Timeshare claims still averaging 18 months, says European Consumer Claims

European Consumer Claims (ECC) has published guidance on how long timeshare mis-selling claims typically take to resolve, noting that the average case now runs to around 18 months.

The firm said the timeshare industry in Spain had largely ignored consumer protection legislation introduced in 1999, with many companies continuing to issue contracts later found to be unlawful for around 16 years afterwards. According to ECC, this changed in 2015 when a Norwegian claimant, Tove Grimsbo, won €40,000 in compensation from a Canary Islands resort, a ruling it credits with triggering a wave of subsequent claims against timeshare operators across Europe. ECC said this has since contributed to several major timeshare firms ceasing trading or entering administration or liquidation.

Why claims can be slow

ECC said Spain’s legal system is complex, and that some timeshare companies have used this to their advantage by contesting claims regardless of their legal merit, in the hope that elderly claimants would give up or, in some cases, not survive a prolonged process.

The company noted that timescales were worse around 2016, when claimants often pursued cases individually. It said timeshare firms at the time relied on claimants, many of them British, needing to navigate the Spanish language and legal system and travel to Spain repeatedly, sometimes only for hearings to be postponed. ECC said this dynamic shifted once claims companies began handling cases collectively, as legal delays now simply increase costs for timeshare firms without deterring pursuit of claims.

Current outlook

ECC said some timeshare companies now settle compensation claims quickly, in some cases within weeks of a court ruling, while others continue to resist. However, it argued that the number of available delay tactics is limited and that firms which have used up their options will eventually be required to pay what is owed.

Greg Wilson, chief executive of European Consumer Claims, commented on one Costa del Sol based timeshare company currently in liquidation, saying it had “already used all their good excuses and tactics, and now most of the bad ones too.”

ECC said this suggests that even the most resistant operators cannot delay proceedings indefinitely, and that current claimants may benefit from shorter timescales as a result.

The company advises that not everyone who had a negative timeshare experience is eligible for compensation, and recommends seeking expert advice before starting a claim.