DVC owners.......please report when something is not working or breaks in your unit

[drusba]

Who's the best person to notify while at the resort? Front desk, maintenance? Do you also send an email to the DVC member satisfaction group? I certainly would fill out a checklist (Dis or Disney generated) if one was available. They've got 5 hours to get that work done between check-out and check-in, right?

For any issue as to condition of room or something not working while you are there you call housekeeping (it is one of the buttons on the room phone, and it iincludes engineering). Emailing a comment to Member Satisfaction is something that can usually wait until after you leave and something likely to be reserved for items that show real neglect (for example, I am not going to complain to Member Satisfaction just because a lightbulb is out which housekeeping will quickly replace but if the room is seriously not cleaned when I arrive, I would call housekeeping first day we are there and possibly make a complaint after we get home).

 

[Dizny Dad]

Many times at WDW I have encountered the "Users". You know, the folks that come with the attitude that they are owed something, or everything. "Hey, we are paying good money for this" was the comment I heard one time (as if the rest of us standing in the queue used "bad money" or got there for free). I sat in the hot tub late one evening listing to a group of people talking about the idiots that actually put up $50K or more to stay at the lodge, while they knew how to do it by having there brother-in-law make arangements for them. They eventually left, but their cups and towels and other debris stayed with me at the hot tub.

I just can't imagine many DVCrs neglecting their "home" and not caring about how their experience may affect the next family or DVCr coming to have a magical experience.

Unfortunately "The World" has its share of "Users".

I refuse to let it blind me to the overwhelming majority of great DVCrs we have met and who are actively doing their part in keeping the magic in Disney.

 

[CarolA]

I can imagine DVC owners abusing thier "home" because I have seen it.
The "we paid for it and we can do what we want" view is VERY much alive. That's the same group telling CMs at the parks that "we own DVC so you should treat us better" Apparently I missed the part where "buying DVC" gave you the right to destroy, but it's there. (I once watched a man who I had met earlier and who told me he OWNED 1,000 points load all the towels from the room into his car! I also saw an owner leave dishes at the pool. Exactly HOW the staff was suppose to know where to return them I don't know, but he told his friends "It's OK, since I am an owner they just bring them back" )

The behavior of DVC members and AP member is one of the reasons I RARELY wear anything indicating I own DVC. I don't want to be guilty by assoication!

 

[MELSMICE]

I just can't imagine many DVCrs neglecting their "home" and not caring about how their experience may affect the next family or DVCr coming to have a magical experience.

Unfortunately "The World" has its share of "Users".

I refuse to let it blind me to the overwhelming majority of great DVCrs we have met and who are actively doing their part in keeping the magic in Disney.

I agree. I really don't think that an owner would intentionally abuse their property, but the renters/users might.

I do believe that the owners take care of what they have bought in to & am thankful for that!!

 

[Entropy]

I totally agree with letting them know immediately if something is mission or broken. While housekeeping certainly should be doing this, they are under time pressure for sure. Don't we all keep pushing to get our rooms as soon as possible?

We always call right away. Haven't really had anything major. Once the outside of the balcony doors at BWV had not been cleaned in a very long time! It was remedied immediately. Other items were usually fixed/replaced by the end of the first day.

A simple call to housekeeping gets it taken care of rather than an angry call to management when the items have accumulated to a serious level.

I don't think that housekeeping is the place to call for repairs. When I last visited, I called to report a bedside light out and knobs falling off in my one BR at SSR. There was a maintenance number listed on the phone. They took down the report.
I don't think that our housekeeper spoke English. One came by for trash and towels, we weren't ready to leave so I asked "how long will this take?" She said Yes, nodded and walked away. So I wouldn't be counting on them to take care of requests.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Many times at WDW I have encountered the "Users". You know, the folks that come with the attitude that they are owed something, or everything. "Hey, we are paying good money for this" was the comment I heard one time (as if the rest of us standing in the queue used "bad money" or got there for free). I sat in the hot tub late one evening listing to a group of people talking about the idiots that actually put up $50K or more to stay at the lodge, while they knew how to do it by having there brother-in-law make arangements for them. They eventually left, but their cups and towels and other debris stayed with me at the hot tub.

I just can't imagine many DVCrs neglecting their "home" and not caring about how their experience may affect the next family or DVCr coming to have a magical experience.

Unfortunately "The World" has its share of "Users".

I refuse to let it blind me to the overwhelming majority of great DVCrs we have met and who are actively doing their part in keeping the magic in Disney.

I've seen that kind of thing too, but unfortunately, some DVC owners are that way too. Most of us KNOW that if we take care of our "property", the maintenance cost is lower. Those who don't think about that or don't care make it bad for everyone.

