Just back from BCV ... a tip regarding storage of luggage !

[DVCindy]

Hi all -

Just getting back this evening from 7 nights at BCV and 3 at Poly.

Wanted to pass along a tip to all of you regarding the storage of your luggage by Bell Services ...

We arrived 11AM after stopping off at Publix for groceries for the 9 of us for a week. Our rooms were not ready so Bell Services loaded up our luggage and groceries to store them while we spent the day at Stormalong Bay. Fast forward to 5 PM when we finally got our room assignment ... luggage comes up and we discover most of our refrigerated/ frozen food items were never placed in the refrigerator and/ or freezer !!! Everything was spoiled.

I tried to remain calm. We asked to speak to the Bell Services manager. He offered the give us transportation back to Publix in the morning to repurchase all the spoiled items and they would reimburse us. I politely stated that I felt that I should not be using my vacation time to grocery shop a second time due to their mistake. He then agreed to send someone to Publix for us that evening. We were asked to give them our receipts with the items circled that were spoiled.

Around 9:30 that night, as we were returning from dinner at Cape May Cafe, all the groceries arrived and all was well.
They did a great job replacing everything ... about $90 worth of food.

So the moral of my story is ... BE CAREFUL !! After all was said and done, I thought of a way I hope to avoid this in the future. I will bag all refrigerated / frozed items in brown bags at Publix , whip out a red Sharpie, and write in BIG letters on the bags REFRIGERATE or FREEZE !!! I'll put non-perishables in the plastic bags.

Hope this helps someone !

I know mistakes happen. I must compliment Bell Services for their willingness to correct the mistake and make things right !
That was what mattered most to my family !

P.S. Anyone have any questions on BCV ... we were there 6/20 to 6/27 ... I'll be happy to answer !

Cindy

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

That isn't the first time we have heard about that problem but that is the first time I've heard about them handling the problem so well. It had to be a hassle to deal with but how they took care of it certainly was excellent.

How was the rest of your trip?

HBC

 

[Rash]

What was the condition of your room? Any housekeeping issues?

 

[goldilocks_63]

and now handle it two ways....

1. I tell them to put everything, absolutely everything, including lugguage in the fridge and won't leave til they tell me they've done it.

2. Carry a small playmate, pack the stuff in there, and then put ice on top, so that if it sits out 4 hours it'll still be good.

In general, I don't think you should leave until they said they've put the food away, and now I ask for the name of the bellhop so they know that they will be on the hook if when I come back and it's all icky....

Sounds like they responded well to your issues,

Goldi

 

[InstImpres]

Cindy -

Glad they fixed the problem for you. It happened to my at VWL last year. I probably should have pushed the issue more but didn't. I got a "we're so sorry" and that's it. Since it was a solo trip it was only about $15 worth of food, so I just threw it out.

Glad the rest of the trip was good. Can't wait to be at BCV next month!

Sandy

 

[offtheice]

Originally posted by DVCindy
Hi all -

Just getting back this evening from 7 nights at BCV and 3 at Poly.

Wanted to pass along a tip to all of you regarding the storage of your luggage by Bell Services ...

We arrived 11AM after stopping off at Publix for groceries for the 9 of us for a week. Our rooms were not ready so Bell Services loaded up our luggage and groceries to store them while we spent the day at Stormalong Bay. Fast forward to 5 PM when we finally got our room assignment ... luggage comes up and we discover most of our refrigerated/ frozen food items were never placed in the refrigerator and/ or freezer !!! Everything was spoiled.

I tried to remain calm. We asked to speak to the Bell Services manager. He offered the give us transportation back to Publix in the morning to repurchase all the spoiled items and they would reimburse us. I politely stated that I felt that I should not be using my vacation time to grocery shop a second time due to their mistake. He then agreed to send someone to Publix for us that evening. We were asked to give them our receipts with the items circled that were spoiled.

Around 9:30 that night, as we were returning from dinner at Cape May Cafe, all the groceries arrived and all was well.
They did a great job replacing everything ... about $90 worth of food.

So the moral of my story is ... BE CAREFUL !! After all was said and done, I thought of a way I hope to avoid this in the future. I will bag all refrigerated / frozed items in brown bags at Publix , whip out a red Sharpie, and write in BIG letters on the bags REFRIGERATE or FREEZE !!! I'll put non-perishables in the plastic bags.

Hope this helps someone !

I know mistakes happen. I must compliment Bell Services for their willingness to correct the mistake and make things right !
That was what mattered most to my family !

P.S. Anyone have any questions on BCV ... we were there 6/20 to 6/27 ... I'll be happy to answer !

Cindy

My biggest problem with disney is the lack of communication between everyone that works there . PArks to the hotels and so on. You get different answers from everyone.

 

[nydizfan]

things that are frozen cant spoil in 5 hours . they can unfreeze but not spoil.. sorry cindy

 

[manning]

whip out a red Sharpie, and write in BIG letters on the bags REFRIGERATE or FREEZE !!! I'll put non-perishables in the plastic bags.

