Points question

[Art4th]

Hopefully I’m not repeating something, but I didn’t see anything else in the forums regarding this particular issue. We own at Shawnee Ridgetop which just closed on March 31st. We have Wyndham points, but the underlying deed still exists. We would pay Wyndham monthly and they would in turn pay our maintenance fees to the resort in April. With the closure of the resort, Wyndham has refunded us our prepaid maintenance fees that were to be paid to the resort in April 2026. But… they have deposited the 175,000 points into our Club Wyndham account to be used in 2026. We have not signed up for Club Wyndham Access or any other plan, and don’t want to. I’m wondering if we can go ahead and just use these points. I haven’t contacted Wyndham regarding this yet. I thought I would check here first. We can’t be the only ones this has happened to. Thanks for any advice.

 

[Double U]

Your guess is as good as anyone else's. I can give you my take on it, and what you could reasonably explain to them if is comes down to it.

Points based on fixed week ownerships are issued January 1. Shawnee never fit this model as the use year is April to March. (A management pain they have now eliminated for themselves.) Since you were in good standing on January 1, and points are issued on January 1, I'd venture it's possible you may be on solid ground to use them, for the same reasons they've used against issuing points up front when different use year contracts transfer into an owner account. I'd even venture to say, you could make an argument that you have until December 31 to use them, based on the strict points transfer and use year alignment policies they have implemented against owners in the past about use years. it will all depend on how they define things, which given there have been no definitions to date, it may just keep rolling that way.

Those points were deposited to your account on January 1. Legitimately. That is the key here, IMO.

Edit: Have you called or emailed to ask? That is where I'd start. Document your attempts. I guess what I'd see as concern if I was in your place is, you are already 4 months into that use year and need to use them up. If you don't do something soon, you will lose what you may actually own usage of? Just thinking out loud....

 

[paxsarah]

Your guess is as good as anyone else's. I can give you my take on it, and what you could reasonably explain to them if is comes down to it.

Points based on fixed week ownerships are issued January 1. Shawnee never fit this model as the use year is April to March. (A management pain they have now eliminated for themselves.) Since you were in good standing on January 1, and points are issued on January 1, I'd venture it's possible you may be on solid ground to use them, for the same reasons they've used against issuing points up front when different use year contracts transfer into an owner account. I'd even venture to say, you could make an argument that you have until December 31 to use them, based on the strict points transfer and use year alignment policies they have implemented against owners in the past about use years. it will all depend on how they define things, which given there have been no definitions to date, it may just keep rolling that way.

Those points were deposited to your account on January 1. Legitimately. That is the key here, IMO.

The HOA voted to stop operating as a timeshare as of 3/31 (give or take a few days). It also voted not to collect 2026 maintenance fees (and to refund any maintenance fees that had already been paid). As of April 1, owners at Shawnee no longer have an association with the Club Wyndham Plus points program, and they're not paying maintenance fees that would entitle them to any usage of their ownership.

Then there's this report of an owner who called Wyndham to check on the fact that points remained in their account for a contract at a closing resort that they're not swapping for CWA, and they were advised not to use those points.

 

[Double U]

The HOA voted to stop operating as a timeshare as of 3/31 (give or take a few days). It also voted not to collect 2026 maintenance fees (and to refund any maintenance fees that had already been paid). As of April 1, owners at Shawnee no longer have an association with the Club Wyndham Plus points program, and they're not paying maintenance fees that would entitle them to any usage of their ownership.

Then there's this report of an owner who called Wyndham to check on the fact that points remained in their account for a contract at a closing resort that they're not swapping for CWA, and they were advised not to use those points.

I'm not disagreeing that prudence isn't appropriate. As all things T&L, have a plan B. It would just be a Shame if the OP did get a valid award on Jan. 1, and has no clue what to do. Personally, I'd call and document the results is what I'm suggesting. Or if you have free RT's, let a VC book it. It would be difficult to argue your usage ability if a VC booked it. (Doesn't mean they can't cancel it if it is a future reservation.) From what little I see, they are being reasonable, if you are as well. Just a guess on my part though.

