Vacation club moves 'deals' seminars to Seattle

Vacation club moves 'deals' seminars to Seattle

Suncoast Vacations salesman "Joe" refused to answer any questions about the company's practices.

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Story Published: Mar 14, 2008 at 5:26 PM PDT

Story Updated: Mar 14, 2008 at 5:30 PM PDT

By KOMO & KATU Staff

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SEATTLE -- A Northwest travel company with a history of broken promises is striking again, this time targeting consumers in the Puget Sound area.

Suncoast Vacations was previously operating in Portland, where they were accused of scamming consumers out of thousands of dollars by offering "exclusive life-long travel deals." Now they're pulling the same scam in Seattle.

The business allegedly offers consumers free airline tickets and five-star accommodations on the cheap for a $3,000 buy-in. Suncoast reportedly has been holding seminars at the downtown Seattle Holiday Inn Express, selling the travel deal that ultimately proved too good to be true.

"(Five-star hotels at) Motel 6 prices is what they said," said Rick Young.

The sales pitch convinced Young to pay the $3,000 fee. But when he signed onto Suncoast's Web site, he said he couldn't find a single bargain that couldn't be found elsewhere on the Internet.

Young decided to contact the company's headquarters in Florida.

"( I said) 'I'm not finding that there are any deals. Can you show me where there are any deals that I can't find (elsewhere) online?' And the woman on the phone said 'well, no, I can't'" he said.

Young said the representative's admission came as a shock. He said he doesn't know what exactly he paid for.

KATU News, KOMO 4's sister station in Portland, confronted a Suncoast salesman regarding the issue. A salesman who identified himself as "Joe" didn't have any answers.

"All I'm saying is submit your questions in writing and we'll answer any questions you have," he said.

When asked why he could not answer the questions at that moment, Joe said, "because I'm not the person to answer those questions."

In an e-mail to KATU News, a Suncoast representative said the company does not offer "exclusive" deals and that anyone thinking they would receive free airline tickets just for attending their seminar is "misinformed."

Shortly after the confrontation with KATU, Suncoast picked up and moved out of Portland without warning on March 5. Soon after its departure, the business landed in the heart of Seattle.

The Washington Attorney General's Office says it has not received any complaints about Suncoast Vacations. But the office, along with the Bureau of Licensing that Suncoast does not have a business license to operate in the state. The business did not have a license to operate in Oregon either.

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