Vacation Strategy

[aubriee]

VS gave their side of the story. Sounds credible to me. Given their track record VS has a lot more credibility.

You want presumptions. I'll speculate OP didn't realize paying a deposit after hours wasn't enough to hold the reservation.

I have a one bedroom villa booked with VS for ten nights in May. I just went and checked my emails from them. In none of them, does it say they will put a 24 hour hold on a ressie. In fact, the one that has the quote specifically says 'inventory are limited and constantly changing'. So basically pay your deposit quickly or inventory may be gone. From what VS posted, the OP kept changing her mind and got four different quotes before finally making her mind up. Then instead of calling to make sure what she wanted was still available, she made the deposit online after hours. The next morning VS found the deposit, checked, and the unit was no longer available, so they tried repeatedly to call her and then finally refunded her money. What didn't make sense to me is why the OP paid in full, when the quote specifically says you do not pay anything except the deposit until you get the confirmation 10-20 days out.

I just pasted a copy of the quote they sent me (xing my name out), when I asked for a quote. If you notice, no where in there does it say they will hold a ressie for 24 hours for everyone that asks for a quote, until they make their mind up. The ressie is only held after the deposit is paid.


Quote & Rental Agreement

for xxxxxx xxxxxx
quoting a 1 Bedroom Deluxe Villa at Wyndham's Bonnet Creek
checking in 05/10/2013 for 10 nights

This is in regards to your request from: InfusionSoft

Hello xxxxx,

Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to quote on your vacation. At this time we show availability and are happy to offer you a total price of $ 896.00 which includes all taxes and fees. This is a savings of 30 to 50% from Wyndham's Extra Holidays, Orbitz, Expedia or Travelocity prices. We believe our prices to be the lowest available. However, if you find a better advertised offer we will match it with our Best Price Guarantee.

Helpful Links

See why our prices are so low and the top 6 reasons our clients love us!
View the floor plan and layout of the villa and the unit information
Watch our resort video and the resort location map
More resort information
See what our guests are saying about us


Are You Ready to Book?
Inventory is limited and constantly changing. If you want to secure this reservation... Review our rental agreement below and then pay the $ 150.00 deposit http://vacationstrategy.com/deposit/150-deposit/
Vacation Rental Agreement

This agreement made on . Vacation Strategy LLC., agrees to hold this reservation for xxxxxx xxxxxx upon payment of the initial deposit of $ 150.00. For your convenience we accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover.
The Final Balance Due

The final balance of $ 746.00 will not be due until you receive an email confirmation with the reservation in your name from Wyndham. This will typically occur within 5 to 20 days prior to your check-in date of 05/10/2013.
Our No-Risk Refund or Credit Cancellation Policy

At Vacation Strategy, our goal is to develop long term relationships with our clients. We want you to have peace-of-mind when booking with us. We understand things come up unexpectedly and would not want you to experience unnecessary financial loss due to these unforeseen circumstances.

You may cancel this agreement at any time for any reason.

There will be a $99 non-refundable cancellation fee to all reservations canceled within 60 days prior to check in date. If you must cancel your reservation 20 to 60 days prior to check-in date, you will receive a full refund except your deposit which will be credited in full towards a future rental, minus the $99 non-refundable cancellation fee.

If you have to cancel within 20 days from check-in, we will credit the entire amount towards your future rental, except a $150 non-refundable cancellation fee.

Once your reservation is finalized (within 60 days from check in date), any requests to change name on reservation, length of stay, dates of stay, Villa size etc. will require an additional fee of $99. There is no fee if you are making a change to your current reservation prior to 60 days from check in date.

Guest and all members of his/her party agree to take good care of the property during their stay and to abide by the rules and regulations of the resort.

Feel free to contact us if you have any questions, concerns or comments. We will be delighted to assist you!

Sincerely,
Humaira Bourne
& Rick Bourne

Vacation Strategy, LLC.

5081 Beach River Rd
Windermere, Florida USA 34786
www.VacationStrategy.com
www.BonnetCreek.info
quotes@vacationstrategy.com email

(888) 832-4223 Phone
(214) 593-4387 Fax

 

[manhattanman]

post 59

sorry I misread, if you thought that I said specifically that you called her a liar that was not my intent. But her motives and veracity were questioned which I think was uncalled for. But hey, that's just me, perhaps i am overly sensitive or more willing to give people the benefit of the doubt than others. its also possible and the people who were questioning her were doing so in order to help her and not try and discredit her.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

If you dont know what happened, why not ask for clarificantion first before decrying her as a liar ?

