Trip from hell update

[MiaSRN62]

Well, I contacted DVC, via fedex next day air in fact, In heard nothing in 2 weeks. Which to begin with I found stange. So I e-mailed and bascily said well why has no one contacted me? I got a call same day from Jackie Leuders who said she had been out several days and had just gotten the information. Ok fine. Then it got confusing She did not want to discuss the matter, as she said it was not a DVC problem, but rather one that the Beach Club staff themselves had to handle.

I did read the entire "trip from hell" post. Here's what ticks me off a little---regardless of whether Jackie passed the buck to BCV or not. Why so long ? You've been sitting patiently at home after taking the time to write and Fed Ex (at $12.95 a letter) her and she "just had it brought to her attention" ? Ok, so she was away for a few days, but I think you got blown-off a tad here ? A phone call from anyone from DVC even stating "Jackie is away for a few day but will contact you as soon as she returns" would have been nice ? Unless I missed something ?
Had you not made the phone call, when would they have acknowledged your legitimate concerns I wonder. I sympathize here with you --keep us posted.

 

[SwampFox]

Originally posted by twinmomplus2
Contacting Eisner would be silly now wouldn't it? I would imagine he would be far to busy.

So do I! But, I also feel that contacting Jackie Leuders is just as silly. I'd contact the person who has the ability to address the immediate concern. As I tried to outline, the problems you chose to bring to the internet should have been addressed at the resort itself. If you are really disappointed with Jackie Leuders' response, the next "logical" complaint should go to Eisner, since you feel that the resort has no responsibility to address your concerns.

You neglected to answer my first question-"So, you feel that anyone with a cash reservation at BCV should also contact Jackie Leuders instead of the BCV for resolution of any concern that they have with the resort?"

Why not contact the manager of the resort where you stayed? Unless you really feel that Jackie Leuders should also handle complaints from CRO guests too?

Take the concern through the proper channels. DVC is not the place to complain about a resort specific problem.

 

[twinmomplus2]

I had already spoken to The beach Club management, while at the property. And it was suggested the proper venue to address the issue would be Jackie Leuders. So I guess it is a matter of who says what now.

 

[wilderness01]

Well I can tell you that we had problems at both the BC (hotel room) and OKW. We are members. I did contact the management at OKW while we were there and also wrote a letter to the Executive Office with a cc to Michael Eisner. Of course I never heard from Michael Eisner. However, I did hear from the Executive Office (after several weeks) who said they can do nothing about DVC problems. It was communicated that the resorts were aware of the problems and that we were offered a "free" night at the YC/BC. I wanted the "free" night to be in a villa because we had used points at OKW and the BC room and I did not want to have to move from a hotel room for 1 night into our villa for the next 7. The executive office said "no he could not get us a "free" night at the villas because the DVC was handled differently and there was nothing he could do". Seemed like a run around to me! Plus really 1 "free" night would never make up for the uncleanliness that we experienced! I just wanted to make the Executive office aware so that cleanliness was a top priority. Seems that they haven't gotten the message yet. You live and learn I guess.

 

[trishy]

I think it's intolerable that nobody from MS contacted you shortly after your initial correspondence. Sounds to me as though your incident didn't merely "slip through the cracks" but was more of a "thrown into the round file". Obviously you handled the BCV problem with BCV management while you were there. However, DVC is the place you would also correspond to in the event of displeasure at the resort. DVC is the agent for our ownership interest. You pay your money not to BCV, but to DVC. This brush off is simply a "pass the buck" since she doesn't want or know how to handle your problem. It reeks of incompetence. I would not assume she contacted the manager of BCV since she showed absolutely no interest in contacting you directly after receiving your complaint. I would copy your complaint and send it directly to BCV management with an additional note referencing your conversation with Jackie and her "passing the buck" to BCV. I would hate to see another child hurt, or worse yet, die, because of DVC or BCV's lack of "interest" in this situation. Please keep us updated.

 

[jaysue]

Keep going twinmomplus2, the runaround is totally unacceptable, we contracted with DVC, we pay DVC, at the end of the day, it is their issue JOINTLY with the resort as well and no amount of argument would change my mind on that position.

Maybe you should start another thread for a petition that we can electronically sign and you can deliver along with your escalation and correspondence

Keep going!

Thanks
jaysue

 

[Dean]

You're response from Jackie doesn't fit with my contacts with her. I've asked her some tough questions and she's handled them as well as I think she could. She was willing to say "I'm sorry you feel that way but that's the way it is" when we disagreed on the appropriateness of one thing DVC does. She didn't do it in a bad way, she was just honest. I respect that. I'm not doubting your report, only that it doesn't fit my past experiences with Jackie.

