Rented points from Davidsfirst week of feb 15

[pachelbel9]

I think the decision to travel can also be affected by how one is hoping/planning to give birth. I gave birth in a birth center with #1, and am planning to do so with #2 this fall. As such, we cancelled our fall trip, as I did not want to travel so close to my due date and risk having to give birth in a unfamiliar hospital without the providers I spent a long time searching for. We rebooked for May. My parents are the DVC owners in my scenario, so obviously they were more flexible than David's. Of course our canceling didn't hamper their plans, as they are still going in the fall (swapped 2br for studio), and again with us in May. Works for them!

I like the PP's idea of offering a set price per point to see if David's is willing to help knowing they would get compensated for the extra work. It couldn't hurt to ask.

 

[magicaldisney]

forget about trying to cancel or change the reservation, I recommend that you simply try to sell your reservation. Maybe you can do it on this site or there are other sites that you can post it or even ebay. I just sold a reservation that I had for more than david sells the points for because it was at a hard to book time.

This is extremely disappointing to me. I would think this puts a risk on us as the owner? How did you even get the name changed on the reservation to the new people who rented it? Was David's involved in that? I'm curious if this is common practice with David's?

 

[CarolMN]

This is extremely disappointing to me. I would think this puts a risk on us as the owner? How did you even get the name changed on the reservation to the new people who rented it? Was David's involved in that? I'm curious if this is common practice with David's?

I highly doubt that owner rented through David's. He/She is most likely a DVC member selling a reservation made from their own account. As you know, only the owner can make changes to a reservation.

I do not think David's even shares the name of the actual owner of the reservation with the guest. Since David's makes all the contacts with the guest, there's no need to do so.

 

[magicaldisney]

I highly doubt that owner rented through David's. He/She is most likely a DVC member selling a reservation made from their own account. As you know, only the owner can make changes to a reservation.

I do not think David's even shares the name of the actual owner of the reservation with the guest. Since David's makes all the contacts with the guest, there's no need to do so.

Very true! I guess I just assumed since we were talking about the OP renting from David's that the suggestion from mpusateri was referring to the same thing. DUH!

 

[cbnsoul]

I do not think David's even shares the name of the actual owner of the reservation with the guest. Since David's makes all the contacts with the guest, there's no need to do so.

I've used David's several times over the last year or so due to a shortage of points. They include the names of the renters and owners on the contract but just names, no addresses or anything, so there isn't any real way to contact them.

David's staff is generally friendly and responds quickly but heaven forbid you need to make a change, even a minor one. I understand that if you opened things up to changes, it would be a nightmare to deal with constant requests for a day moved here or there.you can still have a blanket "no changes" policy but make exceptions in certain circumstances.

 

[Chuck S]

I've used David's several times over the last year or so due to a shortage of points. They include the names of the renters and owners on the contract but just names, no addresses or anything, so there isn't any real way to contact them.

David's staff is generally friendly and responds quickly but heaven forbid you need to make a change, even a minor one. I understand that if you opened things up to changes, it would be a nightmare to deal with constant requests for a day moved here or there.you can still have a blanket "no changes" policy but make exceptions in certain circumstances.

Unfortunately, once someone reported on a website that they received a policy exemption because of something, miraculously everyone wanting to change days would suddenly have the same reason. The information age, while wonderful for many things, also often brings out the worst in people.

 

[supersnoop]

I've used David's several times over the last year or so due to a shortage of points. They include the names of the renters and owners on the contract but just names, no addresses or anything, so there isn't any real way to contact them. David's staff is generally friendly and responds quickly but heaven forbid you need to make a change, even a minor one. I understand that if you opened things up to changes, it would be a nightmare to deal with constant requests for a day moved here or there.you can still have a blanket "no changes" policy but make exceptions in certain circumstances.

From an owner perspective, a stay in early February was probably made at the seven month mark, so the owner probably doesn't have the ability to push it out any. Plus, if she's at 36 weeks, the baby could come anytime in the next two months. Does she plan to travel within those next two months? Or is she trying to push out the reservation beyond 11 months? I honestly don't think there's anything that can be done in this case.

OP - this is a great example of when trip insurance makes sense.

 

[robinb]

First of all, congratulations on your upcoming little arrival...

Try to remember, David's is dealing with lots of owners and lots of renters and lots of reservation so while it seems like no big deal, in the scheme of things, it could be if they were constantly having to get involved with changes, etc.

I realize it is frustrating but unfortunately, for the savings you get with renting a reservation from a private owner vs. reserving through Disney, it comes with drawbacks like this.

Actually, the problem was that she did NOT rent from a private owner but from a company that acts as an intermediary. Most private owners, such as myself, would be happy to work with her adjust her vacation (within use year limitations) at BCV or to find a reservation at a different resort or to change the names on her reservation at her request. Sure, it's a PITB but once you have a personal relationship with someone you go to bat for them in situations like this. And yes, I have changed dates for renters when their honeymoon dates changed and they were very grateful.

