Timeshare 'pests' make life hell for tourists

Though not a newcomer to the island, a British tourist is gripped by fear every time he roams the streets of Malta - the fear of harassment by timeshare peddlers.

Reg Davies, 62, of Staffordshire, and his wife have been coming to Malta for the past seven years, often even twice a year, bringing along friends and family.

"We have come in groups of 16 at times since we love Malta so much. But we're heartily sick and tired of harassment by timeshare representatives. Many of them are not even Maltese but they are giving a bad name to Malta," Mr Davies said.

Mr and Mrs Davies said that on one occasion they were "assaulted" by three different representatives after barely having walked 50 metres from their hotel.

Often dreading to walk outdoors for fear of being pestered, Mr Davies said he had spoken to fellow Britons who said they would never return. Mr Davies' friends have had timeshare representatives waiting for them outside a bar they frequented.

Mr Davies and his wife were among 72 British tourists who filed a complaint with the Malta Tourism Authority since the beginning of the year, either because of harassment by timeshare representatives or because they had been cheated in some way or another.

Specially targeted by timeshare peddlers, British citizens have often written letters to newspapers in Malta complaining about timeshare representatives who pester them to buy occupancy time in some sunny vacation resort.

A regulation enacted in 2004 lays down that no timeshare representatives may mislead or deceive potential clients with deceptive prize draws, award schemes or free gifts and even less to force, harass or coerce a prospective buyer.

An MTA spokesman said the enforcement officers and administrative law enforcement police had intercepted 198 outside personal contacts, or OPCs - jargon for timeshare pests - since the beginning of 2004.

"We have also taken legal action against a number of unlicensed sellers of timeshare. But with regard to harassment, unfortunately, no tourist has ever come forward to point fingers at particular OPCs," the spokesman said.

Notwithstanding all the rules and regulations it is extremely difficult to prove irregular behaviour and harassment unless the "victim" comes forward and identifies his "aggressor", the spokesman said, admitting it is never easy to catch unlicensed timeshare sellers red-handed.

All marketing companies now have to license their OPCs and each representative has to carry an identification tag. Marketing companies have submitted 105 applications to license representatives and 89 OPC licences have been issued.

The MTA spokesman said that when the authority receives a complaint regarding a contract it has to react very quickly because there is a cooling-off period of 10 days which allows clients to terminate a contract. But if purchasers do not act within that time, they would not be able to nullify a contract.