Fun and sun getaways scam cancun

my copy of the BBB complaint and requested settlement

Thank you for using the Better Business Bureau's Online Complaint System.
Your complaint has been assigned case # 90099318.
Correspondence regarding this complaint will be emailed to : skandrews@mchsi.com
Please print a copy of this for your records.

Filed on : November 25 2012

Filed by :
Scott Andrews
5620 Parkview Circle
Prior Lake MN 55372

Filed against :
IMS Vacations
7751 Kingsport Pkwy Ste 107
Orlando FL 32819

Complaint Description:
fraudulent charge on credit card, not honoring electronic signature of price guarantee & deception On 11/11/12 I purchased a deal of $99per night/room at Temptation Resort(cancun,mx)from Fun&Sun Getaways(IMS vacations). I booked for the dates of 03/26/13-04/02/13 through their website which passes their company off as being "Temptation resorts" without their name on the web page.It also had a 24 hour countdown on the page saying "huge annual 1 day sale" . When I reserved my stay the clock had 5 hours left on it. In order to get the deal and register with them I had to first give my email address which sent me a mailing with a phone number to call. Then I had to call and speak to someone. They walked me through the e-sign with also giving them my credit card info which I would be charged $814.28 for seven nights stay. They sent me an email with a confirmation number 0811101 stating and my total bill $814.28 and says "resort verification:in progress"(of which I do have a copy saved). We ended the phone call after they informed me I should see the charge within 24-48 hours. On 11/12/12 my card was charged for the proper amount of $814.28. I waited until 11/19/12 and still did not hear anything either by phone or email verifying my stay with the resort. In trying to plan our flying arrangements I wanted to know if we had it confirmed so I called the resort. They told me that they did not have me on their books and sometimes it could be up until the week before travel that they could verify the reservation. Not understanding why I called IMS Vacations(fun&sun getaways). On 11/19/12 they informed me that my reservation had been put "on hold". Inquiring why, they stated "the customer service rep that took my call booked me under an old promotion and it is no longer available". I asked until what date did they run the promotion and they said 11/15/12 which is 4 days after I was charged. They proceeded to try and book me at another resort or they could refund my charge and I declined both. They said they couldn't book me at Temptation because they are no longer affiliated with them, but if I want to rebook and stay there it would be $199/nt/room. They never called or emailed to let me know that my reservation had been put on hold.That same night I emailed them asking the same questions and requesting the contact info for the VP of sales or the cust. serv. manager. or to have them call me within 24hours and told them specifically DO NOT cancel my reservation until I speak with one of them and per the agreement made I was entitled to the priced package. On 11/20/12 I called Temptation resort at which a csr explained quite a bit to me. I have been put on their books for my dates but they could not give me a reservation number because IMS vacations(fun&sun getaways) has not paid the resort.Then I called IMS(fun&sun) to see their side of the story and these are the answers I got. -yes, the promo was in the system. -yes, it was a mistake/glitch in what their reports ran through from TTR for pricing in their internal system. - They did sell out of the "package" due to the cost they labeled it as. - It should have been $199/nt. - They can't and won't honor the $99 a night because they aren't affiliated with them anymore. -they can book you at $199/nt or give a full refund -they are instructed to not give out names or any contact info of management as a CSR. At 6:53pm on 11/20/12 I received this email from them. We have received your request to cancel your vacation, please be assured your credit card if charged will be refunded promptly and it could take 14 to 20 business days to reflect on your bank statement. You do not need to take any further action. However, if your plans change, please feel free to call our vacation specialists at 1-888-481-9660 and they will assist you in rebooking your vacation. The continuing lies and troubles still continue to date even after I respond to them specifically stating do not refund my money or cancel my vacation. They have since refused to speak with me on the matter.

Your Desired Resolution:
I would like them to honor the deal made for the agreed price of $99 per room, per night. I would like it to be at a date of my choosing seeing as though I can't hinge my current vacation on the settlement of this problem. I would also like to see them settle, in the same manner, for the countless others that they did this to. Of which I have the contact info for each of the individuals that have had their vacations canceled because of this problem.