I understand that "a contract is a contract" but there are legitimate reasons to cancel and attempting to vacation on Feb 1st when you are due to deliver on Feb 28th is one of them. That's 36 weeks when she leaves and her return trip will be 21 days before she's due. Frankly, I'm disappointed with David's DVCByRequest on this one and I have been a proponent of his business long before it was a sponsor here on the DIS. I remember when we could not even whisper his name around here. I hope that someone from his company will reach out to the OP and help her out of this mess along with some kind of non-disclosure agreement that she not mention it online.

 

[DebbieB]

If the OP finds new renters, I don't see the big deal in changing it. Charge a fee for the additional work. A date change is a different matter.

 

[LisaS]

If the OP finds new renters, I don't see the big deal in changing it. Charge a fee for the additional work. A date change is a different matter.

Part of the value to an owner in using David's service is the ease of the transaction. It's one of the reasons people are willing to accept less for their points than what they could get from renting them out themselves. I could imagine some owners really don't want to be bothered making changes, no matter the reason. The change fee would have to be high enough that owners would feel adequately compensated for being on hold for 35 minutes waiting to speak to a MS CM. (And then there would be some renters calling David's to say they have a very valid reason for making a change but don't have the money for the change fee and could David, just this once, waive or reduce the fee?)

 

[Sandisw]

Actually, the problem was that she did NOT rent from a private owner but from a company that acts as an intermediary. Most private owners, such as myself, would be happy to work with her adjust her vacation (within use year limitations) at BCV or to find a reservation at a different resort or to change the names on her reservation at her request. Sure, it's a PITB but once you have a personal relationship with someone you go to bat for them in situations like this. And yes, I have changed dates for renters when their honeymoon dates changed and they were very grateful.

I understand that "a contract is a contract" but there are legitimate reasons to cancel and attempting to vacation on Feb 1st when you are due to deliver on Feb 28th is one of them. That's 36 weeks when she leaves and her return trip will be 21 days before she's due. Frankly, I'm disappointed with David's DVCByRequest on this one and I have been a proponent of his business long before it was a sponsor here on the DIS. I remember when we could not even whisper his name around here. I hope that someone from his company will reach out to the OP and help her out of this mess along with some kind of non-disclosure agreement that she not mention it online.

Even going through Davids, her reservation is with a private owner. The point I was making is that when you deal with a DVC rental, you have to accept the rules and guidelines of whomever it is you choose to deal with for the transaction.

I agree that some owners might be willing to work with renters differently than Davids, just as there are so many different contracts and policies out there for individual owners.

When someone decides to rent a reservation via DVC, they need to understand what they will and will not be allowed to do based on the rules of the owner and/or broker they are renting from.

I realize that no one can forsee every problem but that is why you ask questions and you have a clear understanding of the risks.

I just don't think it is fair to criticize David's because they are enforcing the terms that the OP agreed to when she contracted with them to secure her a DVC reservation.

 

[LisaS]

I just don't think it is fair to criticize David's because they are enforcing the terms that the OP agreed to when she contracted with them to secure her a DVC reservation.

I agree. It is unfair. David's is a business and the rental is a business transaction. Just like purchasing a non-refundable airline fare to save money, there are consequences if you have to delay or cancel your trip.

If someone wants the flexibility to change or cancel their reservation, they need to book directly with Disney. In exchange for paying more for your stay, you can cancel your reservation within certain time frames. That's one of the reasons it costs so much more to book with Disney, or book a refundable airfare.

 

[Dean]

Very true! I guess I just assumed since we were talking about the OP renting from David's that the suggestion from mpusateri was referring to the same thing. DUH!

I didn't take it that way either but as I noted before, the sample contract does not preclude subletting it or changing the names so I still think that's a possibility and if they refused, they (David's and Owner) could be in violation of the agreement unless there is additional documentation otherwise.

I understand that if you opened things up to changes, it would be a nightmare to deal with constant requests for a day moved here or there.you can still have a blanket "no changes" policy but make exceptions in certain circumstances.

This is the issue and one of the problems I have with DVC when they make exceptions, inconsistency. IMO the only way they could proceed with any possible change and stay within their setup would be to contact the owner and see if they wanted to reach out to the renter directly.

From an owner perspective, a stay in early February was probably made at the seven month mark, so the owner probably doesn't have the ability to push it out any. Plus, if she's at 36 weeks, the baby could come anytime in the next two months. Does she plan to travel within those next two months? Or is she trying to push out the reservation beyond 11 months? I honestly don't think there's anything that can be done in this case.

OP - this is a great example of when trip insurance makes sense.

This is what I was saying before, that the chances of the reservation being able to be changed to a time the renter could actually travel is very small.

