Wyndham not returning Guest Confirmations due to COVID19 cancellations.

[raygo123]

If your house is damaged by a tornado or hurricane it’s still your house while the repairs are being made.
You still pay property tax & HOA fees[if you have an HOA] during that timeframe also

I don't think they understand that they bought real estate.

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[Fredflintstone]

I don't think they understand that they bought real estate.

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Yeah

Sigh another reason to rent only.


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[Eric B]

Some of the resorts I own at (not Wyndham) with fixed weeks have offered folks owning during the current closure period the option of asking for a week later in the calendar year without additional cost. Doesn't apply to my Wyndham ownership because that's in points, of course, and I can already do that. I haven't seen any allowing crossing the calendar year unless they already had banking or space banking provisions.

 

[dgalati]

Yeah

Sigh another reason to rent only.


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I agree 100%. No commitment or worries about changes to the PROGRAM. Renting also gives you complete control over what and when you pay for a reservation. Not being tied to one PROGRAM is also a benefit compared to buying into and owning one system.

 

[raygo123]

Yeah

Sigh another reason to rent only.


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No a reason to to look before you leap. Who spends that kind of money without knowing what they bought?

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[raygo123]

I agree 100%. No commitment or worries about changes to the PROGRAM. Renting also gives you complete control over what and when you pay for a reservation. Not being tied to one PROGRAM is also a benefit compared to buying into and owning one system.

And all this time I thought you were an owner, huh!

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[dgalati]

And all this time I thought you were an owner, huh!

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At the moment no not a Wyndham owner but if the right deal comes along and I can make it work?????? I would consider myself more a trader of deeds then a owner. I actually acquired a free Worldmark ownership and waiting for it to transfer.

 

[55plus]

Well, I guess they need to cancel their 2021 MF payments too. Services could not be delivered as agreed and then the resorts have the gall to not compensate? I truly hope this wouldn’t be true.
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Fixed week timeshares are deeded, just like a home if you own it. Costs continue whether it's a timeshare or private residence that you can't use. If you walk away from a timeshare the costs are passed on to the other owners. Costs don't go away if you ignore them.

 

[Fredflintstone]

Fixed week timeshares are deeded, just like a home if you own it. Costs continue whether it's a timeshare or private residence that you can't use. If you walk away from a timeshare the costs are passed on to the other owners. Costs don't go away if you ignore them.

I agree. You own it. And yes, you also own the expenses. That’s why I rent as I said earlier. Owning a house and a summer place is enough. I rent for the rest.

That’s also why I own shares in timeshare companies too. Because the owners own in good and bad times and are on the hook to keep the bux coming in. I capitalize on that fact. I actually bought more WYND at 15 bux. Great dividend and capital appreciation (before this virus hit). My dividends I get from WYND actually pay for my vacation costs. So, everyone wins. You own time in a wonderful resort and continue to spend and make your payments. I, as an investor, collect dividends and use that to vacation. It’s win, win.


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[Roger830]

Renting or owning depends on what type of experience you want. We do both.

After hurricane Wilma damaged Hollywood Sands Resort and stuck us with a $1600 assessment, we bought two more weeks that were foreclosed on for about $4000 each.
We own weeks 4,5,6 and don't have to stay up to 12 AM to book a unit and wonder what our view will be.

Also, we are friends with many owners that return to the resort each year.

Our mf has gone up a little each year, now about $735. Divide purchase cost by 10 years $4000/10 = $200. Our cost is $935 for a unit that rents for over $1800 with tax.

We own the second unit in on the left, on the 2nd floor.

.

 

[Eric B]

Renting or owning depends on what type of experience you want. We do both.

After hurricane Wilma damaged Hollywood Sands Resort and stuck us with a $1600 assessment, we bought two more weeks that were foreclosed on for about $4000 each.
We own weeks 4,5,6 and don't have to stay up to 12 AM to book a unit and wonder what our view will be.

Also, we are friends with many owners that return to the resort each year.

Our mf has gone up a little each year, now about $735. Divide purchase cost by 10 years $4000/10 = $200. Our cost is $935 for a unit that rents for over $1800 with tax.