 

[Arimaas]

The HOA voted to stop operating as a timeshare as of 3/31 (give or take a few days). It also voted not to collect 2026 maintenance fees (and to refund any maintenance fees that had already been paid). As of April 1, owners at Shawnee no longer have an association with the Club Wyndham Plus points program, and they're not paying maintenance fees that would entitle them to any usage of their ownership.

Then there's this report of an owner who called Wyndham to check on the fact that points remained in their account for a contract at a closing resort that they're not swapping for CWA, and they were advised not to use those points.

IS the OP in the same situation as me? If I use those 154k from a closed resort, they could cancel a reservation I have when they do decide to take the points away, to make themselves whole. If this is the only contract for the OP, they don't face the same issue if they end up using the points for a stay prior to Wyndham making the points disappear.

I don't advise against trying to "scam" Wynhdam, but the way they are going about this, with poor communication for the "nomral" owner, this is, IMHO, all Wyndham's (preventable) doing.

 

[Double U]

IS the OP in the same situation as me? If I use those 154k from a closed resort, they could cancel a reservation I have when they do decide to take the points away, to make themselves whole. If this is the only contract for the OP, they don't face the same issue if they end up using the points for a stay prior to Wyndham making the points disappear.

I don't advise against trying to "scam" Wynhdam, but the way they are going about this, with poor communication for the "nomral" owner, this is, IMHO, all Wyndham's (preventable) doing.

I think that expresses alot of the frustration. Many of us don't want to scam them, but we don't know what to do. Continuous fear that I might get accused of something for doing what I would normally do. What small subset will I be placed into? It's almost like self destruction, except the share price tells otherwise.

 

[jp10558]

I think that expresses alot of the frustration. Many of us don't want to scam them, but we don't know what to do. Continuous fear that I might get accused of something for doing what I would normally do. What small subset will I be placed into? It's almost like self destruction, except the share price tells otherwise.

This is because in a lot of ways the share prices aren't really connected with making a good product, or running a sustainable business; it's whether the story on potential future profit sounds good to investors.

 

[paxsarah]

It would just be a Shame if the OP did get a valid award on Jan. 1, and has no clue what to do.

I would posit that the OP didn't get a valid award on Jan. 1 - at best, they got a "placeholder award that maybe Wyndham wouldn't notice if they booked but might be clawed back at any moment." Like, it might be usable on the down-low. It's not "valid" though.


(Also, they didn't get the award on Jan. 1 - they got it 2 years ago when it was originally awarded as per Wyndham's normal procedure, and it was valid at that time. It just wasn't removed as of Jan. 1 like we might have expected if Wyndham was processing these accounts in a timely manner.)

 

[Floridaman76]

I think if I was in this position, I would have borrowed from this year and used my points prior to 12/31/25. But that ship has sailed. I guess its frustrating that you can't get clear guidance.

 

[Double U]

I would posit that the OP didn't get a valid award on Jan. 1 - at best, they got a "placeholder award that maybe Wyndham wouldn't notice if they booked but might be clawed back at any moment." Like, it might be usable on the down-low. It's not "valid" though.


(Also, they didn't get the award on Jan. 1 - they got it 2 years ago when it was originally awarded as per Wyndham's normal procedure, and it was valid at that time. It just wasn't removed as of Jan. 1 like we might have expected if Wyndham was processing these accounts in a timely manner.)

You may be correct. But how does anyone know? That is the point I see the OP has. The resort was in fact open and accepting reservations beyond Jan. 1. So how do they know? A vote hadn't even taken place at that point!!!

 

[paxsarah]

You may be correct. But how does anyone know? That is the point I see the OP has. The resort was in fact open and accepting reservations beyond Jan. 1. So how do they know? A vote hadn't even taken place at that point!!!

