Merritt World Vacations

Good morning *** [redacted] , I was able to investigate the issue of ** [redacted] and discovered the following: We were not contacted by the customerWe have extended business hours and could have facilitated the issue if given the chance We were only contacted by the Revdex.com months after the issue occurred I called the customer at the day time number provided on July 9, and there was no answer I left a voice mail on July 9, on the evening number and the customer did not return my call I called the customer again yesterday, July 14, 2014, and reached the customer I offered the customer assistance so he could better understand the product he purchased and he refused He had no interest in resolving the issue outside of his request of a refund to you The terms and conditions of the contract explain that the customer purchased a "self catering accommodation" which means the customer goes on line and selects the vacation location and the membership company books the vacation The contract also states all requests are required to be in writing, and therefore the customer's claim of being able to book a vacation based on a telephone call is not in compliance of the terms he agreed to upon his purchase The customer said he contacted the membership company and they walked them through how to navigate the website which is what they are supposed to do based on the terms and conditions of their membership agreement The message center is available in the website and the customer did not utilize this resource for any questions which occur outside the telephone support hours I contacted the online travel membership he purchased and they communicated the following: "We received a request from the customer for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16, – August 23rd, At that time we were in negotiation for contracts at that property for the dates he requestedI am happy to see that we did offer him an exact match for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16th, – August 23rd, The client requested the Hotel on the [redacted] property so I’m quite surprised to hear that he was not happy with our offerIt would appear that he maintained he could get lower pricing elsewhere, but never produced documentation for the sake of clarity or comparisonIf there had been any proof of a lower public rate, we certainly would have gone back to our provider about it." From the above communication, the customer made a request of a specific resort and time and the travel membership made an offer and the customer rejected it From the above, the customer did not communicate with the travel membership of any issue and if told they were willing to further negotiate on behalf of the customer In the customer's membership package, the telephone support hours of the membership company is provided Their telephone service is available from 8:to 5:Monday - Friday and 9:TO 5:on Saturdays and by email on Sunday Our company's customer service telephone number is also provided with no limited office hours The membership specializes in resort travel In addition in the terms states if the customer wishes to travel using hotel accommodations these can be booked through the travel section and the rating is based on the customer's choice of rating In the customer's complaint, there is confusion of the services provided in the various sections of the website I tried to explain this to the customer, but from his communication "he had no interest in learning how the website works." The customer has exceeded the three day rescission period to cancel No effort was made by the customer to communicate problems to Merritt World Vacations or the travel membership When a representative from Merritt World Vacations contacted him he did not want to work through the problem From my investigation, the travel membership did what they were asked and was not given the opportunity to resolve the issue of the customer Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require further information regarding this matter Respectfully submitted, [redacted] Customer Liaison ###-###-####

My wife and I attended a discount vacation sales pitch hosted by Merritt World Vacations with the promise of receiving "FREE" airline tickets to anywhere in the continental US plus two "FREE" resort hotel day/nights staysBEWARE! There are SIGNIFICANT ($148) fees you would have to pay even before you are able to make reservations and then still have to pay additional fees and deposits some are understandable like taxes and airline/hotel feesMerritt gives you two documents to mail with $in checks to Away To Paradise VacationsYou will then receive further instructions and documents to mail to a reservation third party that is suppose to work with you to make the reservationsWe found that the unexpected ($148) fees to obtain additional documents to mail with additional fees and deposits was a great irritation to a process that could have been much less an irritant to receive what Merritt touted as "FREE" Airline Tickets and Hotel for two for attending the sales pitchAs far as we are concerned Away to Paradise Vacations provided NO ADDED SERVICE for the $they chargedWe have advised Merritt World Vacations to stop using Away To Paradise Vacations and provide the documents the reservation company requires, a savings of $We sent back the Away to Paradise Vacations package and obtained a refund LESS 15% RESTOCKING FEESPersonally I think that fee is illegal in that there is nothing they have to "RESTOCK" other than place the package in a drawer for the next suckerI probably would not have written this negative review except for the fact that we were charges ANOTHER unnecessary fee(RESTOCKING)

Dear [redacted] ,I am pleased to say that the [redacted] 's did work with us and received a proper web tour of the membership they purchased and were willing to work with Merritt World Vacations, LLC to arrange to keep their membership.Regards, [redacted]