As for it being a DVC or BC quetion, I'm sure the maint, housekeeping, etc are handled by BC and not DVC. I suspect they have a company (maybe a Disney company or maybe not) that handles routine pest prevention. I suspect they then task another group (? Maint) for the spot problems. Baiting is actually the best option overall because it should kill the nest. This will take some time and won't help you a bit but is likely best overall. I also wonder if they are even allowed to use pesticides in doors because of the smell and that some may be allergic.

Still, there will be ants. Anyone who can't stand that thought shouldn't come to FL. I doubt there's anyone alive living in an area with ants that hasn't had them in their house at one time or another. Of the DVC resorts, I'd expect OKW to be the most vulnerable and maybe BCV second.

Lastly, there are options beyond Jackie, you may want to take one. Maybe contacting a Board member would be best.

 

[twinmomplus2]

I have taken 12 plus trips on My DVC now and never have had a problem with any of my accomadations. I have never seen a bug that bothered me. However ants in sheets. are not a fact of life. That is unclean not merely Florida. I also will add I spent several months in Hollywood, Florida. And had to exterminate weekly for those PAlmetto bugs. So yes there are bugs in Florida. But, I again do not expect them in my bed. And they have not been in every other experience with DVC. My concern centered more on the danger of the Bench. And the future potential danger to children, Plain and simple. The facts as to the conversation were and are as stated. There was no talk what so ever regarding the issues outlined in my letter to MS. Leuders. She stated that she had sent my entire package including a copy of the original thread, which I had enclosed... to Beach Club Management. I stammered and said, Wait a minute, Why is that, This is DVC management, And I had a problem at DVC accomadations. And she replied that in fact any problem With Beach Club Villas, came under the heading of Beach Club resort. Therefore it was referrable to them. I again said I was confused as I thought DVC was accountable for Dvc issues. She said again this was not such, but, a resort issue, she said, have a nice day, I am sure they will get back to you regarding your concerns. I said , Ok. and that was the extent of it.

 

[Dean]

twinmomplus2, we disagree on whether ants in the bed are a normal risk of living in FL. True, it's not the usual, but it doesn't make for a "problem". I also suspect the risk for ants in the bed is worse at WDW since people may be likely to eat on or in the bed moreso that at home. Living in FL and as a physicain who sees ant bites all the time, I'm sure it's a constant battle for them. Any pest control experts FROM THE SOUTHEAST out there?

It sounds like your idea of who was responsible is different than Jackie's and I'm sure she knows the system better than we do. I too would have seen it as a DVC issue but if she says it's a BC issue, I'd have to respect that. Sounds like she was appropriate but jsut didn't give you the answer you wanted to hear. Did she tell you who you should speak to at BC, maybe you want to go there next.

 

[SwampFox]

I had already spoken to The beach Club management, while at the property. And it was suggested the proper venue to address the issue would be Jackie Leuders.

I must have missed the report where you had already spoken to Sam Pensula and he was the one who referred you to Jackie Leuders. It appeared to me that someone on this board gave you both names. Sorry, I didn't understand that the BC had referred you DVC to address the broken seat in your room.

Perhaps you can direct me to the post where you had already spoken to the General Manager of the resort and he directed you to Jackie. I would also have been very upset that the manager of the resort passed the buck for something completely within his control to address right at the time. I guess you really have done this thru the proper channels and your only option now would be Eisner himself.

Just curious what you wish to accomplish with your continued correspondence? Is there something more the resort should have done at the time? What didn't they do that you feel the need to involve DVC? Was there an injury where medical bills were not taken care of for you? Are you wanting complimentary nights in a resort, a refund of points, free meals?

 

[Pinnie]

Dean and Swampfox, I am going to have to agree with you both here. DVC issues are different from RESORT issues. As a member I would resent the fact that cash guests were calling MS for resort issues instead of the resort itself.

When I had a problem with a few maintance issues at the BCVs in July right after they opended, I contacted the resort. They were the ones that took care of it. I am more than positive that the CMs of the BCV, such as maintance and mousekeeping do NOT work for DVC.

As to the pest control issue, up here in the district I teach, we are NOT allowed to spray ANYTHING in our schools for pests due to allergies. I have a problem in my classroom with sugar ants and the only way I can deal with it is telling my students to be proactive and not drop crumbs on the floor. (I teach kindergarten and they eat their snack in the classroom).

I imagine WDW is covered by the same OSHA rules about spraying and pesticides. Sealing off the infested room and baiting is the way that it sounds like it has to be handled.

pin
remember the magic
DVC/BCVs 2002

 

[Mrs. Snowgod]

Just curious what you wish to accomplish with your continued correspondence? Is there something more the resort should have done at the time? What didn't they do that you feel the need to involve DVC? Was there an injury where medical bills were not taken care of for you? Are you wanting complimentary nights in a resort, a refund of points, free meals?

