I just came back from a weekend stay at the CP Republique, in Paris France.
The BRG took almost 48H to clear... Here is the reply I got on October 12 with a reservation and claim made on October 10 for a stay from October 24-26:
Dear Mr. ,
Thank you for contacting our office regarding the Best Price Guarantee in reference to rates at Crowne Plaza Paris - Republique. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you with this matter.
Please be advised that we were not able to pull the 290.00 EURO you are claiming from
www.amoma.com upon verification. What we have verified was 298.00 EURO (149.00 EURO per night).
We contacted the hotel and requested your reservation be adjusted to complimentary night stay. We appreciate your patience and will contact you via email when this has been confirmed. The Advance Saver Rate requires prepayment. The charge takes place between the time of booking and the arrival date. Please be reminded that the credit card on file should be approved when the hotel attempts to make the charge. In the event of a failure transaction or declined credit card, the free night and rate adjustment will no longer be honored pursuant to the Best Price Guarantee Terms & Conditions.
One free night will be given to the guest per stay and for connecting reservations made by the guest or his household members at IHG hotels within 50 miles of each other. The reservation should remain unchanged once the claim qualified. Primary guest is required to present a valid government ID upon arrival.
We look forward to accommodating your upcoming reservation. If you have any questions or concerns please contact us via e-mail at
[email protected].
Best Regards,
XYZ
Best Price Guarantee Helpdesk
IHG
Note that the IHG rate was EUR 306 (for both nights) so the rate they pulled was still lower. So I was a happy camper as this is my very first BRG claim, I'm a SPG guy usually.
Anyway, I waited a week and still no news from the CP regarding my rate so I emailed BRG again on October 21st.
Dear Mr. ,
Thank you for your email.
We are pleased to confirm the adjustment of your reservation ###### to a free first night and the second night matched to the lower verified rate of EUR 149.00. It is possible that when checking your reservation online you may no longer be able to view it or it may not show the adjusted rate which is caused by a limitation in the system; we apologize if this would cause you any confusion but rest assured that the hotel has contacted us to confirm that this adjustment has been made.
Please be advised that since the reservation has been booked under an advance purchase rate it is possible that the hotel has already collected the deposit for this reservation. For more assistance concerning charges made to your credit card please contact the hotel directly as our department is unable to access the local billing system of the hotel. Please be informed that the Free Night is subject to the hotel’s regular cancellation policy of the rate you have originally booked as described below.
A deposit for the entire stay is due at time of booking. Canceling your reservation or failing to arrive will result in forfeiture of your deposit. Taxes may apply.
As a reminder please note the following:
1. The reservation is non-transferable and the name/s on the reservation must remain the same. This claim has been deemed valid for one (1) adult based on the reservation submitted to us. Please be advised that if the occupancy of the room exceeds the prescribed number the free night shall be forfeited.
2. Changes to the reservation such as number of occupants, length of stay, dates of stay, type of room and such are not allowed and would mean the forfeiture of your free night.
3. A valid government issued ID is required upon check-in that matches the name found on the reservation for the free night to be honored. Once a valid claim has been made and approved by IHG for a specific date, no further claims by the same person or anyone in the same household will be accepted for the same date.
4. If an individual or members of the same household make multiple claims for two or more nights in the same seven (7) day period at the same IHG hotel or at different IHG hotels within fifty (50) miles of each other, the claims will be treated as, and limited to, one claim for one stay, even if booked through more than one reservation, and only the Best Price Guarantee claim for the first night will be honored.
5. Cancellation of the reservation shall mean the forfeiture of the free night and any applicable rate adjustment
IHG reserves the right to cancel a previously awarded free night and to cancel the lower prices for the rest of the nights of a multi-night reservation if it is found that a customer has violated or circumvented the Best Price Guarantee Terms & Conditions. Resale of rooms eligible for the Best Price Guarantee is strictly prohibited. In the event IHG believes that a room eligible for the Best Price Guarantee has been resold, or the Best Price Guarantee is otherwise being intentionally abused or manipulated to circumvent its intent, we reserve the right to cancel the previously-awarded free room night and to cancel the lower prices for the rest of the nights of a multi-night reservation, and to reject future Best Price Guarantee claims from any persons who participated in such actions.
We look forward to accommodating your upcoming reservation and if you need further assistance, please feel free to contact us.
Best Regards,
XYZ
Best Price Guarantee Helpdesk
IHG
Great! A few hours later, I did see my reservation on IHG stating a rate of 0.01EUR and "House Comp" but no longer offers any other details.
At check-in, the receptionist was a bit surprised when she confirmed my rate... she paused then said "so your first night is free and your second night will be 149EUR". I asked if the room was already charged (since it was an AP rate) and she said yes, as the folio showed "Deposit Transfer" for 306 EUR.
Stayed went well, happy with everything.
At check-out, everything turns sour.
The reception lady had a problem when she saw my bill. She started with a "oh we owe you money?" and I said "yes, my first night is supposed to be free".
She excused herself and came back with what I assume was the front desk supervisor/manager or the Manager on Duty. Who then coldly said:
Him: I'm sorry but since it's a pre-paid rate, we can't refund anything to you
Me: I know it's a prepaid rate but I have a BRG claim successfully cleared and it says that the hotel will reimburse me the 1st night stay.
Him: No, we can't do that, it's prepaid sir.
Me: It's a BRG claim... I have an email if you want to see
Him: Oh, sorry I didn't understand it was a BRG, so yeah you will get the first night back but it's prepaid and we can't do anything from here, you will have to contact the "centrale de paiements".
Me: ...
Him: thank you and have a nice day. (walks away and leave me with the receptionist who looked a bit lost)
So I asked her for a copy of my bill and I did see the -149EUR credit on my behalf. I ask her if she can produce the credit card slip and of course, she can't.
Getting a bit pissed and I'm in a hurry as I have a TGV to catch so I left...
I will write an email to BRG but I'm pretty sure it will be useless as the email already stated clearly
"Please be advised that since the reservation has been booked under an advance purchase rate it is possible that the hotel has already collected the deposit for this reservation. For more assistance concerning charges made to your credit card please contact the hotel directly as our department is unable to access the local billing system of the hotel. Please be informed that the Free Night is subject to the hotel’s regular cancellation policy of the rate you have originally booked as described below."
Yes, IHG's BRG is great because it comps the 1st night but it's such a horrendous experience and process... I prefer SPG's system, even if you "only" get 2000pts or 10% off their rate but at least, it works and it's quick.