When we have something either not working or not cleaned we call the appropriate place ASAP. If it's a housekeeping issue (cleaning), we touch the housekeeping button on the phone, but if it's something not working, we call the maintenance department. We've always had great response with that at OKW. Not so much at AKV. I think AKV/Jambo is still suffering from being the "new kid on the block" at that resort. I expect that to improve once Kidani opens.

It always amazes me how inconsiderate folks can be of others when they are on vacation. People who let thier kids run rampant in the hallways at 6 am is one thing that comes to mind, as well as letting them bang pots and pans of the kitchen floor at that same hour. Do they not know they have neighbors above and below and next to them??? I remember once having a super ball bouncer above us at OKW. After being awakend by this several mornings at 5 am and midnight by this annoying sound, I finally took the broom from the closet and banged the handle on the ceiling. Miraculously, the bouncing stopped!!!

 

[granmanh603]

Last time I was there I hadn't gotten the paper plates replenished in 2 weeks(we were staying 3 weeks and only use the plates for toast in mornings) and had been reusing the ones we had so I left a note on the counter for housekeeping , it was ignored....it wasn't a big enough deal to call housekeeping so that is why I left note but I guess that was useless.
As for non owners staying....we sit in the hot tub alot and listen & talk to people and have noticed in the last few years more and more people seem to be non owners staying at the resorts.

 

[tjkraz]

I can imagine DVC owners abusing thier "home" because I have seen it.
The "we paid for it and we can do what we want" view is VERY much alive.

There's nothing quite like being at the front desk a couple of slots down from a member ranting and raving "I paid $______ to buy DVC and I'm not leaving here until I get (insert unreasonable demand)."

It would be nice to think that housekeeping would report problems, but in this case it seems the proof is in the pudding. Either Disney has a lot of mediocre staff (both front-line and management) in housekeeping or it's just not part of their job description. Letter writing is good. Reporting the problems immediately and getting them resolved is better.

On our last OKW stay we had a toaster that was non-functional upon arrival and a dishwasher that started leaking a couple days into our trip. Both were reported and immediately remedied. Over the years I've spent more time writing about it on forums than the time it took me to report the issues and get them resolved. It's pretty much effortless!

 

[BEASLYBOO]

I've always reported maintnance/cleaning issues at the time I noticed them, no matter which resort and happily all maint. issues were rectified within a timely manner. Other than minor mousekeeping issues: BCV (lipstick on mug and it wasn't mine), OKW ( dirty light switches/wall) and those I resolved myself. Luckily I can't say that I've ever had a villa that was so worn out that I had to be moved.

It would be nice if every unit was inspected with a fine tooth comb after each stay but that's an unrealistic expectation. Disney just like every other company, staffs at a bare minimum and gets the best bang for its buck not your/ours. It's idealistic to think that with the hords of people who frequent our DVC's that issues aren't going to turn up, let's face it we are no longer part of an exclusive membership, anyone that has the bucks can stay at any Disney resort.

The only way things get repaired on a timely basis is to complain at the time it happens and keep complaining until it gets repaired. If your accomodations aren't up to par, ask to be moved. We are DVC Members and we have a right to expect clean/well maintained units. Should we expect things to always be brand spanking new, no, but clean and well maintained is not negotiable in my book.


I was happy to read your post, and I remember your original post and I am in full agreement!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Last time I was there I hadn't gotten the paper plates replenished in 2 weeks(we were staying 3 weeks and only use the plates for toast in mornings) and had been reusing the ones we had so I left a note on the counter for housekeeping , it was ignored....it wasn't a big enough deal to call housekeeping so that is why I left note but I guess that was useless.
As for non owners staying....we sit in the hot tub alot and listen & talk to people and have noticed in the last few years more and more people seem to be non owners staying at the resorts.

The note was likely ignored because your housekeeper probably doesn't read English. That is why a call to housekeeping makes more sense.

 

[DonnaL]

We also always report broken or missing items during our stay rather than waiting until check-out. The only major problem we've had was a non-functioning toilet at VWL a few years back.....discovered it didn't flush shortly after check-in. Engineering spent almost an hour working on it and did get it working again, however, the next day we had a problem with it again and they needed to replace some parts. Fortunately, we were in a 2 bdrm so we did have another bathroom while they were repairing it.......which over the course of 2 days was several hours. However, as another poster said above, over the past few years we've also noticed there seems to be more and more renters. That said, some people, whether owners or not, do not take care of anything well. I used to work in direct sales and it was necessary to visit peoples homes and was sometimes amazed/dismayed at how some people neglect and abuse their property.

