change in refillable mug policy?

[crisi]

Originally posted by gritzel4
Does this mean I can use my Disney Wonder mug at SSR? When I purchased it on board in 2002, I was told that it was lifetime refillable on the ship.

I thought the pool at SSR was a little small to fit the Wonder?

 

[gritzel4]

 

[Bugeye]

I'm more bummed about the generic design. I miss the days when your room key was designed for each resort. I understand the economies of using a generic key card and a generic mug but phooey - now it is like going to 7-11.

 

[Muushka]

Originally posted by jekjones1558
We still return to Riverside every time we go to WDW, for old-time, pre-DVC sake. It is especially handy when we are at OKW, since there is no food court there. Our old mugs, which we were told were lifetime when we got them, say "Dixie Landings" and have red and blue decorations, I think. They are very large. It gives us a feeling of honoring tradition when we use these mugs, even though it is a pain to haul them for only 1 or 2 uses. For us it is like taking out the special Christmas dishes and remembering the feelings of past happy celebrations.

Wow. This post could have been written by me! We also have the old Dixie Landings mugs (the yellow ones). We occasionally head on over there for Pizza at the food court with our mugs in tow. Yes, they are a pain to drag down there, and it certainly is not for the free soda because we have plenty at our VWL villa, but it is just fun to bring them. Yes, a tradition, like the Christmas stuff! Well put jekjones1558.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

Why is this even a debate on the DVC board? I could see us all debating the usage of mugs at a regular resort that has food courts, but us, with our full kitchens/kitchenettes we could get 2-litre bottles of soda for under a dollar and keep them in the fridge of our unit.

If the mugs were good inside the parks, I could see what all the fuss was about, but since the mugs are only good at the resorts, and I have a full size refridgerator every time I stay at WDW now, I do not spend $65 for my family ot be able to get a mug full of soda. The kids have juice boxes or milk in the fridge, DH has his water, and I have my diet coke....all for a cost of less than $15 for the week.

 

[Muushka]

This is not a debate for me. In this particular subject I feel that what I do with my mug is my business. I am just on this thread for the entertainment! Carry on!

 

[paults]

I know I'll get flamed for this but I think DISNEY should charge $50 a mug so all the free loaders who think all drinks are free if you have a MUG WILL THEN MAYBE GET THEIR MONIES WORTH. (but I know they won't) because people expect something for nothing in this world. For $11.95 I think per mug if you can't get your monies worth in 5 days don't buy it. If the mug is for LOS OR YEARLY fine, buy another one the next year. Think what it costs Disney to keep filling up all those mugs year after year after year ( all for just $11.95) now.
If you bought a mug on one trip at one resort don't expect to use it at all resorts.
This is not a DVC thing because anybody can buy a mug at any resort.
A person not staying on sight can buy a mug and use it anytime they want, sorry this is not right.
Disney cost example: there 's always 1 person at the resorts everyday. just 1 soda at $1.00 a day x 365 days = $365 a year.
1 soda for 100 people x 365 =$36,000 a year
1 soda for 1000 x 365 days= $365,000 a year WOW give me a couple mugs.

Just think what it cost to fill 20,000 mugs everyday, for a year.

 

[goofy4tink]

Well, since I already have 3 mugs each from POR, DxL, Polynesian and 2 from AllStarMu, my dh has told me 'NO MORE!' I can't even justify bringing them back on each trip if visiting that resort again. My gripe?? I have no problem if you're at POR and you're reusing your DxL or previous POR mug. Or your previous Polynesian mug at this trip to the Polynesian. What really bugs me are the people who have spent thousands of dollars to go to WDW and then use those 'big gulp' cups at the soda dispensers!!! If the CMs would crack down on that particular abuse I think most of us would be happy. Since I've already spent about $150 in these mugs, Disney had made money on me. But, those 'big gulps' have not paid one red cent!!!

 

[lenshanem]

What is the cost for Disney per soda fountain drink? Pennies?

