Advice needed! Room canceled accidentally

[sasmmb]

Hi, I recommended David's Vacation Club rental to a family member for our upcoming F&W trip. She was able to book a Studio thru them at the Boardwalk. We used our own points for a separate room for the Boardwalk for our immediate family and we are staying longer. Today she gets an email that the reservation was "accidentally" canceled since the member who secured the reservation has multiple accounts and that Disney accidentally posted their dues to the wrong account which left this account in arrears so Disney canceled the ressie. According to my aunt thru David's the member spent all day on the phone with member services to no avail. And of course there are no studios to be had at the Boardwalk at this point.

I checked and there aren't any studios available on property for our dates, even SSR and OKW are showing no availability. The best I can see is a 1 bedroom at SSR. My aunt did do a ressie at CBR now. But as we all know, it's not the same.

Overall, I've been happy with Davids as both a renter and rentee. I get that this isn't really their fault, but on the other hand I feel if you are going to profit as a middleman, you should compensate when the rare thing doesn't go well. Any other help, ideas, suggestions? Dates are 10/16-10/20.

Thanks!

 

[jekjones1558]

I think that in this case DVC should flip for a 1 bedroom at SSR for the same number of points as the canceled studio. I wonder if the member would call back and ask if this can be done, since it was a DVC error. I would ask for a supervisor and be nice but persistent.

 

[sasmmb]

Great idea Jean! I will have my aunt try that.

 

[supersnoop]

David's should be working to make this right. They should either get her any available room for the same price, or get the member to have Disney fix their mistake.

 

[Marionnette]

I don't think that you can expect DVC to make this right for a renter since technically, DVC owners are not supposed to "rent" out reservations. The owner is not going to be paid for the lost reservation and may not have the points needed to make one for a 1-bedroom resort. I don't think that you'll get very far with that and as you said, it's a lot more money than your aunt expected to spend.

Disney's website is showing a std. view studio at BWV available for your dates. Perhaps, as a compromise and gesture of goodwill, David's could make a "cash" reservation for your aunt for the same price that she would have paid for the points? He would lose money on the deal, but it would go a long way toward positive PR.

 

[jekjones1558]

I don't think that you can expect DVC to make this right for a renter since technically, DVC owners are not supposed to "rent" out reservations. The owner is not going to be paid for the lost reservation and may not have the points needed to make one for a 1-bedroom resort. I don't think that you'll get very far with that and as you said, it's a lot more money than your aunt expected to spend.

Disney's website is showing a std. view studio at BWV available for your dates. Perhaps, as a compromise and gesture of goodwill, David's could make a "cash" reservation for your aunt for the same price that she would have paid for the points? He would lose money on the deal, but it would go a long way toward positive PR.

This is also a good idea. But it is NOT true that DVC owners are not supposed to rent out points. Commercial renting (a member renting many, many reservations every year) is prohibited.

 

[Mich Mouse]

Wouldn't DVC contact the owner before canceling a reservation? I remember being worried after changing our dues to auto debit if there was a mix up. I was told you would have to be months late before a reservation would be canceled with numerous attempts to contact the owner. Is this accurate?

 

[Dean]

Hi, I recommended David's Vacation Club rental to a family member for our upcoming F&W trip. She was able to book a Studio thru them at the Boardwalk. We used our own points for a separate room for the Boardwalk for our immediate family and we are staying longer. Today she gets an email that the reservation was "accidentally" canceled since the member who secured the reservation has multiple accounts and that Disney accidentally posted their dues to the wrong account which left this account in arrears so Disney canceled the ressie. According to my aunt thru David's the member spent all day on the phone with member services to no avail. And of course there are no studios to be had at the Boardwalk at this point.

I checked and there aren't any studios available on property for our dates, even SSR and OKW are showing no availability. The best I can see is a 1 bedroom at SSR. My aunt did do a ressie at CBR now. But as we all know, it's not the same.

