Rented Points for October

[jeffmw]

First let me start out by saying I know very little about DVC or how it operates. I know Disney World very well, the resorts, how things work, etc., and have been many times. But my understanding of DVC is very limited, so forgive my ignorance here.

Back in February, my family 'rented' DVC points from a member and booked a trip to stay at the Polynesian in October. Needless to say, we now have very little idea of what's going to be happening come that point. And, even if the park is reopened, we don't know if, a) we'll feel comfortable going then; or b) we might want to postpone anyway because it may be super, super crowded with all the rescheduled trips likely to take place this fall and the potential restrictions on capacity, etc.

I have a few questions as far as what my options may be here:

• Is there any path to rescheduling that does not involve bringing the rentee back into the picture and asking them to refund or look for new dates, or will any change need to be facilitated by the person we rented from?
• If I were to call customer service, is there any chance they might be willing to help us reschedule, even if we're not DVC members? In other words, can I play the 'I know this isn't normal but is there any way you could please just help us?' card?
• Is there a possibility, under either circumstance, that we'd be able to push the trip back to 2021, or is this going to be something we're going to have to do in 2020 no matter what?

Any help here would be appreciated. Just trying to get the lay of the land to make the best decision possible. THANK YOU.

 

[erionm]

I have a few questions as far as what my options may be here:

• Is there any path to rescheduling that does not involve bringing the rentee back into the picture and asking them to refund or look for new dates, or will any change need to be facilitated by the person we rented from?
• If I were to call customer service, is there any chance they might be willing to help us reschedule, even if we're not DVC members? In other words, can I play the 'I know this isn't normal but is there any way you could please just help us?' card?
• Is there a possibility, under either circumstance, that we'd be able to push the trip back to 2021, or is this going to be something we're going to have to do in 2020 no matter what?

Only the member you rented from can make changes to the reservation.

 

[drusba]

Only the member can (a) cancel the reservation through Member Services, or (b) contact Member Services to make any changes. What rights you have if you want to change or cancel the reservation depends on the provisions of the rental agreement you entered into with the owner. You undoubtedly can cancel the reservation at any time, but whether you can get any money back if you do so, or whether you can change the reservation dates, depends on whether the contract allows that (probably unlikely) or the willingness of the owner to make changes or return money despite not being obligated to do so under the contract.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

They're not your points. Point rental is a common and popular misnomer.

You rented a reservation. Your ability to change or cancel this reservation with refund is dependent on the contract you have with the member you worked with. Your transaction is not with Disney, and Disney cannot help you in any way with this transaction.

 

[Sandisw]

My recommendation is to reach out to your owner now and find out what options may be available to you if they are not clear in your contract, or to see if they are willing/able to relax those due to this situation.

The thing about DVC is that owners get yearly points to use but at most, they are good for a two year span.

However, where the specific points are that were used for your reservation is only known by the owners, as it is based on the UY of those points,

Rentals save money but come with a lot of risk, and changing/canceling is a big one,

Good luck!

 

[SG131]

As others have mentioned, member services will not talk to you if you are not a member. You may get lucky and have an owner who's points are from the 2020 use year and isn't past their banking deadline and is willing to help you. But there is a pretty good chance that the owner's points can't be used for a 2021 trip. In that case then you would forfeit the amount you paid for the trip and could try renting from someone else. Your only option is to contact the owner and see if they can help, but with the way dvc points work they may want to help and not be able to.

Also, as 2021 is the 50th anniversary, I certainly wouldn't expect it to be less crowded then.

 

[AquaDame]

We're in the same boat (planned a week in October, already feeling cold feet). Due to the contract when we rented I am assuming the points are non-refundable as that is what we agreed to when we signed off on it and paid in full.

I plan on continuing to watch how things play out, but if there is an option to cancel for refund I'm sure it would go to the owner and not me. It sounds like the ones cancelled already went back to them as points, and in some case expired points if they had been banked which means the owners are still out their points anyway. It's not fair to ask them to eat it either. We can get everything else refunded or moved but possibly losing the $1400 does sting.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We're in the same boat (planned a week in October, already feeling cold feet). Due to the contract when we rented I am assuming the points are non-refundable as that is what we agreed to when we signed off on it and paid in full.

I plan on continuing to watch how things play out, but if there is an option to cancel for refund I'm sure it would go to the owner and not me. It sounds like the ones cancelled already went back to them as points, and in some case expired points if they had been banked which means the owners are still out their points anyway. It's not fair to ask them to eat it either. We can get everything else refunded or moved but possibly losing the $1400 does sting.

If your contract allows you to cancel and rebook, you need to contact the owner of the points as soon as possible. Their points have an expiration date and a drop dead date to bank the ones (one time) into the next year. If they miss the drop dead point, they are not going to want to cancel your reservation and lose their points.

 

[AquaDame]

If your contract allows you to cancel and rebook, you need to contact the owner of the points as soon as possible. Their points have an expiration date and a drop dead date to bank the ones (one time) into the next year. If they miss the drop dead point, they are not going to want to cancel your reservation and lose their points.

No, I meant it when I said it’s non-refundable. They are trying to work with people anyway if they have reservations during the closure which is nice, but I’m not respecting leniency, especially this far out.