Disney Vacation Club adjusts 2010 Vacation Points charts

[dd08]

I think we may collectively have a class here, if for no other purpose than to have our minimum add-on changed back to 25 like all the other DVC resort owners have.

I don't know if the rest would fly, but for BLT owners, that would be your best shot, not saying that it is "legitimate" enough for a suit, but probably the only one that would have any chance at all.

 

[ashbradnmom]

1)pull my kids out of school at the risk of fines, jail time, lost school work, missed sports, getting kicked off their sports teams ,etc

I would not want to live where you do if i want to pull my kids out of school
i do not want fined or face jail time. I did not know that could happen if you took them out for a few days.

 

[chalee94]

I DID say that I chose to vacation over the weekends and I bought points accordingly. That doesn't mean the points required didn't gouge those of us staying on the weekend, we just accepted it. Same as the reallocation will have to be accepted by the Sun-thurs crowd.

extremely illogical to say that point charts thats you signed up for were "gouging" you - you got what you agreed to. you realized your vacation plans were going to "gouge" you and you still signed the DVC contract anyway?

DVC has a right to change the charts and probably should - and it's nice for you if that works to your benefit - but it's not at all the "same" to have the rules changed on you, as it is to get what you expected. you could "accept it" or choose not to buy...getting rid of a contract after the fact is a little more of a hassle...

 

[dd08]

1)pull my kids out of school at the risk of fines, jail time, lost school work, missed sports, getting kicked off their sports teams ,etc

I would not want to live where you do if i want to pull my kids out of school
i do not want fined or face jail time. I did not know that could happen if you took them out for a few days.

Yeah, I scratched my head on that one too......

Have family that lives in PA and they pull their kids to go to WDW in fact.

 

[MiaSRN62]

And I'm sure you did set everything up correctly 8 years ago. The problem is that the travel habits and membership makeup of DVC has evolved dramatically over those 8 years. That is why DVC has the reallocation provisions written into the contract.

You can't just keep pouring more and more Sun - Thus vacationers into those finite number of weekday slots.

You're right Tim. Change was inevitable. And to repeat myself, I would have been able to swallow a smaller point difference where I could borrow. I can accept change---but feel like I've been hit by a boulder here. The 30 points is a bit much to borrow every single year.

And to think.....my plan was to sell my offsite timeshare to buy more DVC points. This whole thing is making my Vistana week look so much better all of a sudden.....

dd08 : Have family that lives in PA and they pull their kids to go to WDW in fact.

And if one can without major disruption or consequence....more power to them. I think it's great that some can. Being sincere here.

 

[dd08]

extremely illogical to say that point charts thats you signed up for were "gouging" you - you got what you agreed to. you realized your vacation plans were going to "gouge" you and you still signed the DVC contract anyway?

DVC has a right to change the charts and probably should - and it's nice for you if that works to your benefit - but it's not at all the "same" to have the rules changed on you, as it is to get what you expected. you could "accept it" or choose not to buy...getting rid of a contract after the fact is a little more of a hassle...

So.......what you are telling her is that

"well, you knew the weekend points where higher but bought anyways so that's your fault, but the Sun-thurs people got used to this benefit of taking advantage of the misbalancing of points and therefore we have a right to complain?"

How is that different than when it is said upfront in the POS that points can be reallocated as long as the overall total cannot increase. We just recently bought, and we knew not to "expect" anything.......

The rules weren't changed, DVC did what they had to by the rules.....

 

[dd08]

You're right Tim. Change was inevitable. And to repeat myself, I would have been able to swallow a smaller point difference where I could borrow. I can accept change---but feel like I've been hit by a boulder here. The 30 points is a bit much to borrow every single year.

And to think.....my plan was to sell my offsite timeshare to buy more DVC points. This whole thing is making my Vistana week look so much better all of a sudden.....

When I ask this I"m just trying to help, please don't flame......

What are the weekday nightly totals per the '10 charts for when you usually like to or need to travel to DVC?

 

[Starr W.]

Yeah, I scratched my head on that one too......

Have family that lives in PA and they pull their kids to go to WDW in fact.

I only pull Mon-Tues of Thanksgiving week and the response from Jr. High to elementary is "Okay have a good time, we have a lot of students out those days and just remember to fill and return the "form".

 

[anna08]

thanks uncle remus for posting the poll - everybody check it out!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2068957

 

[MiaSRN62]

Lorelai : I did not know that could happen if you took them out for a few days.

A friend of mine did this and got in some hot water with the school district. She was required to come in for a meeting with the truant officer and principal. Fortunately, she got lucky and got "off" with a warning. She is a few school districts away from me.....but many are like this here unfortunately.

Maria

 

[Cmbar]

And I'm sure you did set everything up correctly 8 years ago. The problem is that the travel habits and membership makeup of DVC has evolved dramatically over those 8 years. That is why DVC has the reallocation provisions written into the contract.

You can't just keep pouring more and more Sun - Thus vacationers into those finite number of weekday slots. And I'm not just talking about new resorts--I'm talking about people who buy small add-ons from DVC or via resale at the older resorts with the intention of using points for a few weeknight stays.

