Very upsetting checkout at BWI

[wilkeliza]

There have been several who have mentioned "glitches" with magic bands in terms of paying for meals... Here is my question...If there is a credit card attached to the account, do you still need your credit card to pay for the meal if there is a GLITCH with the Magic Band???? If the answer is yes, I guess I wonder WHY? The guest is being inconvenienced to begin with by the glitch...ok. glitches happen, "I get that".. But if that be the case, if a credit card is "on file attached to the account", why can't the restaurant use that info?????? TIA!

They can't actually see the card itself or manually key it in. I experienced one of those glitches and they had a form we had to fill out stating where we were staying our room number etc and were told at the end of the day we would be charge but since they can't do it from the register itself they had to take all the slips to GR for them to be added to our room charges.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I've heard horror stories regarding room charges and people reporting the same issue as you.

My plan for my next trip at the BC is to go down to the lobby every day or two and paying down my room with gift cards and getting a printed receipt.

We used to get the DDP and not have many charges at all. Next trip is no DDP and I want to keep track of our spending and see how much we spend.

 

[Amanda999]

Yeah, that stinks. I only know that's the deal - make sure to go to the front desk the day before you check out to apply gift cards (in my case) or Visa points. You asked at check in and should have been told that! Regardless, of course they can reverse a Visa charge - it's ridiculous the CM said she couldn't.

I'd call the hotel directly (not the call number - I'm sure some googling will get you the real hotel front desk - I know Andre's POR/POFQ website has direct email or fax to those hotels, so if I were you I'd start with them and get to your hotel). No reason they can't fix this easy peasy.

 

[PrincessHi]

I don't know how you can be more in control than the what the Magic Bands are. You get a receipt for every transaction. You can stop at the front desk at anytime to see the transactions. If you lose your magic band, nobody will know the pin number. Let's say you spend cash for everything. You have the ability to lose the cash, have a pickpocket take the cash. Carrying cash means carrying a billfold or purse around everywhere including pool and water park. Those things get stolen, lost or misplaced a lot. Or let's say you charge everything to your credit card all over the parks and resorts. You have to take the CC out everywhere you buy it. Most times you also have to take out identification. You could lose either at any time. There is also the possibility (albeit slim) that your card could be compromised at each and every location where you use it. With the bands, I have my CC swiped one time by one person. This means added security because if it is compromised, there is only one place for the authorities to look. To me, after using them, the Magic Band not only helps with hotel room doors, scanning for rides and park entry, and the FP+, but it ultimately is a very big part of my financial security plan. I cannot lose my wallet unless someone gets in the safe in my room. I cannot lose my CC because it is in that wallet from the time I get to DW till the time I leave. The Resort employees that check me in and the room staff are the only ones that could possibly do me any financial harm and that would be easy to trace. I am not rich by any means and all my trips have budget's that are followed (except for that darn Avocado margy at the ditch, and the next one, and the next one). . At the end of each day, I don't have to think about how much cash I spent and how much I put on my charge card, I just get a printout of it all right in one place. I then decide if I went over budget or not and adjust the next day. So easy. So secure.

Well personally usually when I travel I use a preloaded currency card (I'm coming from the UK) these are very secure for many reasons but won't bore you with the details. I'm on a tight budget so don't expect to spend much on extras and have a dining plan so food is already paid for. I use an app on my phone (every day not just holidays) to track my spending. I'm not a pool / waterpark person so that isn't a concern for carrying small amounts of cash for tipping etc.

For me, this is a more secure (and perfectly convenient) approach as opposed to trusting in fairly new technology with my cc details.

 

[Squirlz]

I'm wondering why people don't want to just use the card directly for their purchases? Wouldn't that be easier?

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm wondering why people don't want to just use the card directly for their purchases? Wouldn't that be easier?

A lot of people buy $50 gift cards. You would have to carry multiple cards everyday and remember how much is on each card.

I have a fear of losing things while on vacation. I would rather keep the gift cards in the safe and pay at the front desk.

 

[bumbershoot]

I'm wondering why people don't want to just use the card directly for their purchases? Wouldn't that be easier?

I'm right there with you. I use the disney GC app to keep track of the cards, I would only carry one or two of the $50 cards (as mentioned in the reply) with me each day and keep the others locked away.

