DVC Interval International questions

[ljmiii]

Apologies in advance for the long post...and if the info is posted somewhere else...I just couldn't find it. I also tried getting an answer via DVC Chat...and they said they had no clue and I should try calling instead.

I have read the II DVC Buyer's Guide and I must confess it raises more questions than it answers.

My first question is that the II DVC Buyer's Guide says, "1. DVC Members trading with the Exchange Program based on the relinquishment of DVC Points utilize an exchange method, referred to as Request First, whereby they do not give up their DVC Points until an exchange has been confirmed."

This strongly implies that DVC members cannot use II's deposit method.

But when I go through DVC to the II/DVC portal the first thing I see is "My Units" which is empty and states, "Please contact Disney Vacation Club Member Services and request to have your Reservation Points deposited with Interval International. Once deposited, they will appear here for you to start planning your exchange."

*** So can DVC members call to use II's deposit method as well as the Request First one? ***

My second question concerns memberships and resorts. When I click to the II/DVC portal I am asked which membership to use...but even if I choose a membership that has only 100 points I can still "Place a request" for 340 points. And if I choose a membership that has three resorts I am not given the choice of which resort's points to use.

*** If I instead call to make a "Vacation Exchange" or "Place a request" (or make an II deposit), can I make these selections? ***

My third set of questions concerns II, DVC points, and use years.

*** What points can I use to make a "Vacation Exchange"? The current use year's points only? And if so, can I borrow the next use year's points...and if so is there a 50% limit?

*** Also, does it matter into which use year or calendar year I make a "Vacation Exchange" - i.e. if the exchange is into the next use year do I have to use that use year's DVC points instead of this one's? And lastly, if I "Place a request" that spans multiple use years and/or calendar years where do the DVC points come from?

I know that's a lot...and thank you.

 

[Brian Noble]

I would be guessing for the most part--an individual membership works quite differently, I think. But, if you don't get good answers here, you might try asking on TUG:
https://tugbbs.com/forums/forums/disney-vacation-club-dvc.54/

 

[ljmiii]

I would be guessing for the most part--an individual membership works quite differently, I think. But, if you don't get good answers here, you might try asking on TUG...

Thank you very much for the thought...but I asked on TUG first. Basically hoping beyond hope that I can avoid calling DVC.

 

[Brian Noble]

They probably won't know yet either....

so, here are my guesses:

So can DVC members call to use II's deposit method as well as the Request First one?

It certainly looks like it, because you can deposit points without making a request, in paragraph 3(d):

DVC Members may relinquish their DVC Vacation Points for a
future exchange request in a subsequent year. DVC Members
may request the future exchange by contacting DVC Member
Services no later than December 31 of the second calendar
year following the calendar year in which the DVC Points were
relinquished. For example, if a DVC Member relinquishes his or
her DVC Points for a future exchange request in a subsequent
year on April 30, 2022, such exchange right would remain
available for use in the Exchange Program until its expiration
on December 31, 2024.

If I instead call to make a "Vacation Exchange" or "Place a request" (or make an II deposit), can I make these selections?

I am going to guess that you can select which membership, but cannot specify the order of resorts from which to pull. I suspect II's systems are not well-enough integrated with DVC's for you to specify a priority for which resort's points to pull from a given membership. I also suspect the DVC Guides have an interface very similar to the customer-facing one. Instead, if they do something you don't want, I suspect you will have to correct it after the fact. I am guessing this because e.g. WorldMark's integration is also bad (see the fiasco on eplus retrades and HK tokens) and (b) Disney IT's general level of accomplishment.

However, I am not confident that if they pull the "wrong" ones that it can be fixed without canceling the exchange within the first 24 hours. For this one, I would write to Member Satisfaction and ask if they will be able to change which points were pulled if the set they pull from is not as you intended. Hopefully, they will do this but you want the answer in writing.

Also, does it matter into which use year or calendar year I make a "Vacation Exchange" - i.e. if the exchange is into the next use year do I have to use that use year's DVC points instead of this one's?

I am going to guess they pull earlier UYs before later ones, and within the earlier UY: banked before borrowed and borrowed before current. In other words, they pull them in date-of-(potential)-expiration order. I'm pretty confident in that guess.

Any II confirmation you make is for no later than two years from today's date. But, if you deposited current UY points today, they would be good for at least two years from today's date---and it's only two years if "today" is December 31st. (See the bits from paragraph 3(d) above.) So, if you had deposited your earliest UY's points first then made the request, the request could have been satisfied by those points.

This might still be worth getting written confirmation from owner satisfaction, just so you have it in writing authoritatively.

if I "Place a request" that spans multiple use years and/or calendar years where do the DVC points come from?

If I am right about the prior question, spanning UYs or CYs doesn't matter--points are pulled from the UY active on the day the exchange is confirmed, not the UY in which the host accommodations will be occupied.

 

[Brian Noble]

TL;DR: I would write rather than call so that (a) you have the answers documented and (b) the phone guides probably won't know and are liable to do what I did and make their best guess.

 

[ljmiii]

For this one, I would write to Member Satisfaction ... I would write rather than call so that (a) you have the answers documented and (b) the phone guides probably won't know and are liable to do what I did and make their best guess.

Brilliant! Apparently, my question should have been, "Is there a way to contact DVC about something you know is so arcane that the front line CSR you get on the phone will almost certainly be guessing?" By doing the search thing I was able to find dvcmembersatisfactionteam@disneyvacationclub.com Thank you.

 

[ljmiii]

Well...so much for that idea. When I get some free time I'll call...

"Thank you for contacting Disney Vacation Club®.

We appreciate your interest in an exchange through Interval International® and will be happy to assist you. We invite you to contact Member Services by phone to speak with a Vacation Advisor with regards to deposits, inquiries, changes, confirmations, or modifications with existing Interval International reservations.

Due to the nature of these deposits and reservations, we are unable to provide assistance via email. We appreciate your understanding."

 

[johnb3]

Well...so much for that idea. When I get some free time I'll call...

"Thank you for contacting Disney Vacation Club®.

We appreciate your interest in an exchange through Interval International® and will be happy to assist you. We invite you to contact Member Services by phone to speak with a Vacation Advisor with regards to deposits, inquiries, changes, confirmations, or modifications with existing Interval International reservations.

Due to the nature of these deposits and reservations, we are unable to provide assistance via email. We appreciate your understanding."

I think DVC is telling you to rent your points and buy what you want from Redweek