BRG-problems
Well, so far I have filed 6 BRGs and have gotten 5 approved. 2 Intercontinentals, 3 Crowne Plazas. Rejected - CP. All hotels were in Asia. Some agents will claim greater china claims are not part of the guarantee, but don't be ........ted, they are. So tell them to read the part of the guarantee that specifically says greater china is excluded. They cannot, because it doesn't exist.
Of the 5, 4 have been altered to reflect the comp night while 1 hasn't. I am still waiting for an appropriate response and it has been 96 hours. Good thing the trip doesn't come up til another 2 weeks.
I can say for sure that if you book a refundable rate which is cheaper then a non-refundable rate on the IHG website, it will be rejected and vice versa. Also if the cheaper rate includes breakfast but the IHG rate doesn't, your claim will be rejected.
Also, lets say the cheaper website allows you to cancel 3 days prior to arrival and the IHG site 24hours before, BRG claim will be rejected. The cancellation conditions have to exactly the same. Currency doesn't matter but make sure you site is at least USD$5 cheaper. To be safe, I made sure it was USD$10 cheaper due to exchange rate fluctuations.
Its a very, very frustrating process to get the BRG approved but, hey, so far I have managed to snag USD $1400 in total of free nights, so I guess it is worth it. But beware of the pitfalls as IHG rates are often non-refundable for the advance purchase rates and usually these are the only rates where you will be able to score a BRG hit.
In order of ease of use and claim filing, I rate the BRGs for the firms so far ( for travel in Asia Pacific) - I concede it will be different in US
1) SPG
2) Marriott
3) Hyatt
4) IHG
For value
1) IHG
2) Hyatt
3) SPG
4) Marriott