Why is checking remaining days difficult?

[dtauer]

I had some non-expire tickets in our travel folder at home that I thought were fully used. However, because they had the water parks and more option, I wasn't sure if everything had been used.

I searched and read several threads here regarding how Disney will no longer give you this information over the phone unless you are lucky to get specific CMs.

Knowing this, I brought them with us on our recent vacation and asked that they be checked at Guest Services at DTD. First, the cast member looked at them and stated they were from 2005, probably no visits left. I agreed, but asked her to check anyway. She asked where I purchased them, and then stated "I'll need some id before I can check them". She then swiped each card, and did find a remaining water park/Disney Quest visit remaining on one card, so it was worth the effort to check.

My question is why is this a big deal? It seems like such a straight forward question that Disney could even provide a web site to type in the number to get this information. Instead, you are questioned regarding the tickets, and then asked to show ID? With 10 day - no expire - with water parks, I sometimes lose track of what's remaining on each of our family's 4 cards.

What type of fraud are they attempting to prevent by not supplying this information over the internet or phone? I think I'm a pretty honest looking guy, why the questions regarding where they were purchased and then a request for an id? I checked passes a few years ago as well, and sensed the same distrust. Anyone else encounter this "attitude"? It seems to be an easy task for them, but I feel like I'm being a problem each time I ask them to check remaining days.

 

[stargazertechie]

What type of fraud are they attempting to prevent by not supplying this information over the internet or phone? I think I'm a pretty honest looking guy, why the questions regarding where they were purchased and then a request for an id? I checked passes a few years ago as well, and sensed the same distrust. Anyone else encounter this "attitude"? It seems to be an easy task for them, but I feel like I'm being a problem each time I ask them to check remaining days.

They're trying to make sure that you were the original purchaser of the tickets. They're trying to prevent scalping/reselling/transfer fraud.

 

[FireDancer]

They are hoping you will give up and buy more tickets, it is that simple. It isn't about fraud because telling me how many days are left on tickets won't help me get into the park when I try to use the ticket with a different fingerprint. They can confirm you are the original purchaser when you use them.

 

[AJKMOM]

They're trying to make sure that you were the original purchaser of the tickets. They're trying to prevent scalping/reselling/transfer fraud.

Lots of people try to sell old park passes on ebay, and the passes say they are non-transferable. There have been stories of people buying passes on ebay that were not what they expected.

 

[chartle]

They're trying to make sure that you were the original purchaser of the tickets. They're trying to prevent scalping/reselling/transfer fraud.

This

They are hoping you will give up and buy more tickets, it is that simple. It isn't about fraud because telling me how many days are left on tickets won't help me get into the park when I try to use the ticket with a different fingerprint. They can confirm you are the original purchaser when you use them.

Not this

It can tell a ticket re-seller how many days are left and then they could tell the purchaser how to try to scam the system. Also the re seller could call with an unsuspecting buyer there and say here look there are 4 days left.

 

[dtauer]

Lots of people try to sell old park passes on ebay, and the passes say they are non-transferable. There have been stories of people buying passes on ebay that were not what they expected.

I understand that, but how does asking for id, and a general "bothered" vibe help that situation? The ticket I had with a remaining day was not checked against my id, it was my son's ticket. If the scan didn't match, it would have been rejected at the gate anyway, it seems like just more CM time to scan the tickets in person rather than allow me to check them online or over the phone.

I can see if someone came in with a stack of used tickets and asked them to scan them all looking for unused days that would be another issue. However, asking them to check 4 tickets, for my family of 4, seems to illicit the same distrusting attitude each time I've done it.

Maybe I'm just being too sensitive, but I sense a complete attitude change as soon as they find out what I'm asking for. I'm a very good Disney customer, but it seems like I become suspicious as soon as I ask to have tickets checked.

 

[JimmyV]

What do they do to verify the ownership of reeeaaallly old passes that were purchased before the implementation of the finger print system? I found a few oldies but goodies in an envelope in a safe deposit box that I put in there many years ago. The envelope says "One day remaining on each adult ticket. Child ticket fully used." Honestly, I have no idea if the statement on the envelope is true, but I certainly intend to find out in August. They are hard plastic passes from the "100 Years of Magic" series and have a date of 2001 on the back. Back in those days, passes didn't expire, and, I am pretty sure, there was no fingerprint system either. Any thoughts?

 

[chartle]

but how does asking for id, and a general "bothered" vibe help that situation?

This is the weird part, I have never read a post where some one has said that they got the 3rd degree when asking.

