Updated Privileges Brochure

[Richelle]

I do. I think I have all of them (Fairfield and Wyndham) somewhere going back 30 years. I’m not a packrat or hoarder, I just don’t trust developers and want a printed record of their policies so when they change something I’ll know. What do you need to know?

First, is there anyway you can think of to get them digitized? I would love to have digital copies for reference. Secondly, have the VIP benefits. It was mentioned above that the discount window wasn’t always 60 for all tiers. Is that true?

 

[Richelle]

Heaven forbid they throw a bone to lower level VIP's...

But I think it has already been 60 days for a while

They are giving them two RARP to Silver and one to Bronze. That benefit was previously reserved for Gold and Platinum VIP.

 

[55plus]

Without going through all the directories, I recall Wyndham taking away unlimited guest confirmations for VIPP. VIP benefits have been around since we became owners about 30 years ago.

 

[55plus]

First, is there anyway you can think of to get them digitized? I would love to have digital copies for reference. Secondly, have the VIP benefits. It was mentioned above that the discount window wasn’t always 60 for all tiers. Is that true?

The only way would be to scan each page. From what I see, all VIP level discounts were at 60 days. Unit upgrades varied.

 

[Richelle]

My bad... I've been Platinum for a long time and didn't notice the change. I don't have my old Fairfield Members Directory, but I recall silver and gold used to be at 30 and 45 days for the discount.

@55plus has directories dating back 30 years. Discounts have always been 60 days for all levels. It’s always been the upgrade window that varied.

 

[Richelle]

I sent a bunch of questions about the new program to the VP of Owner and Club Services, Annie Roberts. She is going to put @HitchHiker71 and I in touch with someone to answer those questions, next week. I wanted to know if you guys had questions you wanted to ask regarding the new VIP program or wanted to provide feedback. These were the questions I originally posed to her:


1. Why was Gold left out of the RCI auto deposit? With unlimited reservation transaction credits, we couldn’t figure out why Gold might not be included. Is there any way we can request it get included?

2. What happens if (new) VIP owners don't have enough housekeeping credits when they are auto deposited in RCI? Are they charged for them when the RCI booking made, like they are when they make a Club Wyndham reservation?

3. We see where it says that existing owners will keep the benefits they "know and love". Does that include:

a. early check-in for Silver

b. Quiet season upgrades in RCI

c. midweek clean and tidy



4. Do you think there be new benefits added in the next year or two?

5. If someone who is currently VIP advances their status after the launch, will they lose their grandfathered benefits such as unlimited housekeeping?

6. If a VIP buys points after the launch, but they don’t get to the next level, will they lose their grandfather status? We’ve seen reports where grandfathered VIPs would lose their status when they bought more points, because they didn’t meet that current point level requirements. For example, a Gold owner with 500k points buys 105,000 points. That gives them 605,000 points which is less than the current 700k. Their status would be dropped to Silver instead of retaining Gold. Will that happen still?

If you have anything you want me to add to the list, let me know. Otherwise, I will report back when I have answers.

 

[55plus]

All good questions. Thanks for scrutinizing the new program.

 

[Silverdollar]

I sent a bunch of questions about the new program to the VP of Owner and Club Services, Annie Roberts. She is going to put @HitchHiker71 and I in touch with someone to answer those questions, next week. I wanted to know if you guys had questions you wanted to ask regarding the new VIP program or wanted to provide feedback. These were the questions I originally posed to her:


1. Why was Gold left out of the RCI auto deposit? With unlimited reservation transaction credits, we couldn’t figure out why Gold might not be included. Is there any way we can request it get included?

2. What happens if (new) VIP owners don't have enough housekeeping credits when they are auto deposited in RCI? Are they charged for them when the RCI booking made, like they are when they make a Club Wyndham reservation?

3. We see where it says that existing owners will keep the benefits they "know and love". Does that include:

a. early check-in for Silver

b. Quiet season upgrades in RCI

c. midweek clean and tidy



4. Do you think there be new benefits added in the next year or two?

5. If someone who is currently VIP advances their status after the launch, will they lose their grandfathered benefits such as unlimited housekeeping?

6. If a VIP buys points after the launch, but they don’t get to the next level, will they lose their grandfather status? We’ve seen reports where grandfathered VIPs would lose their status when they bought more points, because they didn’t meet that current point level requirements. For example, a Gold owner with 500k points buys 105,000 points. That gives them 605,000 points which is less than the current 700k. Their status would be dropped to Silver instead of retaining Gold. Will that happen still?

If you have anything you want me to add to the list, let me know. Otherwise, I will report back when I have answers.

