by Fred 2 on Tue Sep 27, 2005 12:23 pm
The local Trading Standards have clearly been guided by the contract alone. They clearly did not check further. DWVC's undertaking means that they must not use agents who do not use their standard contract, which requires a cooling-off period. They should certainly not have appointed a new agent who does not use such a contract. If DWVC do not abide by the terms of their agreement with the Office of Fair Trading, and it seems that they are not doing, they can be prosecuted by OFT.
This type of thing really should be stopped.
World Travel Services LLP (Partners are Brian Armstrong and Dianne Marshall) was registered at Companies House only on 16th September 2005. If they told you that this business had been trading since 1999 they were lying. I think that if you considered that this statement helped to persuade you to sign then this alone would entitle you to cancel.
The Chester-le-Street premises are home to D & A International Leisure LLP, active in this field under various names for some years. The Partners here are D and A Cooke. It could be that the firm that you dealt with is a front for the Cookes - but at this stage that is speculation.
It seems from what you have said that you have a good case to cancel. You have been seriously misled.
I really would not pay any money. I would consult a solicitor now (or even go back to Trading Standards & show a copy of the undertaking below) and would send a letter of cancellation. Point 4c below says that it must be POSTED by the 7th day, not received.
This is the full text of the undertaking given by DWVC taken from the OFT website. Note that 'a breach may render DWVC liable to court action.
I am going to e-mail OFT stating that I believe that there has been a breach.
" Undertaking to the United Kingdom Office of Fair Trading
From
Designer Way Vacation Club S.A.
WHEREAS Designer Way Vacation Club, S.A., with its commercial offices at Partido de la Morena, Vega del Ca�adon, Nave n� 8, 29649 Mijas (M�laga, Spain) and Company registration number A-92.292.069 (hereafter referred to as �DWVC'), sells membership to a holiday, travel and consumer discount club through authorised marketers (owned and independent) of Designer Way Vacation Club membership services (�Authorised Marketers');
WHEREAS any reference in this document to activities performed or not to be performed by DWVC shall be construed to apply to those activities carried out on behalf of DWVC by any agent, employee or otherwise; and
WHEREAS the majority of sales of these memberships to consumers take place in Spain.
On behalf of DWVC, I, Craig James Douglas, Director, duly authorised to do so on its behalf, hereby undertake to the Office of Fair Trading of Fleetbank House, 2-6 Salisbury Square, London EC4Y 8JX that from this day forward, DWVC will:
1. Use best endeavours to ensure that all Authorised Marketers use only DWVC standard forms of contract which give the consumer a right to cancel any contract for membership club services within 7 days.
2. Circulate to all its Authorised Marketers within one month revised forms of contract documentation including cancellation notices in the form attached as Annex I.
3. Issue a letter of instruction to all its Authorised Marketers, requiring them to abide by the revised Code of Conduct for Sales of Timelinx Products and Services provided to Authorised Marketers, highlighting the Authorised Marketer's obligations:
a. to clearly identify the parties to the contract and the Authorised Marketer's role as sales agents for DWVC in all dealings with consumers
b. to use with consumers only contractual documents with the standard content and in the standard form supplied from time to time by DWVC (�the contract forms') without amendments except where the contract forms specifically requires the insertion of information and to supply the contract forms to consumers in their entirety including a cancellation notice in the form in which it is attached.
c. not to make any representation about the benefits of Designer Way Vacation Club membership services which are misleading, inaccurate or inconsistent with the terms and conditions of Designer Way Vacation Club membership.
d. to explain to consumers when they enter into a contract for Designer Way Vacation Club Membership that they have a right to cancel the contract and bring to the consumer's attention the notice contained in Annex I.
4. Accept cancellation by consumers however it is expressed, whether or not they use the cancellation notice given to them, provided the notice they give:
a. identifies them and expresses their intention to cancel the Designer Way Vacation Club Membership (the Contract);
b. is in writing; and
c. is posted or actually delivered to DWVC or its Authorised Marketers within 7 days of the consumer receiving notice of his or her right to cancel the contract.
5. Keep under review the contract forms to ensure compliance with all UK laws and regulations applying to contracts for DWVC's products and services.
6. I am authorised to give these undertakings on behalf of DWVC and agree that it will be bound by them. I understand that any breach of these undertakings may render DWVC liable to court action.
SIGNED
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Craig James Douglas, Director Witness Name & Signature
for and on behalf of
Designer Way Vacation Club S.A.
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At At
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Date Date