Swampfox, I get the impression that the OP is looking for validation from BCV and/or DVC that the seat problem and ant problem is recognized as an issue and will be addressed so future guests don't need to face the potential dangers involved. I hope she does respond so I can be corrected if wrong.

 

[invalid_char]

I wonder how long was I expected to wait for the bait to work? How long would you have waited? Or allowed your 2 toddlers who by the way are on the floor playing. Until the bait works? I seriously doubt that.

Excuse me, but I AM the mother of two small children, and I would still expect ant baiting to take as long as ant baiting takes. The fact that I am a mother having a bad vacation does not mean the ants will somehow carry the poison back to the nest any sooner. And, while spraying may make guests feel more like something is being done, it might be counter-productive for long-term pest control. Spraying is known to make these problems worse by causing the ants to spread out, thereby effecting more units.

What I was saying in my other post is that it is unfortunate you were given the expectation that baiting would somehow fix the problem while you were staying there. It is a longer term solution. I am also not trying to suggest that you should have stayed in this unit. They should have told you from the beginning: "Our only option right now is to bait this unit. You will likely not see improvement during your stay. Let's immediately try to find another room for you."

I am also not trying to say that there is no ant problem. If the baiting does not work, they may need to evacuate and fumigate at some point, but I am sure they will want to first see if the baiting works before taking this drastic (and expensive) measure.

I personally have faith that they know what they are doing as far as pest control is concerned, but if we collectively feel that the problem is not being addressed we may want to contact the Beach Club management and stay on top of what they are doing.

Dean, I am curious to know why you think the problem is worst at BCV and OKW.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by invalid_char
Dean, I am curious to know why you think the problem is worst at BCV and OKW.

I expect the problem to be worst at OKW due to the higher percent of ground floor units and design of the buildings. After that I'd assume that BCV would be next then WLV the BWV. Just the location and design along with the water issue. Frankly, I'd expect the biggest difference between OKW and the rest.

 

[twinmomplus2]

I never said I spoke to Sam Penusla, Is that the correct name? I listed exactly who. I had spoken with in my first post. Richard, Brian, and lastly Shannon. I fully intended to follow up with management when I returned home. I assumed that would be DVc management. I then recieved several replies, to the affect that PERHAPS... the proper venue to address my concerns would be, Jackie Leuders and was provided the address. Then I followed that advice. If The semantics are in question, that was and is the order of events.
I am not quite sure, how one person having trouble and is attempting to get some assurance of correction, is turned into a war of semantics between people.
MrsSnowgood. I waitlisted for this property, as I am a BWV owner. Why? because I had stayed there before and had a great time, Because it is a beautiful property, the kids love SAB, it is perfect for toddlers, I love Beaches and Cream, Have had great room service experiences there. And I would love to stay there again, and I am not getting any assurance that this is to be corrected, and as such will not be comfortable planning a stay here again. If I did then I would feel comfortable staying here again.

To all who think I am unreasonable, I firmly believe if your children were getting bit or getting hurt, It somehow would be a whole different ball game. I will no longer Validate these responses as they are foolish. The lesson I have learned here on this board is 2 fold. 1) I will post in the future any thing I feel is of a concern to other familys. 2) In the future, if I am to have a problem in DVC accomadations, I will demand the fixing of the situation asap. And will not say oh, Its ok, I am fine. So I guess if you are nasty... people are more apt to help you, to shut you up. If your kind and accomadating you get railroaded. Pretty sad.

 

[floridafam]

I think you did a great service by posting about your problems at BCV. You were very informative in your posts.

I took it for what it was: you had a valid problem and you relayed your experiences with that problem in this forum. You never seemed unreasonable or that you were looking for freebies.

Where does the "looking for free nights, free meals, etc." comment come from in some other posts? This sounded rude to me. Maybe I read it wrong or it was hard to convey the proper emotion on a chat board, but ggez.

The OP was keeping us informed of the follow up to her problem and it's being insinuated that she may be doing this for compensation of some sort.

I believe she stated she wanted to see the problem corrected, period.

I continue to be amazed by the responses people get when they have problems at a DVC resort. Often, they are made to sound like the "bad guy".

Are we only allowed to post glowing reports on here?

 

[MiaSRN62]

I took it for what it was: you had a valid problem and you relayed your experiences with that problem in this forum. You never seemed unreasonable or that you were looking for freebies.