I have a question that could affect a lot VIP owners with PIC Plus. What happens if their PIC weeks are disqualified because they no longer meet the guidelines? For example, what if an owner is VIP Platinum with two PICs, but only have 750k developer points. Would they drop down from VIPP to VIPS, or could they purchase new qualifying PICs, and still be grandfathered at VIPP?

 

[Richelle]

I have a question that could affect a lot VIP owners with PIC Plus. What happens if their PIC weeks are disqualified because they no longer meet the guidelines? For example, what if an owner is VIP Platinum with two PICs, but only have 750k developer points. Would they drop down from VIPP to VIPS, or could they purchase new qualifying PICs, and still be grandfathered at VIPP?

If a week becomes ineligible, you would lose that contract and be dropped down. The only time I've heard this happens is when a resort sold itself to Wyndham or a non-eligible system like Diamond or Bluegreen. The resorts have owners meetings regarding things like that, so always keep an eye out for mailing from your PIC resort. If they fall below a certain quality threshold, they could lose their affiliation, but I have not heard that happen. You can enroll a new PIC, but you would likely have to make a new purchase.

 

[Worker]

I have a question that could affect a lot VIP owners with PIC Plus. What happens if their PIC weeks are disqualified because they no longer meet the guidelines? For example, what if an owner is VIP Platinum with two PICs, but only have 750k developer points. Would they drop down from VIPP to VIPS, or could they purchase new qualifying PICs, and still be grandfathered at VIPP?

1) I am in process of inheriting a VIP Platinum PIC Plus account, from parents who have passed away.

2) Currently my sibling is listed on Wyndham portal as Executor.

3) Currently we are recording Deeds to be in my name, Wyndham Kingsgate and Massanutten.

4) I will be making small Wyndham purchase to reactivate PIC Plus points.

5) Will I still have Platinum status? Does all this need to be completed before Nov. ?

 

[Richelle]

1) I am in process of inheriting a VIP Platinum PIC Plus account, from parents who have passed away.

2) Currently my sibling is listed on Wyndham portal as Executor.

3) Currently we are recording Deeds to be in my name, Wyndham Kingsgate and Massanutten.

4) I will be making small Wyndham purchase to reactivate PIC Plus points.

5) Will I still have Platinum status? Does all this need to be completed before Nov. ?

If you won’t have 1.1 million points after all that is done, it will have to be completed before November. If you will, you don’t have to worry about it. Since you’ll have to buy 49,000 points PER PIC week, you might be close to that 1.1 million. The new point requirement is 1.1 million points when the changes take effect. Are you using Wyndham Tribute to do the transfer?

 

[Worker]

Won't have 1.1 million points. Currently, 746K points Wyndham Kingsgate and 254K points PIC Plus Massanutten.

Will call Tribute on Monday.

 

[Worker]

If you won’t have 1.1 million points after all that is done, it will have to be completed before November. If you will, you don’t have to worry about it. Since you’ll have to buy 49,000 points PER PIC week, you might be close to that 1.1 million. The new point requirement is 1.1 million points when the changes take effect. Are you using Wyndham Tribute to do the transfer?

Won't have 1.1 million points, will have 1 million points. Currently, 746K points Wyndham Kingsgate and 254K points PIC Plus Massanutten.

Will call Tribute on Monday.

 

[Richelle]

Won't have 1.1 million points, will have 1 million points. Currently, 746K points Wyndham Kingsgate and 254K points PIC Plus Massanutten.

Will call Tribute on Monday.

PIC enrollments will not transfer but VIP will if you use tribute. You’ll still need to make that purchase to enroll the PIC and be Platinum. If you don’t make it in time, you’ll have to purchase 100,000 points to keep Platinum, however, if you don’t, you’ll still be Gold. The points sale and PIC enrollment itself won’t take long. It’s the ownership change of the timeshare that could take time. How long have you been doing this process?

 

[Richelle]

Here are some answers to the questions I got on Facebook. These answers came from one of the product developers and her manager. We have another meeting scheduled. Regarding the quiet season upgrade, I saw someone say on here that it was not utilized a lot because people didn't know how to utilize it. I agree, so I emailed them with that feedback. That's part of what we will discuss at our next meeting. I also heard a rumor they were going to give early check-in back to Silver owners, but that might be someone's wishful thinking.


Q. When is the release date for VIP by Wyndham?

A. November 12th is the official launch date. The last day to purchase points to become VIP or advance your current VIP status under today’s rules is November 10th. After that, if you want to advance your status or become VIP, you must buy enough points to reach the new level requirements. For example, if you want to be Silver, you must have 500k points (if you want to be grandfathered into current VIP silver, you are only required to have 400k points by Nov 10th). If you are not VIP and become VIP November 11th or later, you will not have unlimited housekeeping. On November 11th, the website will go down so it can be updated. The new benefits will start on November 12th.



