II XYZ is dead or at least dying

[heathpack]

Or so I predict.

I booked an XYZ exchange Tuesday of this week into Planet Hollywood for the week of Dec 9. Receive a confirmation that day.

Thursday I get a VM from II to call them in reference to the Reservation. The call is from Miami, I am in LA, and they leave the VM when I am at work. I actually get out of the office early to leave on a business trip & call them back around 4pm PST. The rep who called me from Miami is not in, I speak to another rep who does know what the call was about but assures me all is well with the reservation and evens sends me another confirmation.

The next day, while I am at my conference, I get another VM telling me to call II urgently about the reservation.

I return the call, do not have much time, but learn II has CANCELLED my XYZ because they claim they booked it in error, you cannot book an XYZ of a replacement week. Which is news to me and certainly not something I've ever heard before (not to mention I've actually booked XYZs off replacement weeks before).

"Unacceptable," I tell rep, "you made the mistake, we now have 4 sets of plane tickets purchased. There is absolutely no way I could knowingly violate the terms of XYZ since none are published. Therefore, the only possible mistake is at your end."

Then the rep actually tries to tell me my only option is to purchase the week as a Getaway.

"Unacceptable. The only answer to this from a customer service perspective is to leave my reservation intact and work on XYZ training on your end."

The rep replies that they have already cancelled my reservation and refunded my exchange fee, and AGAIN offers to sell me the Getaway week.

"Look, this is completely unacceptable. You all made the mistake. Either give me the week back or reimburse me for the four plane tickets. I do not have the time to discuss further, I need to get back to my conference."

The actual conversation was much longer, I am paraphrasing lest you all think I was blowing II rep off.

Rep tells me he will "see what he can do."

Fifteen minutes later I get a VM telling me the reservation is restored and I get another confirmation by email a few minutes later. I have not had a chance to call them back, but it seems my original reservation is restored. I will call and find out what gives, no idea why a replacement week cannot be used for an XYZ, it's not like I booked and XYZ off the original reservation or anything like that.

So my assessment is that XYZ is all but dead. II is now auditing these bookings after the fact, which suggests they feel customers have been given more than their due by reps. They will even cancel people's bookings after the fact (this recently happened to another TUGger with a Tahoe reservation, see XYZ thread in sighting forum), which means they think there is a serious enough problem to effectively flip customers the bird if necessary (pardon my French). Of course if II does this, customers will be very angry and they will complain. The whole thing will become a very big hassle for II and the program will be gone or greatly diminished within the next 6 months, I predict.

Ah, XYZ, it was good while it lasted.

H

 

[zinger1457]

I never looked at XYZ as being a permanent offering, it's just another tool that II uses to dump unused weeks for a few dollars, similar to AC certificates which they seem to hand out like candy. I think we'll continue to see it in one form or another as long as they have inventory that's going unused. I just made a XYZ reservation 2 weeks ago from a 2012 exchange. Got the confirmation and my credit card has been charged so it looks good to go, guess I'll just have to wait and see.

 

[TSPam]

Hi,
I was told by my II guy that you can not book an XYZ from a replacement week so if I need to cancel to do a re-exchange so that the original deposit still remains. He said that I had to re-exchange before 60 days before the check in date because if in flexchange they have to make it a replacement week and then no XYZ. Also, an XYZ "could" be cancelled if the exchange was cancelled.

 

[heathpack]

Hi,
I was told by my II guy that you can not book an XYZ from a replacement week so if I need to cancel to do a re-exchange so that the original deposit still remains. He said that I had to re-exchange before 60 days before the check in date because if in flexchange they have to make it a replacement week and then no XYZ. Also, an XYZ "could" be cancelled if the exchange was cancelled.

How would you cancel and then do a re-exchange such that the original deposit remains? Once you book an exchange your original deposit is gone and then you are issued a replacement week if you cancel, right?