I am at a loss to find where I referred to the OP as a liar.

sorry I misread, if you thought that I said specifically that you called her a liar that was not my intent.

I tend to base my thoughts on the exact information that I have read. See your first quote above.

In all the responses, have I missed an update somewhere along the way by the OP? Has she ever come back to tell us what next steps were taken, and any outcome from them?

 

[shalom]

the people who were questioning her were doing so in order to help her and not try and discredit her.

That would be the charitable assumption. And the accurate one, I think, in most cases.

When people are upset, even if they aren't confused about what happened, often the way they tell it is confusing. I'm sorry if my questions sounded belligerent, and certainly didn't intend it to be that way, but it's hard to help someone with this sort of thing until you get the facts straight. Sometimes even then it isn't possible to fix the situation where everything works out, but usually readers can at least offer tips on how to avoid it in the future.

 

[shalom]

In all the responses, have I missed an update somewhere along the way by the OP? Has she ever come back to tell us what next steps were taken, and any outcome from them?

No. Nothing since darryl2008's. If they do have a promise of the hold, as he states, they should take it up with their charge card company or Paypal or whoever they paid through, which unfortunately may take until after their vacation to get their money back.

 

[DSLRuser]

Can we get to the real question?

Is the view from tower 4 better than the view from tower 3?

kidding.

 

[Lewisc]

they took my monies and did not hold up to their end of the deal. I contacted BBB they have many complaints.

POST 59 S MY POST.

I've never booked through VS. The OP said she contacted BBB and was told there are many complaints about VS. BBB rates the company A- and shows ZERO COMPLAINTS in the last 3 years. That's why I question the accuracy of the OP. I'll defend VS since the OP is the first negative comment I've read about VS and the OPs BBB comments are fallacious.

I don't even know if VS hung up on her.

post 59

sorry I misread, if you thought that I said specifically that you called her a liar that was not my intent. But her motives and veracity were questioned which I think was uncalled for. But hey, that's just me, perhaps i am overly sensitive or more willing to give people the benefit of the doubt than others. its also possible and the people who were questioning her were doing so in order to help her and not try and discredit her.

Again VS has zero complaints and has earned a rating of A-. The information posted by the OP isn't accurate. I'll stand by my post.

You don't want to guess what happened or make presumptions. I'll presume the OP asked in such a way a BBB commented about timeshare in general or about Wyndham specifically. Wyndham has a lot of complaints and earned an F rating.

While I don't think the OP deliberately posted a lie the only way to escape that conclusion is to make some presumptions.

I asked how many people are in the OPs group. She stopped reading this thread, I guess when she discovered people weren't buying her story. Orlando is overbuilt. I suspect, even at this late date, if she posts specifics (in a new thread) some posters might be able to help her.

edited to add:

It's a shame the OP didn't start the thread on a different tone. Posters might have been able to help her find other accommodations. Could have had a discussion on the difference between booking directly with a hotel and booking a timeshare through an owners agency.

 

[vacationStrategyllc]

Hello everyone.

My name is Rick Bourne. I am the owner and co-founder of Vacation Strategy LLC. There seems to be a lot of confusion over this incident and without pointing fingers, I would like to simply state the facts in an attempt to clear things up.

I can understand her frustration with the process, but in my opinion to call us a scam company was very unreasonable.

Fact 1: The customer did not pay VS $2,000 as was implied in an earlier post. She only paid the deposit of $150.

Fact 2: We received this deposit after the close of business for the day and the villa was no longer available at that time.

Fact 3: After attempting to contact her several times the next morning we voided the transaction for the $150 with our credit card processor in the early afternoon.

No refund had to be issued since we voided the transaction before it could even be processed in the daily batch. If youre familiar with how merchant accounts work, you understand this, but if not, in simple terms we never actually settled her credit card for the $150. It was voided before being processed or deposited into our bank.

To state that we have not refunded her monies is an incorrect statement. Further more, to imply that she paid us and was out $2,000 is a terribly incorrect statement.

Her entire quote from VS for the week was for less than $700, but it appears there are people who believe we have taken $2,000 from her, which could not be further from the truth.

Fact 4: She stated we had several complaints and issues with the BBB which is simply incorrect. We have zero complaints and to date have never even been contacted by the BBB to even address any complaints filed against us as many of you have already found out for yourself.

