Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett Sues Michigan-based Vacation Company; Suit Claims Consumers Were Defrauded by 'Discount' Travel Club Plan

20 October 2005

Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom
Corbett today filed a lawsuit against a Michigan-based vacation company and
its president accused of illegally calling consumers' homes to sell travel
club memberships, then failing to provide the promised discounts on the
vacations, cruises, hotel rooms, car rentals and airline tickets that were
promoted in the plans. The lawsuit follows an investigation into more than 50
complaints from residents located in Philadelphia, Allegheny, Cumberland,
Lehigh, Monroe, Westmoreland and York counties.
The suit asks the court to ban the defendants from doing business in
Pennsylvania, plus provide full refunds to consumers and pay fines for
violating Pennsylvania's Consumer Protection Law and Telemarketer Registration
Act.
Corbett identified the defendants as Shalom D. Bouskila, individually, and
as president of Vacation Central Inc., based in Troy, Michigan. The company
conducted business under the name Vacation Depot and formerly operated a
Pennsylvania office at 2403 Sidney St., Suite 255, Pittsburgh, through 2004.
According to Consumer Protection investigators, the company through 2004
failed to obtain the Pennsylvania "no call" list before initiating
telemarketing calls to consumers' homes to promote and sell vacation
memberships in the vacation club. Many Pennsylvania consumers complained that
they received calls from the company even though they were properly listed on
the "do not call" statewide registry.
During the solicitations, consumers were told that they had won a vacation
or a motor vehicle and in order to claim the prize, they would be required to
attend a seminar at the defendants' offices.
Those who attended the seminars were told that if they joined the club
they would save as much as 40 percent on vacations, including cruises, hotel
rooms, car rentals and airline tickets. Prospective members were also told
that they would receive specially discounted prices on certain destinations as
part of the club's "hot weeks" offer. The club memberships ranged in price
from $2,453 to $6,453.
"In reality, many club members complained that the promised discounts just
weren't there," Corbett said. "In one case, the vacation package offered by
the defendants was $500 more than a similar package a consumer found on
Expedia.com, an online travel service provider. In other cases, the company
was unable to arrange the requested trips and services at all. Dissatisfied
customers were then told that they could not cancel their memberships and get
their money back."
Corbett said Vacation Depot is also accused of failing to honor its own
three-day right to cancel policy. In several cases, consumers claimed that
they failed to receive information about their memberships or were not given
their passwords to the club website until after the three-day time period
expired. In other cases, consumers were unable to cancel their memberships
three days after purchase because the defendants closed their Pennsylvania
office. Many of those consumers paid the defendants deposits that ranged from
$600 to $1,800.
The complaint asks the court to require the defendants to:

-- Permanently forfeit their right to conduct business in Pennsylvania.
-- Issue full refunds to consumers who paid for a club membership and
failed to receive any of the promised discounts and services.
-- Pay civil penalties of $1,000 per violation and $3,000 per violation
for any consumer age 60 or older.
-- Pay the Commonwealth's investigation costs.

The lawsuit was filed in Commonwealth Court. Senior Deputy Attorney
General Marcia L. Telek Depaula of the Bureau of Consumer Protection Office in
Pittsburgh is prosecuting the case.

CONTACT: Barbara Petito
Deputy Press Secretary
717-787-5211
petito@attorneygeneral.gov