Feb 27, 2015, 9:38 am
Last edit by: ekozie
We are trying to collate a list of the websites that Hilton's Best Rate Guarantee team consider eligible for the BRG. Please update the following wiki with you successful/rejected BRG claims.
^Successful BRG claims have been made against:
muchoviaje.com - 26/09/2016
expedia.co.uk - 26/09/2016, Jan 2018
Expedia.com (US) - 18/09/2017
Expedia.ca - 1/20/18
happyrooms.com - 30/09/2016, 25/Jan/2017, 28/Jan/2017, 27/Feb/2017, 23/July/2017
hotelscombined.com - 17/Jan/2017
priceline.com (standard booking, not a bid or express booking)- 05/Oct/2016, 15/May/2017, 22/Apr/2018, 22/Oct/18, 25/Nov/18
prestigia.com - 24/Jan/2017
orbitz.com - Dec 2017
prestigia.com - Dec 2017, January 2018
nustay.com - Feb 2020
Unauthorised Sites for BRG Claim:
roomertravel.com - 16/09/2016
prestigia.com - 27/09/2016 - 'does not instantly confirm'
hoteltravel.com - August 2016 - " there have been discrepancies in the way the website has been displaying prices recently, and we are not satisfied that the website's processes are fair and transparent."
destinia.com - 29/09/2016 - 12 EUR Administration Fee for any cancellation vs Hilton Fully Flex
Travel.AmericaExpress.co.uk - 29/09/2016 Amex Card holders only
Bedfinder.com 6/8/17 - The third party site bedfinder.com is no longer considered to be valid
skoosh.com - denied 10//4/18
BRG claims on non-refundable rates are a gamble at best. Hilton can ask 3rd party sites to remove rates when they "sell unbundled wholesale rates", and screenshots are no longer sufficient proof. You will end up with the non-refundable rate booked, if the rate is gone when your claim is being reviewed.
On 18 November 2014 (see post #1261 of the archived thread), the HHonorsRepresentative listed 15 third-party websites that were 'no longer authorized to distribute our hotels’ static rates':
However, on 19 December 2014 (see post #3 of this thread), the HHonorsRepresentative announced a change of policy, stating that:
The HonorsRepresentative has not issued any subsequent statement suggesting another change of policy and a return to the previous 'blacklist'.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the late 2014/2015 BRG thread - for the original thread please check here
Hilton Best Rate Guarantee, or BRG: The Definitive Thread
Thanks!
Squeakr
for the HH Mod Team of squeakr, Canarsie and Kiwi Flyer
--------
^Successful BRG claims have been made against:
muchoviaje.com - 26/09/2016
expedia.co.uk - 26/09/2016, Jan 2018
Expedia.com (US) - 18/09/2017
Expedia.ca - 1/20/18
happyrooms.com - 30/09/2016, 25/Jan/2017, 28/Jan/2017, 27/Feb/2017, 23/July/2017
hotelscombined.com - 17/Jan/2017
priceline.com (standard booking, not a bid or express booking)- 05/Oct/2016, 15/May/2017, 22/Apr/2018, 22/Oct/18, 25/Nov/18
prestigia.com - 24/Jan/2017
orbitz.com - Dec 2017
prestigia.com - Dec 2017, January 2018
nustay.com - Feb 2020
Unauthorised Sites for BRG Claim:roomertravel.com - 16/09/2016
prestigia.com - 27/09/2016 - 'does not instantly confirm'
hoteltravel.com - August 2016 - " there have been discrepancies in the way the website has been displaying prices recently, and we are not satisfied that the website's processes are fair and transparent."
destinia.com - 29/09/2016 - 12 EUR Administration Fee for any cancellation vs Hilton Fully Flex
Travel.AmericaExpress.co.uk - 29/09/2016 Amex Card holders only
Bedfinder.com 6/8/17 - The third party site bedfinder.com is no longer considered to be valid
skoosh.com - denied 10//4/18
BRG claims on non-refundable rates are a gamble at best. Hilton can ask 3rd party sites to remove rates when they "sell unbundled wholesale rates", and screenshots are no longer sufficient proof. You will end up with the non-refundable rate booked, if the rate is gone when your claim is being reviewed.