DVC members have evolved a lot over the last decade and DVC itself must adapt, too.

Personally I think renting points and having a means to that via the Dis Boards has changed a lot about how the reservations have changed over the last 8 years. Now I am not complaining as I have rented and because of that ability I have decided to buy into DVC. But I do believe there are plenty of people who own and just rent their points and therefore are calling MS often, changing plans, transfering points, etc. I think Disney is responding to these changes by making a little tougher for the business of renting. I also think this has impacted the availability and therefore the weekend rentals have been impacted somewhat. Of course this is just speculation. I don't own yet but and going through this thread trying to decide if I should be scared off. They sure have done a lot of changes here lately. Everytime I think they are done they do something more. I am starting to think BLT will be one big "gotcha" in a few years, with them raising the MF's and points.

 

[dd08]

And if one can without major disruption or consequence....more power to them. I think it's great that some can. Being sincere here.

And being sincere here....

Typically it's state laws/regulations that deem the "punishment" if any for pulling kids out of school......

You state you live in PA and that if you pulled your kids out of school you would go to jail. I stated I have family in PA that do it without problem.....

EDIT: Oh, btw, not encouraging you to do this. I'm sure you are a great parent, that is probably why you are so upset about the changes because you want to give your kids great vacations. Again, peace

 

[dd08]

I am starting to think BLT will be one big "gotcha" in a few years, with them raising the MF's and points.

You don't have to worry about them raising the overall points, (for the entire resort), they can't do that.

Now the MF's I have wondered that as well, that after a couple years the BLT fees would become more in-line with the other resorts, but somebody here did the math a few weeks ago and realized that because the rooms cost so many more points, they therefore have to sell more points for BLT, leading to a spreading of the MF over more points/members, thereby lowering the individual MF's per point.

Therefore will probably stay lower, in the end however, the MF's aren't really lower because you would have to buy more points to stay a week at BLT than say AKV and while you are paying a little over a dollar less per point, the fact that you have to own more points makes up the difference.

Long story short, it's not that big of a difference.......

 

[maminnie]

As I read pages and pages of posts by those upset and those defending this change, I can't help but remember back when I bought my second contract. I increased my contract by a few points rounding it so I would get a specific number of days during a specific season at my second home resort. At no time did my sales representative encourage me to pad my purchase in case of a change. We discussed in length why I was increasing it by a number of points in order to get that specific number of days during a specific season and he agreed. As others have reported DVC reps seemed to concentrate more on possible holiday type reallocations between seasons. Had he said you may want to add a few more points to cover a possible reallocation in a weeks stay in a specific season, I would have had the good sense and money to do so. At no time was this suggested or encouraged.

Prior to our two purchases, my husband and I also spoke in great length to our rep as well as staff members in quality assurance about many issues to insure that we were making a wise and educated decision. Neither advised us to pad our purchase.

I no longer can get the same number of days with my second contract or my first contract during the season that I travel and I too am very upset and feel I have the right to be upset. I guess Disney/DVC thinks I'm just going to run to them for an extra 25 points at each resort. This is not going to happen. What is going to happen is that we are going to complete are 2009 stay and then we are going to re-evaluate. It may be time to move on. The sad thing is I just had a conversation with a friend a couple of days ago about DVC and the benefits. I have since gone back to her and told her to put on the breaks and really make sure she understands the risks as well as the changes that we as members have experienced over the last years; increased dues, questionable housekeeping and resort upkeep, $95.00 fee for Disney resorts, extreme points for Disney cruises, Interval to RCI and the questions that remain, reservation policy change, wait-list change, point reallocation, etc. I have to agree with others that I don't know if I could strongly encourage people to purchase as in the past.

As I just said to my husband if I had just purchased at BLT I would be furious if my stays were now going to be effected. The place isn't even finished or occupied yet and reservations aren't even able to be made and the points chart has changed. I really feel for these owners even more so then those of us who bought over the last years with a specific point amount and usage in mind.

Oh well just another change to adapt to or sell as those have said we all have the option to do.

I hope that when I go to Disney this year that all of my family finally says they have had enough and that will help me make the decision that I think may be the right one at this time. Time will once again tell.

maminnie

 

[ldo]

Our kids get unexcused and get zeros for all missed work for vacations (even weddings)--and still must make-up the work. More than 10 days (including sick) can mean child is held back a grade. I don't know if they have ever done that for a high-performing kid--but my neighbor was told this by asst. principal for pulling her 1/2 day K out of school the last week in May! We had to cancel a family cruise (which was scheduled for college kids' break) b/c of elementary attendance policy.

 

[jamstew]

1)pull my kids out of school at the risk of fines, jail time, lost school work, missed sports, getting kicked off their sports teams ,etc

I would not want to live where you do if i want to pull my kids out of school
i do not want fined or face jail time. I did not know that could happen if you took them out for a few days.

