FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - 2013 Changes to HH Reward Stays, new cat., more pts needed
Old Apr 29, 2014, 1:32 pm
  #1141  
orca15
 
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Williamsburg, VA
Programs: DL DM, Bonvoy LTT, HH Diam, UA Silver, USAF million miler ;)
Posts: 1,596
Originally Posted by fly0815
Just returned from a P&C stay booked before devaluation. I ran into the issue of certificate expiration of which I was not been aware of before arriving at the hotel. I tried to check-in, but my reservation could not be found. The reservation was still in my Hhonors account, so I thought it should be a mistake which can easily be sorted out. I was wrong. It took an hour of waiting before the receptionists told us that the reward certificate expired. Therefore I do not have a valid reservation. He offered me a room for the best available rate which was about $500 per night.

I called the Hhonors hotline. They first told me that the hotel should let me check in, but after talking to the receptionist they changed their mind. They told me it was my fault as it is clearly stated in the T&C that reward certificates are valid one year only. Therefore the points used for the booking were lost, but I could do a new reservation on P&C. I was struck dumb! It took another hour of discussion on the phone before they offered me to refund the points of the expired certificate and difference between the current and the old P&C rate in the next weeks.

Back home I just read the German T&C and could not find anything about expiring hotel certificates at all.
Welcome to FT!

What sort of certificate was this? I'm just used to booking the room with points and all the rest is behind the curtain. Did you actually change points to a certificate and then book with the certificate?
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