Q. Why was gold left out of the RCI auto deposit benefit?

A. They felt they had to draw the line at Platinum and above for this benefit. They may reconsider giving this benefit to Gold members later.



Q. We see where it says that existing owners will keep the benefits, they "know and love". Does that include:

a. early check-in for Silver

b. Quiet season upgrades in RCI

c. midweek clean and tidy



A. They will not be giving early check in for Silver owners, even if you are currently a Silver VIP. Their reasoning is because they were seeing that the VIP line was getting long when the regular line was not. They wanted to reduce the long line for VIP check in. They are still working on finding a benefit to replace early check-in for Silver owners. I suggested late check out. She said that with the COVID cleaning measures, that might not be possible. I also suggested the authorized user list. That list would allow non-owners to book a reservation in their name without using a guest certificate. So, let’s say you have parents that like to travel. If they are on the authorized user list, you would choose their name from a drop-down box like you do with your bookings now. No guest certificate needed. She said that was something they were already considering for the future.

B. They are doing away with quiet season upgrades in RCI. They said it was not a benefit that was used a lot. There were some that wanted to keep it, but it was eventually decided that it was a benefit that should be retired.

C. Mid-week clean and Tidy will not be coming back anytime soon, if at all, due to the increased measures they must take to clean the room.



Q. Do you think they will add benefits in the next year or two?



A. Possibly. They are always looking for ways to improve the benefits. I get the impression they do not want to wait another 15 years to update the benefits.



Q. If someone buys points to advance their status after the launch, will they lose their grandfathered benefits, such as unlimited housekeeping?

A. No. They said they learned their lesson from the past where owners who bought points would lose their grandfather status if their total points did not get them to the new point requirements. VIPs will not lose unlimited housekeeping if they advance their status or just buy more points.



Q. If I transfer my timeshare to my children, will they keep the grandfathered benefits such as unlimited housekeeping?

A. Yes. If you transfer your timeshare to an immediate relative through Tribute, the grandfathered status and benefits will travel with it, to the new owner. "Immediate relative" is described on page 240 of the directory; which includes: Parents, spouses, domestic partners, sibling, children, and grandchildren.



Q. If someone buys points, but does not meet the new requirement level, will they lose their grandfather status? For example, if a 300k point silver owner buys 105k points, will they lose their silver status because they do not have 500k points?

A. No, they will not lose their status. They keep their VIP grandfather status even if they do not have 500k points. So, if you want to inch up to a new level, but don't want to buy all those points at once, you can do that without losing your status.



Q. What are examples of rotating benefits?



A. Club pass reservation points discounts, all-inclusive vacations that you can buy with points (and not have to pay the all-inclusive fee), Vacation packages that you can buy with points (Similar to Wyndham adventures, except it's exclusive to VIP owners).



Q. Can you confirm that owners who currently have Grandfather VIP status, will keep their status after the new launch?



A. I did confirm that ALL VIPs will keep their status, including current grandfathered VIPs.



Q. Will grandfather VIPs get all the new benefits.



A. Yes, I confirmed they will get everything that is offered for their level in the new program.



Q. If there are new benefits added in the future, will current grandfathered VIPs get those as well.

A. That is the plan.



Q. Will adding a resale contract cause me to lose my grandfather status.

A. No, it will not. You will keep the grandfather status if you add a resale contract. Like it is today, resale will not count towards VIP status, and will not elevate you to the next level.



Q. When are we getting a new directory?

A. There will be a supplement released on November 12th. For those of you not familiar with what a supplement is, it is sort of like an amendment to a contract. The last supplement was only a few pages and it focused only on the changes. A completely new directory that will include the updated changes is due out June 1st of next year.



Q. Are they keeping the term “Grandfathered” or will it be changed to something else?

A. They have discussed changing it for various reasons but have not settled on what term they would use. One possibility was “Legacy”.

 

[Sandi Bo]

Thanks, Richelle!

My 2 cents on a few items:

1) It doesn't matter to me personally, but I don't understand not allowing early checkin for silver. To me in reality, anyone can pre-register, and we get in when the room is ready - could be noon, could be 5 or 6pm. As platinum, if you give silver late checkout, I want it, too. I don't see how an authorized user list relates to early checkin. Apples and oranges. Kind of cool benefit. But I wouldn't confuse it with early checkin. I would assume all VIP levels would get it (so not really a replacement item for silver only).

