ComplaintsforIsland Trader Vacations

• Initial Complaint

  08/04/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  The nightmare began in 2018 with a company called Adventure Getaways, LLC. At a very convincing seminar, they convinced us into paying thousands to use their expert services and connections to book hotels. We used their services three times, and none of those times did we find that using them was more beneficial than what we could find on the internet ourselves. We found them to be inexperienced, unhelpful, and totally not worth what wed paid. We asked for a refund in 2019, which was denied. Although our contract said their services are terminated by non-payment, we took the extra step of verbally terminating their services as well.Enter Island Traders. Apparently they have taken over ownership of Adventure Getaways LLC in order to relieve that company of any obligation to unsatisfied clients like me. Interestingly, **** from island Traders sounds exactly like **** from Adventure Getaways. August of 2023 they reached out to say that I owed them money for the following services they have been providing against my wishes:1. Hundreds of travel offerings via their newsletter 2. Annual dues for the service I cancelled 3. Dozens of calls and 3 bills per year 4. Keeping their offices open during COVID Meanwhile I have never signed any contract with Island Traders. I have never requested or received any of their services, phone calls or newsletters. Additionally, the contact I originally signed clearly states in multiple places: Your membership is renewable each year BY PAYING THE MEMBERSHIP FEES? It was clearly explained to my wife and I that the only step required to cancel membership is to not pay. Imagine my surprise for this dishonest company to demand a $398 separation fee within 10 days.Please avoid any companies named Funseekers, Island Traders or Adventure Getaways. The service they offer is worthless, they do not honor their contract and they use relentless harassment to maintain their dissatisfied customer base.

  Business response

  08/10/2022

  Upon review of the Forbes membership and the information contained within the membership file we have close/cancelled the Forbes membership account.

  Customer response

  08/11/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.

  Better Business Bureau:

  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.

  Regards,

  *********************

• Initial Complaint

  07/05/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This company is a scam. They said that if I didn't pay yearly dues my account would be on an inactive status. Now since covid I have been issued threatening letters and phone calls asking for back fees or I am going to be sued. despite Mr asking them to place me in the do not call list they declined to do so. They will not let up. Please help.

  Business response

  07/06/2022

  We have been providing Worldwide travel to our members for far more than the 28 years I have been here. The Page's never previously requested to cancel they had stated financial hardship and would have to pay the renewal fees when things straighten out. We never stop billing, rebilling, also sending letters of delinquency and an audit of the membership account all done by mail then as a courtesy we called and emailed them offering (then) current incentives to help them bring their membership account up to date to no avail. We have never close our business for even a day through the covid issue and that has nothing to do with our continued attempts to collect on a debt these members promised to pay which they do owe! As previously stated we have simply mailed billing statements and follow up reminder along with the notices of their open unpaid past due accruing balance. We collect on our own debt therefore we do not follow the FDCPA.

  There has been no threat to the Pages's nor have they been told they would be sued. They signed agreeing to the terms and conditions within the membership contract paperwork and simply need to contact our office to either bring their membership account up to date or reach a fair settlement agreement to close/cancel their membership account through a Mutual Release document having no further cost or obligations.

  Customer response

  08/03/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of why I am rejecting this response appear below:
  
  Im sure this response from island trader vacation club is a copy and paste response.  They have so many complaints all saying the same thing. They lie to you saying you don't have to pay yearly dues and have you sign a contract in trust.  They also like to say on top of that "if you don't pay your yearly dues you won't have back fees but you will have to pay that yearly due to reactivate your account" these people scam people out of money and try to **** them dry. I had this fake membership for years without any threating calls of lawsuits until covid came. My guess is they are hard up for money caused by covid and how it decimated the travel industry and they are doing whatever they can to get more money.  Any ideas of how I could *** them for my money back and harassment?  I've asked them numerous times to stop calling but they won't stop. This bunch of swindlers are disgusting like all time shares.
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************

• Initial Complaint

  06/29/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My wife and I purchased a membership in this travel club back in 2014. We paid in full for the membership at the time. We were told that, unlike a timeshare, there were no ongoing obligations to maintain the membership unless we wanted to and paid the annual fee associated with that and furthermore, that it could be cancelled at any time. We tried a couple of times to use the company for vacation services. Unlike their initial claims, the company was never able to provide travel services or packages at cheaper rates than those we could obtain by booking travel directly. As a result, we never booked any travel through them and called and cancelled our membership in 2015. A year or so ago, we started receiving past due notices for membership dues not paid since 2015. We also began receiving harassing and threatening phone calls from this company. We also have seen on-line that we are not the only people with this same complaint. We want them to stop!

