Legally, I think Chase/IHG is actually on shaky ground not allowing those who applied for the card and received it before the change at least the first anniversary night at any IHG that has standard room availability. Even now, the Chase website has the following language: "After your account anniversary date, you’ll receive an Anniversary Free Night at any of the over 5,000 IHG® hotels worldwide.1 There are no blackout dates and no restrictions. Look for your free night on your IHG Rewards Club account."

The footnote has some reservation language but nowhere suggests that "any of of the over 5,000 IHG hotels worldwide" means "only those at 40,000 points," and I'm not immediately seeing anything that says they can take away the benefit at any time.

Maybe because there is no spend requirement, they can get away with it. But this is a pretty shady business practice to take the first annual fee and not provide the anniversary free night under the terms used to induce people to apply. I applied in October and think this is pretty lame. I actually might consider a CFPB complaint just to see what happens.