Just to clarify, I booked an exchange, cancelled it and booked another exchange to take place next April. This happened sometime during the summer. Then this week, I booked an XYZ off the replacement week. There was never any danger of flexchange and I did not book the exchange and the XYZ and then cancel the original exchange (which, as I understand it, would have caused the the XYZ to be cancellled). I never booked an XYZ off the original exchange (until a few days ago). In essence, II got 2 exchange fees
out of one deposit so they came out ahead, then for some reason want to say I can't book an XYZ off this. I don't get the logic of that, but honestly they don't have to explain the logic of it to me- but if that's the rule they need to either tell me or tell their rep, and if they don't do either, they need to honor my XYZ reservation.

H

 

[sail27bill]

Heathpack--I am glad you were able to convince II to honor your reservation. I would have argued too. Having a week cancelled on you through no fault of your own is plain wrong.

I agree that II needs to inform their reps across the board if there are certain restrictions before an xyz can be issued. Auditing and cancelling the week afterwards because the client was unaware of internal rules is silly.

As you are aware, I have had multiple reps tell me different things and I am totally sympathetic to your situation. Going forward however, I really hope II keeps some kind of xyz program in place. It is a great program and I would hate to see it go.

Anita

 

[TSPam]

Hi
the way that I understood it is that if I re-trade (call up and ask for a different exchange than the one I have) then the new exchange is still associated with the original deposit. (and so any XYZ associated will not be affected) and I could get an XYZ

I am assuming that they may have the no XYZ on a replacement week so that they don't have to hunt down to see if you had an XYZ on the original week and ALREADY TOOK it before the cancellation.

I am very grateful that II has XYZ and though I'm never exactly sure how it works it is still worth it to me

 

[VacationForever]

Heathpack, a couple of weeks ago when I booked my XYZ against a replacement week the agent went through the whole process and at the end of it, the system did not allow the transaction to go through. He checked with his supervisor and came back to inform me that replacement weeks are not eligible for XYZ. I then had to use a different week to complete the booking.

I cancelled a "request first" a couple of days ago and discussed with the agent regarding replacement week not being eligible for XYZ and she said to make sure not to cancel a booking but do a re-trade instead. In other words do not cancel a week but wait till something else that I want shows up to then call II to do a re-trade. She also confirmed that replacement has poorer trading power which I had discovered when I was trading it for another week. Re-trade retains the original trading power.

 

[alohakevin]

What is an AC cert? Is there a way to know xyz location available before making reserv? Is that grid mentioned a good overview of what might be available? Thanks for input

 

[momeason]

An AC is an Accomodation Certificate. I have never received one so I cannot explain how it works.
You need to do a search for available units before you call to XYZ. Of course it helps to know what the time frame is so you can call first to find out how far out you can go. I do a search for all available destinations and pick something that suits my fancy. Then call II and book it.

 

[Picker57]

Is there ANYWHERE in the I.I. website that mentions XYZ? I'm one of the 'immigrants' into I.I. via SVC, and I'm still confused on this item.

Thanks,
Zach

 

[jpc763]

Is there ANYWHERE in the I.I. website that mentions XYZ? I'm one of the 'immigrants' into I.I. via SVC, and I'm still confused on this item.

Thanks,
Zach

Not that I have ever found. I heard about it here and it seems the only way to get one is to call. I have called and talked to the Rep about it and it does exist, but I did not pull the trigger on it at that time. I still have time though and am waiting for the summer grid to open.

 

[rickandcindy23]

I doubt II will offer XYZ weeks to Shell, because we have that stupid portal. I really believe Shell will not battle to get this benefit for us, specifically because Shell won't know of its existence, nor is it written as a benefit anywhere on II's site.

My understanding of XYZ is the exchange has to be over and done, already used, and past the date, for the XYZ week to go through. Is that not the case?

 

[Picker57]

Yep, that's the feeling I've had as well, given the fact that neither outfit mentions it "publicly". So.....is this kind of an "after the fact", "thanks for your business" sort of bonus week?