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: Merrit World Vacations LLC did not address my concerns about the "and misleading statements" made during the sales process and did not address my dispute other than offering to take a tour of there website. Their sales team misrepresented the benefits of what members really receivesI have attached the notes that was taken from the sale meeting along with the reasons why becoming a gold crown resort member and I'm shock to read on their response that they never mentioned "discounts" in the sales processThis paper was given by the sale repI have compared the prices on the following and informed Merrit World Vacations LLC:
1.) Access to cruise prices at cost only for GCR member(see attached price comparison and as you can see the price are the same) If the public can get the same price then where is the discount?2.) Hotel Discounts - I did a price comparison and even with a booking fee the price is cheaper on a competitor websiteGCR members price $/ public website $which includes a booking fee.
The response on November 01, in the e-mail notes that "The travel section is provided to the members at costThere is no ticketing fee charged to Gold Crown Resort
Members for the travel center items purchased and there and they provide the lowest price at the time of booking
Middlemen charge ticketing fees, Gold Crown Resort does not" if thats the case then why booking.com still comes in cheaper even including the fee
Regards,
*** ***

Dear *** *** ***It is most disturbing when-a customer refuses to communicate directly and makes no attempt to resolve issues directly.The presentation the customer attended provides in minutes, an overview of the Gold Crown Resort membership, it provides examples of ways to save on
travelThe presentation does not use the word discount but does discuss wholesale rates on resorts, shows examples of savings from selected cruise specials, and provides examples of combinations for selected trips.An administrative representative sat with the customers separate from the sales representative and asked If they had any questions regarding the terms and conditions of the membership, Both customers initialed next to each termThey also-initialed that "they "fully understand the terms and conditions of the membership in Gold Crown Resort," This is attached.They also signed the Addendum to Reservation Services Licenses which states in large bold letters that "YOU MAY CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION, WITHOUT ANY PENALTY OR OBLIGATION WITHIN DAYS FROM YOUR '.EXECUTION Of THIS CONTRACT UNLESS YOU HAVE ALREADY USED THE TRAVEL SERVICES PROVIDED IN CONNECTIONWITH THIS TRAVEL SERVICES AGREEMENTIF YOU DECIDE TO CANCEL THIS CONTRACT, YOU MUST DO SO IN WRITING TO 'IN COMPLIANCE SERVICES." ANY ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN A WAIVER OF YOU CANCELLATION RIGHTS i-S UNLAWFULCANCELLATION ENTITLES YOU TO AREFUND OF ALL MONIES WITHIN DAYS AFTERRECEIPT OF CANCELLATION." This Is attached, The agreement was dated and signed on September 26, and the day rescission period ended, on October 5, 2015.The customer purchased, the capability tobook planned resort weeksIn the terras and conditions, item explains the resort, accommodations and which section of the website they are located, The customer went to the travel-section which is provided for convenience instead of the section where the resorts are locatedThey also requested assistance from Sold CrownResort Customer Service who actually explained the areas where the .resorts are $298~$and where .it tied into their terms and conditions which they signed.I have reached out to the customer and asked to provide a tour of the web site so they can visualize and better understand the product and they refused, I also tried to further explain how it works as presented in the member's guide which was given to them when they purchased, it is understood that the website has many sectionsOur customer service provides support to the purchasing members and refusal of assistance does not merit a full refund.Respectfully submitted,Donna G.Customer Liaison

Good afternoon *** ***,Thank you for emailing me the complaint from Mrand Mrs*** The following is the response from Merritt World Vacations:The customers purchased a 2-resort week per year for years travel program The travel membership purchased also provides bookings
of cruises with guaranteed lowest possible price with weekly price monitoring, and cash back Loyalty Rewards Had they only purchased a week resort program it would indicate the purchase was based on the cruise program, but they actually purchased a 2-resort week program. The customers also were provided a minute tour of the website prior to signing their membership agreement All efforts were made by the onsite team to ensure the member was able to understand how the program worked and the members initialed that they understood the terms and conditions of the membership agreement The customer also stated they could use the resorts at the ports where they cruise and would like to provide the friends and family benefits to their daughter. The members also signed and initialed they were told they had days to cancel from the date of purchase. The travel incentives provided to the customer indicated on the invitation that they were responsible for any taxes and fees The customers signed times they understood this fact The discount dining dollars certificate was properly described on their invitation. The customers disputed their credit card charge and their credit card company ruled in favor of Merritt World Vacations All efforts were made to assist the customers and will continue to do so.Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require additional information.Regards,Donna G***Customer Liaison***

Dear [redacted]The customer was contacted by an independent marketing company inviting them to attend a presentation provided by Merritt World Vacations. He did attend the Merritt presentation and was provided promotional travel certificates from the designated travel agency. He signed a...

