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[March] Starwood response about non-SVN deposits

GrayFal said:
FYI - SDO and SBP are former "Embassy" resorts so have a priority into the Embassy resorts in Hawaii thru RCI - which is apparently a good thing...

http://travel-hawaii.com/Embassy-Resorts-Hawaii.html
Embassy Vacation Resorts of Hawaii
Embassy Vacation Resorts of Hawaii offers two excellent resort properties in Hawaii--one on Kauai's south shore, and the other along the Kaanapali Coast on Maui.

Kaanapali Beach Club
Island: Maui Area:Honokowai

Point at Poipu
Island: Kauai Area:poipu
Click to expand...

Do you mean that the old Embassy preference period still exists? Even though SDO and SBP are *wood and KBC and the Point are now Diamond Resorts, which has fixed week owners and point owners(The CLUB)?
 
Grayfal,

Are you not sure the trading priority wasn't lost when those resorts settled with their current owners/managers?

I used to be able to pull the Kauai property regularly (and got a 2BR for a premium AND/or a small 1BR a few times :cheer: :banana: :cheer:) but that priority does not seem to pan out any longer in my modest trading tests.

Is there anywhere we can confirm this priority? I know it is a long shot (ie. the SVO priority in II) but it was in my original MB contract from my purchase back before Starwood bought in so...???????
 
Twinkstarr said:
Do you mean that the old Embassy preference period still exists? Even though SDO and SBP are *wood and KBC and the Point are now Diamond Resorts, which has fixed week owners and point owners(The CLUB)?
Click to expand...
Captron said:
Grayfal,

Are you not sure the trading priority wasn't lost when those resorts settled with their current owners/managers?

I used to be able to pull the Kauai property regularly (and got a 2BR for a premium AND/or a small 1BR a few times :cheer: :banana: :cheer:) but that priority does not seem to pan out any longer in my modest trading tests.

Is there anywhere we can confirm this priority? I know it is a long shot (ie. the SVO priority in II) but it was in my original MB contract from my purchase back before Starwood bought in so...???????
Click to expand...

I was told this more then one time by another member 'chemteach ???? Edye, are u out there?

In the same way I can reserve my SBP deeded week 12-24 months before check-in because that is in my original Embassy deed - I believe this is so.
I can not confirm it as I have never tried it....but I bet a search of this board will turn up this information.

http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70006
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80042
 
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GrayFal said:
I was told this more then one time by another member 'chemteach ???? Edye, are u out there?

In the same way I can reserve my SBP deeded week 12-24 months before check-in because that is in my original Embassy deed - I believe this is so.
I can not confirm it as I have never tried it....but I bet a search of this board will turn up this information.

http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70006
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80042
Click to expand...

Both KBC and the Point also trade in II, so if the priority does exist was it just in RCI?

Reserving your week based on what is in your deed makes sense, but I don't think trading priorities are written in the deed. I think they are management decisions that can be changed at a whim.

Look at us trying to figure out if *wood has increased there priority period from 3 days.
 
Twinkstarr said:
Both KBC and the Point also trade in II, so if the priority does exist was it just in RCI?

Reserving your week based on what is in your deed makes sense, but I don't think trading priorities are written in the deed. I think they are management decisions that can be changed at a whim.

Look at us trying to figure out if *wood has increased there priority period from 3 days.
Click to expand...
The Embassy priority is in RCI only.
 
so let's see if i got this right....
if i have a 1-52 floating week at SDO and reserve a particular week(say a week 13) at SDO and then turn around and deposit it with II the week 13 is the actual week that II receives? BUT...
if i instead deposit the week 13 with RCI it becomes a mystery week???
IS THIS CORRECT?
 
Update - As of 9/2009, Starwood and RCI no longer permit owners to select the week that is deposited, unless it is a true fixed week (a week that cannot float AT ALL.)

Instead, you will use the TPU (Trading Power Units) that have been assigned to your resort/unit/season. I highly recommend that you check the TPU using the RCI calculator, and then confirm it with an RCI Rep., before you make your deposit. One way to get the Rep. to put it in writing is to use the online chat function on the RCI webpage, and then copy and paste the conversation to a text file, for documentation. DeniseM

-------------------------------------

irish said:
so let's see if i got this right....
if i have a 1-52 floating week at SDO and reserve a particular week(say a week 13) at SDO and then turn around and deposit it with II the week 13 is the actual week that II receives? BUT...
if i instead deposit the week 13 with RCI it becomes a mystery week???
IS THIS CORRECT?
Click to expand...


What is supposed to happen and what actually happens tend to differ with SVO. I've color-coded the various paths to help with understanding.

Here is what is supposed to happen:

If your SVO property is in SVN:

You book your resort for the week you want to deposit;

If you want to deposit it into II, you are screwed. SVO is legally entitled to pick the week and resort to deposit for you. (This is an express term on the SVN membership form that you signed when you joined SVN.); and,

Despite that agreement, if you want to deposit it into RCI, SFX or any other exchange company, SVO is legally required to deposit that booked week for you.