How do people know? They have been refunded the maintenance fees for 2026. They are in the exact same position today as all of the owners at the other closed resorts were on January 13 who weren't taking the CWA swap - that if they had those points in their account, they weren't valid for use in 2026. This owner's points are not valid for use in 2026. Could they sneak under the radar and book something on short notice? Possibly. But only because Wyndham has lagged so far behind in processing these accounts, and not because those points are intended for this owner's use in 2026. We have seen firsthand experiences in this group from two different types of owners - one who only had that one resort in their ownership, and when they tried to book they received a message that their member number was unable to book; another who also owns other resorts and will remain an owner with those resorts, who called Wyndham and was told not to use the points and to expect them to disappear eventually. That seems to cover all the bases, and neither involves those points being intended for use in 2026.

I'm not saying this should be obvious to an owner who doesn't have TUG as a resource for crowdsourcing, but we do, and with those data points it seems pretty clear that this owner is not expected to use their points in 2026. I don't blame them if they want to call Wyndham and get the answer firsthand. But as a close observer of this process for the last 8+ months, the answer seems pretty clear in a general sense. If the question is can they "get away with" booking something and taking a trip (sooner rather than later), the answer is maybe. If the question is does Wyndham intend for them to be able to use these points throughout their entire 2026 use year, the answer seems pretty clearly no.

 

[Double U]

How do people know? They have been refunded the maintenance fees for 2026. They are in the exact same position today as all of the owners at the other closed resorts were on January 13 who weren't taking the CWA swap - that if they had those points in their account, they weren't valid for use in 2026. This owner's points are not valid for use in 2026. Could they sneak under the radar and book something on short notice? Possibly. But only because Wyndham has lagged so far behind in processing these accounts, and not because those points are intended for this owner's use in 2026. We have seen firsthand experiences in this group from two different types of owners - one who only had that one resort in their ownership, and when they tried to book they received a message that their member number was unable to book; another who also owns other resorts and will remain an owner with those resorts, who called Wyndham and was told not to use the points and to expect them to disappear eventually. That seems to cover all the bases, and neither involves those points being intended for use in 2026.

I'm not saying this should be obvious to an owner who doesn't have TUG as a resource for crowdsourcing, but we do, and with those data points it seems pretty clear that this owner is not expected to use their points in 2026. I don't blame them if they want to call Wyndham and get the answer firsthand. But as a close observer of this process for the last 8+ months, the answer seems pretty clear in a general sense. If the question is can they "get away with" booking something and taking a trip (sooner rather than later), the answer is maybe. If the question is does Wyndham intend for them to be able to use these points throughout their entire 2026 use year, the answer seems pretty clearly no.

Are the resorts you refer to located at Shawnee, where the use year ends in March? Apples to apples?

 

[Arimaas]

How do people know? They have been refunded the maintenance fees for 2026. They are in the exact same position today as all of the owners at the other closed resorts were on January 13 who weren't taking the CWA swap - that if they had those points in their account, they weren't valid for use in 2026. This owner's points are not valid for use in 2026. Could they sneak under the radar and book something on short notice? Possibly. But only because Wyndham has lagged so far behind in processing these accounts, and not because those points are intended for this owner's use in 2026. We have seen firsthand experiences in this group from two different types of owners - one who only had that one resort in their ownership, and when they tried to book they received a message that their member number was unable to book; another who also owns other resorts and will remain an owner with those resorts, who called Wyndham and was told not to use the points and to expect them to disappear eventually. That seems to cover all the bases, and neither involves those points being intended for use in 2026.

I'm not saying this should be obvious to an owner who doesn't have TUG as a resource for crowdsourcing, but we do, and with those data points it seems pretty clear that this owner is not expected to use their points in 2026. I don't blame them if they want to call Wyndham and get the answer firsthand. But as a close observer of this process for the last 8+ months, the answer seems pretty clear in a general sense. If the question is can they "get away with" booking something and taking a trip (sooner rather than later), the answer is maybe. If the question is does Wyndham intend for them to be able to use these points throughout their entire 2026 use year, the answer seems pretty clearly no.