-----ZK

 

[jdunn1]

XYZ exchanges are great, if you can get them. All policies regarding these bonus exchanges are kept in house by II and from my experience this past year, II keeps changing the rules. With my first XYZ, I had 24 hours to cancel, but now all sales are final. XYZ is a kind of 2 for 1 special. You give II a nice deposit and II will give you an exchange for just the $159 exchange fee to certain over supplied resort areas. Orlando is usually the safest bet and I thought Vegas was always a safe bet. II reps will refer to a grid that tells the reps what resorts and what areas and what weeks are available. There used to be far less restrictions than there are now. An XYZ exchange has to be attached to an existing exchange in II. Also, if you gave up a one bedroom and received a 2 bedroom in exchange with you home week, then whatever XYZ exchange you are able to get cannot be in any size unit larger than a one bedroom. If you gave up a two bedroom, then you can get a two bedroom via an XYZ exchange.

I've had good luck with the XZY program, but it is getting very restrictive. Also, I just found out that only certain resort brands qualify. Marriott and WorldMark qualify, and I think Starwood, too. I only own Marriott and WorldMark, so I can only speak about those two brands.

Good luck, but unless you are happy with Vegas or Olando, most other areas of the country are only available in off season and possibly some part of shoulder season and NO HOLIDAYS. Your XYZ exchange cannot be within 24 hours of any holiday. And, if you happen to luck out and get an exchange via XYZ that you shouldn't have, II will cancel your XYZ exchange and only offer you the exchange fee back. This happened to me and at least one other tugger I know about. So, it's a great program - sometimes.

 

[Picker57]

Thanks for the run-through on how XYZ works....and how it sometimes doesn't. It's definitely worth a phone call. It'll be interesting to see whether/not Shell is one of the resort families I.I. will accept for the XYZ bonuses. . Thanks again.

--------ZK

 

[momeason]

XYZ can work great!

XYZ exchanges are great, if you can get them. All policies regarding these bonus exchanges are kept in house by II and from my experience this past year, II keeps changing the rules. With my first XYZ, I had 24 hours to cancel, but now all sales are final. XYZ is a kind of 2 for 1 special. You give II a nice deposit and II will give you an exchange for just the $159 exchange fee to certain over supplied resort areas. Orlando is usually the safest bet and I thought Vegas was always a safe bet. II reps will refer to a grid that tells the reps what resorts and what areas and what weeks are available. There used to be far less restrictions than there are now. An XYZ exchange has to be attached to an existing exchange in II. Also, if you gave up a one bedroom and received a 2 bedroom in exchange with you home week, then whatever XYZ exchange you are able to get cannot be in any size unit larger than a one bedroom. If you gave up a two bedroom, then you can get a two bedroom via an XYZ exchange.

I've had good luck with the XZY program, but it is getting very restrictive. Also, I just found out that only certain resort brands qualify. Marriott and WorldMark qualify, and I think Starwood, too. I only own Marriott and WorldMark, so I can only speak about those two brands.

Good luck, but unless you are happy with Vegas or Olando, most other areas of the country are only available in off season and possibly some part of shoulder season and NO HOLIDAYS. Your XYZ exchange cannot be within 24 hours of any holiday. And, if you happen to luck out and get an exchange via XYZ that you shouldn't have, II will cancel your XYZ exchange and only offer you the exchange fee back. This happened to me and at least one other tugger I know about. So, it's a great program - sometimes.

I used a Wyndham studio and exchanged into a 2 BR Las Vegas in 9/2011. Before the exchange, I confirmed an XYZ into a 1 BR in the Marriott Breckenridge for 12/3/2011. I used a Wyndham studio to get a 2 Br at Marriott in Myrtle Beach on 1/08/2012 for a convention. A few days before we left for MB, I Xyzed for a 1 Br in the Marriott in Branson, Mo. So in both cases I received a larger unit than my original deposit. Just get an agent who wants to help. I had no problem either time. Check out availability online before you call. If you can see it, you can probably have it! Maybe I am just lucky but it works for me. There is lots of inventory right now and the XYZ grid goes thru June. Cancun is on the grid in April and May.