The Time share Act 1992

This article will be suitable for anyone considering or participating in a time share agreement or a fractional rental agreement. It explains, in simple plain English, the most important provisions of the Timeshare Act 1992 (‘TA92’) and its associated amendments.

 

The Time share Act 1992 (amended in 1997 and 2003) regulates the conduct of a professional seller ("offeror") of time share in respect of the sale to a private purchaser ("offeree") where the time share is ‘accommodation’. This means holiday property, caravans and possibly boats. So if you are arranging a time share for other facilities such as a swimming pool, tennis court and so on, TA92 does not apply to you. Similarly, if the parties to your agreement are private individuals, TA92 does not apply.

 

“Time share” under TA92 means the purchase of intermittent rights of occupancy of holiday accommodation for a period of three years or more. It does not apply when the period of use is under three years. Time share is often referred to as fractional rental.

 

Time share Act 1992 ("TA92") applies only to a sale:

• Conducted in the British Isles; or
• Of time share accommodation in the British Isles; or
• A UK citizen where the accommodation is in an EEA country.

 

TA92 applies only to buildings and caravans but it may apply to time share in boats too.

 

TA92 only applies where the seller is in business and the buyer is a private individual. It does not apply to sales between private individuals.TA92 does apply to resellers acting "in the course of business".

 

The seller must:

• Clearly disclose (the exact form is pr which the buyer can cancel the agreement without any loss or without giving any reason. Day one is the date on which the agreement is signed by both parties; day 14 is the last date for posting a cancellation;
• Failure to provide this notice allows the buyer to cancel at any time in the future;
• Provide similar cancellation rights in respect of a related credit agreement including the automatic cancellation of a credit agreement if the purchase agreement is cancelled as above;
• Not to require any payment by the buyer during the cooling off period;
• Any payment by the buyer during the cooling-off period is absolutely banned;
• Breach of this requirement is a criminal offence which can be actioned by the relevant Trading Standards officer.

 

• A notice stating the rights of cancellation including the address to which a cancellation notice should be sent;
• A blank cancellation notice;
• If either of these forms is not provided then the buyer may cancel the agreement at any time in the future;
• As from 31 October 2003 the right to cancel should be clearly stated on the purchase agreement close to where the buyer signs;
• This should refer the buyer to the document where full details of the right to cancel are explained;
• And, if a credit agreement is involved, similar notices for the credit agreement [S3 and S4].

 

• Description of the accommodation;
• The principles on which maintenance etc. of the complex is arranged;
• The services available and the conditions of their use;
• If the offer or fails to provide any of the information listed above then the cooling-off period is extended to 3 months and 10 days.

 

The time share or fractional rental agreement and related information must be in the language of the buyer (provided that it is an official EU language).

 

The Trading Standards Officer local to the buyer is in charge of enforcing the Act. Breaches of some of the sections of the Act can result in criminal proceedings.