Can Associates use cash reservations?

[JandD Mom]

Hello all,

If I have a family member listed as an Associate Member on my DVC Membership account, is that family member allowed to check in for a cash reservation at DVC?

I am just curious. Thanks!

 

[Chuck S]

I would call Member Services to ask.

 

[Dean]

No, the member must be present to use the cash discount. Technically they are supposed to be in the room but I'm sure there is some flexibility.

 

[RobDoc]

Associates can certainly use a cash reservation with rack rate at a DVC resort, but are not entitled to the DVC discount unless the member is staying in the room. As Dean noted, there is some flexibility if multiple rooms have been reserved using a combination of points and cash, but if there is just the one room, the member will need to be on the reservation.

Associates have the ability to make reservations, but are not entitled to all of the member benefits.

 

[Plutofan]

A DVC member can get the member discount for any family and friend. The DVC member does not need to be present, the DVC member does not need to be on the reservation and the person does not need a DVC card. I have confirmed this with MS many a time and have also confirmed this with MS supervisors.

 

[RobDoc]

A DVC member can get the member discount for any family and friend. The DVC member does not need to be present, the DVC member does not need to be on the reservation and the person does not need a DVC card. I have confirmed this with MS many a time and have also confirmed this with MS supervisors.

Interesting, since the POS clearly states differently and MS has confirmed that policy to me. As with many things Disney, I guess it depends on the CM you talk with and how they choose to follow the written policies.

 

[JandD Mom]

FYI, I plan to be at the resort but in a different room. I will be arriving a few days before the family members, and may not be present at the time they check in.

I was very clear with MS that this was my intent when I booked the reservation, and also on subsequent calls when I added ME and DDP for the family members. I was told it was no problem and I did not need to be in the room. I think this confirms what Doc and Dean are saying.

However, I would be surprised if my family members (who don't live with me) could go and use my DVC member discount when I am not there.

 

[Plutofan]

Interesting, since the POS clearly states differently and MS has confirmed that policy to me. As with many things Disney, I guess it depends on the CM you talk with and how they choose to follow the written policies.

I really do not think that is the case. I thought the same as you but when I was booking a cash reservation for a guest it was the CM who brought up the discount. I told them that I did not think that was correct. They confirmed it with a supervisor that the discount is available to DVC member, family and guests no matter if the member is going or on the reservation. They will secure the room with the guests credit card. Remember Disney has the right to change the policy without notification.

 

[JandD Mom]

I really do not think that is the case. I thought the same as you but when I was booking a cash reservation for a guest it was the CM who brought up the discount. I told them that I did not think that was correct. They confirmed it with a supervisor that the discount is available to DVC member, family and guests no matter if the member is going or on the reservation. They will secure the room with the guests credit card. Remember Disney has the right to change the policy without notification.

Perhaps DVC changed this for marketing? I know we would never have purchased DVC until we stayed there. Allowing guests to come in at a cash discount (which still yields substantial revenue for the room) allows DVC to market people already familiar with the product while on site.

I am not sure if DVC will call them during the vacation to try to market them like other timeshares do.

 

[Dean]

A DVC member can get the member discount for any family and friend. The DVC member does not need to be present, the DVC member does not need to be on the reservation and the person does not need a DVC card. I have confirmed this with MS many a time and have also confirmed this with MS supervisors.

This is not really a POS issue, it's a decision that DVC must make. I toured through the online site and didn't see anything that addressed the issue at all. These quotes are from the last loose leaf book.

Member Rental Discounts may be requested by a Mmeber or an Associate. However, a Member must personally occupay the rentla Vacation Home for all nights reserved on a cahs basis in order to recvive the Member Rental Discount.

on the next page under the heading "Reserving Vacation Homes for Non-Members"

4. The Member Rental Discount on cash reservations is specifically availableto Members who are personally occupying the Vacation Home. Immediate Family members living in the same household as the Member are also eligible.

Obviously it could change but I haven't seen any specific indication. And DVC is very inconsistent. I am comfortable the rules is still for Members only in the unit but the decision would be ultimately be up to DVC. It may be in the POS but I don't recall seeing it there.

 

[JandD Mom]

Obviously it could change but I haven't seen any specific indication. And DVC is very inconsistent. I am comfortable the rules is still for Members only in the unit but the decision would be ultimately be up to DVC. It may be in the POS but I don't recall seeing it there.

I agree with you Dean. I have no problem putting a family member in a room on a cash discount if I am there. However, I would hate to send them to DVC only to have them be told at check in they won't honor the room rate because I am not there. It's just not worth the lifetime of aggravation that would follow if that happened!

 

[Plutofan]

This is not really a POS issue, it's a decision that DVC must make. I toured through the online site and didn't see anything that addressed the issue at all. These quotes are from the last loose leaf book. on the next page under the heading "Reserving Vacation Homes for Non-Members" Obviously it could change but I haven't seen any specific indication. And DVC is very inconsistent. I am comfortable the rules is still for Members only in the unit but the decision would be ultimately be up to DVC. It may be in the POS but I don't recall seeing it there.

Can you specify the location of the POS that you are finding the quotes on the member discount. I looked through both the POS and Multi-State Public Offering Statement and could not find any reference. There was a section in the Multi-State Public Offering Statement titled IV MEMBER BENEFIT AND PRIVILEGES but it does not discuss the member discount. My feeling is that this could be another one of those items that they droped from the more current POS. If you can provide a more specific location I would be interested in looking in my POS which is from 2003. Thanks

 

[littlestar]

DVC wouldn't allow us to do this for our kids this past year. They said NO member discount on the cash rate if we weren't with them. Our kids are listed as associate members by the way.

So I guess it depends on who you talk to.