2) Rotating benefits seem silly to me. I don't understand why they'd bother. Marketing ploy type stuff?

3) We all know what grandfathered means, why would we change it to another name?

Keep things simple - seems like a lot of overthinking and making things unnecessarily complicated.

 

[chapjim]

Why do I care whether I'm checked in at the VIP counter or the other counter?

If I'm at the grocery store and there's a regular line open, I'm not going to stand in the line for 10 Items or Less.

A nice bennie for VIPP would be to allow overlapping reservations (with some limits).

 

[Eric B]

.... We all know what grandfathered means, why would we change it to another name?

Keep things simple - seems like a lot of overthinking and making things unnecessarily complicated.

... maybe it's part of their battle against ageism....

 

[Richelle]

Why do I care whether I'm checked in at the VIP counter or the other counter?

If I'm at the grocery store and there's a regular line open, I'm not going to stand in the line for 10 Items or Less.

A nice bennie for VIPP would be to allow overlapping reservations (with some limits).

I was surprised at how many Silver VIP people were unhappy that was being taken away from them. Maybe it's about principle for them.

 

[Richelle]

Thanks, Richelle!

My 2 cents on a few items:

1) It doesn't matter to me personally, but I don't understand not allowing early checkin for silver. To me in reality, anyone can pre-register, and we get in when the room is ready - could be noon, could be 5 or 6pm. As platinum, if you give silver late checkout, I want it, too. I don't see how an authorized user list relates to early checkin. Apples and oranges. Kind of cool benefit. But I wouldn't confuse it with early checkin. I would assume all VIP levels would get it (so not really a replacement item for silver only).

2) Rotating benefits seem silly to me. I don't understand why they'd bother. Marketing ploy type stuff?

3) We all know what grandfathered means, why would we change it to another name?

Keep things simple - seems like a lot of overthinking and making things unnecessarily complicated.

1. I didn't see a big loss here either If they have the room ready, they are not going to deny them check-in. If a silver member uses the VIP line, I don't think they are going to turn them away anyway. I mentioned late check out would be a good replacement but I didn't mean just for silver. I think the higher tiers would be pretty upset if Silver was the only one that got that. I think that it would make silver owners a little less upset that they lost early check-in because late checkout is more useful in my opinion.

The friends and family list isn't meant to relate to early check-in. Again, a replacement benefit. Take away one benefit, give them another that is hopefully better. We mentioned friends and family list because it seemed kind of silly to use a guest certificate for your son or daughter. Plus, silver and bronze have less GC. They would value this option more than someone with 15 or more.

2. Right now they don't have all-inclusive options that can be bought with just points. You always had to pay an all-inclusive fee. That said, I have no doubt the cash value of that package will be cheaper than the maintenance fees on those points they used. Still, it's an additional option. I think there may have been people asking for discounted Club Pass fees. I've seen it mentioned more than once on Facebook groups. Those were just a couple of examples they gave. They may come up with better options later.

3. Apparently "grandfatherED" has a negative connotation? A lot of the stuff they do is based on feedback. If we had more people leaving feedback, they might come up with better ideas.

 

[Eric B]

3. Apparently "grandfatherED" has a negative connotation? A lot of the stuff they do is based on feedback. If we had more people leaving feedback, they might come up with better ideas.

I still think ageism is a more apt negative connotation than ED, though I suppose it could be that.

 

[Richelle]

Alexa just told me a joke.

How many developers does it take to screw in a lightbulb? They actually prefer dark mode.

 

[GRapuser]

"Grandfathered" is a term that is derived from slavery, or more specifically, "the grandfather clause" was a term that referred to who was eligible to vote in the 1800's based upon whether one's grandfather was able to vote. That is why the term is being phased out in many places.

 

[kaljor]

I was surprised at how many Silver VIP people were unhappy that was being taken away from them. Maybe it's about principle for them.

I think it's just human nature to not want to lose something arbitrarily, even if you rarely need it or use it. From my experience, if your room is ready early, they give it to you early. I almost always arrive earlier than 4PM and most of those times I'm able to check in even though I'm not a VIP. Of course that was before Covid and the possibility that cleaning procedures take longer.

 

[Rolltydr]

I was surprised at how many Silver VIP people were unhappy that was being taken away from them. Maybe it's about principle for them.

I’m Silver VIP and I don’t like it. We usually try to checkin during that 2-4pm window. Of course, I have seen times when the VIP line was longer than the regular checkin line. And, like you said, I doubt they will refuse to check you in if you’re in that line.

I guess the thing that ticks me off is, I believe they used the words “more and better benefits”. For Silver VIP members, where are they?