receipt for the promotional travel certificate indicating that he understood he was responsible for any fees or taxes.In doing so, there was no expression on his part that there were any questions or concerns regarding the fulfillment of the certificate.On October 26, 2015, the customer contacted Merritt World Vacations by email and stated he did not want to contact the travel agency to process his certificates, but instead requested $1600 from Merritt World Vacations on or before October 28, 2015 or he would file a complaint with the Attorney General and complain to the media.On the same day the email was received, the customer phoned our customer service number and in that conversation requested the $1600 and indicated he was an attorney, Merritt World Vacations treats all customers in the same manner and attempting intimidation by customers does not relieve them from the terms and conditions to process vacation certificates received.Merritt World Vacations is willing to provide any guidance if required by the customer during the processing of the travel certificate he received.Regards,

Dear [redacted]The customer was contacted by an independent marketing company inviting them to attend a presentation provided by Merritt World Vacations. He did attend the Merritt presentation and was provided promotional travel certificates from the designated travel agency. He signed a receipt...

for the promotional travel certificate indicating that he understood he was responsible for any fees or taxes.In doing so, there was no expression on his part that there were any questions or concerns regarding the fulfillment of the certificate.On October 26, 2015, the customer contacted Merritt World Vacations by email and stated he did not want to contact the travel agency to process his certificates, but instead requested $1600 from Merritt World Vacations on or before October 28, 2015 or he would file a complaint with the Attorney General and complain to the media.On the same day the email was received, the customer phoned our customer service number and in that conversation requested the $1600 and indicated he was an attorney, Merritt World Vacations treats all customers in the same manner and attempting intimidation by customers does not relieve them from the terms and conditions to process vacation certificates received.Merritt World Vacations is willing to provide any guidance if required by the customer during the processing of the travel certificate he received.Regards,

Good morning [redacted]. [redacted],
 
I was able to investigate the issue of **. [redacted] and discovered the following:
 
We were not contacted by the customer. We have extended business hours and could have facilitated the issue if given the chance.   We were only...

contacted by the Revdex.com months after the issue occurred.
 
I called the customer at the day time number provided on July 9, 2014 and there was no answer.  I left a voice mail on July 9, 2014 on the evening number and the customer did not return my call.  I called the customer again yesterday, July 14, 2014, and reached the customer.  I offered the customer assistance so he could better understand the product he purchased and he refused.  He had no interest in resolving the issue outside of his request of a refund to you.  
The terms and conditions of the contract explain that the customer purchased a "self catering accommodation" which means the customer goes on line and selects the vacation location and the membership company books the vacation.  The contract also states all requests are required to be in writing, and therefore the customer's claim of being able to book a vacation based on a telephone call is not in compliance of the terms he agreed to upon his purchase.  The customer said he contacted the membership company and they walked them through how to navigate the website which is what they are supposed to do based on the terms and conditions of their membership agreement.  The message center is available in the website and the customer did not utilize this resource for any questions which occur outside the telephone support hours.
 
I contacted the online travel membership he purchased and they communicated the following:
 
    "We received a request from the customer for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16, 2014 – August 23rd, 2014. At that time we were in negotiation for contracts at that property for the dates he requested. I am happy to see that we did offer him an exact match for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16th, 2014 – August 23rd, 2014.
 
    The client requested the Hotel on the [redacted] property so I’m quite surprised to hear that he was not happy with our offer. It would appear that he maintained he could get lower pricing elsewhere, but never produced documentation for the sake of clarity or comparison. If there had been any proof of a lower public rate, we certainly would have gone back to our provider about it."
From the above communication, the customer made a request of a specific resort and time and the travel membership made an offer and the customer rejected it.   From the above, the customer did not communicate with the travel membership of any issue and if told they were willing to further negotiate on behalf of the customer.
In the customer's membership package, the telephone support hours of the membership company is provided.  Their telephone service is available from 8:30 to 5:30 Monday - Friday and 9:30 TO 5:30 on Saturdays and by email on Sunday.  Our company's customer service telephone number is also provided with no limited office hours.  
 
