Starwood Preferred Guest - What if you're a regular member and get offered Gold status under another name?

My wife's a regular Starwood member, with no elite status, using her married name. She just received in the mail an offer for her, under her maiden name, to become Starwood Gold. It even includes what would be her new membership card, which becomes valid once she registers online. The offer seems to assume that she's not a member at all, and would assign her a new Starwood membership number. (It also comes with 1,000 miles per stay for her next ten stays.)

What to do? Any problem with her joining and getting the Gold status under her maiden name, and then later combining the accounts?

Thanks for any advice.

I'd go ahead and call Starwood now. Have them combine the accounts, which will have to be into the new account to get the gold status. They will need to correct the name on the new account. I think it would be a very straightforward discussion with the Starwood rep.

First off, congratulations! (On the wedding, not the gold card ;)) There shouldn't be any problem combining your wife's two identies, assuming they both have the same address. This is definitely something Starwood Customer Service does. Regarding the bonus, it's hard to say if you'd be eligible for the 1000 pt bonuses, since I don't know if it is intended for "new" SPG members. If you don't plan on having any stays, then this issue is moot and you shouldn't have any trouble getting the gold status and her existing points to merge. If you are planning on trying to take advantage of the bonuses (and I'm assuming this bonus is not the current Get Closer to Paradise bonus for select hotels), then you could activate and use the new number for upcoming stays, but those bonus points might be removed at the merger if it's determined that she's ineligible for them because of her existing status... Hope that helps. A quick call to Starwood should clear up any questions.

First off, congratulations! (On the wedding, not the gold card ;))

Thanks! We got married nine years ago, but are still celebrating.;)

And thanks to you and SD1K for the advice.

What I'm thinking of doing, unless folks think otherwise, is to first combine the accounts under her maiden name (under which she was offered the Gold status) and then a few days after that happens change the account to her married name. My reasoning is that if it's all done at once she'll lose the Gold status by virtue of her current (non-Gold) membership. Or am I making this all too complicated?

The surviving account needs to be the one that has the Gold status. At least that's the way it was always explained to me by Customer Service - and why I've had four membership numbers or so while in the Starwood program. Once you've consolidated both accounts into the Gold account, then you (or your wife) should ask for the name to be changed to her married name. I should think you can accomplish both things with one call.

What to do? Any problem with her joining and getting the Gold status under her maiden name, and then later combining the accounts?

Thanks for any advice.

What Mrs. Thunderroad needs to submit would be documents to prove that she is the owner of two names(one married and one maiden).

In addition, let's hope the two accounts have similar personal records as she would have to prove that both accounts belong to the same person and not another person with the same name.

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