I recently booked a VIP client into the Le Royal Meridien National in Moscow. I sent several emails to the reservation manager advising the property not only that the travel client was a celebrity in the US and a VIP with my agency but he was also at GOLD SPG status.
During our correspondence the reservation manager advised me that as a GOLD SPG member he would be upgraded 1 room category if the room was available upon check in. She said since he was booked into their lowest category (standard room) he would be upgraded to a Studio room. If I booked him into a Studio room he would, if available, be upgraded to a Business Suite as a GOLD SPG. I rebooked the client into a Studio room at an added expense and notified the reservations manager of the change.
Upon check in, the client identified himself as a GOLD SPG member and asked if there were any available upgrades. The client was told by the front desk clerk "Why should I give you an upgrade?" He explained the additional amount he had paid and his SPG status to no avail.
I booked two rooms for the client one for the client and one for his assistant. When the client got to his room it was the exact same room type as his assistant, a standard room.
I contacted Le Meridian Central Reservations and asked why the rooms were the same and was told by the reservation agent the hotel had DOWNGRADED the client from a Studio room to a standard room. By this time it was about 10pm Friday night in Moscow and any attempts to contact the property management by telephone went unanswered. I asked Le Meridian reservations if this could have been an occupancy issue and was told they showed the hotel had "plenty" of rooms in every room category and was they were at a loss for the DOWNGRADE.
Emails to the property went unanswered until Monday, the day after the client checked out. At that time here was the response from the front office manager:
Please accept my sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused to your VIP guest - Mr. ###### - during his stay at Le Royal Meridien National hotel.
Unfortunately our employees did not manage to clarify the situation with Mr. ######'s booking on his arrival and this led to the fact that your client was accommodated in a standard room instead of a Studio room which was reserved for him by your agency.
I would like to inform you that refund to Mr. ######'s credit card was made today by our Accounting Department - 4573.68 Rubles in total. Could you please pass my sincere apologies to Mr. #####, I am very sorry for such a negative impression he received during his stay with us. Please let me know if he is planning to come back to Moscow. I would really like to do everything to regain his confidence in our service.
The amount refunded was the difference between the additional money he paid for the Studio room and the standard room he was placed in.
After several emails to the hotel they offered 3000 SPG Points and to send an apology email to the client. This to me seems inadequate. I had requested a refund of his 2 day stay for the one room. I would rather loose the commission than the client.
What is a fair compensation for DOWNGRADING a guest paying a higher rate and then not recognizing a GOLD SPG member with a benefit guaranteed to him by his status when it was, according to Le Meridian central reservations, was available?