If your SVO property is NOT in SVN:

You book your resort for the week you want to deposit; and,

SVO is legally required to deposit that booked week for you into any authorized exchange company for your resort, II, RCI, SFX, whatever. (Since you are not given the benefits of SVN membership, you are not obligated to honor its unique add-on terms of your ownership, including the term that gives SVO the right to pick the resort/week to deposit into your II account.)

Here is what actually happens:

You book your resort for the week you want to deposit;

You call SVO and ask that your booked resort/week be deposited into an authorized exchange company of your choice (assuming you aren’t in SVN and don’t want to deposit into II). (Your resort must trade through RCI for you to deposit into RCI, though. Similarly, the resort/week must be one that SFX takes, if you want to deposit into SFX, etc.);

The SVO agent tells you a) that they get to pick the resort and week; or b) tells you they did as you requested and deposited the week and resort that you had booked;

Eventually, a mystery week and resort show up in your RCI/II/ or whatever exchange service account your requested;

99.9% of the owners stop at this step (and SVO knows it);

If you elect to proceed, you call back SVO to complain that your booked resort/week didn’t get deposited, and a weak trader was deposited instead. (Plan to spend about 3 hours of your time listening to an AM EX ad while on hold with SVO during this phase of the deposit process);

In between AM EX ads, you periodically get the run-around through various SVO agents and managers that all tell you “tough, we can do what we want with all deposits into all exchange companies.” They will ramble something about “space banks” and allocated deposits, blah, blah, blah. They may offer you a different week in the “space bank” to shut you up;

You keep asking to speak with that person’s supervisor;

Eventually, someone within SVO will not want you escalating things anymore and tell you that they are making an “exception” in your case only, and they will put your originally booked resort/week in your account. This is the same resort/week that no less than 4 previous SVO agents and managers all said was “impossible” to deposit; and,

You will find yourself “thanking” that person for “helping” you complete the deposit of your originally booked villa/week.

Make sense?
-nodge

People seeking the "purple path" (above) have found they can avoid the "brown path" (above), at least with respect to II exchanges, by working exclusively with II, preferably on-line, to deposit their already booked SVO week. Near as I can tell, no such on-line SVO hassle avoidance is available for making deposits into RCI for either "purple path" or "green path" seeking owners. . . they all get to trudge through the "brown path."
 
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yes ,i followed your post and will be using II as my exchange company.
 
irish said:
yes ,i followed your post and will be using II as my exchange company.
Click to expand...

Wise choice.

RCI's strengths include having the largest quantity of timeshares in Manhattan and having Disney Vacation Club villas to trade into. If trading into these properties is of little interest to you, II's on-line SVO hassle avoidance system is the way to go.

Good Luck,
-nodge
 
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Response from SVO on complaining about my RCI deposit.

This response was received from SVO when I complained about the weak trader that I ended up with in RCI:

"Dear Mr. Davidson,

Thank you for contacting Sheraton Vacation Ownership.

We apologize if you feel this deposit may not be satisfactory. We have confirmed that the banking was completed accurately and within guidelines to deposit a week that is similar to your ownership.

As deposits are a final transaction, a deposited week cannot be modified nor can the process be reversed.

Please remember that there are two phases at the Sheraton Desert Oasis. The original phase, which your week is part of, is valued differently than the newer phase of the same resort. Therefore, you may speak with other owners at the Sheraton Desert Oasis that have banked different weeks with different values based upon which phase they own. With your ownership in the older phase, weeks 1-52 are all valued equally, whether it is a week in January or July, Easter or Labor Day weeks.

Please remember that a week must be unused in order to bank it with RCI. Your week cannot be booked for a reservation and still be banked. Your reservation would need to be cancelled in order to process your banking request. "[/I]

What should I say to them. I have a deeded week 26, but it floats 1-52. Since I purchased resale, I an not in SVN.
 
steved2psi said:
This response was received from SVO when I complained about the weak trader that I ended up with in RCI:

"Dear Mr. Davidson,

Thank you for contacting Sheraton Vacation Ownership.

We apologize if you feel this deposit may not be satisfactory. We have confirmed that the banking was completed accurately and within guidelines to deposit a week that is similar to your ownership.

As deposits are a final transaction, a deposited week cannot be modified nor can the process be reversed.

Please remember that there are two phases at the Sheraton Desert Oasis. The original phase, which your week is part of, is valued differently than the newer phase of the same resort. Therefore, you may speak with other owners at the Sheraton Desert Oasis that have banked different weeks with different values based upon which phase they own. With your ownership in the older phase, weeks 1-52 are all valued equally, whether it is a week in January or July, Easter or Labor Day weeks.

Please remember that a week must be unused in order to bank it with RCI. Your week cannot be booked for a reservation and still be banked. Your reservation would need to be cancelled in order to process your banking request. "[/I]

What should I say to them. I have a deeded week 26, but it floats 1-52. Since I purchased resale, I an not in SVN.
Click to expand...