We own the second unit in on the left, on the 2nd floor.

View attachment 18284.View attachment 18283

Completely understand the sentiment and have purchased several timeshare weeks on the secondary market for exactly the same reason. Owning or renting is a very personal decision that we all have to make, weighing the benefits of being able to plan further in advance and know what we are getting against the sometimes more economical renting or exchange options.

 

[Fredflintstone]

Completely understand the sentiment and have purchased several timeshare weeks on the secondary market for exactly the same reason. Owning or renting is a very personal decision that we all have to make, weighing the benefits of being able to plan further in advance and know what we are getting against the sometimes more economical renting or exchange options.

You are right. Owning versus renting is a personal choice and both have their merits and drawbacks.


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[raygo123]

Guess what? I just received a check. It was for $89.00. from RCI. Yes they refunded my guest reservation.

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[dgalati]

Completely understand the sentiment and have purchased several timeshare weeks on the secondary market for exactly the same reason. Owning or renting is a very personal decision that we all have to make, weighing the benefits of being able to plan further in advance and know what we are getting against the sometimes more economical renting or exchange options.

You are right. Owning versus renting is a personal choice and both have their merits and drawbacks.


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I have been on both sides of the fence Owning and Renting. I definitely love the resorts and the comforts they have to offer but Renting vs owning works out much better for me when there are so many last minute deals available. I also like having the ability to stay at the many resorts outside of Wyndham system.

 

[am1]

Tell me more about this loophole.

Book a hotel stay with points that expire that same day. Allowed. Then cancel the hotel stay before the cancellation deadline and the call center return the points with an expiration day further out. This is for Wyndham hotels not timeshare.

Sadly more then I bargained for as I just had to do this to correct my dates I wanted this year for the hotels and now most likely will cancel everything. I based my trips on needing to use these points up.

 

[kaljor]

From the Wyndham Rewards Statement re the Virus:

"We are pausing the expiration of any Wyndham Rewards points scheduled to expire between now and May 31, 2020 and have extended current Wyndham Rewards Member Levels (status) for all members in the Greater China and Southeast Asia Pacific Rim regions through the end of 2021. "

I'm not certain how to interpret this. Are they pausing the points expiration until the end of 2021 or does that date only refer to the extension of status for the Asian regions? Personally I don't have any points expiring this year, but I think they could have written it better.

 

[Richelle]

Wyndham not refunding guest confirmation fees has always been a pet peeve of mine. Still don't know where that money goes, but they sure don't like to give it up. Very rarely do they. One would think in this circumstance they would, but nope. I am thankful they've been proactive about allowing the cancellations. I am likely going to end up with significant credit pool points expiring. I don't agree with not letting us move those forward. Their logic of 'I had 3 years to use them' doesn't fly with me. I did use them (a year ago - to hold my April 2020 reservations). Hoping they will reconsider their stance on that since the closures have now been pushed out even further, making it nearly impossible to book anything before they'll expire.

Or at least extend the expiration a little further. I could understand why they don’t want to do a rollover. It would put them back in the general pool where they don’t want them. They want them separate. Probably for accounting purposes? I don’t see why pushing the expiration six month would be a problem.

 

[Richelle]

Guess what? I just received a check. It was for $89.00. from RCI. Yes they refunded my guest reservation.

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Did they return the $239 booking fee or at least give you a credit?

 

[raygo123]

Did they return the $239 booking fee or at least give you a credit?

Credit

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[Richelle]

Think about this. For every guest certificate they don’t refund, 5 people get their reservation transaction credit or fee back. Any profit they are making by keeping the guest certificates is eaten up by refunding the reservation transaction credits or fees. The cash fee is harder to part with because the “free” ones are paid for by program fees we pay anyway. The analogy I made regarding refunding the reservation transaction credits is like a restaurant who lost power during the storm, refunding you for the meal you ate. You got food and consumed it. You got what you paid for. It also wasn’t the restaurant’s fault that they lost power but they refunded it anyway. People were able to make their booking. They got what they paid for. This virus is not Wyndham’s fault, and they were not required to give it back, but they did anyway. I think the people that got hit the hardest by not getting their guest certificates back are commercial renters (yes, they are still around). Wyndham could have kicked them out of the program because the directory said the timeshare was for personal use and enjoyment and not commercial purposes. However, they allow them to rent for profit anyway. So Wyndham is making exceptions all over the place. They are also losing a lot of money themselves because they are not able to sell points or rent out their rooms. Them keeping the guest certificate fee and insurance does help their bottom line, but not by much. I don’t feel sorry for the commercial renters. If I offend someone by saying that, I am sorry you feel that way.

