Malta Tourist Authority Takes On The Timeshare Touts

Too many incidents of tourists being confronted in the street while on holiday in Malta has led to the Maltese authorities taking action against the timeshare companies who employ sales staff to seek out possible visiting buyers.

Complaints have risen in recent years from holiday makers who have had their time on the island spoiled by being approached on a daily basis to attend presentations - that can last up to four hours -in the hope that some will buy into holiday property ownership and timeshares.

But the Malta tourist authorities have seen the damage it is doing to the island's economy, and have decided to act.

'It has come to the stage in Malta', comments Roger Munns of Malta travel guide YourMalta, 'that some holiday makers are being approached on a daily basis - sometimes twice a day - by timeshare touts who get paid a commission for every potential buyer they persuade to take to a presentation. As well as the feeling of not being able to go out without being accosted by these people some were giving verbal abuse to those who declined, or simply followed them down the street after being told no - and hounding tourists'.

With the tourism market vital to the Malta economy, the Malta Tourist Authority recognised that some visitors would be so put off the island by high pressure sales people that they wouldn't return - potentially losing Malta millions in lost revenue from repeat visitors.

'In today's world,' explain YourMalta, 'Malta has to compete with new destinations in Europe as well as Spain and her islands. Cheap Malta flights aren't in themselves enough to sustain tourism at reasonable levels anymore, although this will be welcome, but the trick of sustained tourism is to have repeat business, and timeshare touts bothering visitors to the island are enough in some cases to make sure that repeat visits don't happen.'

The legislation the tourist authorities needed to be able to protect the tourists has recently been passed, and the Malta Tourist Authority is planning to outsource security patrols to police the timeshare touts. And in a clever move designed to enforce the legislation effectively, the Malta Tourist Authority are being paid around 3000 Euros for each rep the timeshare companies employ for a bond that will allow them to work in a regulated way. Instead of waiting to take each incident through the courts the MTA will be fining the companies found breaking the rules and taking the money out of the deposited bond money, with the timeshare companies having to make it up immediately to the required amount.