Is there an deadline for activation of the 15 month annual pass promotion?

[Jeffxz]

I've been trying to call Universal to get an answer to this, but always get a message to try to call back later.


There is currently a 3 month extension if you buy a new annual pass before March 31st. Does anyone know if these have to be activated by a certain date? I've checked the fine print on their site and I was unable to find any date that they need to be activated by.

The latest I intend to activate is October of this year.

 

[Jeffxz]

For anyone else with a similar question, a poster on reddit said they emailed this question and got this response.

Thank you for contacting Universal Orlando Resort Guest Services.

I am excited to learn you are considering joining our Annual Passholder family! If you pay in full at the time you purchase your Annual Pass, and complete your purchase by March 31, 2021, your pass will be valid for fifteen (15) months from the date your Annual Pass is first used to enter one of our parks and there is no time limit for when this must be done. Additionally, even if you do not pick up your passes this year, they will be waiting for you to retrieve them whenever you can. They still will be valid fifteen (15) months from the date of first use because of our current promotion.

Alternatively, if you purchase your Annual Pass on a FlexPay™ contract, it will be valid for fifteen (15) months from the date of purchase. I hope this information was helpful. Should you have any further questions or concerns regarding ticketing, please feel free to reach our Online Ticket Store via telephone at (407) 224-7840.

Again, thank you for contacting us. We hope to entertain you soon! J

Edit: It seems the information in this quote about the flexpay option is incorrect. Please read the posts further down by @Disney Ron for more info.

 

[JoeCamel]

For anyone else with a similar question, a poster on reddit said they emailed this question and got this response.

That is what I understood, yea Universal. Money in the bank

 

[Weather_Lady]

For anyone else with a similar question, a poster on reddit said they emailed this question and got this response.

Thanks for sharing the answer! We won't be activating ours until the end of August, so I was keeping an eye on your thread.

 

[jeanericuser001]

Um I think there is sadly. My sister bought hers with the intention of going in march last year but then covid happened so she never got it. Flash forward a few months later and universal secretly activated her pass for her without her knowing. Now she has only a couple months left to enjoy it when in truth she never activated it herself at the park. Universal some times has some really dubious practices when it comes to passes.

 

[Weather_Lady]

Um I think there is sadly. My sister bought hers with the intention of going in march last year but then covid happened so she never got it. Flash forward a few months later and universal secretly activated her pass for her without her knowing. Now she has only a couple months left to enjoy it when in truth she never activated it herself at the park. Universal some times has some really dubious practices when it comes to passes.

Did your sister maybe pay for it in installments (what Universal calls "FlexPay")? The activation timeline for those (according to post #2 above) is different.

Either way, it's a shame that happened to her. I hope she'll still get some use out of it -- or can talk Universal into extending it, given the circumstances.

 

[jeanericuser001]

She paid in full instead of flexpay. She tried 3 different calls to universal but all they would extend it by is 2 month. She is pretty much mad as a hornet about it. At least we will be taking my nieces and nephews to there for mothers day but her plans to go to universal beyond that are pretty much gone. Not sure if she plans to renew again but likely she will switch to strictly BG/SW like the rest of the family till all the construction is over.

 

[Weather_Lady]

She paid in full instead of flexpay. She tried 3 different calls to universal but all they would extend it by is 2 month. She is pretty much mad as a hornet about it. At least we will be taking my nieces and nephews to there for mothers day but her plans to go to universal beyond that are pretty much gone. Not sure if she plans to renew again but likely she will switch to strictly BG/SW like the rest of the family till all the construction is over.

I'd be mad, too. In fact, if I were her, and if what Universal did in activating the pass wasn't consistent with the applicable terms and conditions at the time I purchased my pass,* I'd be having my attorney write a demand letter (copied to Universal's legal department) requesting that the pass be extended to permit its use for the full amount of time promised, because to do otherwise constitutes unjust enrichment at best, and fraud at worst. (Then again, my husband and I are both attorneys, so having "my attorney" do something is as simple as poking my head into an adjacent room and asking. YMMV.) It's generally not necessary to make a federal case (or any kind of case) about such a thing, but a lawyer letter is a good way to get a company's attention (and by "company," I mean "people within the company who have the power to fix the problem, and not just someone who answers the phones") if someone's legitimately been wronged.