Since in her post, a timeshare in Cancun was mentioned, (which we dont even handle) I will assume there was just a mix-up with the company name and the BBB. I will give her the benefit of the doubt that she did not intentionally lie about this.

If you were to read our cancelation policy, you would see there would be very little reason to complain because we offer the most reasonable refund/credit policy of any timeshare rental company in the business.

And to be very clear, if a customer paid any money to us and we were not able to secure the villa for any reason, a refund would be issued immediately. In no case would we keep the deposit.

As far as the hang-up issue, my team bends over backwards to satisfy a customer and would have continued to look for the villa and time requested for her. But I will never subject my team to be verbally abused. If a customer ever becomes verbally abusive to our team members, they have my permission to simply say thank you but this call is over, which is apparently what happened here.

This is the first time in two years and over 3,000 customers that we have ever had to do that and even then, another team member tried contacting the customer after that but got no response.

At the time I write this, there are 9 pages of posts on this one thread. The power of word-of-mouth is incredible. Is there anyone who seriously believes VS could be routinely scamming people out of their money without it being all over this board and many others?

Yet, to my knowledge there is nothing negative about our company on any board and certainly not with the BBB or our merchant account provider.

I would just ask that before anyone labels a company a scam, please take all steps necessary to resolve the issue before jumping to that extreme conclusion. There is a big difference in having unmet expectations and being scammed out of your money. I think any reasonable person would agree.

There is no doubt that we have lost business and will lose future business by the uncertainty this thread may put in peoples minds.

That is unfair not only to our employees who feed and support their families with the paychecks provided by VS, but its also unfair to families who will book through someone else and pay a lot more money and miss out on the deals we offer.

My wife and I started VS in January of 2011 in what everyone would agree was a terrible economy. Through hard work and honest dealings we have booked over 15,000 nights for clients saving them well over 1.5 million dollars compared to what they would have paid through Orbitz or Expedia and we have also been able to pay our owners over $700,000 to help offset their maintenance fees.

We now have 8 employees we are responsible for so I would ask this from everyone&

Please do not jump to conclusions and label someone a scam because of a misunderstanding. Your words written and posted in anger can damage the reputation of an honest business and put the livelihood of many people in jeopardy.

If anyone wishes to contact us with questions, please feel free to call me at the number below.

And finally, if the customer in question views this post and would like to contact me directly, I will do everything in my power to get your reservation rebooked at Bonnet Creek as I would like nothing more than for your children to have a wonderful experience.

Sincerely,

Rick Bourne
Vacation Strategy LLC

 

[jekajekalynn]

Wow...I guess the op was full of it then after all..heh

That's prob why there have been no responses as of late from op...

Kinda makes the vehement overly defensive for the OP posts by certain posters in the this thread in regards to posters who were just trying to figure out what the real deal was moot...

 

[manhattanman]

Wow...I guess the op was full of it then after all..heh

That's prob why there have been no responses as of late from op...

Kinda makes the vehement overly defensive for the OP posts by certain posters in the this thread in regards to posters who were just trying to figure out what the real deal was moot...

Im guessing that this was directed at me, I'm fine with revising my opinion when new evidence is presented, I'm not in its absence. Apparently you dont have this concern.

Congratulations, you guessed right !

 

[aubriee]

Rick, Thanks for responding here with the other side of the story. As you know since I have a reservation through you guys for May, I was concerned enough to email your company. I appreciate the phone call I received just a short while later and also the email you sent me back a day or so later. I now feel enough confidence in your company that I am considering booking another ressie through you guys for next fall.

 

[Lewisc]

Im guessing that this was directed at me, I'm fine with revising my opinion when new evidence is presented, I'm not in its absence. Apparently you dont have this concern.

Congratulations, you guessed right !

I didn't have to guess. I went to bbb.org and checked the review of VS. Once I understood how little regard the OP had for posting facts I knew all I needed to know.

Rick, Thanks for responding here with the other side of the story. As you know since I have a reservation through you guys for May, I was concerned enough to email your company. I appreciate the phone call I received just a few hours later and also the email you sent me back a day or so later. I now feel enough confidence in your company that I am considering booking another ressie through you guys for next fall.

+1

edited to add I sent VS a PM. I suggested they request DIS delete this thread, or at least change title of the thread. Blame me if VS takes my suggestion and if DIS agrees.

 

[Fundytrail]

It is a shame the OP's and their families vacation plans were turned upside down but a lack of understanding of time share rental by the renter does not qualify as a scam.

