Is it truly safe to rent DVC points? No scams?

[WDW4TheGirls]

I am a new to WDW traveler and it seems that renting DVC points is a wise way to go, but I'm leary about getting scammed! It seems that a lot of people do this, but I'd be concerned that I'd be getting ripped off in some way. Has anyone ever had a bad experience with this? Are there any regulations that protect the renter? What kind of info should I make sure to obtain from the DVC owner to ensure my purchase????

 

[Hollymom1229]

It really is a trust situation. I rented before I became an owner and I chose an established member of the board. It was a wonderful experience and on that trip DH and I bought DVC. Since we've rented to two other DISers and hope that it was a wonderful experience for them too.

 

[chainkid]

It is much easier to rent out your points as you always have control of the reservation. You should get paid upfront and tell the renter that once reservation is made it might not be possible for you to change it PERIOD. It is more a trusting proposition if you rent from someone else as you will not be able to contact MS to confirm you actually have a reservation when you show up. The piece of paper that you get is only good if the person you rent from honors it and doesn't cancel out at the last minute. I've only had very good experiences so far but their are incidents where people have been scammed.

 

[PamOKW]

Renting DVC points is akin to renting someone's vacation home. It is a purely personal transaction between two individuals. A level of trust is needed on both sides. The DVC owner is not a hotel that can absorb cancellations and changes so both sides need to be willing to commit to the original dates. I would guess legal recourse would be through small claims court and would be problematic considering people would not necessarily be in the same state. Cases of people being cheated on both sides of the transacation -- renter and rentee -- have occured but are few and far between.

 

[JimMIA]

I am a new to WDW traveler and it seems that renting DVC points is a wise way to go, but I'm leary about getting scammed! It seems that a lot of people do this, but I'd be concerned that I'd be getting ripped off in some way. Has anyone ever had a bad experience with this?

I'm sure there are thousands of rentals each year, but I have only heard of one person who scammed renters. A couple of potential victims were able to avoid being scammed, but several others were defrauded. One of the fraud victims got her money back, thanks to the skill and persistence of a detective in her hometown police department.

My personal opinion -- despite that one case -- is that the primary risk comes from not understanding DVC, not from scammers. Most DVC owners are pretty responsible people. But not everyone (owners included) really understands all the possible ramifications of DVC rentals, and that's where most of the problems come up.

DVC works best when you can make concrete plans pretty far in advance, and stick to them. It is NOTHING like a hotel reservation, and if you have any changes in plans, there may be no way to help you make changes. If you can't plan far in advance, you'll have to be very flexible because there will be limited availability.

Are there any regulations that protect the renter?

Sure -- the applicable fraud statutes, both federal and state. In other words, you are almost completely on your own.

Keep in mind that you are renting directly from an owner -- not from Disney. As a matter of fact, you are renting from a competitor of Disney. So Disney will not get involved in any way with any issues you encounter. Nor will the DIS -- the transaction is between you and the owner.

Renting is a great way to save substantially on a Disney vacation, but it is not for everyone. Research all aspects of renting carefully, and if you are not comfortable, don't do it.

 

[disney dumbo]

Renting is definitely the cheapest way to book DVC. Along with that benefit, unfortunately comes some risk. I rented from a post on this site... had contract, references... a great experience... but it was sort of uncomfortable to me knowing there still were some risks involved.

After enjoying that vacation, we decided owning was the best way to go!

This site has some wonderful people posting... like above. So I encourage you to study this site!

However, be careful... this vacation could cost you big bucks...
ownership!!!!

 

[JandD Mom]

I have been on both sides of the transaction. When I was the person renting the points I made sure the owner I rented from had references that I could check out -- both personal and professional. If the owner can't give you references, if you can't find where the owner lives and works, walk away.

Another thing to look for is someone who has been posting on DIS for a long time. You can go back and check historical posts to see if the person seems reliable.

I always preferred to pay a few dollars more, if I had to, to make sure I was renting from someone with good, verifiable references. It still saved me lots of money considering what I would have paid directly from Disney. If you are careful, you should have no problem.