Timeshare

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Under timeshare (also timeshare , timeshare , timeshare , Timeshare , residential use rights ) are deals in the hotel - and tourism sectors combined, through which a consumer in return for a total price acquires the right for a period of more than one year a hotel for a specific period of Year to use.

General

There were around four million timeshare owners worldwide in 2015. Well-known providers are Marriott International , Hyatt , Disney , Hilton and Four Seasons . This idea found most supporters in the USA .

concept

In classic timeshare, the customer acquires the right to live in a holiday home for a certain period of time each year. In addition, paid or free services are available as part of a hotel-like service. Usage rights are usually anchored in the land register via the holiday complex or a trustee and can be inherited, sold, rented or given away. It is customary for the consumer to pay an annual service fee based on their share. Almost all timeshare facilities are connected to holiday exchange organizations that enable customers to stay in other connected facilities worldwide and also offer tour operator services such as booking flights or rental cars. The most important international exchange organizations are Interval International (1,900 plants in 75 countries; 1.2 million members) and RCI (3,700 plants in more than 100 countries; 2.8 million members).

Variants of vacation entitlement

  • Fixed Weeks: The same calendar week every year in the same holiday complex in the same apartment or apartment type.
  • Floating Week: Any calendar week within a season
  • Rotation: All owners should get a chance for the most popular weeks. That is why these weeks are given to the owners on a rotating basis.
  • Share or club system: Instead of specific timeshare rights, shares or club shares are acquired, the dividends of which are distributed in the form of vacation points. With these points, vacation weeks and other services can then be used.

Variants of legal protection

  • Real security through real fractional ownership: the property is divided into ownership. The acquirer of the timeshare becomes the owner of the corresponding portion of the holiday home in question and is entered as such in the land register.
  • Protection under association law : A holiday club is founded as a registered association . This association is usually the owner of the property or has a right of usufruct secured by the land register . Membership in this association enables the purchaser to use a timeshare right as an essential right.
  • Obligatory security through a contract of use: The purchaser of the timeshare concludes a contract with the owner or usufructuary of the holiday complex for the use of a holiday home.

Legal basis

On January 1, 2002, the Part-Time Housing Rights Act (TzWrG) existing in Germany was incorporated into the Civil Code - Sections 481 to 487 BGB. In the other countries of the EU there are comparable legal standards, all of which were enacted in implementation of Directive 1994/47 / EC of October 26, 1994 (OJ EC L 280, p. 82). The most important legal bases are briefly outlined below.

A company that offers part-time right of residence contracts has to hand out a prospectus to every consumer who expresses interest ( Section 482 BGB). This must include, among other things:

  • A general description of the residential building or stock of residential buildings
  • Name and residence of the entrepreneur of the right of use, name and residence of the owner of the residential building or buildings - in the case of companies, associations and legal entities, company name, seat and name of the legal representative as well as the legal position of the entrepreneur in relation to the residential building (s)
  • The exact description of the right of use together with a reference to the fulfilled or still to be fulfilled prerequisites, which must be given for the exercise of the right of use according to the law of the state in which the residential building is located

The part-time right of residence contract must be in writing, unless a stricter form is prescribed in other regulations ( Section 484 of the German Civil Code). The conclusion of the contract in electronic form is excluded. The contract must include the following information:

  • Name and residence of the consumer
  • The exact designation of the period of the year within which the right of use can be exercised, the period of validity of the right of use after years and the other details required for exercising the right of use
  • The declaration that the acquisition and exercise of the right of use is not associated with any costs, burdens or obligations other than those specified in the contract
  • Time and place of signature of the contract by each party

In the case of a part-time residential rights contract, the consumer has a right of withdrawal ( Section 485 BGB). The required instruction on the right of withdrawal must contain the name and address of the person to whom the withdrawal is to be declared, a reference to the start of the period and the fact that the withdrawal does not have to contain any reasons, must be declared in writing to the entrepreneur within two weeks and that timely dispatch is sufficient to meet the deadline. This period can vary depending on the EU country. Spanish law only stipulates a 10-day withdrawal period, while Belgian law gives the consumer 15 days.

The entrepreneur may not demand or accept payments from the consumer before the withdrawal period has expired ( Section 486 of the German Civil Code). Payments through a reputable trustee are permitted, provided the consumer does not lose the power of disposal over the amount paid.