When you buy a floating week timeshare, you are in competition with other floating week timeshare owners at the same resort for the peak demand weeks. Each timeshare company tries to establish rules and procedures for ensuring all floating week owners have equal access to reserving those peak weeks. Sometimes you are able to book a peak season week and other times you aren’t. Such is the life of a floating week timeshare owner.

No matter what it takes to initially reserve a peak season week, sure as shooting, once you book it, it is YOUR WEEK with all the rights and privileges of ownership vested thereto. What are those rights you ask? I can think of four. Absent some agreement to the contrary (and there are none between pre-Starwood resort owners and SVO) every owner of a timeshare has an undeniable RIGHT to use it, rent it, give it away, or . . . . exchange it. PERIOD.

For SVO to now say that it controls what week will be deposited with an exchange company, essentially takes away (aka steals) 25% of an owner’s ownership rights in their timeshare without compensating that owner for the taking. Needless to say, SVO has no right whatsoever to do what it’s doing. What’s next? SVO will decide what week you can give away to a charity too?

One way or another, either through SVO understanding what it’s doing is wrong, or by SVO being forced to stop by court order, class action settlement, or the like, this unconscionable practice will eventually stop. For now, I suggest working your way up the SVO food chain like I did and kissing the appropriate rings so that SVO will make yet another one time only, special exception for you too. I’ve got "Manager A's" phone number if you want to go right to the top. I’ll loan you my chapstick too.

Good Luck,

-nodge
 
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I just love nodge's "brown path" - such an accurate color for the _____ resale voluntary owners have to put up with!
 
Give me Manager A's number

I will grovel and beg if it gets me a DVC week. Thanks Nodge.
 
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steved2psi said:
I will grovel and beg if it gets me a DVC week. Thanks Nodge.
Click to expand...

Just sent you a PM. I'll need your address before I can mail you the chapstick. It'd probably be quicker if you just bought your own. I think "Manager A" prefers "cherry."

Let us know how things work out.

-nodge
 
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I have left Manager A a voice message

I am a very patient person. I have two years to grovel and beg. Interestingly in the RCI Directory, it says to call your home resort and reserve your week and then call RCI to deposit. That flies in the face of the SVO on line response that you can't transfer a reserved week. I will use that at some point in this journey. I will keep everyone posted.
 
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steved2psi said:
Interestingly in the RCI Directory, it says to call your home resorst and reserve your week and then call RCI to deposit.
Click to expand...

This may be the way to avoid the "brown path" with RCI deposits!

Just book your villa/week with SVO, and then work with RCI to get that booked week deposited. Has this worked with anyone here on TUG?

-nodge
 
I received this response from SVO

We apologize if you feel this deposit may not be satisfactory. We have confirmed that the banking was completed accurately and within guidelines to deposit a week that is similar to your ownership. Banking is done at a first come first serve basis, we apologize that we were unable to bank the exact week that you wanted. Banking is also a final transaction that cannot be modified or reversed.


I plan to call in the morning.
 
I think SVO has adopted the quaint Persian wedding custom where, during the ceremony, the bride essentially denies the groom’s request for marriage three times before accepting his offer of marriage.

If so, you’ve got one more denial coming your way before you’ll either get the week you want deposited in RCI, or you’ll be married to SVO under Persian law.

Mo’afagh bashed!

-nodge
 
I sent another e-mail

I will also go through RCI to see what they have to say since I followed their procedure listed on page M10 of the RCI Guide on depositing a floating week.
 
Spoke to a represenative today

She (name withheld for privacy) was very pleasant and understanding. I gave her the history and asked for a replacement week. She said they could do it as long as there was an available week and it was in my season. I explained I had weeks 1-52, but preferred weeks 9-13. She saw a late March week and said she would call RCI and have my old week removed and replaced with a new week. She said it would probably take until the end of the day because she had to go through RCI. She said she would call me later today when everything had been taken care of.

I will keep you Tuggers posted.
 
Congrats! Plus you didn't have to listen to 3 hours of AM EX ads!

It is unfortunate that SVO has essentially imposed a two-class system for owner exchange deposits -- Those who know what's going on and can fight the system, and those who don't, who SVO has no trouble sticking it to. I bet you instictively did the last step of the "brown path" too. Isn't it weird how that happens?

If only there were some way to inform SVO owners of their rights . . . . Hmmm.

I guess I'll have to return my wedding present for you.

-nodge
 
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Woo Hoo Week fixed in RCI

Now seeing everything with a new March 21 week. Nodge, The SVO rep and I will name our first child after you, boy or girl. You can be our best man.
 
Don't be too quick jumping on the II bandwagon.

I deposited a sdo week online with II to avoid all the hassles. II says that it is not available for exchange. Have been on the phone with *wood, argueing to get my week that I had deposited.

It took awhile, but in the end they deposited the week I had reserved. Maybe I should've deposited my '10 week while I had them on the phone.

Thank You to all those that have fought *wood and shared their information with us.:banana:
 
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