Since none of us were actually in those meetings with the Wyndham executives to hear the information presented and the ensuing discussions when all of this was being decided, everything we come up with is speculation, conjecture, observations or our own personal bias talking. I think that we can agree that Wyndham's intent is to hamstring/eliminate the mega renters and point managers who made a profitable business out of taking every opportunity to make the most out of the ARP and book/cancel/rebook/upgrade. Do I wish that Wyndham had found other ways to do this that didn't hurt the vast majority of the other VIP owners? Absolutely! Was that even possible? From some of the things OP have suggested they could have done I have to say that it is probably very likely. But some of those suggestions would have made many VIP owners equally unhappy too.
As I've said in previous posts the few reservations made with our ARP never seemed to work out for us so I've only used it a couple of times in all the years we've owned. I've also said that we rarely plan anything very far out so book/cancel/rebook/upgrade wasn't something we needed or relied on. But I was told over and over how to do all those things by both sales and the VC's. Plus the website made it so easy to do those things even if I didn't need or use them.
How did all of you learn to use your Wyndham ownership? We've owned since before the website was even available and I only discovered TUG a few years ago. Those of you who can read the directory and are good to go are the envy of the rest of us! All I got out of the directory was information about the resorts and units and the point charts. Most of what I learned was from the sales people and VC's. I've said that we used to go to the sales presentations and owner updates because I usually learned something. And I will always be grateful for the VC's who were absolutely wonderful about teaching me. The owner website was available for awhile before one of the VC's convinced me that I was missing out by not learning to use it. I quickly mastered the website because it was easy to use and so much of what I had learned finally clicked. I could understand what I was seeing because it was all on one page and finding what was available was very easy. The new website is hard for all of us but I pity new owners tying to learn how to use their ownership with this new website, the wait times to call in and the VC's unable to be much help with anything. Maybe they are better off because they never knew the old website. I'm clinging to the hope that when Wyndham has accomplished their goals with this new website that they will find ways to make it more user friendly. That may be totally unrealistic but hope springs eternal!
We all know that changes to the VIP benefits was and still is always a possibility. How many sales would Fairfield then Wyndham have made without those VIP benefits? All of us who continued to buy developer points to reach the different VIP levels did so to get those VIP benefits. So yes right now many of us are feeling like we purchased a loaded BMW I8 and now Wyndham has shown up on our doorstep to take back that lovely machine and expects us to be happy with the bottom of the line BMW 2 Series that they are giving us in place of it because look it is still a BMW. And doesn't having a BMW at all make us feel so much more special than our neighbors with the used recent model Toyota Camry or the new Kia Rio.
I havent been in the policy meeting when they discuss "intent" and formulate the plans to make that intent reality, but I have been in the meetings where they implement those plans. You are probably right when you say Wyndhams intent with the new rules was to attack the mega renters. I think it was Chapjim that said it in one of his posts...Wyndham was really clever. They are able to say this has nothing to do with renting. Renting is still allowed. They havent spoken to renting at all. What they have done (they say) is to make the system fair. and they are doing it by introducing new benefits
In one meeting I was in, this comment was made...."You guys have a big
commercial operation going, dont you." and in another "This isnt about renting, it never was. Its all about fairness" and in other meetings, they spent a great deal of time having me explain how I used the credit pool, cancel and rebook and the timeshare relief companies to do what I do. At one point, one of the executives said, regarding cancel and rebook..."you have to know, that isnt the way that VIP discount benefit was meant to work"
And there are others here that had similar meetings and could tell you the same thing
So i would take issue with your statement that our posts here are nothing but "speculation, conjecture, observations or our own personal bias talking." Some of us really do know what we are talking about
It isnt that we knew VIP benefits could change. Even if we dont want to admit it. We all knew cancel and rebook wasnt a benefit at all. It was a loophole that we were exploiting. and we all knew it was going to end one day. Those of us that depended on it to make a buck, knew it and those that used it do get double vacations for themselves , knew it too. Or at least we all should have known it.. It was always just a matter of time.
