I just tried for a BRG in New Orleans. I booked a cancellable rate at holidayinn.com (179+tax) and then found a cancellable rate at dhr.com (125 ai). I filed the claim and got a reply within less than 24 hours, saying I was denied because I had to book the non-refundable rate at holidayinn.com (171+tax), although their terms and conditions seem to state that refundable rooms may be compared against one another and that dhr did not immediately confirm bookings and so was ineligible. I replied saying that first of all, dhr.com does immediately confirm bookings, and here is my confirmation attached, and that while a slightly cheaper rate exists at holidayinn.com, it's still much higher than this dhr rate. I also pasted a link to otel.com where I found the hotel for 142 ai. I then got a reply saying that they were able to verify the lower rate at otel.com, but I was still ineligible because I had purchased the refundable rate instead of the absolute best rate on holidayinn.com. I then replied asking if I changed to the advance purchase rate would the BRG be honoured. I was told yes, so I changed to the advance purchase rate and they accepted my claim and have forwarded to the hotel for request of the free night. So everything seemed to go pretty well -- the claim was settled in under 24 hours with several back and forth emails. So maybe they are improving? Anyway, if you do what I did, it's a good way to get them to confirm (in writing) that your claim will be accepted if you change to the advance purchase rate, so that you're not stuck with the purchased hotel and no successful BRG.
Now my question is, can my friend book the second night under his name so we can get two nights for free? The terms and conditions don't seem to forbid stays under a different name. In the worst case, we'll have to check in and out an extra time, right?