The membership specializes in resort travel.  In addition in the terms states if the customer wishes to travel using hotel accommodations these can be booked through the travel section and the rating is based on the customer's choice of rating.  In the customer's complaint, there is confusion of the services provided in the various sections of the website.  I tried to explain this to the customer, but from his communication "he had no interest in learning how the website works."
The customer has exceeded the three day rescission period to cancel.  No effort was made by the customer to communicate problems to Merritt World Vacations or the travel membership.  When a representative from Merritt World Vacations contacted him he did not want to work through the problem.  From my investigation, the travel membership did what they were asked and was not given the opportunity to resolve the issue of the customer.  
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require further information regarding this matter.
Respectfully submitted,
[redacted]
Customer Liaison
###-###-####

My wife and I attended a discount vacation sales pitch hosted by Merritt World Vacations with the promise of receiving 2 "FREE" airline tickets to anywhere in the continental US plus two "FREE" resort hotel 3 day/2 nights stays.
BEWARE! There are SIGNIFICANT ($148) fees you would have to pay even before you are able to make reservations and then still have to pay additional fees and deposits some are understandable like taxes and airline/hotel fees.
Merritt gives you two documents to mail with $148 in checks to Away To Paradise Vacations. You will then receive further instructions and documents to mail to a reservation third party that is suppose to work with you to make the reservations. We found that the unexpected ($148) fees to obtain additional documents to mail with additional fees and deposits was a great irritation to a process that could have been much less an irritant to receive what Merritt touted as "FREE" Airline Tickets and Hotel for two for attending the sales pitch. As far as we are concerned Away to Paradise Vacations provided NO ADDED SERVICE for the $148 they charged. We have advised Merritt World Vacations to stop using Away To Paradise Vacations and provide the documents the reservation company requires, a savings of $148.
We sent back the Away to Paradise Vacations package and obtained a refund LESS 15% RESTOCKING FEES. Personally I think that fee is illegal in that there is nothing they have to "RESTOCK" other than place the package in a drawer for the next sucker.
I probably would not have written this negative review except for the fact that we were charges ANOTHER unnecessary fee. (RESTOCKING).

Dear [redacted],I am pleased to say that the [redacted]'s did work with us and received a proper web tour of the membership they purchased and were willing to work with Merritt World Vacations, LLC to arrange to keep their membership.Regards, [redacted]

Dear [redacted]It is most disturbing when-a customer refuses to communicate directly and makes no attempt to resolve issues directly.The presentation the customer attended provides in 45 minutes, an overview of the Gold Crown Resort membership, it provides examples of...

ways to save on travel. The presentation does not use the word discount but does discuss wholesale rates on resorts, shows examples of savings from selected cruise specials, and provides examples of combinations for selected trips.An administrative representative sat with the customers separate from the sales representative and asked If they had any questions regarding the terms and conditions of the membership, Both customers initialed next to each term.. They also-initialed that "they "fully understand the terms and conditions of the membership in Gold Crown Resort," This is attached.They also signed the Addendum to Reservation Services Licenses which states in large bold letters that "YOU MAY CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION, WITHOUT ANY PENALTY OR OBLIGATION WITHIN 10 DAYS FROM YOUR '.EXECUTION Of THIS CONTRACT UNLESS YOU HAVE ALREADY USED THE TRAVEL SERVICES PROVIDED IN CONNECTION. WITH THIS TRAVEL SERVICES AGREEMENT. IF YOU DECIDE TO CANCEL THIS CONTRACT, YOU MUST DO SO IN WRITING TO 'IN COMPLIANCE SERVICES." ANY ATTEMPT TO OBTAIN A WAIVER OF YOU CANCELLATION RIGHTS i-S UNLAWFUL. CANCELLATION ENTITLES YOU TO A. REFUND OF ALL MONIES WITHIN 15 DAYS AFTER. RECEIPT OF CANCELLATION." This Is attached, The agreement was dated and signed on September 26, 2015 and the 10 day rescission period ended, on October 5, 2015.The customer purchased, the capability to. book 3 planned resort weeks.. In the terras and conditions, item 2 explains the resort, accommodations and which section of the website they are located, The customer went to the travel-section which is provided for convenience instead of the section where the resorts are located. They also requested assistance from Sold Crown. Resort Customer Service who actually explained the areas where the .resorts are $298~$799 and where .it tied into their terms and conditions which they signed.I have reached out to the customer and asked to provide a tour of the web site so they can visualize and better understand the product and they refused, I also tried to further explain how it works as presented in the member's guide which was given to them when they purchased, it is understood that the website has many sections. Our customer service provides support to the purchasing members and refusal of assistance does not merit a full refund.Respectfully submitted,
Donna G.
Customer Liaison

