A new BBC1 television programme is underway and it is about the scams, cons and problems experienced by tourists abroad. They want to know if you’ve been had.

Examples of scams are:

-  bags/luggage stolen

-  tricked into boat trips

- taken advantage of in Taxis

-  locals posing as a uniformed officials.

If you experienced any of these or any other situations that conned you out of  money or put you in a tricky spot then then Auntie Beeb wants to know.

Post a comment below or if you prefer to be contacted privately then send me an email and I will pass it on.

There are  only two things that you really, really need to bring with you in order to enjoy an unforgettable holiday in Tenerife.

Forget the Factor 25 and you may very well end up with a sunburn that you’ll never forget but leave behind your common sense and you may get burned in another way entirely.

I’ve posted before about Tenerife Timeshare Touts and there are articles on eTenerife both about Cockroaches (no, they don’t bite!) and Tenerife Con Men but an email I received the other day from Sinead Cleary prompted me to bring the subject of Tenerife Rip Off Merchants and Other Insects up again.

Sinead had a fabulous holiday. She thinks Tenerife is a ’smashing’ place and was particularly  pleased to find so many things to do here over and above the typical sun/sand/beach holiday. She should have left Tenerife ready to go home and tell all her mates what a brilliant time she had. Instead, while she made sure to include her positive experiences of the island in her email, the overall impression she’ll be talking about back home is getting ripped off by the camera cowboys.

I asked Sinead’s permission to reprint her email both here and on eTenerife and I couldn’t agree more with her answer. She told me to go right ahead because “…the sooner these feckers stop getting away with making a fool out of us tourists the better!”

Just back from holiday in Tenerife and first off have to say what a smashing place it is…..  Not just a sun/beach holiday like many think, but lots of activities and fun things to do also!  However, to get to the point, I think people should really be made very aware of the con-men in the electronic shops, not all, but fair to say, the majority!

Every second shop is an electrical shop and they all sell mainly the same things with really really cheap prices ie. less than 100 euro for really good cameras and camcorders that are on display.  THESE PRICES MEAN NOTHING!!!!

They will get you into the shop, give you a seat, a drink, fill you with bull-sh*t and crap and try sell you another really expensive and “better” camera.  They will blatently straight out tell you the one that you want is crap and talk you into giving them way more money for something you don’t want.  When calling their bluff once you know their scam and insist on having the original camera at the price quoted, you will hear lines like, “the boss is out”, “call back tomorrow or monday and I’ll have it”, “we’re out of stock at the moment”, “Will have to get it from another shop, but for 50 euro extra!!”, and last but not least, “are you SURE you don’t want this way more expensive one???!!!”

If you’re sucker enough to fall for it, which in fairness they’re so good many would, you’re probably better off buying at home, as you end up paying not only the tax which is supposed to be tax free but you end up paying maybe double what you would at home!  TELL THEM WHERE TO GO!

One guy that was honest, owns a shop called Boots and is called Ricky.  Next beach to Fanabe.  He Rocks!

I should say I have no idea who Ricky from BOOTS is, I’ve never met him or done business with that shop, but after her bad experiences if Ricky’s honesty impressed Sinead enough for her to give him a special mention then I reckon he deserves to be included here as proof that there are good and trustworthy camera shops in Tenerife.

The OFT is taking part in a Europe-wide day of action to warn holidaymakers about Spanish bogus holiday clubs that cost tourists millions of pounds every year.

The OFT Scambusters Team are handing out information and fake holiday club scratchcards at airports including Belfast International, Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Gatwick, Leeds/Bradford, Manchester, Newcastle and Stansted in an effort to warn holiday makers about bogus Spanish holiday clubs.

Cunningly designed to look just like those handed out by the timeshare touts that leap on the unsuspecting on the fringes of the Sunday Market the OFT scratchcards carry the teasing question, ‘Have you won a luxury holiday?’

The European Consumer Centre in Spain are supporting this initiative with representatives at the arrivals area of Tenerife South Airport and advertisements have been placed in the baggage hall of the airport as well as in the Thomas Cook and FlyBe in- flight magazines, which will be seen by thousands of holidaymakers.

The timing of this scheme is spot on as November is apparently peak hunting season for the holiday club predators. One can just imagine them rubbing their hands together as the incoming flights fly overhead and they think, ‘Hey up, another load of lambs to the slaughter!’

In these days of international press and internet access to consumer websites it is surprising that so many people still fall for these hoary old schemes. But fall they do and the average amount of money they lose per victim is over three thousands pounds. €3,500! Worse, once they’ve got in that deep, they are likely added to a suckers list and they’re contact details sold on to other scam artists.

The OFT Scambusters Team would like every holidaymaker to consider:

Holidaymakers who are approached by a scratchcard tout or who attend a presentation should consider:

• Do you have the time to sit through a lengthy sales pitch?
• Will the promises made by the salesman be in the contract and can you rely on them?
• Can you take away the contract to consider at your leisure or cancel later?
• Do you know exactly what you are getting for your money?

If the answer to any of these questions is ‘no’, then the OFT advises to simply walk away.

To that list of mild posers I’d like to add one.

• Can you afford to lose over GBP3,000 of your hard earned cash should your new friend turn out to be a scratchcard vampire instead of the chirpy lad from Essex that he makes out to be?

See a previous post on Timeshare in Tenerife and Tenerife Timeshare – Know Before You Go – an article which outlines your rights, protections and places to seek assistance should you fall prey to these unscrupulous conmen.

Although I always appreciate receiving email through eTenerife.com, one kind of message always makes my heart sink. It usually starts along the lines of, “On my recent holiday in Tenerife I was approached by a young man/woman who offered me a scratchcard…”

The email goes on to describe more or less the same scenario as the I-Got-Scammed email before it. And the one before that one and the one before that. What is so depressing is that there really is not much that can be done to help. The victim may well have the power of European consumer law on his side but the Timeshare/Holiday Club scammers know that law inside-out and upside-down and more often than not can scrape through the cracks by delaying mail, ignoring phonecalls and such like until the mandatory ‘cooling off’ period has slipped by.

Even more depressing is that the same company names come up again and again. If I know who the culprits are, so for sure do the powers that be. Why are the scammers allowed to continue to rip people off?

If you are tempted to go along for a timeshare or holiday club presentation while on holiday in Tenerife (or elsewhere in Spain) you should at least know what to expect before you go.

Tenerife Timeshare – Know Before You Go – Rights and Protections