Overall, I've been happy with Davids as both a renter and rentee. I get that this isn't really their fault, but on the other hand I feel if you are going to profit as a middleman, you should compensate when the rare thing doesn't go well. Any other help, ideas, suggestions? Dates are 10/16-10/20.

Thanks!

This sound fishy to me, I wonder if they were just behind and the reservation were canceled. IF DVC did post the dues wrong, they should be able to get it back, book the 1 BR for the studio price or at least put the owner at the top of a priority wait list.

 

[sasmmb]

This sound fishy to me, I wonder if they were just behind and the reservation were canceled. IF DVC did post the dues wrong, they should be able to get it back, book the 1 BR for the studio price or at least put the owner at the top of a priority wait list.

I kinda agree with you. I can't imagine Disney would not try to fix a mistake like that. This is what they said-and NO compensation!:Through an error by the Disney Vacation Club, they have accidently cancelled your reservation. This occurred when the funds sent by the Member to pay for his annual dues were allocated to the wrong account, (he owns several memberships and the payment was attached to the incorrect account). When the Disney Vacation Club cancelled your reservation your room went back into inventory and was booked by another member. Your Member was on the phone all day with Member Services and had the call escalated up to the head of the accounting and services department. Despite the Member’s best efforts the Disney Vacation Club is not able to retrieve your reservation and are unwilling to compensate for the loss.

But then again that seems like a lot of effort to make something up. Aunt will be talking with Kelly at David's tomorrow. And thanks to Marionette for the suggestion about Boardwalk cash as an option for David's to compensate for the difference. I'll have my aunt propose that as an option.

 

[sndral]

Actually, I am surprised that David's doesn't require that a member's dues are paid in full before they accept points for booking. First - dues were due in January, was the owner 5 months overdue? That the money was applied to another membership suggests to me that @ least one other membership was overdue and the dues were allocated there. It sounds to me like we have a deadbeat owner here. David's email states that it's a DVC 'error' which IMO is untrue. The member failed to keep their membership in good standing and as a result the reservation booked was canceled. The fact that the member claims they sent DVC money to catch up on their arrears but DVC applied it to another 'membership' which was also apparently in arrears and thus DVC is somehow at fault is hogwash, IMO. And cry me a river about the member spending all day trying to correct things - if the member wasn't significantly behind on @ least 2 memberships this wouldn't have happened, they should never have rented their points to begin with and as a result of the owner's irresponsibility your Aunt's and your vacation plans have been negatively impacted.
It wasn't DVC's error - the blame lies squarely with the deadbeat owner who's points David's used to book your Aunt's reservation with.

 

[DenLo]

How do expect David's Rentals to verify annual dues are up to date? The are not a Title Company confirming points that can be sold. To me that would be the only way to catch someone in arrears is when DVC confirms one way or the other.

I expect it is in the owners contract that they state that they are member in good standing.

I agree with the poster that DVC made the error and should compensate with a 1BR if available. The fact that the owner is renting the points is not material. Members are only restricted from accepting compensation for transferred points.

 

[Minniesgal]

Actually, I am surprised that David's doesn't require that a member's dues are paid in full before they accept points for booking. First - dues were due in January, was the owner 5 months overdue? That the money was applied to another membership suggests to me that @ least one other membership was overdue and the dues were allocated there. It sounds to me like we have a deadbeat owner here. David's email states that it's a DVC 'error' which IMO is untrue. The member failed to keep their membership in good standing and as a result the reservation booked was canceled. The fact that the member claims they sent DVC money to catch up on their arrears but DVC applied it to another 'membership' which was also apparently in arrears and thus DVC is somehow at fault is hogwash, IMO. And cry me a river about the member spending all day trying to correct things - if the member wasn't significantly behind on @ least 2 memberships this wouldn't have happened, they should never have rented their points to begin with and as a result of the owner's irresponsibility your Aunt's and your vacation plans have been negatively impacted.
It wasn't DVC's error - the blame lies squarely with the deadbeat owner who's points David's used to book your Aunt's reservation with.

