Transfer Smart News: Timeshare Victims Get Refunds from Bluegreen Corp.

For the recent years, many complaints were reported regarding the timeshare industry. As a result, several owners want to get out of their timeshare contracts and a number of consumers avoid such vacation option. One of the companies that was reported to have been involved in misspelling practices is Bluegreen Corp. But this Florida-based timeshare company will refund Pennsylvanians who say they were tricked into buying expensive vacations they couldn't take as stated by the attorney general's office. Consumers have until June 24 to get the refund as part of the settlement that ends a lawsuit filed in 2008 against Bluegreen Corp. and its related businesses.

According to Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett, consumers complained they were unable to use their timeshare and that the company made false promises about when or where consumers could travel and situations where timeshare purchasers did not receive extra services or discounts that were promised during the sales presentation.

Other resorts such as Bluegreen Resorts, Bluegreen Vacations Unlimited Inc. and Great Vacations Destinations Inc., which are all of Boca Raton, Florida were also listed in the lawsuit. Bluegreen owns or manages more than 45 resorts across US including sites in New Orleans, Las Vegas, Orlando and Branson, Mo.

As Stephen Wilke, the company's corporate communications director stated, Bluegreen is very pleased that the matter has been settled. Many of the complaints filed at the office of Attorney General were from consumers who spent $20,000 to $40,000 on vacation packages. The state then expects more than $1 million to be refunded. The settlement also includes cash for those who were promised free gifts, including gas cards, hotel stays and airline tickets.