AI understand that "a contract is a contract" but there are legitimate reasons to cancel and attempting to vacation on Feb 1st when you are due to deliver on Feb 28th is one of them. That's 36 weeks when she leaves and her return trip will be 21 days before she's due. Frankly, I'm disappointed with David's DVCByRequest on this one and I have been a proponent of his business long before it was a sponsor here on the DIS. I remember when we could not even whisper his name around here. I hope that someone from his company will reach out to the OP and help her out of this mess along with some kind of non-disclosure agreement that she not mention it online.

I would disagree, this is an area where personal responsibility comes into play.

 

[robinb]

I would disagree, this is an area where personal responsibility comes into play.

You're right. The whole thing would never have happened if they were using birth control .

 

[tjkraz]

Actually, the problem was that she did NOT rent from a private owner but from a company that acts as an intermediary. Most private owners, such as myself, would be happy to work with her adjust her vacation (within use year limitations) at BCV or to find a reservation at a different resort or to change the names on her reservation at her request. Sure, it's a PITB but once you have a personal relationship with someone you go to bat for them in situations like this. And yes, I have changed dates for renters when their honeymoon dates changed and they were very grateful.

I understand that "a contract is a contract" but there are legitimate reasons to cancel and attempting to vacation on Feb 1st when you are due to deliver on Feb 28th is one of them. That's 36 weeks when she leaves and her return trip will be 21 days before she's due. Frankly, I'm disappointed with David's DVCByRequest on this one and I have been a proponent of his business long before it was a sponsor here on the DIS. I remember when we could not even whisper his name around here. I hope that someone from his company will reach out to the OP and help her out of this mess along with some kind of non-disclosure agreement that she not mention it online.

I don't have a dog in this race and even after reading the thread and gathering my own thoughts, I'm not sure how I would handle it if placed in a similar situation.

From David's perspective, even if you set a reasonable policy, how do you verify claims against that policy? Here we have an individual who seemingly does have a medical reason for changing the reservation. But imagine someone else reading the post wants to get out of a rental. They spend 10 minutes doctoring up some phony proof of pregnancy...scribble an illegible Dr signature...and suddenly they're due a $2000 refund on the rental.

It also creates additional work for DVCRequest and the point owner. Work for which they aren't compensated. And they could never offer a firm refund / rebooking policy because lack of availability or an ending Use Year could wreck havoc.

I tend to favor policies which have reasonable flexibility rather than hard-headed, non-sensical rigidity. But given the opportunities for abuse here and remedies which are contingent on many factors outside of DVCRequest and the point owner's control, I can understand why they went this route.

 

[Dean]

You're right. The whole thing would never have happened if they were using birth control .

Your words, obviously not what I was referring to. My reference was in abiding by their agreement with David's.

 

[Sammie]

There is a reason that DVC renting is the price it is and with that comes the lack of flexibility in cancellations.

I don't really see where this is even a topic of discussion, knowing that David's and anyone else that provides rentals is very clear about the policy.

Much like Priceline and other bargains are too.

 

[zavandor]

Changing the names on the reservation takes 5 minutes, the time to log in on the website and send an email to MS with the new names. One could expect such a service could be possible with a little fee. Maybe David and other companies could take this thread as a suggestion to improve their service.

 

[ziravan]

I just don't think it is fair to criticize David's because they are enforcing the terms that the OP agreed to when she contracted with them to secure her a DVC reservation.

Agreed. However, this does provide a new perspective for me. I have previously assumed that David's sets the rental market. Why charge less than $11/pt if you can get that from David's. On the other end, why pay $14 or more if you can get that and a guarantee from David's.

Paying less than $14 to a private renter comes with the trade off of buyer beware. Now, though, a new perspective. A private rental agreement has the potential to be more flexible in situations like this.

While it's not fair to criticize David in this instance, it does change the equation some; this does degrade some of the advantages of using him.

My guess is that most private renters would allow at least some accommodation here, contract or not. Even if they couldn't change the date, I think a reasonable person would try to help out in this situation, even if only by changing parties on the reservation.

An unbrokered private rental can be more flexible because they don't have to worry about the effect that flexibility will have on "company policy".

 

[bookwormde]

I agree that the no change policy if fully disclosed should preclude this from being a valid contractual complaint.

That being said it is poor business practice from a number of perspectives.

First is that it invites innovation and competition, since it is not "customer friendly" which is always important in any customer service business.

It is not hard to simply ask those members renting out points if they would be willing to make any changes if any up front.

Second is that it never pays to leave potential $ on the table. Charging $1 per point to check if reservation changes are available or to do other changes and another $1 to execute the reservation change split between the facilitator (David's in this case) and the member would be a major profit driver and appropriately compensate the member renting out for the extra work. And yes for those members who are renting out who are not willing to make changes then their points will be the least desirable to rent and likely bring a low return.

Some businesses are happy to just keep doing the same thing do to lack of capacity or a dislike of additional complexity, but in most cases those businesses have a limited life span.