CM wouldn't give us a GAC at MGM?

[kazzie]

Hi,

This year for the first time in 7 trips because of my DS's 'frame of mind' I decided to ask for a GAC pass.My son has Asperger's & 'challenging' behaviour among other things!

At US/IOA we were given a pass when we showed our letetrf rom our doctor,and had the most fantastic day there.

The only Disney park we visited was MGM and the difference in the attituse was startling.We were told we don't give out GAC's anymore,too many people abused them Not insinuating that I would but it wasn't a very nice attitide.

Is it that you can't use a GAC at MGM or was I informed incorrectly about there not being a GAC at all?

 

[Cheshire Figment]

You were definitely incorrectly informed. The GACs are still issued. You should have asked to see a manager or supervisor immediately. If the CM was unwilling, you should have gotten the person's name and reported them.

If you have that information available, I would suggest writing to Guest Services (PO Box 10,000, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830). If possible, give the exact date, time and location of the incident; they will be able to figure out who was working at that time.

 

[SueM in MN]

There have been no recent changes in the GAC (Guest Assistance Card) at WDW that I am aware of. There are several CMs in Guest Relations who have let us know about changes before, so if there were any changes, they would have said something.

It sounds like you got a CM who needed a little more pixie dust and I agree with Cheshire Figment that if a situation like that happens in the future, you should ask to speak to a supervisor.

Now, not knowing your exact situation, I can't say what occurred, but I can clarify some things about GACs and offer some educated guesses (I am not a WDW CM and I do not play one on TV, so do take these as best guesses).
First, the CMs do not have any medical background, so the CM in your case may not have recognized that Asperger syndrome is on the autism spectrum. Also, a lot of times when people do bring in doctor's letters, they might just say "Timmy has x", or the letter may be several pages of specific medical information in medical language or just a short statement that says "let Timmy go on rides without waiting in line." (I'm not saying any of this was the case with your doctor letter).
None of those things are especially helpful to the CM.
The GAC is a tool to help the CMs know what sorts of accomidation are needed, so it's important that the CM issuing the GAC knows what the needs are. Two people with the same diagnosis might have very different needs, so the GAC is based on the needs, not the diagnosis. So, if someone comes in and says "I need a GAC because my child has x", but can't articulate any needs, they will not get a GAC. If they ask for something impossible, like front of the line access, they will not get a GAC. (I'm not saying this happened to you, especially since you mentioned in your post that your DS has some "issues" while in lines. I'm assuming either that you were able to explain the issues or the CM didn't let you get that far.)

Another thing that might have played into this is that at some times of the year, the waits in line are quite short and you don't really need a GAC. They used to tell people when they issued GACs that the GAC should only be used if the standby lines are more than 15-20 minutes.
This is normally a slow time and would have short waits, plus the Studio has a lot of attractions with Fastpass available (using Fastpass would definately shorten your wait in line to 10 minutes or less). It's possible the CM was told to convey that information to people who asked for GACs and sort of mis-stated it (with a little attitude).

No excuse for a rude CM. I hope you had a good day despite the bad start.

 

[JudithM]

Karen, I am sorry you had this expereince at the Disney Studios. That is usually the first park we visit, so it is where I get my GAC most trips. Mike is right about writinga letter & being as specific & detailed as possible.

I find it interesting to read that you found US/IOA more accomodating than WDW (Studios). I had an opportunity at the last minute to visit US Hollywood in August. I went to their Guest Services & had to explain very little to the person to get their Guset Assistance Pass. With the pass in hand, the employees were very accomodating at the attractions, even more so than CMs on my many trips to WDW.

 

[kazzie]

Thank you all very much for your thoughts and advice.

The CM didn't even look at my Doctors letter! So I know it wasn't about how she had worded it.

As I had never asked for assistance before I didn't know enough to challenge the CM at guest services.Had I posted here first and had your knowlege I would have insisted on seeing a manager or someone 'above' her.

Never mind no harm done as MGM was the only Disney park we went to.Had I been given that advice and attended several parks without the assistance my son requires I would upset though

Judith I have to say in my limited experience of both companies helping with special needs assistance,Universal made our day

 

[kazzie]

I was thinking (dangerous I know!) I/we as consumers are quick to complain when a company doesn't 'deliver' how we expect.So I make an effort to write and thank companies when they give really good service.I did this when I flew to Spain and the company took great pains to pre-book our seats (when they won't normally) in advance etc.

So I've just sent an e-mail to Universal thanking them for making a difference to our day at a theme park.

SO,I should send an e-mail to Disney to let them know I am disaappointed in the lack of help they extended to me when I asked for help for the first time

Does anyone have an e-mail address I could contact them at please?

 

[SueM in MN]

For the doctor's letters, they usually do not want to see them, although they won't refuse to look at one if you show them. They don't need to have one (and actually can't require you to get one).

That is a good idea to let Universal know how pleased you were with their service and how hlepful it was for your family. Our family has not been there in about 7 or 8 years, mostly because they were not helpful to us. So families like yours who have a good experience and tell about it, make it more likely they will continue to do things well.
And, although our expereince at WDW has been good, they really need to know when they do have problems.

 

[DonaldsGrl103]

I was there this halloween weekend and people were using them alot. I even saw a few people who were in the fast pass line using GAC on the tower of terror. I would defiantly report it

 

[kazzie]

Does anyone have an e-mail address for WDW guest relations so I can contact them please?


Thanks again for your advice and thoughts

 

[SueM in MN]

If you go to the Home page of the Official Disney website, there is a "Contact Us" link at the bottom of the page. I have had good luck emailing that address.
If you prefer to call someone, you could try this number:
General Information: Voice: 407-824-4321 TTY: 407-827-5141
That is the number listed in the WDW disability webpage for general information.

 

[kazzie]

Thanks Sue