In a statement dated March 28, 2020, Disney Vacation Club pledges to evaluate "banking and expiration policy" as it relates to expiring points, but admits the duration of the COVID-19 closures will drive decisions.
Disney's Wilderness Lodge
The latest statement from Disney Vacation Club Senior VP Terri Schultz clarifies many of the point handling practices moving froward. Pending reservatios will be cancelled 7 days prior to arrival on a rolling basis until a reopening date is determined. Current year points will be returned to the Use Year without Holding status applied. Borrowed points will be returned to their original Use Year.
What DVC cannot commit to at this point is any plan to assist with the use of expiring points, or the banking of points outside of the stated timeframe.
DVC points normally must be banked within the first 8 months of the Use Year. For example, the deadline for baking June 2019 points--which are valid for stays between 6/1/2019 and 5/31/2020--was January 31, 2020.
Schultz claims they will continue to monitor the situation and look for ways to accommodate expiring points. However, she concludes that DVC must "be considerate of the impact any changes could have on future inventory availability for the Membership overall."
On March 27, it was revealed that the resorts and theme parks of Walt Disney World and Disneyland would remain closed indefinitely. Also subject to the same uncertain timeframe are Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort, Disney's Vero Beach Resort and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.
Full statement from Terri Schultz follows:
Dear Members,
I know the last couple of weeks have been a challenge for all of us. As we navigate the rapidly changing COVID-19 environment, we continue to make decisions focused on the health and wellbeing of our Members, Guests and Cast Members. Today I want to share another update with you.
As a result of this unprecedented pandemic and in line with direction provided by health experts and government officials, Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort will remain closed until further notice. This closure affects all Disney Vacation Club properties, including Disney’s Vero Beach Resort, Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.
During this temporary closure, it is our priority to continue providing you with helpful and efficient service, even as the majority of our Cast Members are working remotely, including those in Member Services and Member Accounting.
Until the decision is made as to when the resorts will reopen, all reservations scheduled for arrival during the closure time will be automatically cancelled by Disney Vacation Club on a week-by-week basis. Members do not need to cancel the reservation online or contact Member Services. In light of the unusual circumstances and to provide more flexibility, Disney Vacation Club established a temporary cancellation policy to supplement our existing cancellation rules. Details include:
Vacation Points returned due to a cancellation of a resort reservation will not be placed in a holding account and will be returned to the current Use Year. This applies to all reservations checking in within the next 30 days.
When a reservation involving Borrowed Points is cancelled, the Borrowed Points will be returned to the Use Year they were borrowed from. This applies to all reservations regardless of arrival date. Please allow up to 15 business days for this process to be completed.
The following existing cancellation rules continue to apply:
Reservation Points returned due to a cancellation of a Disney Collection Resort reservation will be returned as Reservation Points to the current Use Year.
Reservations made with points Banked from the previous Use Year will be returned as Banked Points to the current Use Year.
One-time use Points will be returned to the current Use Year as one-time use Points.
In addition, some Members may have questions about reservation cancellations involving Points that are set to expire soon. At this time, we are evaluating the banking and expiration policy and the use of certain Points impacted by the closures. As a part of our evaluation process, we need to be considerate of the impact any changes could have on future inventory availability for the Membership overall. A decision will be made when we better understand how long COVID-19 will impact our operations.
As we anticipate high call volume in the days ahead, we encourage you to use the Disney Vacation Club website for general information – and we ask that you contact Member Services only if you need assistance with an existing reservation. Any Member who would like to book a new Disney Vacation Club Resort reservation or modify an existing reservation may do so through the Member Online Booking Tool.
We realize that disruptions related to COVID-19 are altering your family’s vacation plans, and we thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time. It is our commitment to stay focused on serving you with ongoing communication and updates.
We look forward to “welcoming you home” as soon as we can.
Stay well,
Signature
Terri Schultz
Senior Vice President
Disney Vacation Club, Guided Adventures & Expeditions and Golden Oak