  Business response

  06/30/2022

  The Des Enfants membership account is closed, they simply received a audit letter in error from our third party printer     

• Initial Complaint

  11/30/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Island Trader Vacations My husband and I attended an Island Trader Vacations presentation in March 2010 in ********. We paid $2000 to join. Each time we tried to make plan for a vacation, we used their Website which was impossible to maneuver. When contacting a representative in ********, they were unable to find an appropriate vacation for us and therefore at no time did we use their services. The following year when we were asked to pay the membership fee we told them to cancel it as at no time were we able to use it. A year later the office in ******** no longer existed. Once, we were called by Island Trader Vacations to ask for the fee and we repeated that we had cancelled it in 2011 and they said that no further action was necessary, since then no communication was received from them. Now in November 2021 they are starting to harass us with letters, e-mails and request that we pay them $957.00 and sign a Mutual Settlement and Release agreement Cancellation of Contract. Why didn't they send us this document when we cancelled the membership initially by phone?

  Business response

  12/16/2021

  The membership account was settled and closed through a Mutual Release agreement on 12/15/21 with the consumer. 

• Initial Complaint

  10/29/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Date of transaction: 11/9/2013 Amount of money paid to the business: $6995 What the business committed to provide us: Travel discounts. Also, the organization that Island Traders hired to sell us this travel package (Grand Travel Worldwide) promised a cruise for 2 on Norwegian Cruise Line and 2 round trip airline tickets. We never received the cruises or flights. Nature of the dispute: We purchased this travel package with the intent of using their discounts to travel throughout the world. Once we were members, and able to view their 'discounts', we realized that they offered very little. So, we NEVER used their services. In 2019, they notified us that we owed them annual fees, even though we never used their services. When I contacted them by phone, we were told by *****, a sales person, that our membership was inactive and to disregard all billings. This month, they have contacted us again and notified us that we owe them annual fees, dating back to 2015, plus 5% interest, totaling $1353! They continue to harass us with phone calls and e-mails. They threaten 'further action' if we do not pay. They have told us that if we pay them $398 with a credit card and sign their Mutual Release agreement, that this would end all contractual obligations. We will not give them our credit card information! Whether or not the business has tried to resolve the problem: They have tried to resolve the issue by offering the above 'buy-out'. As detailed many times on various websites by many others, this is a SCAM. We do not believe that we have any financial obligation to this company!

  Business response

  11/01/2021

  Please understand you already signed and agreed in your contract Acknowledgement & Bylaws that any dispute will be handled through the (American Arbitration Assoc.) those cost yours to pay and the debt will go back to the full balances owed if the $398.00 is not received by the 11/11/21 dead line. You can seek and pay for any advise you wish but the agreement/paperwork stands as fact that debt was due and owed and we have offered a more than fair settlement agreement. Seems unreasonable that anyone would try and avoid a greatly reduce debt lower to just $398.00 to settle what you agreed and sign to but that is clearly your choice and others to make! 

  We have been here to provide full services purchased and have had to maintain those services all these years no matter if you took advantage of what you purchased or not. We have done our part and kept our side of the contract agreement.

  The "free airfare" and other incentive given to you to attend a meeting with that sales/marketing office was from them not us and had nothing to do with us your fulfilment company for what you purchased-not something given to you free by a separate company.

  Thank You,
  *** ***
  Member Services Mgr.
  

  Customer response

  11/02/2021

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID 16073983, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of why I am rejecting this response appear below:
  
  We are rejecting the proposed resolution for numerous reasons:

  1.  We've already paid over $7000 for services which we have not used.  Billing us for an annual fee for services not used is simply ridiculous!

  2.  Whether or not Grand Travel Worldwide  is a legal arm of Island Traders is irrelevant.  Island Traders hired this disreputable firm.  This firm made promises about the services Island Traders provides which are simply not true.

  3.  We certainly would not TRUST an organization as disreputable and unethical as Island Traders to sign an agreement that THEY have written to end any perceived contractual obligations, and even more so, to give them our credit card information.  

  If Island Traders sincerely desires to end our relationship and our contractual obligations, then they could simply send us a simple letter, to that effect.  We would then have that reviewed by our attorney, and if acceptable, send them a check.  There's WAY too much 'fine print' with this unscrupulous outfit.  Simply look on-line in social media.  We're not the only ones who have been scammed.

  Regards,
  
  ******** *** **** *****

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