travel safely and securely

WINTER PARK, FL- (Marketwired) - RSI Vacations, a leading provider of private-branded vacation club packages and travel benefit programs, has uncovered a number of travel scams that have the potential to ensnare unsuspecting leisure travelers. As part of its mission to provide hospitality firms with access to proprietary Web-based travel programs, RSI Vacations offers periodic travel advisories at no cost to its private clients.

The company's dedicated travel-security team has noticed a rise in the incidence of theft at international ATMs. The practice is especially common at third-party ATMs in countries with loosely regulated financial systems. The scam is simple: Enterprising thieves hook up card-scanning devices or small visual-spectrum cameras to ATMs outside busy bars, restaurants and shopping outlets. These devices are equipped to read card numbers or scan the cards themselves and transmit the information to remote locations. Once this information is in the public domain, unsuspecting travelers can lose thousands of dollars to fraudulent charges or transfers. To avoid this common scam, RSI Vacations advises travelers to use branded ATMs inside reputable banks or credit unions.

Timeshare-sale scams are even trickier to spot. Many fly-by-night outfits that claim to have close connections with resort developers or long lines of willing buyers are able to convince timeshare owners to part with hundreds or even thousands of dollars in upfront "sale management" fees by touting claims like "we already have a buyer for your week." Although these organizations tout their credentials as timeshare sellers, they rarely make good on their promises. Instead, they sit on these upfront fees and may even be bold enough to demand additional payments to expedite the sales process.  We always recommend contacting your resort directly for additional help before acting. Please be cautious and do your due diligence. If you do move forward with a company in this regard, ensure your monies are in some sort of escrow or protected accounts. 

RSI Vacations has also uncovered a disturbing practice known as "card milling." Used mainly by small, dodgy travel agents or travel benefit firms without proven track records of success, "card milling" entices unsuspecting travelers with the prospect of "travel agent" discounts on flights, hotels, car rentals and package deals. Card millers often provide their victims with cards that purport to confer these too-good-to-be-true benefits. Even if the touted benefits turn out to be real, they often come with hefty redemption fees that can exceed the full-price cost of an equivalent vacation package. RSI Vacations advises travelers to avoid such scams by dealing only with reputable, name-brand travel and leisure firms that offer real deals and discounts.

For more information about all of the advisory services, vacation club packages and discounts that RSI Vacation provides, contact us.

For actual Traveler Warnings by Destination, see your Member Website for up to the minute safety warnings for foreign countries or follow this link:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/

RSI Vacations is not a timeshare company. We do not sell or market timeshare in any state or country; however, we do have numerous timeshare developers as clients of ours - some of these are some of the largest in world. In addition, we are also proud of our business relationships with Resort Condominiums International and Interval International. These companies make our lives much easier related to condo inventory and other travel opportunties for our members. 

RSI Vacations is not involved in Any Way in the resale or listing of timeshares. We occasionally have members who need assistance in this arena and we simply provide them unpaid referrals to numerous companies who are skilled in this arena. We make no warranty or guarantee of these referrals ability to facilitate the member's needs. To elaborate further, the following is the language we provide to our members related to listing their timeshare when any RSI Vacations company is involved in a sale of a travel club:

Timeshare Listing/Exit Company Disclaimer

1. RSI Vacations and/or its afiliates has no role (and receives no remuneration of any kind from anyone) related to the listing or sale of a qualifying Member’s timeshare.  RSI Vacations and/or its affiliates acts only as a courtesy referral source for RSI acations Members, and the listing of or exit from the timeshare is handled and executed exclusively by an independent outside Resale/Exit Company of the Member’s choosing (which is NOT in any way related to or a part of RSI Vacations or its affiliates).

2.  RSI Vacations has made no performance guarantees regarding the sale, time-frame for sale or exit, or selling price for any timeshare listed. 

3.  Please feel free to contact either of the above recommended Resale/Exit companies to pursue a path to exit your timeshare.  Be sure to mention to them that you are a RSI Vacations member to ensure that you will qualify for a special ‘preferred customer’ rate for their services.  The Resale/Exit Company will then discuss all the terms of contracting for its services.  All communications regarding the Brio Vacation Member’s timeshare will be directly between the timeshare owner and the Resale/Exit Company. 

4.  RSI Vacations and/or its affiliates shall have no liability whatsoever with regard to Maintenance Fees, any Assessments, or any Outstanding Financing Balance with regard to the timeshare.  All applicable fees must be current and the timeshare must be paid in full. 

5. If you have any direct questions related to the above information, please write to our Customer Care Manager: at MHillman@accessrsi.com