I agree.....I also felt some of the replies were a tad harsh, but this is norm for the boards. I've been in your seat before in the past, so I know.
Anyway, wanted to thank you for bringing all of these issues to the attention of us all. I hope that you will brave some of the harsh criticism and post an update to the boards when and if you eventually get some closure. Thanks

 

[Bella2000]

Yikes! I read the original 2 posts and this one. I am the poster who mentioned the GM Sam's name. I feel compelled to write because I think things are getting kind of blown out of proportion in response to the OP and her posts. I interpreted the poster as having some issues with her stay at BCV and specifically the issue of the bench at the table and the ants were warnings which I for one really appreciated. Both DH and I read it and thought whew that could have been our 3 year old. IMHO, the OP wrote about her "trip from hell" with much humour and grace. The title and trip appear to be interpreted at times as a denouncement of DVC but I think many would have called her trip that if she recounted it to you verbally. She basically wrote a minitrip report posted on DVC to point out some of the issues which related to DVC Resort. Many posters told her to contact Jackie. This wasn't done in a bubble. It appeared to be sound advice which I have also followed in the past. I understand with email that with the lack of facial expressions and tone the poster meaning isn't always properly conveyed but the responses sometimes here are the reason I lurked for 1 yr and a half before joining. I think everyone here has wonderful advice and feedback and while I may not agree with some opinions or ideas I think sometimes the line gets crossed and some things come across as attacking. This board is fantastic. If anyone has seen the movie Pay It Forward - I think there is that feeling about DVC with people here. I personally have found info invaluable I feel it's important for me to impart some info that I have found to another person on the board since I have found so much info here helpful. I think this OP was trying to do the same. Whether you can handle bugs or not, whether bugs are in Florida or not wasn't the issue in my reading of the posts. It was that they had two significant issues during their DVC stay that could effect others. If you look further in the posts others have replied about the benches as well. Okay off my soapbox but I needed to say that because I'm one of those Missouri "show-me" types also but I was beginning to feel like the OP was on trial and we were all the prosecuting attorney "Show me when you wrote this, tell me who you did this to etc etc." The intent may just be for clarification however it reads like censure. Okay my last opinion. I offered Sam Pensula's name as another alternative but in the name of Disney customer service and anyone who has attended many of the Disney Institutes programs for work can vouch for this - in customer service the customer should not have to run around to find the correct voice to speak to - the BCV and DVC should be working in conjunction with each other on satisfaction issues. In my business if work is contracted out to others the final buck does still stop with me. To answer the question should a renter contact Jackie. Well Jackie is a DVC contact and if you are not a DVC member you do not have the privilege however I would absolutely suggest that they notify the person they rented from as an FYI since I'm sure that member would want to monitor something like that in the future under their watch

(edited to clarify one of my sentences and fix a typo.)

 

[Pa@okw95]

Ants are a normal part of living in Florida??They have alligators there also!! Does this mean that alligators in the swimming pool should be an acceptable circumstance of staying at a resort in Florida?? People pay anywhere from $250 to nearly a $1000 a night to stay in these places. I am really beginning to wonder about some standards that people have here. Then there is the debate over is the ant problem a resort problem or a DVC problem. You have all got to be kidding. The fact is that the place is loaded with ants from just the few posts we have on this little site, there has been 4 reports of ants at BCV. I have to wonder how many ant problems there are in total and why BC management is allowing this to go on. There is no excuse for this ant situation, it is no different than an alligator in the swimming pool, they should take care of it immediately.

 

[Sammie]

Originally posted by Pa@okw95
Ants are a normal part of living in Florida??They have alligators there also!! Does this mean that alligators in the swimming pool should be an acceptable circumstance of staying at a resort in Florida?? People pay anywhere from $250 to nearly a $1000 a night to stay in these places. I am really beginning to wonder about some standards that people have here. Then there is the debate over is the ant problem a resort problem or a DVC problem. You have all got to be kidding. The fact is that the place is loaded with ants from just the few posts we have on this little site, there has been 4 reports of ants at BCV. I have to wonder how many ant problems there are in total and why BC management is allowing this to go on. There is no excuse for this ant situation, it is no different than an alligator in the swimming pool, they should take care of it immediately.

I agree that any pest problem should be dealt with.

However I really don't think a few reports warrants stating the "place is loaded with ants". The car report was last August, so that is not a current concern.

As to the BC management allowing this to go, what makes you so sure they are not addressing the problem. Have you contacted them directly and asked if they are ignoring the problem, or did you come to the conclusion from reading Internet forums.

The problem with forums is you only get one side of the problem or solution for that matter.

It does amaze me that people who will not go anywhere else for their vacations are also so very quick to think the worst of those running the place. Does not make sense to me.