I don’t know. I tend to disagree with your assessment. Personally, I’m a conservative person, so I wouldn’t use the points whether I was in my position (which you link to) or the OP’s. However, if Wyndham intended for folks not to use them, they should have blocked the use of the points. They rushed through this process. They didn’t deduct the amounts or limit them when the resorts closed and they surely did not communicate properly with owners.

In contract law, when something is ambiguous, the benefit of doubt is given to the non drafting party. I think here, the onus is on Wyndham to have implemented the correct changes to ensure people didn’t use their points. They didn’t. That’s on them. However, like I said, just because I feel that way, doesn’t mean I would (or am going to) use my closed property points.

 

[paxsarah]

I don’t know. I tend to disagree with your assessment. Personally, I’m a conservative person, so I wouldn’t use the points whether I was in my position (which you link to) or the OP’s. However, if Wyndham intended for folks not to use them, they should have blocked the use of the points. They rushed through this process. They didn’t deduct the amounts or limit them when the resorts closed and they surely did not communicate properly with owners.

In contract law, when something is ambiguous, the benefit of doubt is given to the non drafting party. I think here, the onus is on Wyndham to have implemented the correct changes to ensure people didn’t use their points. They didn’t. That’s on them. However, like I said, just because I feel that way, doesn’t mean I would (or am going to) use my closed property points.

I don’t disagree with any of that. And that doesn’t contradict what I said in the post you’re responding to: “I'm not saying this should be obvious to an owner who doesn't have TUG as a resource for crowdsourcing, but we do, and with those data points it seems pretty clear that this owner is not expected to use their points in 2026.”

So is the question “How is someone supposed to know based only on what Wyndham has communicated to them?” or “How is someone supposed to know based on everything we’ve collectively learned on TUG?” No, they have no way of knowing based on Wyndham’s communication - and I’ve been as critical as anyone about Wyndham’s poor communication (on this issue and many others). But we’re all here, and we’ve learned things, so we do know, and we’re sharing that with people who have been failed by Wyndham’s lack of communication.

Are the resorts you refer to located at Shawnee, where the use year ends in March? Apples to apples?

They are not at Shawnee, and my position is that they are still just apples. You might have had an argument if it’s in the gray area between January 1 and March 31, but after April 1, the resort is closed, no longer affiliated or operating as a points-passed timeshare, no current year maintenance fees collected. There is no legal or ownership basis for those points. The only argument I see for using those points is that if Wyndham didn’t want them to be used, they should have gotten in front of this and removed them the day the resort closed (and honestly, I’m not unsympathetic to that argument, though I wouldn’t act on it myself), but not that they have some legitimacy for the entire use year because of the March 31 date.

 

[Arimaas]

I don’t disagree with any of that. And that doesn’t contradict what I said in the post you’re responding to: “I'm not saying this should be obvious to an owner who doesn't have TUG as a resource for crowdsourcing, but we do, and with those data points it seems pretty clear that this owner is not expected to use their points in 2026.”

So is the question “How is someone supposed to know based only on what Wyndham has communicated to them?” or “How is someone supposed to know based on everything we’ve collectively learned on TUG?” No, they have no way of knowing based on Wyndham’s communication - and I’ve been as critical as anyone about Wyndham’s poor communication (on this issue and many others). But we’re all here, and we’ve learned things, so we do know, and we’re sharing that with people who have been failed by Wyndham’s lack of communication.


