Confirmation Bias and Cognitive Dissonance

Confirmation Bias - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias

Confirmation bias, also called confirmatory bias or myside bias,[Note 1] is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms one's preexisting beliefs or hypotheses.[1] It is a type of cognitivebias and a systematic error of inductivereasoning. People display this bias when they gather or remember information selectively, or when they interpret it in a biased way. The effect is stronger for emotionally charged issues and for deeply entrenched beliefs.

Cognitive Dissonance - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance

In the field of psychology, cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort (psychological stress) experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values. This discomfort is triggered by a situation in which a belief of a person clashes with new evidence perceived by that person. When confronted with facts that contradict personal beliefs, ideals, and values, people will find a way to resolve the contradiction in order to reduce their discomfort.

I don't know about the rest of you but I certainly vacillate between the two of these from time to time and definitely in the past 5+ years in dealing with this situation regarding Sunchaser Vacation Villas.

Alberta Legislative Assembly June 6, 2018

As MLA Richard Gotfield tries again to get Stephanie McLean, the Alberta Minister of Service Alberta, to take this issue seriously he is shot down again and not in a nice way.  Keep watching as she is taken to task.

The information contained in this blog/video is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information. 

 

Alberta Legislative Assembly - June 4th, 2018

On Monday, June 4th, 2018 at the Alberta Legislative Assembly, Richard Gotfried MLA Fish Creek Calgary brought up the timeshare Northmont to Stephanie McLean Minister of Service Alberta

Have a listen - Is someone finally taking this issue seriously???

 

 

 The information contained in this blog/video is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information.

 

Message to my fellow casualties

The emotional impact of victimization.

This post/video was inspired by the many people who have reached out and continue to reach out to me.    Are you feeling at a loss about the feelings you are feeling?  This is my message to you.  You are not alone.

Credit for much of the facts/wording attributed to:  How Fraud Affects A Victim  and Financial Fraud Crime Victims

  The information contained in this blog/video is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information.

Casualty (6)

Casualty (6)

We purchased our annual timeshare in the late 90's. At the time I recall specifically asking the salesperson “what happens if we don't want it for the entire 40 years of the contract?” We were told it would be easy to sell, transfer to a family member, or that the resort would purchase it back for a percentage of the purchase price (a clause stating that percentage was even written into our contract back then, but the more recent contracts do not include that clause).

Fifteen (15) years into our contract, our situation changed and we weren't using it as much as we had previously, so we had some friends offer to buy it from us. In December of 2012 we contacted Sunchaser to arrange the transfer of ownership and they sent the forms required to do so. One of those forms was an “acknowledgement of liability” form that we, the “current owners” were required to sign. It stated “____ hereby acknowledge that if the transferee does not meet the payment obligations that are set out in the Vacation Interval Agreement that I/We remain liable with respect to future payment obligations not made by the transferee”. In other words we were still on the hook if the new owners defaulted on any payments. We noticed that this new document was written in November of 2012 (one month prior to our contacting them). Needless to say, we weren't comfortable with this arrangement, so we requested that Sunchaser offer to purchase our timeshare back from us. We received no response from them, but a couple of weeks later we received a letter from them announcing the renovation and what we would be required to pay for such capital improvements.

Looking Back

In order to understand where one is, it is a good idea to begin at the beginning and work forward.

This is the first in a series of videos doing just that - looking back to uncover and expose the Sunchaser/Northmont/Northwynd Timeshare Scandal (formerly known as Fairmont Vacation Villas).

Edited to add:  In the description of the Hillside area there is an error in the number of buildings - there are actually 8 buildings (1000 - 8000) however the total number of units for the Hillside area is correct.  As for the Riverview Building it is actually classified as building #8100, but again the total number of units for the building is correct.  Sorry for any confusion this may have caused.

The information contained in this blog is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information. 

Casualty (5)

Casualty (5)

We bought our timeshare at Fairmont Vacation Villas for just over $20,000.00 in the late 90's. The company salesman promised us “worry free” yearly vacations for just the price of a low annual maintenance fee; “way cheaper than hotels” and the timeshare would be “something to be proud of for years to come”.

He referred to “Clause 13” in our sales contract which stated that we could return our lease back to Fairmont at anytime and they would pay us for any years left on our contract; this clause also stated that if we were in default on our maintenance fees for 16 months the unit would revert back to the resort owner. We had to accept their “one time sales offer” before we left the sales office so we signed on the dotted line, not knowing if we did the right thing.