*FWIW, if I go into my Universal Orlando app "wallet," pull up my seasonal annual pass (purchased online in January), and click through the "details" links, the terms and conditions for initial purchases (not renewals) of Seasonal Annual Passes specify that: "The first term for all Pass types is twelve (12) months from the date of first use and the additional applicable free months per pass type will apply to the end of the first term . . . The 2-Park 15-Month Seasonal Pass entitles one (1) guest admission to BOTH Universal Studios Florida and Universal's Islands of Adventure theme parks for a total of fifteen (15) months beginning and including the first day this pass is used." (emphasis added)

If the terms and conditions for your sister's pass include these words and her pass purchase was a pay-in-full initial purchase (not a renewal), and if she doesn't have a lawyer friend who's willing to write a letter for her, I'd encourage her to call again -- this time escalating as high as she can, and requesting the legal department -- because something is really out of joint.

 

[Disney Ron]

For anyone else with a similar question, a poster on reddit said they emailed this question and got this response.

I believe that's wrong. I purchased 4 Preferred 15 month AP's in February using Flexpay and the fine print with my order says the regular 12 months are activated on the day of first use and when the 12 months are over the additional 3 months will begin. I would have never bought them since we aren't going until June if activation started on the day of purchase when using Flexpay. I'm on hold with UO at the moment trying to get confirmation on this and will post what I'm told.

 

[Disney Ron]

I just got off the phone with UO Guest Services after a 90 minute wait and the agent said that whether you pay in full or by Flexpay for the 15 month AP the activation date for both is the first day you enter a park with it. That's exactly what the fine print with my Flexpay order says. I just want to clarify that for everyone.

 

[Jeffxz]

I believe that's wrong. I purchased 4 Preferred 15 month AP's in February using Flexpay and the fine print with my order says the regular 12 months are activated on the day of first use and when the 12 months are over the additional 3 months will begin. I would have never bought them since we aren't going until June if activation started on the day of purchase when using Flexpay. I'm on hold with UO at the moment trying to get confirmation on this and will post what I'm told.

That is actually how I interpreted the fine print also. I’ve added an edit to the original message pointing to your post.

 

[Disney Ron]

That is actually how I interpreted the fine print also. I’ve added an edit to the original message pointing to your post.

Jeff, I've read 3 different posters on 2 UO boards that thought, if you pay using Flexpay, that activation starts the day of purchase. That just doesn't make sense. I just wanted it to be clear for everyone.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I believe that's wrong. I purchased 4 Preferred 15 month AP's in February using Flexpay and the fine print with my order says the regular 12 months are activated on the day of first use and when the 12 months are over the additional 3 months will begin. I would have never bought them since we aren't going until June if activation started on the day of purchase when using Flexpay. I'm on hold with UO at the moment trying to get confirmation on this and will post what I'm told.

Thanks for clarifying!

 

[Disney Ron]

Thanks for clarifying!

WL, I have to apologize to you I just read the info you posted on Friday and saw I gave the same info you had. I just read the first couple of posts in this thread and responded, but you also have it correct. It just got to me that I've seen on this and another UO board that if you purchased the 15 month AP using Flexpay(which we did last month) that the activation started at the time of purchase. My details on my confirmation doesn't say that and I checked that on the phone with UO yesterday.

Thanks foe the info you provided.

 

[Weather_Lady]

WL, I have to apologize to you I just read the info you posted on Friday and saw I gave the same info you had. I just read the first couple of posts in this thread and responded, but you also have it correct. It just got to me that I've seen on this and another UO board that if you purchased the 15 month AP using Flexpay(which we did last month) that the activation started at the time of purchase. My details on my confirmation doesn't say that and I checked that on the phone with UO yesterday.

Thanks foe the info you provided.

No apologies necessary! I did think the activation periods were different, based on others' posts. Grateful you did the leg work to get a straight answer.