 

[tim123]

We had another great week at WDW this past week and the second great stay at the BWI. However they checking out process put a big glitch in the week. This was our first time using the magic bands so when we checked in the girl asked me for a credit card to put on the bands to make purchasing easier by charging everything to our room. Well, I had saved our reward points for about 2 years so I had over $200 to spend on 'free stuff' so I didn't want to add my credit card. She explained to me that they couldn't yet match the magic bands to the Visa rewards card but if I put the Visa credit card on the band, all of my purchases would go to the room and then when we checked out, I could then pay for all the purchases put towards my credit card with my rewards card. Sounded good to me! So when we checked out yesterday, I went to the desk and got my bill. I had bought $177 worth of stuff that I thought was free but was told that it had already been charged to my Visa credit card. I told her that I was told at checkin that I could pay off my bill using my rewards redemption card but she said it was too late. All charges are entered on their system at 2am the morning of your checkout and I would have had to pay off my account using my rewards card the night before to stop the charges from being processed using my credit card. We were never told this!!!!! So now I bough $177 worth of stuff that I really didn't need but thought was free. That's what you use rewards points for...buying stuff you wouldn't necessarily buy but will when it's free! I asked her to reverse the charge and she said she couldn't. I was so mad. Why am I now paying for free stuff when their employee didn't inform me of the correct process. Now I have an entire rewards card unused and a bill coming for $177 next month on a trip that was completely paid for before we left. Now, should I contact the hotel to see if they can still reverse this or maybe VISA? I know it's only $177 but I value those reward dollars and thought I was really getting a bargain buying that expensive wallet and those extra appetizers at dinner because they were 'free'. Any thoughts????

They should easily be able to debit the rewards card and send a credit from the credit card. I can't imagine why not. At check out all that stuff can be sorted out. Easy as pie. Whats the problem?

 

[maxiesmom]

A lot of people buy $50 gift cards. You would have to carry multiple cards everyday and remember how much is on each card.

I have a fear of losing things while on vacation. I would rather keep the gift cards in the safe and pay at the front desk.

Me too. And no method of payment is simpler than matching the Mickey heads up, and typing in a number. No need to dig in my park bag, looking for the card I want to use. A quick turn of the wrist and I am all set.

 

[Pat329]

By all these posts I can see that I wasn't the only person to have a problem with room charges. I must say however that I really did like the convenience of the magic band to charge items. This was my first year using the MB and I really liked it. I never opened my wallet once and realized I didn't even need it by the end of the week. Which means less things to carry around and an even smaller purse next time! They told me at check in that currently only a VISA card can be linked to the MB. They hope to eventually be able to link gift cards and reward redemption cards but just can't do it yet. I asked a few CMs at different restaurants how they liked MB and most said they worked great except for an occasional 'glitch' like when the internet goes down and everything stops. That would be a big problem but they said it only happened a few times and were back up in minutes. Losing internet connection is a daily happening where I work so I can understand that happening at any workplace, including Disney. So the only problem I had was with the CMs at check out not being able to reverse my charges or even tying. One poster mentioned that charges aren't placed on your card until you spend a certain amount and that it depends on if you're at a moderate, value or deluxe. That's not true. I spent under $200 at a deluxe and it still went through. All in all, I would not have a problem putting a CC on my MB in the future but I will check the night before check out to transfer my charges to my rewards card or gift card. Hopefully by that time, the MB will be able to link these other cards. As the OP I'd like to thank all those that commented on my post. I've never had such great feedback on any of my posts! Thanks!

 

[DebbieB]

I was there last month, my third trip with Magic Bands. This was the first time I've actually used room charge. I had about $200 in gift cards, which I used first. When they ran out (especially after spending $93 in Mouse Gears ), I started using room charge. It worked flawlessly, even at the F & W booths. I have to admit it is much easier (which I think is one of the purposes to get people to spend more).

 

[ClarabelleCow]

I have always used the room card for charging and this will be my first time using the magic bands with CC linked. But - kind of defeats the purpose if you have a Disney Credit CArd,you still need to carry it around with you to show you have it to get the discount at the shops and restaurants that offer the discount.

 

[Ava]

I have always used the room card for charging and this will be my first time using the magic bands with CC linked. But - kind of defeats the purpose if you have a Disney Credit CArd,you still need to carry it around with you to show you have it to get the discount at the shops and restaurants that offer the discount.

I loved using the MagicBand for charging on our last trip, but this is the one thing I forgot! We had the DDP so no restaurant discounts, but we did spend over $50 in one transaction at the Emporium in MK and I couldn't get the discount because I didn't have the card with me. Next year I'll remember to carry the card with me for sure.

I did get some pixie dust from the concierge at CBR when I went to pay off our room charges. During that same transaction at the Emporium, the CM accidentally charged me twice for the same doll. I didn't notice it at the time, and only realized when I was going over my receipts before I went down to the concierge. I explained what happened and she refunded me for the duplicate charge! I really wasn't counting on her being able to do anything, since the charge happened at a store in MK a few days prior and there was no way for her to know for sure that we didn't really buy two of the dolls. But she took my word for it and was able to give me the refund.