Time-share company under probe for fraud
Investors claim they lost thousands dirhams as Arabian TTT failed to honour contracts
Investors claim they lost thousands of dirhams as Arabian TTT failed to honour contracts |
Dubai’s Department of Economic Development yesterday said it is investigating a time-share company accused of duping residents.
The complainants, mostly from south Asia, have alleged that Dubai-based Arabian Times Travel & Tourism LLC (Arabian TTT) failed to honour timeshare contracts which promised members access to hotels worldwide, besides a slew of other benefits including health insurance, discount vouchers and gym membership.
Last week, nearly 30 victims gathered at a mall in Muhaisnah to discuss their plight with this reporter. It is not clear how many people were affected or the amount of money involved, but many said they lost thousands of dirhams.
Indian expat Pradeep Purushwani, an aircraft engineer, said he paid Dh25,000 in September 2017 for a 140day time-share package with Arabian TTT. “A year on, I am yet to avail of any of their offers. When I tried to book a holiday under the scheme, all I ■ got was an email response saying that my booking has been cancelled because of internal issues,” he said.
Nibin Rehman Kanappully, also from India, said he lost Dh9,000. “Neither are they honouring the contract nor are they refunding our money,” said Kanapully, who later lodged a complaint with the DED.
Mohammad Ali Rashid Lootah, CEO of the Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection sector at DED confirmed to Gulf News that the case is under investigation.
Aniqua Ekram from Bangladesh, said that following her complaint, the DED ordered Arabian TTT to refund Dh18,500 she paid for a life membership. “However, they haven’t paid me anything. Both their Karama and Bur Dubai offices are closed. I don’t know what to do now,” she said.
Victims said they fell for the scheme after handing out their contact details at the time-share company’s kiosks in malls.
“I was invited to a hotel to collect the gift, but was subjected to high pressure tactics to close a time-share sale. Who would have thought that their promises would be outright lies,” Ekram said.
In a statement sent to Gulf News, Arabian TTT said they are unable to make any refunds this month, but assured that the money invested by customers will not be lost.