Beware Of Timeshare, Discount Club Promotion Landing In Local Mailboxes.
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher
“Finally,” I thought to myself. “I won’t be the only person not driving a Tesla in South Palm Beach County.”
The only thing between my lack of vehicular conformity and the ability to drive for two hours to plug in for two hours: matching the number on the magic key fob to the secret number under the scratch-off circle.
With nervous anticipation, I picked up a lucky quarter and scratched firmly, yet cautiously. I wouldn’t want to damage the precious digits under the foil. As I scratched back and forth, was I really seeing what I thought I was seeing? Number after number matched the secret number on my magical key fob!
Who could believe it?! What are the odds? (We’ll actually answer that in a few moments).
I called 877-234-3056, and excitedly listened as the prize representative was surely going to tell me when my Tesla would magically appear — self driven, of course — at my home. But instead… she told me that if I wanted to know what I won, I’d have to answer several questions first. Among them: am I married? Do I make a certain amount of money a year? Do I belong to a discount travel club? Have I ever heard of Priceline or Hotwire?
Then, the kicker: “We’re no longer having events in Boca Raton,” said the woman. “If you want to find out what you won, you have to go to a meeting in Fort Lauderdale.”
What do you mean what I won? Sure, the letter said that I might have won a hotel gift certificate, an Android Touchpad Tablet, A Samsung 75 inch TV, a “New Apple 12.9-inch iPad Pro,” but how could it not be the Tesla? After all, my numbers matched.
But she wouldn’t confirm it. Instead, she told me that I’d have to go to a hotel for a meeting. So I asked for a supervisor. Surely she must be wrong.
“Hi, It’s J.D., how can I help you?” The supervisor was now on the phone. He, too, wouldn’t tell me much about the meeting, other than it takes place in a hotel “on University in Plantation.” And because I asked, “yes, we follow all COVID protocols. It’s only a few couples at a time.”
That was surprising. Certainly there are stories in the area of people doing things just “a few couples at a time,” but I’d never heard it involving a Tesla. So the assumption: it’s some sort of sales pitch.
That was surprising. Certainly there are stories in the area of people doing things just “a few couples at a time,” but I’d never heard it involving a Tesla. So the assumption: it’s some sort of sales pitch.
Of course it is.
BocaNewsNow.com researched the letter and company behind it. Here’s the deal: Your odds of winning a Tesla: 1:500,000. Your odds of winning a hotel gift certificate: 499,997 in 500,000. Your odds of also walking away with a Samsung tablet: 499,997 in 500,000. And of course: the chance that you need to sit through a 90 minute sales presentation to find out what you won: 100 percent. It’s a timeshare or travel discount club based in Scottsdale, AZ.
The reps are trained to tell you everything they do is “federally insured,” even though that’s not a thing.
If you receive the letter, your best bet is to throw it out. The value of the $500 hotel gift card is non-existent. The value of the Samsung tablet is under $99. The value of your time: presumably more.
But if you win the Tesla, let us know.
