RCI: Hurricane Relief for Exchangers

[Miss Marty]

Q: RCI

While Victims of Hurricane Katrina are attempting to recover from the massive storm and with Gas lines growing and Gas prices skyrocking
in all US areas (Some stations are closed & do not even have gas)

So many have been called to duty to help
Military, National Guards, Red Cross, etc

What is RCI doing to help exchangers
that are unable to travel at this time

Will RCI allow exchanger(s) to cancel their upcoming
(September 2005) exchanges "without penalities"


For those who have taken out RCI Insurance

Does the RCI Vacation Protection Plan Insurance
The Berkely Group Travel Arrangement Protection
cover travelers who are unable to travel
because they are unable to get gasoline
to drive to their exchange vacation location


*Added the following link*
Important Message - Expedia. com - Hurricane Related
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?p=50899#post50899

 

[EileenSRN]

Good Question

While we're asking, what about the people who have confirmed exchanges in New Orleans? In the event that any of the TS in the area are habitable, shouldn't Cendant assist residents by allowing them to live in the TS's until they can find someplace to live? The last thing that area needs now are tourists.

 

[Madge]

Marty,

RCI's natural disaster policy does not provide for the return of deposited weeks or exchange fees. However, RCI made the decision to return deposited weeks to members whose vacations are canceled as a result of Hurricane Katrina. This is true even for those who did not purchase Vacation Protection.

Those who purchased Vacation Protection may contact BerkelyCare at 800/722-5676 to inquire about filing a claim for the exchange fee. Gas is fairly readily available (although painfully expensive, granted) in many areas, including Indiana, so the availability of gas may not be considered a covered cancellation reason. Since BerkelyCare is the provider of the Vacation Protection product, they can tell you for certain.

RCI members who have been called to help with rescue efforts following Hurricane Katrina should contact RCI and provide documentation of their activity. RCI works with these members directly.

 

[Madge]

While we're asking, what about the people who have confirmed exchanges in New Orleans? In the event that any of the TS in the area are habitable, shouldn't Cendant assist residents by allowing them to live in the TS's until they can find someplace to live? The last thing that area needs now are tourists.

Eileen,

RCI is canceling exchanges to New Orleans through at least December 31st, and soon for longer as we receive more detailed information. Additionally, no new deposits or exchanges will be processed for New Orleans resorts for the next several months, or until we receive word that the resorts are operational again. The city is certainly no place for tourists right now, and only the state of Louisiana will know when it may be safe again for residents.

Please see the following from a recent Cendant press release:

September 2, 2005

Cendant today announced a series of relief initiatives in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

"Our top priority today is to locate approximately 500 employees who we have not yet been able to reach, and to provide whatever assistance we can," said Henry R. Silverman, Cendant chairman and CEO. "We have also begun to move forward with plans to assist in the rebuilding effort within the region."

Key initiatives underway include:

• Establishment of a special employee hotline (1-866-827-2347) to coordinate distribution of pay and other benefits to employees in the hurricane regions. Efforts are underway to locate available temporary housing for employees within Cendant’s hotel affiliates, corporate timeshare resort locations and timeshare exchange resort affiliates.

• A special fundraising campaign has been launched on behalf of the American Red Cross (ARC) Hurricane 2005 Relief Fund. The Cendant Charitable Foundation will be matching employee donations up to an aggregate $500,000.

• Cendant business units are displaying banner ads soliciting consumer donations to the ARC on its consumer booking Web sites, such as Orbitz.com, DaysInn.com, Avis.com, RCI.com (U.S. section), and ColdwellBanker.com.

• Cendant’s Car Rental Group, Hotel Group and Timeshare Resort Group are all working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Department of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross to provide assistance including access to housing and rental vehicles for emergency response personnel moving into the area to coordinate relief efforts.

• The company is also reviewing all possible opportunities to aid in the relief efforts through its Real Estate and Travel Distribution Services divisions.

 

[EileenSRN]

Madge,
Nice job! I'm so glad that whatever facilities can be used have been donated to assist the people down there. Thank you.

 

[Miss Marty]

Bump

This thread may be of interested to RCI
exchangers affected by Hurricane (Wilma)

 

[JLB]

This thread may be of interested to RCI
exchangers affected by Hurricane (Wilma)

Yeah, it is, now that I read it.

Because of Wilma I called and got vacation insurance last week.

Now I read where Madge said, "RCI's natural disaster policy does not provide for the return of deposited weeks or exchange fees."

My question to the Guide last week was, "What are the benefits?" The first two he mentioned are exactly what Madge said are not covered. He specifically said the return of your week, to book another exchange, and your exchange fee.

I mentioned that we will lose our plane fares and he said it does not cover that and then repeated that all they return is the deposited week and the exchange fee. Then he mentioned other benefits~~~baggage insurance, roadside assistance, and medical insurance.

That was all I had to rely on. I purchased it figuring that if our resorts were unavailable then we could quickly rebook less desireable resorts in less desireable areas (using the weeks and exchange fees we have already paid) and salvage our air fares (6 people).

So what is it? Was I sold a bill of goods? (Anyone know why a bill of goods is bad, or what it is?)

 

[Mush]

So what is it? Was I sold a bill of goods? (Anyone know why a bill of goods is bad, or what it is?)

"If I may speculate, I think the term comes from problems associated with fraudulent or risky bills of lading in the import/export business in the age of steam in connection with widespread use of letters of credit as credit support for international transactions. Bills of lading, warehouse receipts and similar documents are documents that convey ownership or certify delivery of goods by possession when the goods are in the hands of third parties. A bill is frequently a specified requirement for a seller to draw on a letter of credit to get paid after goods are placed with a common carrier.

Some of the history is quoted here from Henry Harfield, Bank Credits and Acceptances (5th ed.) at 60-61 (this follows a discussion of bills of lading executed by ship's captains upon accepting goods on shipboard):

The "Received for Shipping Bill of Lading". As modern steamship lines developed it became the custom to receive merchandise on piers, to be stored there until arrival of a ship making a voyage appropriate to the destined progress of the merchandise. In such a case the on-board bill of lading was no longer an accurate representation, and the transporters substituted for it a bill of lading signed by some clerk as agent for the transporter and known as the "received for shipment" bill of lading.

So long as the custom of issuing received-for-shipment bills was confined to strong companies with frequent sailings its defects did not emerge . . . [text detailing specific problems -- i.e. absence of a designation of a particular vessel allowing tracing of goods and attachment of a shipment, problems with evidentiary quality of the bills and problems related to delays in shipment and receipt].

These latent defects became painfully evident to buyers with the advent of and adoption of the new form of bill of lading by steamship lines with limited capital and infrequent sailings. Conversely, sellers benefited, for they received a bill of lading as soon as the merchandise had been delivered into the occaisionally dubious custody of the steamship company, and they were thus promptly in a position to fulfill the technical requirements of the letter of credit. Merchants embraced the new form of bill of lading when they were exporters and spurned it when they were importers."

I suspect that "buying a bill of goods" relates to the experience of buying merchandise based this type of problematic paper evidence. "

Jim Wilton (EZBOARD.COM)

 

[ndonovan]

Since there no longer seems to be an unanswered question for Madge in here I am locking this thread.