It definitely can. It depends on the policies of the local school boards. As far as I know, every public school in Texas has a set number of unexcused absences allowed before the court system kicks in. Penalties for unexcused absences (not excess ones, just normal ones) vary widely. In my kids' school (they've both been out for over 10 years), they would get a zero on any work they missed and were not allowed to make it up. This included tests. In most cases (again talking only about Texas public schools), family vacations are unexcused. We strictly vacationed in the summer or during school holidays.

 

[La2kw]

In the long run, I think this is a good idea, and what some people seem to miss is that it actually provides more flexibility to trips.

Instead of the high weekend points more or less forcing people to either stick to Sunday-Thursday night trips or having to move because they can't afford Saturday and Sunday, now it makes the days more balanced. I don't have to look for airfare arriving Sunday and leaving Friday; arriving on Saturday or departing on Sunday is now a realistic option and opens me up to some better rates on airfare.

Once the dust settles, I think that most will find it is a better system.

IMO, the whole point of this is to get DVC members to buy more points. I don't need any dust to settle to realize that, or to realize that this was a very calculated move by DVC. I'm amazed that some people think Disney can do no wrong. I think the new system stinks, and yes I do understand their right to do it. There's lots of things that they have a right to do, but the DVC I purchased would have never exercised those rights. Fifteen years ago, DVC was much different than it is now.

We usually go for more than 7 days. With lower Sun-Thurs points, I was able to add extra days to my 7 day ressie. Now, I have to take one less day on that stay because I don't have enough points to add the extra weekdays that I used to. One of the things that drew us to DVC is the fact that you didn't need to stay 7 nights. Now DVC is moving towards that, and it is a stupid move IMO.

That's okay, I'll just stay fewer nights, and spend the extra time and more of my money at Universal. I no longer plan on adding on at BLT or VGC either. I am reeling at this latest screw-over by DVC. Add that to the new wait list procedures, the new fees for exchanges, the disgraceful housekeeping services, the glassware/coffee mug fiasco last year, the sudden replacement of II by RCI, etc. The way all of these changes were handled show a complete disrespect by DVC for it's purchasers. We are not owners anymore, we are just the suckers who purchase the points.

The DVC I purchased is dead. Jim Lewis killed it.

 

[chalee94]

So.......what you are telling her is that

"well, you knew the weekend points where higher but bought anyways so that's your fault, but the Sun-thurs people got used to this benefit of taking advantage of the misbalancing of points and therefore we have a right to complain?"

do you imagine she'd complain if DVC's market data told them that there was still an imbalance on the other side and they announced they'd have to make weekends even more expensive to keep things in balance? after she used the word "gouge" to describe the point costs that have been consistent for the prior 15 years and that she was aware of when she signed the contract, i'd find it difficult to believe that she'd just meekly "accept" it.

yes, if you sign a contract - all the while knowing that under the current rules you are going to be "gouged" - then it's your fault. (i can't believe that i even need to type that sentence.)

and yes, when point charts have remained unchanged for 15 years and DVC decides that the middle of a recession is a good time to make some alterations to people's travel plans, people have the right to complain. (especially on message boards - it's part of why al gore invented them shortly after he finished cobbling together the internet.) this is true even if they've been cruelly "taking advantage" of disney for bungling the charts in 1994 and not realizing they needed changing until now. i'd agree that they don't have any legal recourse - it's in the contract and legally binding that the charts can change even when they historically almost never do - but owners do still have the right to complain. (OTOH, BLT owners who were shown one point chart and switched to another shortly after signing on the dotted line may have more rights than that - that kind of business practice may provide a legal recourse for at least breaking the contract and getting their purchase price back - but that's JMHO.)

 

[La2kw]

And being sincere here....

Typically it's state laws/regulations that deem the "punishment" if any for pulling kids out of school......

You state you live in PA and that if you pulled your kids out of school you would go to jail. I stated I have family in PA that do it without problem.....

EDIT: Oh, btw, not encouraging you to do this. I'm sure you are a great parent, that is probably why you are so upset about the changes because you want to give your kids great vacations. Again, peace

As a teacher, I personally will not advocate pulling my students out of school. That said, my district does offer independent study as an alternative. With an independent study contract, our students are counted as "present" as long as the work assigned to them is returned on the day they return to school. The contract doesn't even ask for a reason for the independent study, though most parents tell their teacher about the trip anyway. If a child just disappears for 7 days, or has an unexcused absence for 7 days, then a truancy is involved. For my district, that means a district attorney gets involved if it becomes a chronic problem. Most of the time, it's due to attendance laws in the area. Absences can be a huge problem and in California, it costs the districts money. We get no funding each day a student is absent, even if they are sick. Even though the school still operates and the rest of the class is still there working.

 

[Chuck S]

There's lots of things that they have a right to do, but the DVC I purchased would have never exercised those rights. Fifteen years ago, DVC was much different than it is now.

Uhhh....you know there was a full re-allocation in 1996 at OKW, right? Studios went from 69 pts a week in adv. season to 80. Also there was a re-allocation to create the booking classes at BWV. So they have excercised this right before, why would you think the DVC you purchased would not exercise those rights again?

This simply affects all resorts instead of one or two.