Welk Resort Time-Share Pitch Prompts Lawsuit
A Vista dentist has sued the Lawrence Welk Resort Villas north of Escondido, claiming his shoulder was wrenched when he was forcibly removed from the vacation time-share complex after he complained that he didn’t receive the gift promised for listening to a sales presentation.
George Hashim alleged in his lawsuit, filed in Vista Superior Court, that he was “assaulted” by a resort employee, who grabbed his arm and “forcibly dragged” him into the parking lot, where he was ordered by another employee to leave or be arrested for trespassing.
Hashim claimed the events were sparked because he believed he had won a Ford Mustang or $8,700 in cash, but instead was presented with a color movie camera with a retail value of $129.
Attorneys for the resort vehemently denied the allegations that Hashim was physically hurt and said his problems began when he misinterpreted the promotional sales letter that promised him a gift after listening to a 90-minute sales presentation.
The promotion included a scratch-off game card that revealed what sort of gift the customer would receive. The game card featured five boxes to uncover, and the best possible gift--the car or $8,700 in cash--would go to those customers whose cards showed a dollar sign in each of four boxes in a “series.”
Hashim’s card revealed three boxes in a row with a dollar sign, followed by a box that read “sorry,” followed by another dollar sign in the fifth box. Hashim claimed the card revealed the four dollar signs that meant he won the car. Resort officials say that, although he uncovered, altogether, four boxes with dollar signs, only three of the dollar signs were consecutive, entitling him instead to the movie camera.
According to the odds listed on the back of the promotional flyer, the chances of winning the movie camera were “1:1.”
Both Hashim and resort officials agree on some facts about the incident, which occurred in March, 1989: that Hashim was talking to a couple at an adjacent sales table after both parties had taken their requisite tours of the time-share units, and were comparing notes about what they believed they had won as their gifts in the absence of the sales representatives who were momentarily away from their tables.
At that point, Hashim declared in his lawsuit, an employee “assaulted, battered, dragged and humiliated” him away from the other couple’s table, and ordered him to leave the sales room. Hashim said he was unnerved and started to cry, and demanded that he at least be allowed to claim his prize--the car or the cash.
At the gift counter, he was awarded not a car or $8,700, but the movie camera. Hashim objected and claimed the promotional flyer listing the gifts was misleading.
Outside the complex, Hashim met up with the other couple again, and all three were confronted by another resort employee who “demanded, threatened and ordered” that he leave the complex immediately, or face arrest for trespassing.
In his lawsuit, Hashim said he feared for his life and sustained “permanent physical and emotional injury and has experienced anxiety, fear, shame and humiliation.”
Hashim also alleged that the promotional letter was misleading and, therefore, a violation of the state’s business and professions code.
Hashim declined to comment, but his attorney, Dave Thompson, said that Hashim not only personally believed he had won the car, but was further led to believe so when he called the resort’s sales office and described his play card to a telephone receptionist, who said it was possible he had won the grand prize.
“He was skeptical, like most people. But he made arrangements to close down his practice for the afternoon,” Thompson said. “He knew he had to listen to the 90-minute sales pitch and, before it started, he said, ‘Look, I will listen to you and be polite, but I’m really not interested. I want to collect my Mustang or my $8,700.’ They gave him the sales pitch. He listened and said thanks but no thanks.”
Don Worley, an attorney for the Lawrence Welk Resort Villas, said Hashim exaggerated the incident but was indeed asked to leave the property after receiving his gift.
“The man was walking around to customers and clients (meeting with) other sales people, being disruptive and obnoxious,” Worley said. “One of our top marketing people went over to him and suggested he leave. He may have touched him on the elbow, like you do when you indicate to someone he should go, but that was the only physical contact. We don’t bodily escort people out. This entire allegation is a complete fabrication.”
Worley said he and others with the company had reviewed the promotional letter detailing what gifts could be received by customers to make sure they fell within the parameters of the state codes dealing with such promotions.
“They’re drafted pretty carefully,” he said. “It’s obviously drafted to get your attention, but you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to read through it and figure out the chances of winning the big prize.”
The odds of winning the Mustang, the promotional letter said, were 1 in 500,000.
Worley said complaints about the gifts awarded customers are very uncommon--”maybe two or three a year”--and are the result of “malcontents who are probably looking to rip us off. These are ‘professionals’ whose hobby is to visit time-share developments with no intention of buying anything, but just to collect their gifts.
“It’s not in keeping with the spirit of the program for people to just come out here for a free gift, with no interest in our product,” Worley complained. “And it’s the person coming out for just a free gift that is the person who will bitch about the promotions.
“My client is Lawrence Welk, who has a very fine image as a good citizen,” Worley said. “People realize we jealously guard our image, and I think they try to leverage that by giving us a hard time from time to time, thinking they can take advantage of us because we’d fear bad publicity.”
Thompson said he believes his client would settle the matter if he received the car or the cash.
Worley said the lawsuit was referred to the company’s insurance carrier.