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: Merrit World Vacations LLC did not address my concerns about the "false and misleading statements" made during the sales process and did not address my dispute other than offering to take a tour of there website. Their sales team misrepresented the benefits of what members really receives. I have attached the notes that was taken from the sale meeting along with the 3 reasons why becoming a gold crown resort member and I'm shock to read on their response that they never mentioned "discounts" in the sales process. This paper was given by the sale rep.I have compared the prices on the following and informed Merrit World Vacations LLC:1.) Access to cruise prices at cost only for GCR member. (see attached price comparison and as you can see the price are the same) If the public can get the same price then where is the discount?2.) Hotel Discounts - I did a price comparison and even with a booking fee the price is cheaper on a competitor website. GCR members price $358.25 / public website $351.45 which includes a booking fee. The response on November 01, 2015 in the e-mail notes that "The travel section is provided to the members at cost. There is no ticketing fee charged to Gold Crown Resort
Members for the travel center items purchased and there and they provide the lowest price at the time of booking.
Middlemen charge ticketing fees, Gold Crown Resort does not" if thats the case then why booking.com still comes in cheaper even including the fee.
Regards,
[redacted]

Review: We are very unsatisfied with this membership as were trying to book a trip. I tried to call with questions and they just refer me to the website. There is no one or person that can assist us on the phone with our questions and concerns on a specified trip that we plan. You have to do it during business hours which we are working during those times. They said this is five-star accommodations for a no higher rate than $800 week stay that rate only gets you a 2 to 3 star motel room. They have nothing else to offer but 2 to 3 star motel rooms at that price and they will not upgrade you to the room that you really want and would like to stay in because their contract says up to $800. We are very dissatisfied with this membership and hope I can save others time and anguish that we are going through to try to book our 20th anniversary trip with no success. save your money and do not purchase this membership.Desired Settlement: Please refund the amount of $1995 to my [redacted] card ending in 0025.

Business

Response:

Good morning [redacted]. [redacted],

I was able to investigate the issue of **. [redacted] and discovered the following:

We were not contacted by the customer. We have extended business hours and could have facilitated the issue if given the chance. We were only contacted by the Revdex.com months after the issue occurred.

I called the customer at the day time number provided on July 9, 2014 and there was no answer. I left a voice mail on July 9, 2014 on the evening number and the customer did not return my call. I called the customer again yesterday, July 14, 2014, and reached the customer. I offered the customer assistance so he could better understand the product he purchased and he refused. He had no interest in resolving the issue outside of his request of a refund to you.

The terms and conditions of the contract explain that the customer purchased a "self catering accommodation" which means the customer goes on line and selects the vacation location and the membership company books the vacation. The contract also states all requests are required to be in writing, and therefore the customer's claim of being able to book a vacation based on a telephone call is not in compliance of the terms he agreed to upon his purchase. The customer said he contacted the membership company and they walked them through how to navigate the website which is what they are supposed to do based on the terms and conditions of their membership agreement.

The message center is available in the website and the customer did not utilize this resource for any questions which occur outside the telephone support hours.

I contacted the online travel membership he purchased and they communicated the following:

"We received a request from the customer for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16, 2014 – August 23rd, 2014. At that time we were in negotiation for contracts at that property for the dates he requested. I am happy to see that we did offer him an exact match for Hotel on the [redacted] for August 16th, 2014 – August 23rd, 2014.

The client requested the Hotel on the [redacted] property so I’m quite surprised to hear that he was not happy with our offer. It would appear that he maintained he could get lower pricing elsewhere, but never produced documentation for the sake of clarity or comparison. If there had been any proof of a lower public rate, we certainly would have gone back to our provider about it."

From the above communication, the customer made a request of a specific resort and time and the travel membership made an offer and the customer rejected it. From the above, the customer did not communicate with the travel membership of any issue and if told they were willing to further negotiate on behalf of the customer.

In the customer's membership package, the telephone support hours of the membership company is provided. Their telephone service is available from 8:30 to 5:30 Monday - Friday and 9:30 TO 5:30 on Saturdays and by email on Sunday. Our company's customer service telephone number is also provided with no limited office hours.

The membership specializes in resort travel. In addition in the terms states if the customer wishes to travel using hotel accommodations these can be booked through the travel section and the rating is based on the customer's choice of rating. In the customer's complaint, there is confusion of the services provided in the various sections of the website. I tried to explain this to the customer, but from his communication "he had no interest in learning how the website works."

The customer has exceeded the three day rescission period to cancel. No effort was made by the customer to communicate problems to Merritt World Vacations or the travel membership. When a representative from Merritt World Vacations contacted him he did not want to work through the problem. From my investigation, the travel membership did what they were asked and was not given the opportunity to resolve the issue of the customer.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require further information regarding this matter.

Respectfully submitted,

Customer Liaison

###-###-####