Due Diligence for a Transfer?

[RatherBeGolfing]

I want to transfer 150 points to another member. I've read a fair amount on the Rent/Trade board about what can go wrong - but most of the advice is for people looking to rent points.

What are the usual "rules" for tranferring points?
(1) should I ask the other member for references?
(2) should I get payment first, then do the transfer?
(3) should I do this with a 3-way call involving MS?
(4) any red flags to be on the lookout for with this type of transaction?

Any advice would be appreciated!!
Thanks,
Larry


P.S. I've read that I'm not supposed to ask questions like this on the Rent/Trade board....

[WebmasterDoc]

If you will be the one transferring points, there will be little risk if you demand payment in advance. If you will be receiving the points, there will be risk if you send payment in advance.

Some have found that a 3 way call to MS will help with any needed reassurance - but will still not remove any risk depending on what payment agreement is made in advance.

If I were receiving the transfer, I'd want to have a very good feel about the other person before sending any payment at all. I'd want someone with a history of posts on this site and I'd expect to have spoken with them on the phone ahead of time. Once the payment has been made, there is no recourse since DVC will not intervene in any dispute - as no remuneration is allowed for transfers according to the POS document.

If I were transferring the points to another member, I'd expect full payment in advance - unless it was someone I knew and trusted personally.

Some have agreed to send 1/2 payment in advance and the balance after the points are in the account.

Just be sure you are personally comfortable with any/all aspects of any agreement before sending any payment.

[Plutofan]

If you do a 3 way call be sure not to mention that you got compensated for the transfer since you are not allowed to compensate anyone for the transfer of points per the POS.

[RatherBeGolfing]

Thank you both for your feedback and advice. I am the one transferring the points to another member and I'll be looking for both a conversation with the recipient ahead of time and pre-payment before I transfer the points to her account (just like eBay!!). I just wasn't sure if there was a "normal" protocol for these transactions.

Thanks again!!
Larry

[rlduvall]

Just had the smoothest transfer ever yesterday - only took a few hours and that was lag time between pm's and e-mails. Ironically, I was your second person in line for the request you are asking about. The lady I worked with had Paypal, so I also signed up for Paypal; very easy to do. She also was set up to accept a credit card on Paypal, which significantly speeds up the process for both parties. Also, per WebmasterDoc, I only respond to very well established dis'ers; just for credibility purposes. (In fact, I almost didn't respond to you because of your low post count, but you have been with disboards since 2003 - no offense ) She sent me an e-mail with a legal and binding contract . . . I provided her my address and membership number (required at DVC for the transfer) and confirmed my agreement with the contract. I "sent money" to her via paypal to her e-mail address; she received the money within 1 minute; the points were transferred immediately into my account. I contacted DVC and had a reservation for AKV within a couple of minutes.

Absolutely incredible!!!!!!!

[RatherBeGolfing]

Rhonda,
I'm glad this worked out for you so smoothly - obviously the person you dealt with had done this before (maybe many times...). Hadn't thought of the legal contract idea.
I've decided against PayPal because of the fees (3% for the transaction plus some additional to have them send me anything over $500). This will probably be my last transfer, since next year we'll be into using the points again...I just don't need 300 next year and could use the funds for other things this year.
Hope you enjoy your trip to AKV. I was just in Orlando last week for a conference. I visited AK just to see it - the lobby is incredible and around 8 pm the animals were coming up close to the building to feed - zebra, giraffe, etc. The firepits are a really nice touch - the entire themeing is very well done - even the gift shop is awesome.
Happy day!
Larry

[rtobe]

I am new to transferring points. A couple things that caught me by surprise with transfers of points (this was between myself and a friend so there was not money issues). Member Services told me once that it was ok to transfer from my Dec. 06 Use Year to friend with April 07 Use Year, would not be a problem but when I called to do the transfer, they gave me some trouble but eventually relented. The other thing that Member Services said which surprised me was that the point transfer requires something in writing from the member transferring the points. It was easy enough to fax something there but thought I'd share the info just in case it is helpful.

thanks for the info about AKV

[DVCJones]

After reading the above posts, I wonder why my last transfer was nothing like what is described in these posts.

Last year I had another DVC member transfer 118 points to my account first. I then made a full payment through paypal ASAP. That was it!!!

This was all done through email and PM's . I never actually talked to the other member.

No contract.

I did check with MS to make sure the points were in my account before making payment.

I do remember thinking that the other member must be very trusting. I don't think I could have done the transaction otherwise. I guess in every transaction one member needs to trust the other a little more. Someone is always taking a risk in every transaction. In every way, I am not a risk taker ( Can't even get myself on a plane to fly to WDW)

I don't see having the need to transfer points in the near future, however, if I did I don't know if I could be the "risk taker" in the transaction.

Just curious on how members who do transfers often feel about members like myself. (big chickens)