We enjoyed our holidays at the timeshare, often bringing relatives with us to enjoy our week long vacation at Fairmont; that is until Northmont took over.

Northmont bought the Fairmont's timeshare assets in 2010 and the name of the resort changed to Sunchaser Vacation Villas, and Northwynd Resort Properties (run by Northmont) assumed responsibility to run the Sunchaser Villas.

Casualty (4)

Casualty (4)

We bought our timeshare in the early '90s. We had an annual and a biennial. We had a lot of great vacations and fun times with friends over the years until the resort was taken over by Northmont.

Like everyone else, we were shocked to find under this new management we were being charged a fee for a timeshare we owned regardless of whether we stayed or chose to leave the resort at this time.

In hindsight it is all a bit of a blur. After several law firms got involved and we were able to form a group with like minded people to fight this blatant “scam” - around 1,500. We were directed eventually to the law firm of Geldert Law. That is when this downhill slide began. Gross incompetence, inexperience, complete lack of communication to our group and “behind door” meetings on behalf of all 1,500 of us has resulted in this criminal predicament we have been placed in. The evidence was there. Not to mention our persecutor is a Master of deception with a highly disreputable reputation and has his game down pat. Another known fact, and the trail of destruction is well publicized.

The courts have ruled. Our lawyer has failed us miserably and in my mind completely misrepresented our group leaving us with his carnage to clean up.

Our bill is more than three times what we paid to purchase back in the early 90's. It's in the ten (10's) of thousands of dollars. We have been denied access to the timeshare since 2013 but charged continued high maintenance fees with a 26.8% interest rate!!!

Casualty (3)

Casualty (3)

To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing out of desperation, pleading for assistance from anybody who will listen. Somebody needs to help defend Fairmont timeshare lease-holders and speak out, because apparent loopholes in the Canadian courts and legal system have enabled a big timeshare-vacation corporation to victimize over a thousand innocent Canadian consumers. Mostly vulnerable seniors are being forced into bankruptcy, having to cash in retirement funds, or put new or second mortgages on their homes. Something must be done - not only does this impasse affect these timeshare holders, but it affects timeshare holders and all consumers across Canada.

Unfortunately, I am not well-versed in all the details of the Northmont/Sunchaser Villa saga that has unfolded over the past few years. I am the daughter of a Sunchaser Timeshare Vacation Lessee, and only learned about some of the details of the ongoing dispute when my 80-year old mother - the holder of the said timeshare - had a stroke in 2016, and I had to take over tending to her business affairs as her acting Power of Attorney. Unfortunately, the stroke affected her language capacity, and she has been unable to explain to me all the developments that have taken place between 2010 and present.

Casualty (2)

Casualty (2)

We called Service Alberta only to be told they can’t do anything as it has been litigated. We have sent many emails, MLA’s, MP, Premier, Two Justice Ministers, Leader of the Opposition, etc.

Of all my correspondence, I have only received confirmation of my emails, and that the matter has been forwarded or it is being reviewed. Danielle Smith (Newstalk 770 Calgary) is the only one that responded.

I am frustrated and find it hard to understand why no one is responding.

My husband and I are also victims of the Northmont/Sunchaser Timeshare saga.

We purchased a resale Vacation Villa Lease at a cost of $7800.00 for a one week annual Vacation Lease with 34 years remaining in the contract. We enjoyed the use of our Vacation Interest until 2013 when we were presented with the Freedom to Choose, Reason to Stay Program.

First I would like point out that the package did not come Registered Mail as it should have considering the sensitive contents and because of the imposed tight timelines to make a decision on this very significant proposal. We were on vacation when this package came in the mail and because of that faced some very short timelines to come to an informed decision.

Northmont Sunchaser Scandal - The Untold Story

The Plot Summary:

Thousands of people are stressed, duressed and disheartened as they are being charged over $20,000 per annual lease (1 week per year of use) with some who have said their bills are almost $100,000. This payment is all about losing their family investment. They are being charged collectively and punitively by a timeshare company adding up to over $50,000,000 dollars, with a settlement, including a gag order and an agreement not to sue. If they don't comply within around a month's time they are threatened they will be pursued for another 162% of that amount.