May ask, do you look like a Ticket Scalper.

 

[FireDancer]

It can tell a ticket re-seller how many days are left and then they could tell the purchaser how to try to scam the system. Also the re seller could call with an unsuspecting buyer there and say here look there are 4 days left.

Here is the problem with that...you don't assume your customers are thieves or are trying to rip you off. Well, I guess if you are the RIAA or MPAA you make that assumption but for everyone else it is bad business. You assume your customer is not a thief until they prove otherwise, you don't make them prove they aren't a thief ahead of time.

When you customer calls to check how many days are left on their ticket you go by the assumption that they are theirs not that they are buying tickets on the black (or gray) market.

 

[chartle]

Here is the problem with that...you don't assume your customers are thieves or are trying to rip you off. Well, I guess if you are the RIAA or MPAA you make that assumption but for everyone else it is bad business. You assume your customer is not a thief until they prove otherwise, you don't make them prove they aren't a thief ahead of time.

When you customer calls to check how many days are left on their ticket you go by the assumption that they are theirs not that they are buying tickets on the black (or gray) market.

Disney used to have a number to call, it was even in the ticket sticky, about 2 years ago they stopped providing that info over the phone and now only tell if a ticket is valid.

It must be enough of an issue that Disney has decided not to provide this info.

 

[maxiesmom]

Here is the problem with that...you don't assume your customers are thieves or are trying to rip you off. Well, I guess if you are the RIAA or MPAA you make that assumption but for everyone else it is bad business. You assume your customer is not a thief until they prove otherwise, you don't make them prove they aren't a thief ahead of time.

Not true. Otherwise, why would jewelry stores have thier merchandise locked up? After all, if you are a customer, you wouldn't be a thief, right? Why do many department stores put security tags on their merchandise?

Unfortunately businesses have to protect themselves from the crooks too. They cannot afford to do otherwise. Disney is a business. Makes sense to protect themselves from the crooks and scammers too. Unfortunatley you can't rely on people having an innate sense of right and wrong. Many don't and don't care to.

 

[stargazertechie]

Here is the problem with that...you don't assume your customers are thieves or are trying to rip you off. Well, I guess if you are the RIAA or MPAA you make that assumption but for everyone else it is bad business. You assume your customer is not a thief until they prove otherwise, you don't make them prove they aren't a thief ahead of time.

When you customer calls to check how many days are left on their ticket you go by the assumption that they are theirs not that they are buying tickets on the black (or gray) market.

Honestly, I'm fine with Disney not providing that information over the phone. What it comes down to is that you will ONLY need that knowledge AT Disney if you plan on using the tickets. Sure, it would be nice to know how many days are left, but honestly I just budget for the tickets I know I need, and if I have days on an old pass, then I've got money left over from my budget.

Removing the call-in feature cuts down on ticket scalping. The fewer tickets that are resold, the less Disney will need to raise ticket prices to compensate for illegal entry into the park.

 

[magicbob]

Last trip, I couldn't find the paper that I keep with my tickets documenting when they were used, how many days were left, etc. I just stopped by the TTC window on our first morning and they looked it up no problem. The CM might have asked me for ID (I can't recall), but she was friendly and certainly didn't have any attitude about it.

 

[Sammie]

You just got someone having a bad day. It's not a big deal to check them and most CMs are glad to do it without any comments.

 

[disnut8]

What is the big deal? So the OP was asked for ID. Everything was fine.

On our big family trip, we are going to take two very old passes that I know have two water parks/Disney Quest on them. I expect my son and his wife (yes, they were purchased FOR them, not BY them and the rest of the days were used by my son and his wife during that trip way back when) to use these while there. Will they have to show ID? I don't know and don't care. If they do, they do.

We also have a child's water parks/Disney Quest ticket that my now 13 year old granddaughter needs to have changed to an adult pass. Will she have to prove who she is? I don't know and don't care. If she does, she does.

Disney makes things right. I once forgot my Annual pass voucher but Disney was able to give me a weekend without it because they had everything in their system. Otherwise, I would have had to shell out a ton of money for my mistake.

Relax, it's not a big deal. Just go with it.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

I have sometimes asked for ID when people have attempted to add days to old tickets and suddenly the people had no interest in doing the transaction. Usually I was able to hold onto the tickets and turned them in. If the person is honest there is no problem, it may just slow things down a little,

 

[DizneyLizzy]

In Disney's defense, it's possible that they are just trying to protect people from ebay-ers, scalpers, etc after they had enough people being turned away at the gates with un-usable tickets and then complaining to guest relations.

