Have you heard the horror stories from holidaymakers who have booked their villas online and when they have turned up at the resort, there is no villa. They have been scammed. This has happened not just in Cyprus but all over the world.
So Oceanview has come up with its own Owner Verified Badge whereby personal details of each owner are cross referenced against national and international databases, ensuring their identity is verified and holidaymakers can rent their home with confidence.
This is a scheme, not just for villas rented through Oceanview, but for any villa owner to use. Once the owner's details have been verified, the Owner Verified Badge can be uploaded onto the villa advert giving holidaymakers absolute confidence when enquiring about the property. This badge will then become the sign of the owner's authenticity and can be displayed on their personal website and/or social media pages.
What does the Owner Verified Badge mean ?
So Oceanview has come up with its own Owner Verified Badge whereby personal details of each owner are cross referenced against national and international databases, ensuring their identity is verified and holidaymakers can rent their home with confidence.
Where this badge is present means that the identity of the owner has been checked and verified by Oceanview on the clients behalf in order to ensure that everything is legitimate and as it should be.
CTO warns against websites advertising non-existent holiday villas
25th June 2011 - The Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO) warned the public to beware of websites offering holiday villas on the island that do not actually exist, after a flurry of complaints from people who said they were scammed.
The complaints, from both locals and foreigners claimed they had booked holiday villas and paid the deposit, only to arrive for their break and discover that the villa is non-existent. When they tried to contact the agent, they realised the website was in fact a scam - the photos of the villa were fake and their money gone.
Warning over holiday villa online booking scams
2nd October 2010 - People need to be extremely cautious when booking villas online, the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau has warned.
If holidaymakers fall for the internet scams, they risk losing thousands of pounds or finding their accommodation does not even exist.
Police warning over "fake" holiday villas
17th September 2010 - Holidaymakers have been warned to exercise extreme caution when renting property online, following a large increase in fraudulent advertisements.
The City of London Police has received dozens of reports of advertisements for non-existent villas and apartments since the establishment of the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) in June. They include around 70 bookings for villas in Cyprus.
British Police probe Cyprus villas scam
8th October 2009 - British Police are investigating an internet scam in which Britons have paid morairaway.com and sister websites for non-existent Cyprus holiday villas after adverts appeared on villa rental sites Holiday-Rentals and Holidaylettings.co.uk.
The fraud, which spanned several tourist hotspots, including scamming up to 100 British families into renting a non-existent luxury apartment in Ayia Napa. Many of the victims were forced to cancel their summer holidays or book again.