Terminate your Interval International Membership
Recommended Timeshare Exit Companies
Terminate your Interval International Membership
- December 8, 2021
Table of Contents
How to Terminate Your Interval International Membership/Timeshare Contract
People who like the idea of exchanging their timeshares across different locations, especially for the sake of trying new vacation environments, may be happy to hear about the timeshare exchange network known as Interval International, the second largest network after RCI (Resorts Condominiums International).
With this exchange company called Interval International, timeshare owners get the opportunity to switch their current timeshares with other ones available in other vacation destinations of choice. This is possible because certain timeshare resorts have affiliations with this exchange company, thereby giving registered members the chance of switching between these available resorts.
Interval International is currently affiliated with over 3,200 resorts in more than 80 countries across the world, in addition to having offices in 13 of these concerned countries. Moreover, the company boasts a membership base comprising up to 2 million families that are enrolled in a variety of programs.
But can just anyone at all become a member of Interval International? The simple answer: you cannot become a member without already owning a timeshare. Your resort developer also has to be affiliated with the exchange company.
To be clear, Interval International is not a timeshare developer, and neither does the company own, manage, or sell any resort property specifically. As such, all they do is to facilitate your timeshare exchange, provided that your resort is one of the 3,200 resorts working with the company.
What is Interval International’s Reputation Like?
While the aforementioned characteristics of Interval International seem to be assuring to a considerable extent, it is equally important to look into their reputation over the years. This company has been in the industry for many years. The company was created in 1976, which explains why they presently have a huge global membership base.
Research into online reviews reveals that this company has a mix of good and bad customer reviews, although the negative ones seem to be more prevalent. On the one hand, it is great to see that the company has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) since 1997. But, the fact that various review platforms show that the company has received many scathing comments from customers and workers alike calls for caution.
As we have mentioned, the company mostly has very low star ratings, ranging from 1.5, to 1.7, to 3.6 on such platforms as Yelp (with 276 total reviews), Trustpilot (with 20 total reviews), and Indeed (with 173 total reviews) respectively. These are not good signs, and could be reason enough for any client to get rid of his or her membership.
There have been complaints regarding the company’s focus on getting money from customers, in addition to rude or unsatisfactory customer service, disappointing vacation environments, and many more. However, there are also a number of positive reviews suggesting the exact opposite of these complaints. This may be expected for a company that has been in business for a long period of time.
In an Oct. 22 2021, a customer review found on Trustpilot—an unsatisfied client identified as Jo Mccrossan—says in part, “We have been a member with interval international for 20 years and to this day we have not got any availability for the destinations we want to go to including anywhere in England or Scotland…” The client later concluded by warning others to avoid the company “by all costs.”
In spite of this, another customer identified as Kim J. expressed great satisfaction through a review given via Yelp. The client said: “We have been so happy using Interval for trading and buying getaways. All the properties we have been using have met or passed our expectations. We are easily able to book for our friends or family. I have no complaints.”
Clearly, the two instances cited above are worlds apart, signifying that different customers are bound to have different experiences with Interval International. Ultimately, the choice is up to you. Yet, we must mention that getting your vacation spot yourself through a booking website like Hotels, Trivago, etc. is always a cheaper means if you do the math.
How to Get Rid of Your Interval International Membership
A client may be interested in cancelling his or her membership or timeshare with Interval International for any reason at all. Whether you feel cheated, unsatisfied, or simply just want to stop being a member of the exchange company, then we’re glad to tell you there’s a way out.
Fortunately, terminating your vacation exchange contract is as easy as writing a cancellation letter to the exchange company. Futhermore, you may in fact be eligible to get a refund. What is more, if you are a new member whose contract has just been signed, you have the grace of canceling the contract within 14 calendar days of officially being a member. You need not give any reasons at all—you can just cancel your contract. Just as plain and simple as that.
However, if you have already missed this opportunity, rest assured that it’s not the end. You can still make a request for the termination of your membership even after the 14-day grace is gone, although you may now have to explain why you need to cancel your membership.
In their Exchange Membership Contract document, Interval International explains: “Individual membership fees in the Interval Exchange Programme are refundable on a pro rata basis (based on the number of full months remaining in the applicable membership period) upon Interval’s receipt of a member’s written request for cancellation of his or her membership and a refund.”
In addition to that, the company goes on to clarify that their refund policy is conditional. The Gold membership, for instance, may allow for a refund essentially on the basis that the concerned member returns the membership card(s) with him or her. The upgrade fees for Platinum membership, however, are said to be “non-refundable under any circumstances”.