Flash back in time 5 years when this company demanded people pay around $4,000 per annual lease to pay for a $40,000,000 million renovation for the entire timeshare, or alternatively to pay them a bit less to relinquish their unit. By unilaterally changing contracts, enabling this company to remove units and subsequently whole buildings from the resort, rezoning them and ultimately selling them for personal profit. These people looked for legal clarification on whether the company could charge this contending they own the right to use the property for a pre-paid slice of time, but not the property itself (as well as other arguments). All this by a company whose CEO hatched a plan in 2012 to get money to pay back investors that lost their initial investment money back when the resort(s) went into receivership. They have since been paying some investors millions of dollars – all while telling the courts without this fee the resort may not survive.

It sounds like the twisted plot from some book or made for TV movie. Or something that would happen in some third world country that doesn’t have consumer protection laws. But what if this was happening right here in Canada to thousands of Canadians right now?

Let's walk through this complicated, involved and twisted tale. One which has been a living nightmare for thousands of Canadians. And, unfortunately, not one with a happy ending.

If you are with a certain parties looking to keep this quiet, for the record this is all just an opinion. After all, it is a story, right?

Casualty (1)

Casualty (1)

We have fond memories as a family using our timeshare in Fairmont at the Fairmont Vacation Villas now known as the Sunchaser Vacation Villas . We purchased a biannual timeshare after my brother in law told us how much he liked his. When we returned to use it we were invited to a presentation. The presentation was about the whole resort changing over to RCI rather than weeks with Interval International. The salesman picked us up and drove us to the sales office and for a tour of the RV and the houseboats in the parking lot by Hillside. We were so excited and intrigued with the houseboat. The presentation was about how a new points system would allow you to exchange into many different places and options depending on the amount of points you wanted to use. We were told how new the buildings were and how they’d last for 100 years. We were told there was a lot of money being invested in the area. The Hot Springs across the highway was to redo their whole resort and the hot springs. There was even an amusement park going in across the highway. He said it was such a good investment and there was a huge reserve fund and so much money invested in the resort it would never go bankrupt. We could even will it to our children. We decided to purchase an annual one and at the same price as our biannual so we would have plenty of points to travel.

We loved the drive. The windy roads, the trees, the wildlife. The excitement set in when we arrived in Radium and had to stop at the candy store. Pulling up to the front office for check in was nice. We’d watch the people play tennis. The fresh air and openness with the beauty of the mountains. The flower baskets were always so pretty and the painted rocks at the front door with the cats on them so nice. The kids would pick out movies to rent and then get a treat at the store. We’d have a quick game of shuffleboard. We really enjoyed staying at Hillside as it was so close for the kids to go to the waterpark. We had a lot of fun there. We did many activities as a family. We all made tie dyed tshirts. We rode a rickety bus to do archery by the hoodoos. Oh how the mosquitoes loved us. We hiked to the top of the hoodoos and to have brunch at the Hot Springs Resort. Hitting a bucket of balls before dinner or having dinner at the golf course after a fun filled family day of golf at Coys. Or having a bowl of dill pickle soup at the Hoodoo Grill was always a treat as was the ice crème bar. Our family really enjoyed going to Fairmont Sunchasers Vacation Villas.

2018 01 24 Casualties Overview

It's been mental torture for me in the last few weeks, and throughout the years not knowing or understanding what was happening, and not knowing what everyone else was doing or thinking. Not being able to talk to anyone who could explain this to me. Today I'm fighting this battle in fear and desperation, its like a movie, and I've been framed!.... Who can I trust? We were definitley brainwashed, the fear was put into each, and everyone of us, and that's how they won their game....they kept us silent. We didn't speak as the well behaved little children we were, or else, there were those threats. We all believed in one person throughout this whole dilemma no different then being in a cult. There is so much more to this injustice we have all found ourselves in. We will continue to fight united, as the strangers in the dark! Maybe one day we will all see the faces behind the masks we wear. Maybe one day our voices will be heard..........

Original Post on Tugbbs

 The information contained in this blog/video is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information.

2018 01 08 A Canadian Catastrophe

 

 The information contained in this blog/video is accurate to the best of my knowledge at the time of posting. I reserve the right to make changes as new information becomes available.

Any and all  information I share is for informational purposes only, not legal advice, as I am not a lawyer, just a lay person sharing information.