TIMESHARE ACT 1992

Timeshare Act 1992 (TA92)
- a summary
(Full text is here - note amendments in 1997 and 2003)
Introduction:

The Timeshare Act 1992 (amended in 1997 and 2003) regulates the conduct of a professional seller ("offeror") of timeshare in respect of the sale to a private purchaser ("offeree")

Summary:

1. Timeshare Act 1992 ("TA92") only applies to a sale:

conducted in the British Isles
OR of timeshare accomodation in the British Isles
OR to a UK citizen where the accomodation is in an EEA country
2 TA92 applies to the purchase of intermittent rights of occupancy of holiday accommodation - "timeshare" - for a period of three years or more. It does not apply when the period of use is under three years.
3 TA92 only applies to buildings and caravans but it may apply to timeshare in boats see here.

4 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".

5 TA92 requires the seller to:-

clearly disclose (the exact form is prescrobed by TA92) to the buyer that they have a minimum of 14 days "cooling-off" period during 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 agrement 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.
provide the buyer with:-
a notice stating the rights of cancellation including the address to which a cancellation notice should be sent [S2]
a blank cancellation notice [S4]
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]
specific detailed information about the timeshare purchase [S1A and Schedule 1] typically:-
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 offeror fails to provide any of the information listed above then the cooling-off period is extended to 3 months and 10 days
6. TA92 requires the purchase agreement and related information to be in the language of the buyer provided that it is an official EU language.
7. Enforcement of TA92 is the responsibility of the Trading Standards Officer local to the buyer. Breaches of some of the sections of the Act can result in criminal proceedings.