Just a thought...I know it's a slight inconvenience to not be able to get an answer like that over the phone so I just try to pay really close attention to how many days I have on my non-expiring tickets.

 

[NEM]

It was even a tad bit worse. I had the ID which I expected from past inquiries. We are DVC with a family of 8 that travels in different groups and have been stockpiling tickets for our own use since 2000. We each put our name on the back of the ticket, and each is used by who started it. For years, I have stopped by guest services on the last day to note on the tix what was is left for the next visit. I keep them in bunches by "plus options only", partial and new tix and at any given moment I have these bunches with me. (also having scanned them and emailed me the scan in case of loss)

This time the change in tone/suspicion was definitely up and noticible immediately when I asked at guest services at the International Gateway. We but definitely got the new more suspicious attitude when I did it, but then I was also asked what was the last park I had visited and when to verify they were mine...and when I could not remember from last years trip, it got worse. I made a guess...it was wrong. Now the CM required a supervisor to give me that info. So we waited for said supervisor...who did not ask anything else...but whatever.

I was most irritated and asked the supervisor why such a big deal. I am DVC, and my family will come for the next 30 years...it seems having tickets in various stages of use would not be surprising. They mumbled something about "reselling tickets" and then gave me the info when I showed them my handful of partially used tickets that I have and have no intention of reselling.

It really left a bad taste in my mouth and took waaaay longer than it should have and that it ever has taken in the past.

And I dont know what my ID has to do with anything as all my tickets were purchased from Undercover Tourist and I am not sure they have my name linked to them anyway.

Anyway, I agree with the OP that the suspicion is up and it definitely is a new "vibe" as my whole family commented on it. It was definitely something we had not experienced before when asking to verify # of days left on a ticket.

 

[FireDancer]

Not true. Otherwise, why would jewelry stores have thier merchandise locked up? After all, if you are a customer, you wouldn't be a thief, right? Why do many department stores put security tags on their merchandise?

Unfortunately businesses have to protect themselves from the crooks too. They cannot afford to do otherwise. Disney is a business. Makes sense to protect themselves from the crooks and scammers too. Unfortunatley you can't rely on people having an innate sense of right and wrong. Many don't and don't care to.

And Disney should keep the unpurchased tickets under lock and key because it is inventory, just like your security tagged clothes or jewelry that is under lock and key. That isn't what is happening here. To make your department store analogy hold up they would have to assume anyone coming into the store wearing a piece of clothing they sell stole it from them (or purchased it illegally) or the jewelry store would have to assume when you came in wearing your jewelry that it was stolen.

If I want to call and see how many days I have left on my ticket which I paid for they should tell me with no questions asked. What if I am not sure if I have 1 or 5 days and want to purchase my tickets ahead of time for my trip if it turns out I don't have enough days left? They should not assume I didn't buy my tickets legally. If I show up and try to use someone else's ticket at that point, and not before, they should stop me and confiscate the tickets.

 

[seashoreCM]

It was even a tad bit worse. I had the ID which I expected from past inquiries. We are DVC with a family of 8 that travels in different groups and have been stockpiling tickets for our own use since 2000. We each put our name on the back of the ticket, and each is used by who started it. For years, I have stopped by guest services on the last day to note on the tix what was is left for the next visit. I keep them in bunches by "plus options only", partial and new tix and at any given moment I have these bunches with me. (also having scanned them and emailed me the scan in case of loss)

This time the change in tone/suspicion was definitely up and noticible immediately when I asked at guest services at the International Gateway. We but definitely got the new more suspicious attitude when I did it, but then I was also asked what was the last park I had visited and when to verify they were mine...and when I could not remember from last years trip, it got worse. I made a guess...it was wrong. Now the CM required a supervisor to give me that info. So we waited for said supervisor...who did not ask anything else...but whatever.

I was most irritated and asked the supervisor why such a big deal. I am DVC, and my family will come for the next 30 years...it seems having tickets in various stages of use would not be surprising. They mumbled something about "reselling tickets" and then gave me the info when I showed them my handful of partially used tickets that I have and have no intention of reselling.

It really left a bad taste in my mouth and took waaaay longer than it should have and that it ever has taken in the past.

If it takes so long to use your non-expiration tickets then you should ask for some fastpasses to make up for the time spent at Guest Relations.

Still better is, given that you kept track of the days used, not asking at all but just going right to the turnstiles. If you don't ask first and the ticket stops working before your own records say it is exhausted, then the chances of resolving it in your favor are greater.