Cancelling Disney last minute...freaking out

[CarolAnn856]

This whole thread is somewhat confusing to me.

You said you "probably" did the right thing by passing a message along to your mother? Why is that even in question?

Your mother may be in no state to talk to the DVC owner (completely understandable), but "the main thing is being able to salvage any part of this trip if at all possible." Not the loss of a family member?

The whole situation seems a bit odd.

 

[robinb]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Technically, cancellations where the points go into a "holding account" are allowed from 30 to 1 day before check in. Today is your family's check-in so you may still lose everything. You're lucky that you booked with an individual DVC who can go to bat for you. That's one of the advantages of dealing with a person and not a company. I hope that DVC allows the cancellation without loss of all the points used.

If DVC allows the points to go into holding, here are the rules on when you can use them:
https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/faq/holding-account/definition/

 

[Christine]

If it was me, I would have gone on the vacation as planned and came home if needed due to funeral arrangements.

I agree with this...is it too late for them to just go?

I say that because you state in your OP that you all aren't particularly close. And there is an autopsy to be done. They happen quickly enough, but maybe not even until Monday or Tuesday at this point. Seems your parents could just cut the trip short if need be. Or maybe the aunt's family won't even do anything until later in the week in order to give people time to make arrangements.

 

[QueenIsabella]

Another vote for your parents going, even if they arrive late. As others have stated, it's not terrible to hold off on services to accommodate family. When my mom died, my sister held off for over a week on services, so our brother could make arrangements to fly in from Germany to be there. Money was also an issue for him--it gave my sister the chance to advance him travel money. Excluding him really wasn't an option.

That said, your parents should be in touch with both SSR (so the resort knows they might arrive late today or tomorrow), and the DVC points owner. They might have to eat some $$, but could still do most of their trip.