Generally, we advise that you carefully go through the Exchange Membership Contract document and be sure to understand it clearly. Remember that all you have to do to get rid of your membership is to inform the company through a letter. Should they default, though, you may have to get a lawyer.
Ways to Cancel Your Specific Timeshare
If you have just purchased a Grandview timeshare and you are still much within the first five days of purchase, then you can terminate your contract easily and get a refund. There is Remember that Interval International is only a timeshare exchange company working with various resort developers. This simply means that the cancellation of your timeshare is not to be directed to them, but to your actual timeshare resort. So, the first thing you should consider is knowing exactly what timeshare it is you own, after which you may then consider how best to get out of the timeshare contract.
One especially easy way to terminate a timeshare contract is to take advantage of the rescission period which is a period during which timeshare owners are lawfully permitted to rescind their contracts within a stipulated number of days. Normally, the validity of the rescission varies, and could be up to 14 days or much less time, depending on the laws of the state in which the timeshare must have been purchased.
Usually, you will only have to send an official letter indicating your interest to rescind your contract without having to give any reasons why. Be sure to carefully read through your resort’s agreement document, though. You should be able to find some key info regarding the resort’s cancellation policy and other relevant information.
Moreover, by checking through the document, you may be able to discover if your resort has a deed back policy (which is otherwise known as take back or buy back clause). A deed back program is another cancellation means through which you can simply relinquish your timeshare to your resort developer, provided you have satisfied certain conditions. One of such conditions is not owing any fees.
Apart from these methods, a timeshare owner may also decide to sell his or her timeshare to another person, who would then become responsible for paying future fees. To resell a timeshare on the secondary market, an owner could make use of various listing and advertising platforms—like Craigslist, eBay, SellMyTimeshare, RedWeek, etc.—which could be free or paid.
As an alternative, the owner may just hire a timeshare resale company to help handle the advertisement, get a buyer, and ultimately close the deal for him or her. If you’re doing this, you should be careful not to fall victim of scams; you should never hire a timeshare resale company that requests upfront payment.
The thing about timeshares, generally, is that they lose almost all of their values immediately after they are purchased—except for a Disney resort or timeshares in Hawaii, which are exceptional cases. It is no wonder why you’ll find many timeshares listed for as low as $1 on such platforms as eBay, but still without buyers. So, reselling your timeshare might just not be a good option.
Last, but not least, hiring a timeshare exit company might just be the right solution to your timeshare worries. Known to be one effective means by which timeshare owners get the chance of escaping their timeshare troubles, employing a reputable timeshare cancellation company remains the way to go for you.
The reason behind this is not difficult to see. Timeshare exit companies normally make use of experienced legal practitioners and timeshare exit experts who understand the nitty-gritty of how timeshare resorts operate. Even if you owe a mortgage, a strong exit company might still be able to terminate your contract, especially if you have been deceived through hard sales tactics and other related gimmicks.
The common practice among timeshare exit companies is that they give clients a free consultation session to understand your unique situation. Thus, they get to tackle your issues in the most fitting way. In addition, a genuine exit company does not take all cases that come their way, which underscores their sincerity. Once they realize a client’s case is not resolvable, they may not accept the case.
We must say, nonetheless, that we strongly recommend that you go for timeshare exit companies that make use of escrow, so as to avoid any risks at all. Indeed, with the escrow payment option, any chance of being scammed is erased. This is because escrow will not allow any money to be released to the company until the completion of their job. This automatically serves as a motivation for the exit company to do the job well and in a timely manner.no need for explanations. This termination is a right as under the law. While some states may permit up to 14 days or less, the laws of Nevada precisely permit timeshare owners with five calendar days to cancel their contract. The details of your timeshare contract should contain this info. Carefully going through the contract will go a long way for you. Generally, you may only have to write a letter of cancellation to the resort but be sure to know the specific format they might want and do not forget to add any essential details like your name (as contained in your contract), contact details, date of purchase, and so on.
Conclusion
All in all, we believe that you can now confidently save yourself from whatever problems you might be facing with Interval International membership or your specific timeshare resort. Ultimately, we would like reiterate that you should always read through your contract documents carefully. Also, you should bear in mind that exit companies that make use of escrow are always your best bet for effective and risk-free termination of your timeshare contract.
How helpful do you think this article is? Got any questions? We are always ready to help you out!