Interval International Cancellation Policy for Timeshare

The newest issue of TimeSharing Today Magazine, includes a letter from Lori Card-King, who is the vice president of Quality Assurance for Interval International timeshare exchange. Ms. Card-King is responding to a letter TimeSharing Today received from a reader who had questions about Interval International’s exchange policy.

My summary of both letters may give you more insight into the thinking behind policies at timeshare exchange companies and the viewpoint of timeshare owners who question the policies.

The timeshare owner’s position was that when she needed to cancel her timeshare vacation within seven days of the travel date, it was unfair for Interval International timeshare exchange to refuse to let her select another timeshare interval at a future date against her banked timeshare week. The timeshare owner acknowledged that Interval International not only kept her banked week and refused to let her make a future exchange but also charged her a fee for the cancellation. While the timeshare owner had no objection to paying the fee, she did object to having to forfeit all possible exchange against her banked week.

Interval International timeshare exchange’s explanation was that last minute cancellations often result in unused timeshare weeks because no one else is able to make travel arrangements fast enough to use the timeshare interval. II pointed out that they try to protect their members by refusing to accept banked or deposited timeshare for dates that are less than two weeks in the future, and not permitting exchanges with less than 7 days notice.

When you hear both sides, you can see that the timeshare owner and the timeshare exchange company each raise good points and TimeSharing Today did a good job of showing both sides of the issue when they printed the two letters side by side.

One option that was recommended was for the timeshare owner to purchase insurance from Interval International for just this reason. The timeshare owner also pointed out that two other timeshare exchange companies with which she had dealt, do allow you to still exchange for another week, even if you make a last minute cancellation. These two companies are: RCI and Donita’s Dial An Exchange.

In the past, I have listed the names of several timeshare exchange companies here on the Timeshare Owners Blog, but maybe it is time to do it again. The Timeshare Owners Blog does not endorse or recommend any particular timeshare exchange company, because different ones are best suited for different vacation patterns and individual needs.