 

[DaveH]

We call when we see something. Our story is we were at SSR shortly after this building opened. When we left in the morning DW said I need to dry more before using the sink after showering. I thought she was nuts and we went to the park. That afternoon we returned and noticed we could see our foot prints from a wet rug. We called it in and went to MVMCP. When we returned that night, they had moved us and thanked us for calling it in. There was a small leak in a pipe in the wall. They caught it before it took out several units. It looked minor to us a small leak from the sink, it was not. You never know when something small may be something large. Please call in all things wrong.

 

[twinklebug]

People might change their attitudes about reporting issues if the units were treated more like car rentals. You can bet a car rental agency will notice every little scratch and ding when you return the car & you will be charged accordingly UNLESS you have reported the issue as existing when you first get the vehicle.

I do understand some issues may not be apparent at first, such as missing wheels on a dishwasher rack or a broken washer machine, so there are some things to be considered... and other problems may come along through normal use. But wouldn't it just be nice if everyone would speak up when they see issues to start with?

 

[wehavesix]

MELSMICE,

On our last visit, the internet was not working in our room. (Admittedly, this is one of those things the housekeeping staff would have any idea it was not working.) Anyway, I was on the phone with tech support for about an hour in the morning when they determined the problem was a bad modem. They emphasized that we didn't need to stay in the room to get the problem fixed. Supposedly they had written up a ticket to get the modem replaced. So, we left for some fun in the park. When we returned, someone had put a new cable on the table with a note that "this should fix the problem". I tried to get on-line. Nope, the same problem as before. I called tech support and spent another 1/2 hour on the phone with them where they first said there had been no ticket (I asked them why I had this note which said "this should fix the problem"), then they went through all the same diagnostic steps and then came to the conclusion the modem was bad and needed to be replaced, but by this time it was too late in the day to get a tech out to replace it... We checked out the next day and I wonder if they fixed the problem after we left.

We had the exact same problem with the Internet in our 2 bedroom at BCV in January. Same kind of response from tech support too. Unfortunately, my dh had some tummy problems and had to stay in our villa for a few hours one day. The plus side of that is that he was able to keep after them until they finally replaced the modem. The ironic thing is that my son is a very talented and experienced computer tech and he had already dxed the problem and told them the modem was bad. Still took a couple of dry runs and dh calling back several times to get it replaced.

 

[debaudrn]

We just had a short stay in a 1 BR at BCV. The master bedroom TV was not working properly-fuzzy on all stations but the DVC one that it turns on to. The dryer ran but did not dry clothes. Called engineering early one morning, went to parks, return to room and had same problems. Called again and someone came right up. After several attempts it was determined to be a bad cable for the TV and a second person replaced it. The dryer was checked and I was told the thermostat was ok. Tried again later and it still did not dry. Up to the laundry on the 4th floor at 1 AM to dry clothes. Next morning I went to the front desk and spoke - nicely - with a manager. She thanked me for taking the time to come down and let them know. Once home I completed the member satisfaction form online. within one week I had several messages from DVC on my machine. I was finally home last Sunday and spoke with them by phone. They again thanked me for reporting the issues we had. I booked a 1 BR this trip to have the washer and dryer. My 15 yo son and a friend were headed to baseball camp from WDW and I needed to send them with clean clothing. Then they returned the last nights points to my account! Totally unexpected and fully appreciated especially since our last night was a higher points Saturday. I was very pleased as I never expected anything in the first place. The woman I spoke with said often people don't report problems with the room or they report at the hotel but then don't let DVC know via the satisfaction surveys. So take the time to do both. It makes for much nicer stays with less issues for the rest of us.

 

[Sammie]

If you have a problem with the cleaniness of your room, or missing items, etc. call Housekeeping from your room phone, there is a button on the phone. If you encountered a problem as to speak to the Manager on duty.

If something is not working or is broken, do not call Housekeeping, Call Maintenance using the button on the phone.

 

[hellerjw]

We call when we see something. Our story is we were at SSR shortly after this building opened. When we left in the morning DW said I need to dry more before using the sink after showering. I thought she was nuts and we went to the park. That afternoon we returned and noticed we could see our foot prints from a wet rug. We called it in and went to MVMCP. When we returned that night, they had moved us and thanked us for calling it in. There was a small leak in a pipe in the wall. They caught it before it took out several units. It looked minor to us a small leak from the sink, it was not. You never know when something small may be something large. Please call in all things wrong.

We had a very similar thing happen to us when we stayed in a 2BR at SSR in October (Congress Park area). We had only been in the unit a few minutes when we noticed a mildew-like smell and found the carpet in the master closet was completely wet. Since it shared a wall with the master shower we figured there was a leak somewhere in that wall. We called down to the front desk, they apologized and immediately sent bell services over to move our stuff to a new unit at the Grandstand area. The whole process, from initial check-in to finding the leak to being moved, took less than an hour. I don't know whatever happened with the original unit we were assigned but I hope our response helped prevent a larger problem down the road.