With 1 days notice, BG eliminates ability to deposit Free Week in RCI/II.

[GrayFal]

BG Platinum (and Gold) level owners each year get to reserve 3 (or 1) weeks in Blue or White season.
You can use these weeks yourself or deposit them into a BG provided RCI account for TPUs or your personal II account.
I have been a Platinum level owner for almost 15 years and have used the exchange benefit exclusively

On 6/10 posts started to show up on various owners groups stating they were told THAT day that as of June 12th 2024, free
weeks could no longer be used for exchange.

There was much disbelief but many contacted BG via phone or chat and it was confirmed; no more deposits into any exchange companies.
Apparently owners will be notified via email ?????
When?????

The downward spiral and erosion of BG benefits and poor customer service continues.

Continually Hurting their top tier owners, not very smart!

(This does not affect owners ability to exchange BG points via the BG/RCI portal)

 

[chriskre]

Pffffft. These idiots are unbelievable.
Glad I am getting out.
It was good while it lasted like everything timeshare related it seems in the end the corporate greed just can’t help themselves.
So what would happen if many owners just walk away and the economy tanks?
Then they are stuck maintaining the whole thing?
I guess they try to sell the land they stole and cash out.
What is it to them if owners want exchanging options?

 

[GrayFal]

Pffffft. These idiots are unbelievable.

What is it to them if owners want exchanging options?

Up until 16 years ago, owners could deposit any (almost all) reservations directly into RCI. So people could reserve a studio at Big Cedar for 2,000/3,000 points and deposit into RCI and get exchanges.

Bluegreen took that away and made all RCI exchanges thru a portal with a fixed grid - high season trade into Florida 1BR is 11K points or Caribbean 2BR high season 22K. It costs many more points to exchange in RCI now.
This allowed BG to give RCI whatever reservation/location that was to BG advantage rather than a high demand Big Cedar or Hammocks Resie.
The only winner here was BG

Only the free weeks could still be deposited directly into RCI or II.
I believe because these were "free" and no points are deducted from your account.

Anyway, why should they care what owners use to exchanges?
They want full control of how their inventory is used/utilized.

 

[jp10558]

Pffffft. These idiots are unbelievable.
Glad I am getting out.
It was good while it lasted like everything timeshare related it seems in the end the corporate greed just can’t help themselves.
So what would happen if many owners just walk away and the economy tanks?
Then they are stuck maintaining the whole thing?
I guess they try to sell the land they stole and cash out.
What is it to them if owners want exchanging options?

In general, I've never really understood the resort / HOAs antagonism vs exchanges via 1 in 3 rules or extra resort fees. They're already getting MFs to cover use of the week. Why do they care who specifically uses that week? I've heard people speculate that the 1 in 3 rule is because they want to push exchangers to become owners, but that feels like flawed logic, similar to the old RIAAs claim that everyone who downloaded a song would have bought the CD back in the aughts.

 

[bnoble]

This is true of pretty much every mini-system. There are some upsides--namely, high-demand inventory is more likely to be used by owners rather than exchangers. For example, I once was able to stay at DVC's Beach Club on a (discounted!) exchange during Food & Wine. This is possibly one of the most difficult bookings for DVC owners in the entire system, and it was thrown to an exchange guest on the cheap.

 

[Jeddy]

Another move by new Hilton management to deprecate value of BlueGreen VOI / Club membership.
It's also consistent with a strategy to keep the VOI / club "owners only" (i.e., no renters; guests discouraged, etc).

 

[GrayFal]

This is a screen shot from my chat with BG on 6/13/24 one day after the new ban on depositing "free white blue weeks" in RCI/II

I belong to a platinum owners group of 1600 and not one person has gotten an email notification of this.

Posting here for proof of what once was is no longer

 

[rickandcindy23]

The conversation is fuzzy. What does it say?

 

[GrayFal]

The conversation is fuzzy. What does it say?

Thanks Cindy, I fixed it.

Just documentation from BG that without written notice via email or website that as of 6/12/24 the three “free” white weeks we get every year as Platinum Owners (60K now 75K point owners) can’t be deposit for exchange ( as I have been doing for the 15 years of ownership

 

[hcarman]

We are gold with Bluegreen and same thing - no notice. We usually do deposit our one free week into RCI because we live in a state that has one BG property and is more than 8 hours from any other BG property - so we are limited. Giving it to RCI allows us to book something closer to home as a staycation. I only have so much vacay, so this worked for us. Why would they change the terms so fast and without any notice? Some speculate it has to do with Hilton again.

 

[GrayFal]

We are gold with Bluegreen and same thing - no notice. We usually do deposit our one free week into RCI because we live in a state that has one BG property and is more than 8 hours from any other BG property - so we are limited. Giving it to RCI allows us to book something closer to home as a staycation. I only have so much vacay, so this worked for us. Why would they change the terms so fast and without any notice? Some speculate it has to do with Hilton again.

To control inventory.
If I reserved Paradise Point or Big Cedar to deposit they have to give it to RCI, not a resort and time of their choosing.

Also it will discourage people from reserving their white blue time.

I am not going to go to Wisconsin in February or other off season locations so now BG has my three weeks to use as bonus time for people who can drive to locations unlike me and you.

Instead, I will be reserving three free white weeks and let the units sit empty.
If I can't have them for deposits for exchange, BG can't have them either.

 

[MrockStar]

Bummer.

 

[rapmarks]

To control inventory.
If I reserved Paradise Point or Big Cedar to deposit they have to give it to RCI, not a resort and time of their choosing.

Also it will discourage people from reserving their white blue time.

I am not going to go to Wisconsin in February or other off season locations so now BG has my three weeks to use as bonus time for people who can drive to locations unlike me and you.

Instead, I will be reserving three free white weeks and let the units sit empty.
If I can't have them for deposits for exchange, BG can't have them either.

If you let reserved units sit empty, Bluegreen can Institute a fine for not canceling on time. That is what they do with the Udi weeks.

 

[GrayFal]

If you let reserved units sit empty, Bluegreen can Institute a fine for not canceling on time. That is what they do with the Udi weeks.

I believe that is because UDI owners pay a housekeeping fee upon check in so CMV loses that income.

With points Resies there is no such fee.
People leave them empty all the time because it is not worth the $60 fee to cancel a short low point reservation to get back restricted points or a Resie within 10 days of check in because you don't get the points back at all

 

[rapmarks]

But the unit doesn’t need to be cleaned and supposedly that us the cost if it were cleaned.

 

[GrayFal]

But the unit doesn’t need to be cleaned and supposedly that us the cost if it were cleaned.

Fixed weeks/ UDI weeks have different rules and regulations at all resorts that not only BG points.

I owned a UDI and sold it because of all the ridiculous fees.

This Is apples and oranges.
This is not an attack on you but your UDI ownership is not applicable to this conversation

 

[rapmarks]

I am merely pointing out something bluegreen could do. They instituted that rule for Udi because units were booked and not used. And bluegreen does use lots of the Udi units