 

[BEACHCLUBVILLAS]

I have mugs from way back when Wilderness Lodge first opened, as well as old Beach Club, and Dixie Landing mugs. All three of those resorts I was definitely told that they are for lifetime use but at that resort. I never tried to use my WL mugs at BC or DL but I have brought them back to WL and BC for use there. That was the deal when I bought the mug. I resent the implication that am unreasonable to think I can use for a lifetime. That was the condition of purchase when I purchased the mugs.

At HH last week I purchased a mug for use during the LOS and it has 2004 on it. I will not use that mug during future visits to HH. But, I will use my WL and BC mugs in the future when I visit those resorts. I'm not breaking the rules. I purchased under those terms.

If I purchase an AP and its good for a year and Disney decides they no longer want to sell AP's good for a year, then do I stop using it because its unreasonable for me to expect to use it during future visits within the year, or use it for the terms we agreed to when I purchased it?

In my opinion, if you have old mugs that were good for lifetime, use them for the lifetime. If you have mugs that you were told are good for LOS then use it for LOS. That's how I plan to use them.

 

[nakedbear]

It doesn't matter what the cost for Disney is per soda! They have a right to make a profit just as anyone else! No business will survive if they give anything away at cost! There is no way Disney wants to lose money on anything, nor should they. People have been abusing the mug situaltion for years. Tons of lost profits, means just higher hotel rates from which everyone suffers. If the Mugs were only for LOS, they would make a profit and you would still pay less for your soda. Everyone should be happy. No matter what a CM told you in the past, if you don't have it in writing that your mugs are good anywhere anytime, you haven't a leg to stand on. If it were I, I would do away with them or install the barcode things because of the unbelievable abuse I have seen of refillable mugs( I am sure no one from this list).

 

[nakedbear]

I have purchase mugs at every resort for years and not once was I told or under the impression that I could use them at different resorts! From my observations, people only used them at the same resort in the beginning and slowly overtime I began to see them pop up at other resorts, then I saw previous years cups pop up at the same resort, but Disney said nothing, now I see people filling up with dixie cups and Disney says nothing. I don't think they ever imagined how far people will go. I really felt angry as i watched people abuse this policy over the years since I have paid for all of my beverage purchases and only got a discount on them when I purchased a mug. Lifetime makes no sense, Does that mean you can leave your mug in your will? I wish we could talk to Disney on this matter because I can't believe they ever intended or have ever done anything that would make them lose profits! Think about it.

 

[Scoootch]

Originally posted by BEACHCLUBVILLAS
I have mugs from way back when Wilderness Lodge first opened, as well as old Beach Club, and Dixie Landing mugs. All three of those resorts I was definitely told that they are for lifetime use but at that resort. I never tried to use my WL mugs at BC or DL but I have brought them back to WL and BC for use there. That was the deal when I bought the mug. I resent the implication that am unreasonable to think I can use for a lifetime. That was the condition of purchase when I purchased the mugs.

At HH last week I purchased a mug for use during the LOS and it has 2004 on it. I will not use that mug during future visits to HH. But, I will use my WL and BC mugs in the future when I visit those resorts. I'm not breaking the rules. I purchased under those terms.

If I purchase an AP and its good for a year and Disney decides they no longer want to sell AP's good for a year, then do I stop using it because its unreasonable for me to expect to use it during future visits within the year, or use it for the terms we agreed to when I purchased it?

In my opinion, if you have old mugs that were good for lifetime, use them for the lifetime. If you have mugs that you were told are good for LOS then use it for LOS. That's how I plan to use them.

Well said! I totally agree!

 

[crisi]

Originally posted by nakedbear
It doesn't matter what the cost for Disney is per soda! They have a right to make a profit just as anyone else! No business will survive if they give anything away at cost! There is no way Disney wants to lose money on anything, nor should they. People have been abusing the mug situaltion for years. Tons of lost profits, means just higher hotel rates from which everyone suffers. If the Mugs were only for LOS, they would make a profit and you would still pay less for your soda. Everyone should be happy. No matter what a CM told you in the past, if you don't have it in writing that your mugs are good anywhere anytime, you haven't a leg to stand on. If it were I, I would do away with them or install the barcode things because of the unbelievable abuse I have seen of refillable mugs( I am sure no one from this list).

