Please Explain the Details of Use Year

[Capo]

Can someone please explain all of the details and implications related to your use year?

Is the use year merely the month that your annual points reset? Or is it something more?

Thanks for your help.

 

[chalee94]

Can someone please explain all of the details and implications related to your use year?

here you go.

read carefully then ask if you have further questions.

 

[ToddyLu]

That is a wonderful explanation of UY and I have read it about 20 times....unfortunately I have had to read it 20 times. I am blonde.

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

I read the 9/5/08 updated UY info. (1) Didn't the banking rules recently change? I read another post with a percentage of points that can be banked...

So, if I understand this...I should make my UY closest to the vacation month with the highest likelihood of cancellation?
We vacation in summer. If we had to cancel a June vacation, on our end we would be able to reschedule July or Aug. (understanding possible limited avail. at WDW.) However, we recently travelled a long weekend in Feb. and think we might continue that. Living in PA, snow could cancel flights; thus causing travel issues and a cancelled trip. (2) Jan or Feb would be best UY for us?
(3) If I have to cancel due to weather conditions, will my points go into holding?
Thanks for your patience and answers!

 

[5forDiz]

I read the 9/5/08 updated UY info. (1) Didn't the banking rules recently change? I read another post with a percentage of points that can be banked...


Up to 100% of your Current Use Year points may be banked by the last day of the 8th month of your Use Year. If you have Current Use Year points that were part of a reservation that was cancelled that cancellation would have had to have been made at least 31 days before the check-in day or even those Current UY points would be rendered unbankable ( cancellations made from 30 days through 1 day before check-in date put even Current UY points into Holding Status )

So, if I understand this...I should make my UY closest to the vacation month with the highest likelihood of cancellation?
We vacation in summer. If we had to cancel a June vacation, on our end we would be able to reschedule July or Aug. (understanding possible limited avail. at WDW.) However, we recently travelled a long weekend in Feb. and think we might continue that. Living in PA, snow could cancel flights; thus causing travel issues and a cancelled trip. (2) Jan or Feb would be best UY for us?
(3) If I have to cancel due to weather conditions, will my points go into holding?



The main ~idea~ behind picking a Use Year is to pick one that allows you the most time from a scheduled trip to when your banking deadline is ( so you may possibly bank CURRENT UY points used in that reservation in event of cancellation ) AND/OR to give you most amount of time to reutilize points used in a cancelled reservation before the end of the UY ** note that Banked &/or Borrowed points are never bankable no matter when cancellation is made so those points would absolutely need to be used by end of the Use Year and CURRENT UY points would be rendered unbankable IF your cancellation happened from 30 days thru 1 day before check-in date of reservation.

A reservation cancelled on check-in date results in a complete loss of points committed to that reservation.


If you are in habit of travelling in July and August picking August for UY ( ETA )would NOT be a good choice because July travel would happen in last month of UY. June would be good choice ( banking deadline Jan 31 / last date of UY May 31 )

July is NOT a UY, neither is November, January or May.

If you want to travel in June or July or August then June UY would be better choice. If you want to also do some travelling in February as well as June, July and August then June may still be best choice because banking deadline for June is January 31 so as long as you cancelled a Feb ressie at least 31 days before your Feb trip & no later than Jan 31 you could still bank any CURRENT UY points used in that reservation AND/OR you'd have until May 31 to reutilize banked & borrowed points (& Current UY points if they weren't bankable) - - August will not give you much time until end of UY to reutilize points in a June reservation and you'd already be beyond March 31 which is the banking deadline for August UY & (ETA) July travel would fall in last month of August UY. February UY is not a bad choice because banking deadline would be Sept 30 so that would work as well for your summer trips & still give you approx 5 months to end of UY as well.

If you'd want to travel in January & February & June, July, August then December UY - - banking deadline is July 31 so cancelling an August ressie at least 31 days before & no later than July 31 would allow you to bank Current UY points & gives you approx 4 months until end of UY

Hope this helped some

 

[chalee94]

If you are in habit of travelling in July and August picking August for UY would be a possible good choice...

disagree with this. if you often travel in july, an aug UY would be a poor choice.