Thats not really realistic. We rented points last August for this June, tomorrow in fact. At the time of booking my dues were completely up to date but more were due in January. So even if they had checked I was up to date at the time of booking I could have fallen into arrears afterwards.

 

[disneynutz]

He said, she said, the OP doesn't really know what happened. If Disney made the mistake, I expect that they would somehow make it right.

Bill

 

[maburke]

It seems to me that, whether or not this is the broker's fault, he needs to step up and help. He expects people to pay a premium to him to be shielded from this kind of individual owner problem. Why bother to rent from him if you face the same uncertainties as renting from someone on the boards?
Good luck, and please keep us posted.

 

[crisi]

He said, she said, the OP doesn't really know what happened. If Disney made the mistake, I expect that they would somehow make it right.

Bill

I suspect this wasn't Disney's fault, that the renter just didn't pay dues and is telling David Disney screwed up because it doesn't make them look so bad. In the past, when Disney has screwed up a DVC studio, an Inn room has been substituted (which usually has more availability).

And I'm assuming David has refunded all their money, which is what is has promised to do in this situation. The problem David is sheilding renters from is that your money disappears in this sort of fiasco.

 

[River Country]

A lot flows through my head as I read this.

1. DVC should be at fault to a point if they allowed a reservation to be made on a membership that had dues in arrears. so my question is when was the reservation made?

2. If the reservation was made when the membership was not in arrears and the member just simply did not pay his dues then DVC is not at fault here and David's needs to assist in making in right.

3. there is no way for Davids to fully vet each contract that gets rented out as far as dues being paid.

4. I really would question if the member was on the phone "all day" with MS.

5. renting a 1BR for the same amount probably wont work unless Davids is willing to pay the difference in because the amount of points needed will not be reduced and you cant expect the owner looking to rent the points to take the loss so it would have to be David's but I will bet that they are unwilling to do that.


Good Luck

 

[supersnoop]

Here's the limitation of liability on David's website:

Should accommodations not be available on date of arrival due to an action or omission by the Member, including but not limited to negligence on the part of the Member and after communication with the Intermediary, suitable comparable accommodations for the same dates cannot be secured by the Member, the Renter will be due a refund limited to the amount paid

So, if the member can't fix the problem, the renter gets a full refund.

 

[disneynutz]

Disney doesn't just cancel your reservations if they don't receive your dues payment. The owner gets plenty of warning.

Bill

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Disney doesn't just cancel your reservations if they don't receive your dues payment. The owner gets plenty of warning.

Bill

Maybe, maybe not. Like they also properly fill waitlists all the time? Last year I did not receive any of my dues statements - who knows where they went or if they were even sent.

I do think this sounds a bit fishy but I'm also a little surprised to learn that David's doesn't have more that they normally do in this situation.

 

[sasmmb]

A lot flows through my head as I read this.

1. DVC should be at fault to a point if they allowed a reservation to be made on a membership that had dues in arrears. so my question is when was the reservation made?

2. If the reservation was made when the membership was not in arrears and the member just simply did not pay his dues then DVC is not at fault here and David's needs to assist in making in right.

3. there is no way for Davids to fully vet each contract that gets rented out as far as dues being paid.

4. I really would question if the member was on the phone "all day" with MS.

5. renting a 1BR for the same amount probably wont work unless Davids is willing to pay the difference in because the amount of points needed will not be reduced and you cant expect the owner looking to rent the points to take the loss so it would have to be David's but I will bet that they are unwilling to do that.


Good Luck

The reservation was made 11 months (minus a few days) in advance. It is BWV and F&W after all, those places go quick. So the DVC member must have owned at BWV. So yes, it's entirely possible that the reservation was made and then dues weren't paid.

As for Davids policy of "Should accommodations not be available on date of arrival due to an action or omission by the Member, including but not limited to negligence on the part of the Member and after communication with the Intermediary, suitable comparable accommodations for the same dates cannot be secured by the Member, the Renter will be due a refund limited to the amount paid" . WOW! So if things go completely awry, here is your money back and you are SOL. That doesn't make me comfortable renting from them.