Hopefully they will read it.

1. I tell them to put everything, absolutely everything, including lugguage in the fridge and won't leave til they tell me they've done it.

Hope no one has to change clothes immediately. Brrrrrrr!!

 

[Patty3]

I am sorry that this happened to you, but am very glad to hear that they had someone go out and replenish your food. Thanks for the tips!

 

[kweaver]

Originally posted by nydizfan
things that are frozen cant spoil in 5 hours . they can unfreeze but not spoil.. sorry cindy

There are plenty of frozen food items that can thaw in 5 hours and turn into something unable to be used. Maybe not "spoiled", but not useable. Frozen waffles turn into a soggy mess when left out. Directions for frozen dinners say not to thaw ahead of time directly on the package. A thawed pizza...gross.

Refridgerated items should definitely be throw out after sitting out for 5 hours. No one needs to be at risk for salmonella poisoning on vacation.

The bottom line is, the bellhops were asked to do something that is within normal hotel policy and failed to do it. The management took care of this problem in a pleasant manner. Glad they took care of it for you, Cindy.

 

[DVCindy]

Our frozen items were definately unable to be used after sitting out for that period of time. We had 2 boxes of waffles, 1 box of popsicles, 1 box of ice cream bars, and a half gallon of ice cream.

HBC - The rest of the trip was wonderful ! We brought my brother and his family along for the first time - 8 year old and 14 month old nephews, and my sister-in-law who is 7 months pregnant. They were all troopers considering the heat we had during our stay ! They loved the BCV and the pool. Took them over to BWV for some pool time there and they loved that also. Brother started asking lots of questions about how DVC works ... maybe they will become owners some day !

Rash - Condition of the rooms was very good. Called maintenance once to replace 3 bulbs and repair the hinges on the coffee table/chest in the 2BR. The hinges were hanging off and sticking out and I was afraid my 14 month old nephew might get hurt on it. They were repaired promptly . Other than that, everything was fine, including housekeeping.

InstImpres - Sorry to hear VWL did not do more for you ... that must have been disappointing.
You will love BCV (if you haven't been already ) !!! Have a wonderful time !

Goldi - Not a bad idea ! Those cold clothes would have been very refreshing after spending a day in the hot sun !
Cindy

 

[Dancind]

This happened to us at BWV a couple of years ago. Only thing was, we didn't find out our refrigerated stuff had gone bad until after the fact. After we tried to eat them and had to throw them out, one by one. So another lesson learned is to check your stuff over carefully as soon as you get it. We now avoid this possibility by not doing our grocery stop until the day after we've checked in. Works for us, because we never seem to be in a hurry to get to the parks anyway.

 

[bwvBound]

It seems that you received extreme kindness from Bell Services. Keep in mind that every effort, including the initial attempt to store your articles prior to the published 4PM check-in, was an act of courtesy.

 

[tjkraz]

Glad they took care of it in such an amicable manner.

But every time I read one of these, I just keep wondering WHY this is so difficult!!! Bags of groceries are pretty hard to disguise. You would think anyone handling them would not only recognize that some could be perishable, but take extra care in clarifying the handling needs.

Sad but true: During our last stay, we were arriving around 11am and intentionally purchased only non-perishables at Publix just so that we didn't have to deal with this problem.

 

[Disney Doll]

I think how they respond to you has a lot to do with how you approach them. I know that the few times I have had "issues" I have tried to remain calm and come up with an equitable solution that seems fair, and they have usually agreed to it.

I think if something minor happens and someone goes to management with guns blazing expecting to have their entire stay comped...well, that's when the attitude starts.

I also think that when you speak to the "first level" person and they do not satisfy you, then you speak to the "second level" person and so on. But again, you need to make sure what you are asking for is reasonable.

In the OP's case, it was reasonable to expect the hotel to make good on the items that had spoiled. The OP didn't ask for replacement of the items that had spoiled plus another $200 worth of food for the "mental anguish". Thus, the problem was rectified to everyone's satisfaction.

 

[kweaver]

bwvbound -

It is standard Disney policy for the resorts to store luggage and groceries for their guests before/after check in. People arrive througout the day before rooms are ready (any many times rooms are ready very early...even at 8am) and before the official check in time. You will find the same service at most high end hotels (though most do not have kitchens so the bell staff does not have to deal with groceries)....especially those in large cities where people do not arrive with their own vehicles.

 

[Bugeye]

Given that so many posts complain about BCV management and staff, it's pretty nice to see that they handled this problem so well. The start of a trend?

 

[tjkraz]

Originally posted by bwvBound
It seems that you received extreme kindness from Bell Services. Keep in mind that every effort, including the initial attempt to store your articles prior to the published 4PM check-in, was an act of courtesy.

Bell services isn't a "courtesy", it's a resort amenity.

If they want to establish a "no groceries" policy because they aren't properly equipped to store such items--so be it. But as long as they continue to accept grocery bags from a guest, it becomes their responsibility to insure that the items are stored as requested.