This case will be reviewed by a complaint specialist at the Better Business Bureau, and then forwarded to the business for their response. It is our policy to allow the business 30 working days to respond to your complaint. You will be notified when the business has responded.


I hope all of you will follow my lead and respond in the same manner as I did. Hopefully if we all do this together there will be some justice served.

Thanks
Scott

 

Florida Attorney General complaint form

Good evening Ms. Bondi,

I regret having to write this letter to you. I am very concerned with the fact that a company within your state, IMS vacations(Fun and Sun Getaways) is scamming people from all over the country and now it has even spread internationally. Below you will find the exact copy of a complaint filing I have sent to the BBB about my happenings with this company. The matter is still unresolved as far as I am concerned but I can't seem to get any sort of straight answer from them and they refuse to hold up their end of the bargain for what was agreed upon for the purchase. I hope you can help in this matter as I know of several dozen other people that have had the same issue with this company within a very short time frame.

All I would like is for the company to stand by their agreement of the purchase price and not try to scam people out of their money. I know that the matter will not be resolved by the date we intend to travel so I will request the following solution/settlement, that being the same as I requested from the BBB. I would like them to honor the deal made for the agreed price of $99 per room, per night. I would like it to be at a date of my choosing seeing as though I can't hinge my current vacation on the settlement of this problem. I would also like to see them settle, in the same manner, for the countless others that they did this to. Of which I have the contact info for each of the individuals that have had their vacations canceled because of this problem.

I will also attach a web site forum link that is a full account of what has happened over the past couple weeks to most of the people I have heard from. I have the contact information of 4 other people/couples that have had their vacation plans ruined because of the false advertising and fraudulent charges on our charge cards. We were made to believe that we had a vacation planned, booked and paid for, but in actuality it is seeming that we would have never been contacted that we indeed did NOT have a reservation with our resort. We would have had no place to stay when we arrived at our destination. It wasn't until I threatened them with legal action that they gave me a PO box in Louisianan to have legal papers sent to, other wise they will not give out ANY company information. The information I have gathered is through research and other peoples hardship with their dealing with the company.

BBB REPORT:

On 11/11/12 I purchased a deal of $99per night/room at Temptation Resort(cancun,mx)from Fun&Sun Getaways(IMS vacations). I booked for the dates of 03/26/13-04/02/13 through their website which passes their company off as being "Temptation resorts" without their name on the web page.It also had a 24 hour countdown on the page saying "huge annual 1 day sale" . When I reserved my stay the clock had 5 hours left on it. In order to get the deal and register with them I had to first give my email address which sent me a mailing with a phone number to call. Then I had to call and speak to someone. They walked me through the e-sign with also giving them my credit card info which I would be charged $814.28 for seven nights stay. They sent me an email with a confirmation number 0811101 stating and my total bill $814.28 and says "resort verification:in progress"(of which I do have a copy saved). We ended the phone call after they informed me I should see the charge within 24-48 hours.

On 11/12/12 my card was charged for the proper amount of $814.28. I waited until 11/19/12 and still did not hear anything either by phone or email verifying my stay with the resort. In trying to plan our flying arrangements I wanted to know if we had it confirmed so I called the resort. They told me that they did not have me on their books and sometimes it could be up until the week before travel that they could verify the reservation. Not understanding why I called IMS Vacations(fun&sun getaways).

On 11/19/12 they informed me that my reservation had been put "on hold". Inquiring why, they stated "the customer service rep that took my call booked me under an old promotion and it is no longer available". I asked until what date did they run the promotion and they said 11/15/12 which is 4 days after I was charged. They proceeded to try and book me at another resort or they could refund my charge and I declined both. They said they couldn't book me at Temptation because they are no longer affiliated with them, but if I want to rebook and stay there it would be $199/nt/room. They never called or emailed to let me know that my reservation had been put on hold.That same night I emailed them asking the same questions and requesting the contact info for the VP of sales or the cust. serv. manager. or to have them call me within 24hours and told them specifically DO NOT cancel my reservation until I speak with one of them and per the agreement made I was entitled to the priced package.

