Would CMs Be Able To Help If Your Personal Wheelchair Was Stolen???

[DisneyWheeler]

I was just wondering if Cast Members would be able to help you if your personal wheelchair (Quickie and other related models that don't look like the Disney park wheelchairs) was stolen from the parks. I've never had a problem with my own Quickie 2 manual wheelchair being stolen from Disney World. But, I'm going to take a detailed picture of my manual chair and what it looks like now, to show to security or to the OCP, just in case it happens. I know the serial number on the chair by heart, so that shouldn't be a problem.

Dan and I are getting very excited. Our trip is not too far away now (we leave Tuesday night to spend the night at the airport hotel in PDX, then fly out early the next morning), and we're just now starting to pack our suitcase. We just found out that his sister wouldn't be able to go after all, so my mom had to cancel her plane ticket.

Samantha

 

[Cheshire Figment]

I have never heard of personal wheelchairs being stolen at WDW. The only things I have heard of is sometimes when a CM will straighten out rows of strollers and/or wheelchairs and yours will get misplaced.

If you are worried about theft, gettting soemthing like a bicycle lock to either clip around the outside of a wheel or with a cable to lock a large wheel to the frame would work. This will not stop someone from moving the chair a few feet, but will definitely stop someone from wlking (driving) off with it. (Note that you should not lock the chair to anything stationary.)

 

[BillSears]

Considering the only time I'll be out of my wheelchair is when I make a transfer to a ride I sure hope they would or else I'd be stuck on the ride forever. I take my wheelchair right up to the ride vehicle and it should be there when the ride stops, without the wheelchair I won't get off of the ride since all I'd be doing is dragging myself on the floor.

 

[SueM in MN]

If someone's wheelchair was taken, they would report it to the CMs in the area, who would let security know. WDW would offer a park rental wheelchair until the personal one could be found.
BUT ----
the only wheelchairs I've ever heard of being taken were the park rental wheelchairs. In many of those cases, it's probably taken by mistake by someone else who rented a wheelchair at the park. It's not likely that someone would mistake someone's personal wheelchair for the one they rented in the park, so chances of a personal wheelchair being taken by mistake would be pretty small.
If someone was actually looking to steal a wheelchair, they would be more likely to take one of the park rental ones for a number of reasons:

• There are a lot of park rental wheelchair and relatively few personal wheelchairs.
• There are so many park rental wheelchairs, it would be easy to 'blend in' if you took one. It would be a lot harder to 'blend in' if someone took a personal wheelchair.
• Someone trying to take a wheelchair would not know when the owner/renter of the wheelchair might come back. If the owner/renter came back and saw the chair being taken, it would be easy to claim a rental one was taken by mistake. It would be really hard to try to claim a personal wheelchair was taken by mistake.
• The things that make the personal wheelchair fit the owner would tend to make it inconvenient/uncomfortable to someone else.

The first year that we took DD's manual wheelchair with us, we worried about someone taking it and actually did bring a lock. But, we never used it.
For all of the movies and shows, you will be sitting in the wheelchair.
There are some rides that have a wheelchair car and you could stay in your wheelchair for those if it is easier for you to not transfer.
Even if you do transfer or for rides where it is necessary to transfer, your wheelchair will be parked at the exit, as has been already mentioned. The CMs usually park them out of the exit path, but very close to the exit.
Most people getting off rides probably don't even see the wheelchairs, even though they are often in plain sight. People are focused on getting to the exit and don't really notice anything except getting out. Even if someone did see the wheelchair parked there, they would have no way of knowing if the owner of the wheelchair is in one of the next ride cars.

So, I would not worry about the wheelchair being taken. I would suggest you not leave anything of value on it. We usually leave DD's backpack on her wheelchair, but it has nothing of value in it (unless someone is looking for extra clothes and snacks).

 

[BratDet]

Hi,

When I was just at WDW, and was asked to leave my wheelchair at the outer area to the Pirates of C. ride- my husband & I dug out my lightweight bike lock to lock it up.
The cast member stopped us and assured us my w/c would be fine unlocked.
We gave in to her pressure and didn't lock it. She said the area was not busy and she would be watching,,,,
In retrospect, we should have just done it- after all if it was gone- I would be in deep poo for the rest of my trip.
We left it folded up in one area and this same cast member decided to move it & when we returned- it was so far moved- we thought it had been taken.

Bernadette

 

[DisneyWheeler]

Thanks Sue; Dan, my mom and my godfather, all love to tease me because I'm such a big worrier. But, we've never had a problem with someone taking it in the last 4 or 5 years we've gone to Disney World with it, as it looks like it really belongs to someone, just from the way it is.

One time, we did have a scare at the POC ride because it wasn't where we had originally left it. But, one of the CMs who had seen me in it earlier, directed us to where she had parked it, and we were able to find it pretty easy. I am able to transfer out of my wheelchair at any of the rides. But, when some of the CMs see the way I walk, they suggest bringing the wheelchair ride vehicle around.

Samantha

 

[SueM in MN]

Hi,

When I was just at WDW, and was asked to leave my wheelchair at the outer area to the Pirates of C. ride- my husband & I dug out my lightweight bike lock to lock it up.
The cast member stopped us and assured us my w/c would be fine unlocked.
We gave in to her pressure and didn't lock it. She said the area was not busy and she would be watching,,,,
In retrospect, we should have just done it- after all if it was gone- I would be in deep poo for the rest of my trip.
We left it folded up in one area and this same cast member decided to move it & when we returned- it was so far moved- we thought it had been taken.

Bernadette

You can lock it if you want, but just not to anything or in a way that makes it impossible to move.
If you are going to leave it, it's best to ask a CM where to move it. Even if you leave it in the stroller parking area, it is possible that a CM might move it. As people come out of rides and take their strollers/wheelchairs out of the parking area, CMs move the remaining ones to make room for new arrivals.

 

[Talking Hands]

If I leave my PWC in an area easily accessible to the general public I will disable the controller with a special key I have. To freewheel the chair would be very difficult to do for 2 reasdons. 1. It isn't in the back as normal. 2 It is one for each wheel and not a lever for both. Lastly one of the levers is really difficult to disengage so you would have to be really strong to do it.

 

[I Love Pluto]

Considering the only time I'll be out of my wheelchair is when I make a transfer to a ride I sure hope they would or else I'd be stuck on the ride forever. I take my wheelchair right up to the ride vehicle and it should be there when the ride stops, without the wheelchair I won't get off of the ride since all I'd be doing is dragging myself on the floor.

Bill - you have the greatest sense of humor! Keep that attitude forever!

 

[DisneyWheeler]

Considering the only time I'll be out of my wheelchair is when I make a transfer to a ride I sure hope they would or else I'd be stuck on the ride forever. I take my wheelchair right up to the ride vehicle and it should be there when the ride stops, without the wheelchair I won't get off of the ride since all I'd be doing is dragging myself on the floor.

I do the same thing as you Bill. Other times when CMs see me walk in my uncoordinated balance (even though I'm hanging onto DH) they offer to bring the wheelchair-accessible ride vehicle around, so that I can roll right on with my wheelchair. Either way, it works for me.

My wheelchair is always there at the end of the ride when I do transfer, waiting for me. When we went on the POC ride about three years ago, it did get moved into a different place than where we orginally left it. It did cause some worry, but we were able to find it.

Thanks everyone. We're getting set to leave tomorrow for our trip, and are very excited.

Samantha