Marriott no-show policy precludes all rewards - request for insights

[mightywyrm]

First, the context: I recently had an experience wherein I was intentionally a no-show at a Marriott hotel. (This "stay" was intended primarily to meet the requirements for the "buy 3, get one free night" promotion that ended in August.)

Come to find out, heh, that no-shows result in full charge, along with cancellation of all benefits and promotions. The fine print is located at https://www.marriott.com/rewards/terms/earning.mi . Chapter and verse indicates you must stay in a room, although nobody told me this and I hadn't read the fine print (lesson learned).

So, in addition to the cost of the room (with which I remain fine), there were no points, no double elite nights, and no 3rd stay qualifying me for the free bonus night.

Now, I was very clear about what I was trying to do, both in talking with Reservations (who put me on hold for over 20 minutes) and the person at the hotel who ultimately processed my reservation.

Currently, I'm in the process of appealing a very apathetic GM's response. It's almost surreal, in that they pass the buck around from one division to another; "there's nothing I can do, you have to talk to" someone else. I've explained the situation to several people in different groups (rewards, customer care, hotel staff), submitted a missing stay request (unanswered) and it's somewhat of a mystery to me why the site GM refuses to change this. (He said this won't be changed and offered a free weekend night, in which I have zero interest.)

Question: Does anyone here have any experience getting no-shows overridden? Is it worth spending time arguing with this GM, or should I just explain the whole timeline in registered mail to an exec who actually cares about unhappy customers?

I'm a great customer (accumulated over 500K MRPs in the past year), and I'm willing to pay. In fact, I had intended to be an even better customer next year, but at this point I'm ready to switch loyalties.

Thanks in advance for any helpful insights.

 

[KathyPet]

OUCH! That is certainly a nasty lesson learned. A few years ago I booked a room that I had no intention of using but only for one night to qualify for a promotion. However I did drive to the hotel, checked in, put the key in the room and never returned. I didn't just not show up.

 

[short]

I booked my free weekend night at Sheraton this Sat.(part of stay 2 get one weekend night free promo).

I was told on the phone that if I did not check in or cancel one day before I would be charged $450 for the night(compared to free).

Seems odd but I guess they do not want people tieing up rooms they are not going to use.

Short

 

[mightywyrm]

Seems odd but I guess they do not want people tieing up rooms they are not going to use.

Yeah, that's pretty heavyhanded for not showing up for a "free" night (almost a gotcha waiting to happen).

I can understand the need for a no-show charge. They can't have the room tied up (and another post indicates that they sometimes double-book these rooms).

What I don't get, in the case of Marriott, is that even though you have to pay (and even when there was an innocent misunderstanding that was openly discussed), the record is flagged as if you've done something criminal and you waive all benefits. If you then ask them to remove the flag, it's all apathy and buck-passing. I don't understand why, and have a hard time believing that the program was intended to lower the boom in this way. Why antagonize a good customer any further? What's in it for them, when the customer has wanted to pay all along?

 

[pwrshift]

Starwood's booking policy (cancel night before arrival) was the main reason I rarely use their hotels and much prefer Marriott where most of their bookings have to 6 pm day of arrival.

Brian

I booked my free weekend night at Sheraton this Sat.(part of stay 2 get one weekend night free promo).

I was told on the phone that if I did not check in or cancel one day before I would be charged $450 for the night(compared to free).

Seems odd but I guess they do not want people tieing up rooms they are not going to use.

Short

 

[rthib]

In the Future

If you need a night credit, instead of not showing just call the hotel.
It is common for folks to need a few nights for a promotion, elite level etc...

Many managers will gladly take down your info and "check you in" over the phone, especially if you have stayed at the hotel before.

 

[mightywyrm]

In addition to the comments provided above, I may as well post a couple notes, for posterity's sake.

* Once I had fully documented what had occurred via email, I found that email didn't lend itself to a dialog with the manager. (I'd go into great detail, he'd respond to like 10% of my note and request a call back if I had any further questions.) So I called, and remained polite, and found out that he really was willing to help arrange something equivalent to what had been lost/forfeited.

* The manager referred me to a customer advocacy group - Marriott Guest Relations (800-535-4028) and told me to request a "guest experience supervisor". I had a good chat with this guy too, and trust that he will advocate.

At this point I'm satisfied that I'm dealing with people who see this foul-up for what it is, and who are neither snotty nor happily passing the buck.

Hope this is helpful to someone, eventually.

 

[Superchief]

This topic reminds me how much things have changed over the years. Several years ago (long before 9/11) I needed one more Delta flight segment to qualify for preferred status or a promotion ticket. I purchased a one way ticket from CVG to IND, gave my ticket to the agent, and boarded the plane. I then got off the plane and never reboarded. I received my mileage credit without any problems. Travel was much more enjoyable at that time.