They are not at Shawnee, and my position is that they are still just apples. You might have had an argument if it’s in the gray area between January 1 and March 31, but after April 1, the resort is closed, no longer affiliated or operating as a points-passed timeshare, no current year maintenance fees collected. There is no legal or ownership basis for those points. The only argument I see for using those points is that if Wyndham didn’t want them to be used, they should have gotten in front of this and removed them the day the resort closed (and honestly, I’m not unsympathetic to that argument, though I wouldn’t act on it myself), but not that they have some legitimacy for the entire use year because of the March 31 date.

Well, if you’re basing the Wyndham expects us not to use our canceled points based on my conversation with them, there was for sure selection bias. The Wyndham rep didn’t outhitting tell me not to use it. I fed that line to her - and she parroted it back to me. I don’t think there’s any clear official guidance on the subject. I think the TUG users that have been vocal about the situation SUGGEST that we all don’t use our points. It’s TUG’s best practice. I don’t think we KNOW we shouldn’t use them. Like I said, having these dead points sit in my account impacts my year and next year. I can’t borrow points.

 

[paxsarah]

Well, if you’re basing the Wyndham expects us not to use our canceled points based on my conversation with them, there was for sure selection bias. The Wyndham rep didn’t outhitting tell me not to use it. I fed that line to her - and she parroted it back to me. I don’t think there’s any clear official guidance on the subject. I think the TUG users that have been vocal about the situation SUGGEST that we all don’t use our points. It’s TUG’s best practice. I don’t think we KNOW we shouldn’t use them. Like I said, having these dead points sit in my account impacts my year and next year. I can’t borrow points.

Then there’s the owner here whose account number was prevented from booking. And there have been at least a couple of owners on Facebook who had reservations they made with those points canceled and seemed quite blindsided by it (though I wonder how it wouldn’t have occurred to them that this might be a possibility). At least a couple owners on Facebook earlier reported being given a sort of do-or-die regarding reservations they’d booked with those points, that to keep those reservations they’d need to commit to the CWA swap, otherwise the reservation would be canceled. And the sheer fact that that some owners like @chapjim at earlier resorts have already seen their points removed.

So again, if the question is if an owner could successfully use these points in the sense of exploiting a loophole with no adverse consequences - maybe? Maybe if you don’t have a future reservation that Wyndham could cancel to claw back the points. (And even if the law might be on your side, that doesn’t recover that canceled reservation.) Maybe if you have a resort in close driving distance and a flexible schedule, so if it gets canceled you’re not out any other travel expenses. But if the question is does Wyndham intend for you to use those points (or they’re “valid” in some sense as Double U seems to suggest is possible), it think it’s pretty clearly a no.

 

[Arimaas]

Then there’s the owner here whose account number was prevented from booking. And there have been at least a couple of owners on Facebook who had reservations they made with those points canceled and seemed quite blindsided by it (though I wonder how it wouldn’t have occurred to them that this might be a possibility). At least a couple owners on Facebook earlier reported being given a sort of do-or-die regarding reservations they’d booked with those points, that to keep those reservations they’d need to commit to the CWA swap, otherwise the reservation would be canceled. And the sheer fact that that some owners like @chapjim at earlier resorts have already seen their points removed.

So again, if the question is if an owner could successfully use these points in the sense of exploiting a loophole with no adverse consequences - maybe? Maybe if you don’t have a future reservation that Wyndham could cancel to claw back the points. (And even if the law might be on your side, that doesn’t recover that canceled reservation.) Maybe if you have a resort in close driving distance and a flexible schedule, so if it gets canceled you’re not out any other travel expenses. But if the question is does Wyndham intend for you to use those points (or they’re “valid” in some sense as Double U seems to suggest is possible), it think it’s pretty clearly a no.

I disagree with your assessment. If Wyndham intended you to not use those points, they would make it impossible for you to use those points. That is within their control. Wyndham hopes you don't use those points, but who knows what they intend. Maybe they intend to claw back the points if you do use them - but if they "intended" for no one to use them, they would make sure no one could use them.

But we can agree to disagree. It's semantics really.