Finally, the directory specifies that guest certificates are non-refundable. The website says points protection is not refundable. The directory also says reservation transaction credits are not refundable either but they are making an exception. The directory also states that reservations canceled less then 15 days forfeit the points but they are making an exception. The directory also states that there is a specific deadline for moving points to the next year. They are making exceptions on a case by case basis. I’ve heard of cases where they did it for free. So they are making a ton of exceptions. Exceptions that cost them money. Maybe I’m more forgiving then most, but I don’t expect them to refund the guest certificate fee. If it were me losing $99, I certainly would not be happy about it, but I would count my blessings that I wasn’t losing more. That’s my two cents. It may not be a popular opinion.

 

[Richelle]

Credit

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So they are pocketing that cash. Did they set an expiration on that credit?

 

[dgalati]

Think about this. For every guest certificate they don’t refund, 5 people get their reservation transaction credit or fee back. Any profit they are making by keeping the guest certificates is eaten up by refunding the reservation transaction credits or fees. The cash fee is harder to part with because the “free” ones are paid for by program fees we pay anyway. The analogy I made regarding refunding the reservation transaction credits is like a restaurant who lost power during the storm, refunding you for the meal you ate. You got food and consumed it. You got what you paid for. It also wasn’t the restaurant’s fault that they lost power but they refunded it anyway. People were able to make their booking. They got what they paid for. This virus is not Wyndham’s fault, and they were not required to give it back, but they did anyway. I think the people that got hit the hardest by not getting their guest certificates back are commercial renters (yes, they are still around). Wyndham could have kicked them out of the program because the directory said the timeshare was for personal use and enjoyment and not commercial purposes. However, they allow them to rent for profit anyway. So Wyndham is making exceptions all over the place. They are also losing a lot of money themselves because they are not able to sell points or rent out their rooms. Them keeping the guest certificate fee and insurance does help their bottom line, but not by much. I don’t feel sorry for the commercial renters. If I offend someone by saying that, I am sorry you feel that way.

Finally, the directory specifies that guest certificates are non-refundable. The website says points protection is not refundable. The directory also says reservation transaction credits are not refundable either but they are making an exception. The directory also states that reservations canceled less then 15 days forfeit the points but they are making an exception. The directory also states that there is a specific deadline for moving points to the next year. They are making exceptions on a case by case basis. I’ve heard of cases where they did it for free. So they are making a ton of exceptions. Exceptions that cost them money. Maybe I’m more forgiving then most, but I don’t expect them to refund the guest certificate fee. If it were me losing $99, I certainly would not be happy about it, but I would count my blessings that I wasn’t losing more. That’s my two cents. It may not be a popular opinion.

Looks like a pretty fair deal to everyone except mega renters that may have used up all their free GC's.

 

[Richelle]

Looks like a pretty fair deal to everyone except mega renters that may have used up all their free GC's.

Agreed.

 

[raygo123]

So they are pocketing that cash. Did they set an expiration on that credit?

No. But about five years ago when it was $199 I received the same credit and last year I received full credit for an exchange,fee.

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[Sandi Bo]

Agreed.

You just agreed with yourself
The logic of keeping guest certificate money to offset reservation transaction fees doesn't fly with me. Reservation transaction fees are a VIP benefit. Thus Wyndham is treating their non-VIP customers better than their VIP's? And their refunding transaction fees, something that actually was "delivered" so to speak. As always, the only thing consistent with Wyndham is their inconsistency.
And nope, never gonna agree with Wyndham keeping GC fees.