On November 29th OP posted
"they took my monies and did not hold up to their end of the deal. I contacted BBB they have many complaints."

BBB comment unable to validate.

Darryl2008 posted the following
This Darryl booked the reservation. I do have some questions if you could answer them I would appreciate it so I myself have a better understanding of what happened. This email was sent from your company too me. From: Vacation Strategy LLC <quotes@vacationstrategy.com>Date: Wed, Nov 28, 2012 at 4:53 PMSubject: We Found Your Request for a 2 Bedroom Deluxe Villa at Bonnet CreekOn top of the quote you sent me this was stated Great News We found your requested dates! We placed a temporary 24 hour hold on your villa, so if you want it, please use the link below to pay your initial deposit. (see details of my quote from VS below).This is what I paid one hour later. VisaDate/Time: 28-Nov-2012 18:24:52 EST

So less than 24 after the quote deposit this thread was started

VS in their post stated they would refund the deposit on Thursday (29th), so within a few hours we see a scam post. Now my experience has been credit card refunds take a little bit longer than a few hours. VS stated the facts as they saw it and stayed out of the debate.

As for how much the OP felt they lost to VS is not clear $150, $1500 or $2000.

As with others my quote stated the following unlike OP;

Are You Ready to Book?Inventory is limited and constantly changing. If you want to secure this reservation... Review our rental agreement below and then pay the $300.00 deposit http://vacationstrategy.com/deposit/300-deposit/
Vacation Rental Agreement
This agreement made on . Vacation Strategy LLC., agrees to hold this reservation for ******* ***** upon payment of the initial deposit of $300.00. For your convenience we accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover.

I'm not making judgement for you just listing a few of the facts as I see them.

See where VS posted while I was one finger typing
Thank you VS!

 

[mikehn]

What an awesome ending to a thread. Credibility is the one thing you dont want to lose around here. The OP should change his/her screen name real quick.

 

[shalom]

If you were to read our cancellation policy, you would see there would be very little reason to complain because we offer the most reasonable refund/credit policy of any timeshare rental company in the business.

Wow! You do indeed. And you offer Wyndham National Harbor, which is a bear to get through RCI -- maybe I should move DC up a few notches on the "future vacations" list.

 

[jekajekalynn]

I didn't have to guess. I went to bbb.org and checked the review of VS. Once I understood how little regard the OP had for posting facts I knew all I needed to know.

.

^This... A little research goes a long way

 

[shalom]

I'm fine with revising my opinion when new evidence is presented, I'm not in its absence.

But you ignored the evidence Lewisc presented, and the fact that the OP clearly did not understand how TS rentals work, or the fact that the OP repeatedly made false statements about money (factually false, even though they likely expressed her emotional beliefs at the time). And you thought it was reasonable to accuse company of a crime if someone feels they have been wronged (or I assume that's what you meant when you said you'd do it yourself); others recognize that a company often represents people with feelings, and that it's just as wrong to falsely accuse a company of a crime as it is to accuse another person. That, in my opinion, was the basis of the disagreement; different world views, not the facts available.

If many people are this willing to always assume it is the company that is at fault when there are unsubstantiated and confusing accusations on the Internet, I am afraid that Rick Bourne is correct and this thread will do them harm.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

Rick, Thanks for responding here with the other side of the story. As you know since I have a reservation through you guys for May, I was concerned enough to email your company. I appreciate the phone call I received just a few hours later and also the email you sent me back a day or so later. I now feel enough confidence in your company that I am considering booking another ressie through you guys for next fall.

+1

edited to add I sent VS a PM. I suggested they request DIS delete this thread, or at least change title of the thread. Blame me if VS takes my suggestion and if DIS agrees.

+2

And I hope the mods take your advice on the deletion or title change of the thread.

 

[DSLRuser]

Hello everyone.

My name is Rick Bourne. I am the owner and co-founder of Vacation Strategy LLC. Rick Bourne
Vacation Strategy LLC

No worries Rick. I have been on the Dis in some form or another for many years. The truth usially comes out, and companies like yours are no worse for wear.

the same day this thread began, I booked with you for a week in March. Why? because of the numerous positives your company has here on the Dis, but on numerous other web sites.

Most folks can see the truth thrue the fog of emotion. I look forward to completeing my transaction wth your company in the near future as my dates come closer.

 

[shalom]

And I hope the mods take your advice on the deletion or title change of the thread.

Ditto.