On 11/20/12 I called Temptation resort at which a csr explained quite a bit to me. I have been put on their books for my dates but they could not give me a reservation number because IMS vacations(fun&sun getaways) has not paid the resort.Then I called IMS(fun&sun) to see their side of the story and these are the answers I got.
-yes, the promo was in the system.
-yes, it was a mistake/glitch in what their reports ran through from TTR for pricing in their internal system.
- They did sell out of the "package" due to the cost they labeled it as.
- It should have been $199/nt.
- They can't and won't honor the $99 a night because they aren't affiliated with them anymore.
-they can book you at $199/nt or give a full refund
-they are instructed to not give out names or any contact info of management as a CSR.
At 6:53pm on 11/20/12 I received this email from them. We have received your request to cancel your vacation, please be assured your credit card if charged will be refunded promptly and it could take 14 to 20 business days to reflect on your bank statement. You do not need to take any further action. However, if your plans change, please feel free to call our vacation specialists at 1-888-481-9660 and they will assist you in rebooking your vacation.

The continuing lies and troubles still continue to date even after I respond to them specifically stating do not refund my money or cancel my vacation. They have since refused to speak with me on the matter.

WEB SITE FORUM:
http://www.cancuncare.com/forum/temptation-resort-cancun/25005-fun-sun-getaways-99-nt-caution.html

Seeing as though they gave me the address in Louisianan, I will be filing with their Attorney general as well. I will send them the exact same mail/complaint as I have sent to you.

Please feel free to contact me at anytime on the matter at hand.

Best regards,
Scott Andrews



If you need any of the F&S contact info or address info you can find it on the BBB link here
IMS Vacations Business Review in Orlando, FL - Central Florida BBB

Or if you would like to file a complaint with the Florida Attorney General(Pam Bondi) here is the link.
Florida Attorney General - Attorney General Contact Form

Hope this helps you all!

 

I don't want to start anything but do you really think this is going to get the results you want. They over booked, airlines and hotels do it all the time. Department stores print sales adds and only get one of the product in, what do you do, buy something else or walk away. They gave you other options or a refund what else do you want? Yes it happened to me, but life goes on. They are not going to give you something they don't have. Life is to short to get all wrapped up in something that no matter what you do is not going to change. Do what I and others have done, use it as a learning experience, take the refund and make reservations with a more reputable company.

 

137.00 is a good price. Alpharooms was up to 228.00 a night for our week by the time I got around to it. Booked through TravelRepublic for 186.00 a night. Read some good reviews on them first. Said it might take up to 12hrs to confirm and I got my hotel voucher by email about 2hrs later. Much better service.

 

I disagree. I'm lucky this is not "my problem" at this particular time, but if nobody does anything to stop companies like Fun & Sun Gateways from scamming people it may be me or you next! The more people lodge an official complaint letter the better. It's harder to ignore a big group of unhappy customers.

 

The way i see it they screwed up,,, it was per person and not per room.

They are making up lame excuses like they are no longer affiliated , they sold out,,, yet they continue to sell the room at 299.

As soon as they accepted payment then they should deliver the product,, End of story.

Imagine , going to a store buying a fridge, to be delivered the next day,, you get a call,, saying the fridge is no longer available ,but they can get a same one for double the price.... ,,would never happen.

 

I am sorry to disagree with you.
Credit cards were charged and debited immediately and it happened to dozens if not hundreds of people. People who booked through them, booked plane tickets that might be NOT refundable nor changeable. What are they supposed to do if they cannot find a deal for a room at TTR that fit their budget or dates? I don't think it is that straight forward. I really sympathise with the unlucky ones.

 

Agreed and if they can sell more at higher prices now they can chase their tales to pay these refunds now and deal with the new ones later.................I'm with you and will let VISA recover mine. 10-20 business days for a refund is just another stall tatic.

 

Another little piece of advice, if you use a Chase Visa(In my case a Southwest Airlines VISA): If you think anything possibly shady is going on, don't pay your entire balance for that statement. Make sure you hold that amount back. Was told I would get my refund but not immediately since I had payed my entire balance that month before disputing it. Same results just going to take a little longer to fill out some claim forms they send me and send back with email copies of my correspondence with Fun and Sun.

 

My refund posted to my credit card today, so at least they honored the refund.