 

[chalee94]

I read the 9/5/08 updated UY info. (1) Didn't the banking rules recently change? I read another post with a percentage of points that can be banked...

banking rules changed a few years ago. as stated, the rule now is that it's all or nothing by 8 months into your UY.


So, if I understand this...I should make my UY closest to the vacation month with the highest likelihood of cancellation?


not exactly.

if you commonly travel in a specific couple of months, you want to have a UY right before that period. (if you mostly travel in june or july - then pick a UY immediately prior to that such as april or june)

if you travel at many different times during the year, try to pick a UY that comes after the 3 month period you would travel to wdw the least. (if you like visiting wdw in december on occasion, but would never visit in sept-oct-nov...then get a UY of december.)

you don't want to be in a situation where you commonly travel to wdw right before your UY starts as your options will be limited if you have to cancel after your banking window closes.

 

[5forDiz]

disagree with this. if you often travel in july, an aug UY would be a poor choice.

Yes you're right - glad you point this out; july travel time too close to end of Aug UY, hopefully disneydreaming comes back and reads through entire thread

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

Charles, Thanks - you nailed when we would least travel (teacher with two kids in school)

5fordiz...thanks again - I will go back and see if I can close the other post.

 

[fantasmicfantastic]

What if had a Sep UY and I borrowed points to make a reservation for OCT in March (7 months out), but I had to cancel the ressie. Would I lose these points even though I was technically supposed to receive them in Sep?

 

[Sandisw]

The points used for a reservation are based on what is available at the time of travel, not at the time you call.

For example, with a Sept UY, you call in March 2010 to book Oct 2010. The points you can use for this vacation would be "banked" 2009 points, 2010 points, and borrowed 2011 points.

Any borrowed 2011 points you used when making the reservation would have to be used by August 31st, 2011 if you had to cancel 31 days or more out. They could not be put back.

Now, the 2010 points (which would be current UY points at travel time) would be bankable if your cancellation was 31 days or more out.

 

[5forDiz]

What if had a Sep UY and I borrowed points to make a reservation for OCT in March (7 months out), but I had to cancel the ressie. Would I lose these points even though I was technically supposed to receive them in Sep?

When points are borrowed then they remain in the UY they are borrowed into; they can never be put back into the UY they were originally from. Same thing with banked points. So banked points must be used by the end of the UY they have been banked into and borrowed points must be used by the end of the UY they have been borrowed into. btw, MS will not borrow points to make a reservation unless you do not have enough banked or Current UY points in the UY during which the trip would take place.

What you mentioned above isn't borrowing; the UY during which the trip happens determines what points can be used - there may be banked points in that UY, you may have that current UY points available to use and if needed MS can see if upcoming UY points are available to borrow in for the reservation. You may always call MS for a reservation 11 months - 7mos+1day during your Home Resort's priority booking window and at 7 months to book at all other resorts.....you do not need to wait until your UY month rolls around before making reservation.

In your example above if you have September UY and call 7 months before to book a trip during October you are not borrowing points because those points will be from your current UY : ie if you called on March 15 2009 at 7 mos booking window to reserve a trip for October 15 2009, MS would 'see' that on September 1 2009 you'd receive your allotment of points for your 2009 UY (when your trip would happen) and so, current UY points would be used for trip on October 15 2009. Your 2009 UY covers Sept 1 2009 - Aug 31 2010. If you cancel October 15 2009 trip at least 31 days before check-in you would be able to bank these current UY points up to April 30 2010 into your 2010 UY or you would have until Aug 31 2010 to reutilize them. Again, if you had any banked or borrowed points in this reservation those points are not rebankable and would not be able to be put back into UY originally from so those points would need to reused by end of UY the trip was to happen in which is your 2009 UY from Sept 1 2009 - Aug 31 2010.

It seems confusing at first to understand the particulars but you'll get the hang of it & MS is very helpful too if you've got questions on what you've got available to book with.

 

[chalee94]

What if had a Sep UY and I borrowed points to make a reservation for OCT in March (7 months out), but I had to cancel the ressie. Would I lose these points even though I was technically supposed to receive them in Sep?

please be sure to read the link in post 2.

one of the most important sentences is: "Remember, use year has nothing to do with when you may call to make a reservation."