The German protective regulations are also applicable if the residential property is located within the European Union and the European Economic Area , but is based on a non-European design in this sense ( Art. 29a Para. 3 EGBGB). The statutory provisions for part-time rights of residence contracts may not be deviated from to the detriment of the consumer ( Section 487 BGB).

criticism

The economic benefits of timeshare rights are sometimes called into question. The investment in the right of residence and the unpredictable future operating and maintenance costs of the holiday complex can mean that package tours booked successively are cheaper. Furthermore, the exchanges advertised by the providers for acquired housing rights are subject to criticism. This criticism primarily concerns the availability of suitable holiday accommodation in high season. Another point of criticism is the resale of timeshare rights, as this is theoretically intended in most cases, but turns out to be difficult or even impossible in practice.

Dubious providers try to circumvent the legal regulations through loopholes in the law. It is also criticized that considerable psychological pressure is sometimes exerted on potential buyers during sales events and that some providers use dubious methods to lure customers into their sales premises. Well-known methods of engaging potential customers in a sales pitch are vouchers, cinema or leisure park tickets and inexpensive overnight stays in one of the resorts.

literature

  • Katrin Scheffel: Timesharing in Germany - A market analysis taking into account the legal framework (diploma thesis) . Ed .: University of Applied Sciences Kempten : University of Economics and Technology. GRIN Verlag, Kempten 2004, ISBN 978-3-638-36993-0 .
  • Thomas Merkel: The tourist significance of timeshare (diploma thesis) . Ed .: Technische Universität Dresden [Chair of Tourism Management]. GRIN Verlag, Dresden 2005, ISBN 978-3-638-41348-0 .
  • Karl Born, Harald Bastian, Manfred Schönleben: The integrated tourism group: strategies, success factors and tasks . Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag, 2004, ISBN 3-486-27543-7 , Holiday rights / Timesharing, p. 489-498 .
  • Theofanis Tacou: Modernization in Timeshare Law - The New Regulations for Part-Time Housing Rights Contract . In: New Legal Online Journal (NJOZ) 19/2011, p. 793.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Market development. In: DBTW. German Federal Association for Part-Time Housing Rights e. V., archived from the original on March 5, 2016 ; Retrieved December 3, 2015 .
  2. ↑ Verena Kainrath: Hotel chains discover time-share business. In : wirtschaftsblatt.at . December 4, 1998, archived from the original on December 3, 2015 ; accessed on April 13, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Even if it doesn't always say “Timeshare”, it often says “Timeshare”. In: life PR: The lifestyle press service. Huber Verlag für Neue Medien GmbH, August 1, 2007, accessed on May 17, 2009 (press release of the German Federal Association for Part-Time Housing Rights).
  4. ^ Karl Born, Harald Bastian, Manfred Schönleben: The integrated tourism group: strategies, success factors and tasks . Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag, 2004, ISBN 3-486-27543-7 , Holiday rights / Timesharing, p. 491 .
  5. ^ Thomas Werner, Ralf Burghardt: The gray capital market . Gabler, 2006, ISBN 3-8349-0009-5 , IV. Products of the gray capital market, p. 120 ff .
  6. ↑ Kristina Hennigs, S. Paa, Matthias Kowalski: TIME-SHARING: Part-time in a vacation paradise. In: FOCUS Online. 2001, accessed April 26, 2009 .
  7. ^ Thomas Werner, Ralf Burghardt: The gray capital market . Gabler, 2006, ISBN 3-8349-0009-5 , IV. Products of the gray capital market, p. 119 .
  8. ↑ Timeshare - now comes the resale scam. In: European Consumer Center Germany - Kiel. Consumer advice center Schleswig-Holstein e. V., March 7, 2006, archived from the original on February 12, 2013 ; Retrieved September 6, 2012 .
  9. ↑ Michaela Hutterer: Timesharing: Loopholes in the law. In: FOCUS Online. June 7, 2007, accessed April 30, 2009 .
  10. ↑ Stefan Grundmann: System formation and system gaps in core areas of European private law: company, labor and contract law . Mohr Siebeck Verlag , 2000, ISBN 3-16-147314-0 , pp. 534 .
  11. ↑ Reiner Reichel: Time sharing: shared time, full suffering. In: Handelsblatt.com. ECONOMY.ONE GmbH - a company of the Handelsblatt GmbH publishing group, June 7, 2002, accessed on May 21, 2009 .