make sure all of the members of my timeshare condos know about it. It sounds like some more of the same twisted financial decisions that the rest of our world is currently dealing with to make the top dogs more money at the expense of screwing the member. I really hope this is wrong.

Perhaps we should create a communication system and see what can be done by making this issue more visible to the RCI members.

richardw235 wrote:

jayjay wrote:

fairwynd.timeshares.com wrote:

Just what proof has been forwarded that this practice is happening?

Actually, so far there has been no proof. When you have a jillion people wanting the same thing in a trade (most popular locations, higher end resorts, summer travel season, major holidays) then, of course, there will be a lack of inventory for the above criteria.

Also, you have people that will wait until the last minute or a couple of months prior to traveling to start looking for an exchange and they will get the left overs only. For hard to get trades RCI members need to deposit and start looking at least a year in advance.

It is my humble opinion that the only people that will get rich from this lawsuit are all the attorneys involved and all RCI members will have to take up the slack by having to pay higher fees in the long run.

WE HAVE PUT IN FOR EXCHANGES 2 YEARS IN ADVANCE AND RCI CAME UP WITH NOTHING. WE ALWAYS DO ONE YEAR IN ADVANCE AND AGAIN NOTHING, SO I HOPE RCI WILL CHANGE THEIR POLICIES. THIS IS JUST ANOTHER REASON WHY WE ARE TRYING TO DONATE, GIVE AWAY OR JUST DUMP OUR TIME SHARE. WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET AN EXCHANGE FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS WHICH IS NOT ACCEPTABLE TO US.IF WE DO KEEP IT, WE WILL NOT RENEW OUR MEMBERSHIP WITH RCI, BUT GO WITH REDWEEK OR USE THE UNIT. RPWHITE