 

[HitchHiker71]

Hopefully I’m not repeating something, but I didn’t see anything else in the forums regarding this particular issue. We own at Shawnee Ridgetop which just closed on March 31st. We have Wyndham points, but the underlying deed still exists. We would pay Wyndham monthly and they would in turn pay our maintenance fees to the resort in April. With the closure of the resort, Wyndham has refunded us our prepaid maintenance fees that were to be paid to the resort in April 2026. But… they have deposited the 175,000 points into our Club Wyndham account to be used in 2026. We have not signed up for Club Wyndham Access or any other plan, and don’t want to. I’m wondering if we can go ahead and just use these points. I haven’t contacted Wyndham regarding this yet. I thought I would check here first. We can’t be the only ones this has happened to. Thanks for any advice.

If you only own a single contract from Wyndham Shawnee that was a converted week points contract, our recent experiences based upon other people posting in the main thread on this exact topic have indicated that for those owners who only own impacted contract(s), if/when they attempt to make an online reservation using points from those contracts, the system will not allow those owners to complete the booking process - and that's the case if you call in as well. For those owners who own both impacted and non-impacted contracts, this is not the case for online reservations in comparison. I am waiting on confirmation from Wyndham of the expected behaviors at this time. Here's a link to one of the posts in the main thread that points out the limitation I'm referencing: https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/w...s-unfolding-set-of-events.375888/post-3258224

 

[paxsarah]

I disagree with your assessment. If Wyndham intended you to not use those points, they would make it impossible for you to use those points.

Are we talking about the same Wyndham that's managed and communicated this entire process so...skillfully...since last July?

I think it comes down to that until they had a final word on each owner's decision regarding the CWA swap, they seemed to be operating as if it's easier to keep the points in everyone's accounts and remove them later from the non-swap owners, than to remove them from everyone's accounts and have to add them back to the CWA owners (who would then lose continuity of reservations, etc.). If they make it impossible for non-swap owners to use their points, they also make it impossible for swap owners to use their points until they determine which owners fall into which category. What I'm sure Wyndham didn't intend was that it would take this long to get those swap decisions sorted out (Shawnee's later closure date notwithstanding, but now that it's after 3/31 it's in the same boat with the rest). Given that Wyndham has offered no concessions regarding canceling owners' 2026 reservations a few months into the year once they got around to it, I'll personally take that as they never really intended for owners to use those points. Semantics, if that's what you want to call it.

 

[Arimaas]

Are we talking about the same Wyndham that's managed and communicated this entire process so...skillfully...since last July?

I think it comes down to that until they had a final word on each owner's decision regarding the CWA swap, they seemed to be operating as if it's easier to keep the points in everyone's accounts and remove them later from the non-swap owners, than to remove them from everyone's accounts and have to add them back to the CWA owners (who would then lose continuity of reservations, etc.). If they make it impossible for non-swap owners to use their points, they also make it impossible for swap owners to use their points until they determine which owners fall into which category. What I'm sure Wyndham didn't intend was that it would take this long to get those swap decisions sorted out (Shawnee's later closure date notwithstanding, but now that it's after 3/31 it's in the same boat with the rest). Given that Wyndham has offered no concessions regarding canceling owners' 2026 reservations a few months into the year once they got around to it, I'll personally take that as they never really intended for owners to use those points. Semantics, if that's what you want to call it.

I think the difference is I just am so stuck on holding them accountable and pointing out how poor this whole thing was handled. Nothing really folks here don't know and boy, did I really show them!

 

[Floridaman76]

Are we talking about the same Wyndham that's managed and communicated this entire process so...skillfully...since last July?

Are we talking about the same Wyndham that really didn't orchestrate this whole debacle to save themselves money at owners expense? Then blames it on "the HOA's", like they aren't the man behind the curtain?

 

[Art4th]

Well, I finally spoke to someone at Club Wyndham and they told me I can use my 175,000 points at no cost. We'll see what happens when I actually book something.