Quotes attributable to CHOICE Director of Campaigns Erin Turner: 

"We welcome ASIC taking legal action against Ultiqa for breach of financial advice laws. The timeshare industry is built on coercing consumers into purchasing lengthy, expensive and poor value financial products."

"Timeshare salespeople are providing financial advice. That means they have a legal obligation to act in the best interest of their customers. Despite this, timeshare operators typically only recommend one product - their own."

"Since 2016, CHOICE has written five complaints to ASIC about potentially illegal conduct within the timeshare industry. CHOICE has observed so many potential breaches of law that we question whether the timeshare industry should be allowed to operate with existing business practices."

"In 2017, CHOICE wrote a complaint about the poor conduct of Ultiqa, alleging a breach of the best interest duty. In this example, Ultiqua pressured a couple into purchasing a timeshare contract with finance that could last until 2081, despite the individuals telling the operator they were 'financially stretched.' Ultiqua's statement of advice failed to inquire about any debt, including mortgages, that a customer might have."

"The timeshare industry is now on notice. The industry needs to clean up its harmful sales practices or risk more legal action."

Media contact: 0430 172 669, media@choice.com.au

Editor's notes:

In May 2021, CHOICE sent a super-complaint to ASIC, alleging at least eight industry-wide breaches of financial services laws. This super-complaint was based on a survey of over 350 members on their experience with timeshare contracts.

In 2017, CHOICE wrote a complaint to ASIC about the quality of financial advice with the sale of Ultiqa timeshare products.