 

[Plutofan]

I wonder of this is something they just changed. I read a post from another DVC member that was able to get the discount. In the past year I have inquired 3 times with different CM and had them inquire with a supervisor and all three times they said it was allowed. I even argued with them on the phone saying I did not think that was correct so they double checked. I wonder if they changed the rule to try to increase demand for their open inventory. I am sure that there inventory has gotten a lot bigger as new resorts are added. I would think that they would rather sell the rooms for 25% off than not rent them at all. The chance of renting the excess rooms goes up dramatically by expanding the number of people that can rent the room at a discount.

 

[littlestar]

I wonder of this is something they just changed. I read a post from another DVC member that was able to get the discount. In the past year I have inquired 3 times with different CM and had them inquire with a supervisor and all three times they said it was allowed. I even argued with them on the phone saying I did not think that was correct so they double checked. I wonder if they changed the rule to try to increase demand for their open inventory. I am sure that there inventory has gotten a lot bigger as new resorts are added. I would think that they would rather sell the rooms for 25% off than not rent them at all. The chance of renting the excess rooms goes up dramatically by expanding the number of people that can rent the room at a discount.

Makes sense - selling a room for 25% off is a lot better than letting it sit empty.

 

[RobDoc]

This would certainly be one of those "operational" policies that DVC can change when they want to without approval of the members (like banking, borrowing and transferring) and availability is also easily controlled thru MS.

However, I can't believe MS really wants to allow members to basically become travel agents by giving us the ability to secure discounted cash reservations for non-members by removing the requirement that the member must be in the room.

In light of the recent changes regarding "commercial activity" this would seem to me to open up a whole new opportunity for abuse of the intent of the discount. If DVC really wants to fill those rooms, then CRO can offer discounts thru AP programs or DDP programs rather than allowing members to offer the discount to whomever they can find to rent them.

It also appears that this is another example of an inconsistent policy, since MANY have been denied these reservations unless the member was occupying the room themselves.

I would certainly want something in writing from MS stating that they realize the member won't be there (and are still offering the discount) instead of possibly denying the discounted rate to the "guest" when they check-in without the member.

 

[Dean]

Can you specify the location of the POS that you are finding the quotes on the member discount. I looked through both the POS and Multi-State Public Offering Statement and could not find any reference. There was a section in the Multi-State Public Offering Statement titled IV MEMBER BENEFIT AND PRIVILEGES but it does not discuss the member discount. My feeling is that this could be another one of those items that they droped from the more current POS. If you can provide a more specific location I would be interested in looking in my POS which is from 2003. Thanks

As I tried to convey, this was from the last loose leaf Member Guidebook. In the back where the black and white pages are and is titled "Member Guidelines". Since this is not a contractual issue, it's not really a POS issue. I've also had correspondence over the years to this effect as well, both email and oral. I vaguely remember seeing it in the VM at one time but don't have the time or energy to go searching through it to be certain my memory is correct. I guess it could be included in the Multi site POS if DVC so chose but I didn't see it referenced there in a quick thumb through. I'm not surprised if you and others have gotten different info but I am confident the policy itself hasn't changed. I agree with Doc in that I'd want something in writing before I sent someone under this policy. They might end up paying full price.

 

[Plutofan]

I am not a lawyer so may be Dean can give a response but I would think that the Disney would need to honor the discounted price listed on the confirmation. Disney entered into a contract , an offer and acceptance, knowing up front that a DVC member was not going to be in the room and that no one on the reservation is a DVC member. I would think that the confirmation would be considered a valid contract. Upon booking Disney takes all the names and knows that the DVC member is not on the reservation. I would think that CM that check in members do not question things since the reservation CMs are suppose to be specially trained in making reservations. Believe me that it was the CM who brought up the discount and I disagreed with them for several minutes on the phone until they checked with a supervisor. I repeated several times that no DVC member will not present and that this was just for a guest. I have asked about 3 times in the past two months and have always gotten a consistant response. This leads me to believe that there may have been a change in policy.

 

[Dean]

I am not a lawyer so may be Dean can give a response but I would think that the Disney would need to honor the discounted price listed on the confirmation. Disney entered into a contract , an offer and acceptance, knowing up front that a DVC member was not going to be in the room and that no one on the reservation is a DVC member. I would think that the confirmation would be considered a valid contract. Upon booking Disney takes all the names and knows that the DVC member is not on the reservation. I would think that CM that check in members do not question things since the reservation CMs are suppose to be specially trained in making reservations. Believe me that it was the CM who brought up the discount and I disagreed with them for several minutes on the phone until they checked with a supervisor. I repeated several times that no DVC member will not present and that this was just for a guest. I have asked about 3 times in the past two months and have always gotten a consistant response. This leads me to believe that there may have been a change in policy.

My opinion is that it depends. Disney is not usually confrontational so if they gave it to you they likely would honor it even if were not within their rules. However discussing what they could do, and assuming they did throw up a roadblock and turn someone away, here are some considerations. So this is a discussion of how one would have to look at this issue if a member made a cash reservation through MS for a non member when the member was not along. If they truly still have the same rule, as I suspect they do, I think one would have to prove they knew this was a non qualifying person OR prove that they said it didn't matter. That would take specific communications that are reproducible such as email, on the confirmation itself OR an admission by DVC or the MS rep. Simply having a different name on the confirmation would not be enough unless it also listed a different address. Quoting verbal conversations one had with a rep would not be enough. Again, my opinion as it applies to the specific scenario in question.

You might want to call and talk to a supervisor and ask the question. State you know it was previously for members only and you've recently been told otherwise, what's the correct answer. Or even better, do it by email so you'll have something to fall back on.