I agree they have a right to make a profit - and I think am on record as a DISer who continually argues for Disney making a profit, but a business also has a responsibility to keep to the contract under which the item was sold - even if it ends up losing them money. Now, there is some debate about the contract under which these were sold - and I am not an attorney. But my understanding is that a CM is acting as a representative of the company and what they say regarding these mugs MAY make Disney responsibile for upholding the terms. And that there are enough people saying they bought their mugs and those were the terms that I'd guess, if it came to court (although who'd sue over an 11.50 mug is beyond me - maybe a class action suit), Disney would have a hard time defending it. That, plus the ability of someone to provide the note from the Y&BC mug that was sold that gives lifetime terms puts Disney on rather shakey grounds.

Disney has made plenty on these mugs over the years. They buy them in bulk for a buck, sell them for $11.50 and put what amounts to pennies (for them) of soda in them. Not everyone who buys a mug returns to Disney, returns to the same resort, or bothers to bring their old mug down with them. The percentage of mugs who see even a second trip to the resort is probably pretty small (mine are in the sandbox right now, want to use them - I could sell them on eBay). If the mug cost Disney $2 and the pop cost them $.10 a fill (both high estimates, in my experience), then it would take someone 95 refills before Disney lost money. Lets say the average trip is seven days and the average person fills their mug twice a day. Fourteen refills - Disney starts losing money on that mug sometime during the seventh trip. How many mugs manage to make seven trips? A few, I'm sure, but far more never get brought back after the first trip. I wouldn't loose sleep about Disney losing money on this one - maybe not making it as fast as they could have - but that's their own problem - they should have never sold the mugs under those terms and made it clear from day one to everyone that they were LOS. Its very "unDisneylegaldepartmentlike" not to have such a disclaimer right on the mugs if that is what they intended.

As I stated before, I understand both sides of the debate. But if Disney sold mugs under the "lifetime" banner - even if they simply had a pattern of uninformed CMs (and it sounds like it was more systemic than that), they have an obligation to provide the soda. If they want to change the terms on new mugs, that is their right. But they have an obligation to live up to the terms of the old mugs. Those who bought the old mugs under the old terms are not "cheating" or "scamming" or "trying to get something for nothing." And I suspect that most those DVCer who bought under the old mugs really don't care that much. As was noted, we have fridges in our rooms - none of the DVC resorts have really convienient access to the refill stations - its easier for us to bring our own pop. And that their reaction is as much as a result of having people tell them that they are "scamming" as that they really feel some entitlement to a lifetime of free pop.

 

[paults]

LIFETIME OR NOT, lets see this in writing if it exsits. When dealing with CM's we all know you get 1000 different answers from 1000 different CM's. Disney can't keep track of what a CM tells you. It's just like the smoking issue ( 1 CM says you can smoke on the balcony of a non-smoking room and another says you can't.)

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

It's sad to see that you have to ask for a legal contract to make sure you're getting what Disney advertised and sold as a simple refill program. I guess photo documentation will be necessary for any future types of programs. As time goes on, present and future mug program participants will only know the program as length of stay.

BTW, another unwritten part of the mug program was mug replacement if your mug was ever broken. Several years ago, a CM happily replaced one of our WL mugs (purchased years earlier) that had a cracked lid. This is further validation of the "forever nature" of the original mug program. I bet they will no longer replace mugs.

 

[manning]

Your right an employee does act as an agent for a company. I don't know if there are limits.

When I saw that statement I started to laugh. With so many different versions from CM I'm beginning to wonder if the attorneys are petitioning for lifetime unlimited shot glasses.

 

[ralphd]

Think everyone needs to take a deep breath and relax. Buy the new mug if it is a good deal or pass if it isn't a good deal.

The arguments are getting redundant.

ralphd

 

[KNWVIKING]

..... then why aren't they priced accordingly, similar to the UPH passes ?

 

[gazeborob]

Perhaps this was posted, but I didn't feel like reading all of the post to this point. When I was over at SSR, they have put a Coke dispencer right next to the bar. You can walk right up and serve yourself. Any mug, any time.