On 18 November 2014 (see post #1261 of the archived thread), the HHonorsRepresentative listed 15 third-party websites that were 'no longer authorized to distribute our hotels’ static rates':
- Alpharooms.com
- Amoma.com
- Cleartrip.com
- Despegar
- Elvoline
- Galahotels
- Hotelpronto.com
- Jumbotours
- LMT.com
- Secretescapes
- Simplytravel.de
- TravelRepublic
- Wego
- Worldwideholidays.com.au
However, on 19 December 2014 (see post #3 of this thread), the HHonorsRepresentative announced a change of policy, stating that:
Moving forward, we will approve claims from these sites as long as the offered rates meet the other BRG requirements we have in place, as we recognize that this is in the best interest of our members.
The Best Rate Guarantee exists so that our guests feel confident going to Hilton Worldwide channels to find the best rates that we offer. We strive for pricing accuracy in all our channels, and the BRG helps identify when that is not the case.
The Best Rate Guarantee exists so that our guests feel confident going to Hilton Worldwide channels to find the best rates that we offer. We strive for pricing accuracy in all our channels, and the BRG helps identify when that is not the case.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the late 2014/2015 BRG thread - for the original thread please check here
Hilton Best Rate Guarantee, or BRG: The Definitive Thread
Thanks!
Squeakr
for the HH Mod Team of squeakr, Canarsie and Kiwi Flyer
--------
Hilton Best Rate Guarantee or BRG
Apr 24, 2019, 9:50 am
#151
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Homeless
Programs: Hyatt Glob; Hilton Dia; Marriott AMB; Accor Dia; IHG Dia Amb; GHA Tit
Posts: 4,835
In my experience those can get approved by Hilton but many agents do indeed reject on the grounds that you have to pay upfront with the third party and therefore it's not equivalent.
Apr 24, 2019, 9:54 am
#152
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: BA Silver, TK E+, AA PP, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 13,040
Occasionally you can get away with it. Or you get an agent who hasn't hit their quota for declining claims and you are rejected...
If I am quite sure about the other terms being equal, I just resubmit over and over until somebody approves it.
Apr 24, 2019, 2:52 pm
#153
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: Hong Kong
Programs: CA/CZ/HU
Posts: 8
My OTA rate is refundable but you have to pay by credit card when you make a reservation. However, you can cancel it and get every penny back when you cancel it before deadline, and the deadline is later than what it is in Hilton.com
Apr 24, 2019, 4:18 pm
#154
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: NYC
Programs: HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 694
The 4 successful ones were all matched with a prepaid, but fully refundable rate from a 3rd party travel site. Bed type, room type, and cancelation policy were the same.
Apr 24, 2019, 9:17 pm
#155
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: Hong Kong
Programs: CA/CZ/HU
Posts: 8
If the cancelation deadline are different days, then the cancelation policy isn't the same. This is why your claim was rejected. I've had 4 out of 6 successful matches. The 2 rejected ones were because the cancelation deadline was on different days.
The 4 successful ones were all matched with a prepaid, but fully refundable rate from a 3rd party travel site. Bed type, room type, and cancelation policy were the same.
The 4 successful ones were all matched with a prepaid, but fully refundable rate from a 3rd party travel site. Bed type, room type, and cancelation policy were the same.
Hilton seems to like challenge everything and certain staff may be easier to approve BRG.
Apr 24, 2019, 9:33 pm
#156
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Atlanta Metro
Programs: DL , AC, BA, Hhonors Diamond, IH Platinum, Bonvoy Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,352
The guarantee is NOT "You won't find a better deal anywhere else." I've seen so many people post here, disappointed because their room has an easier/better cancel policy, or less restrictive prepayment, or with fewer amenities; yet Hilton refuses to Price Match. That you found a "better deal" is irrelevant. The guarantee is "we'll match and beat the IDENTICAL product if you find it on another site at a lower price."
This is a marketing gimmick, not a commitment to customer service. As such, it has to be treated just as a freaky glitch that we can exploit.
Apr 25, 2019, 9:25 am
#157
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Barcelona, London, on a plane
Programs: BA Silver, TK E+, AA PP, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Plat, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 13,040
It is indeed little more than a marketing gimmick, but if people don't share their negative experiences, that won't be obvious to anybody who stumbles across this thread and/or the policy. Nor would our displeasure - common sense shouldn't be that hard to accept (Marriott generally does it) - reach the eyes of any Hilton execs lurking around FT.
Apr 25, 2019, 9:42 am
#158
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Silver, HHonors Gold
Posts: 7
I successfully managed to price match the Waldorf Astoria Bangkok, but the hotel keep changing my name from Mr. x to Ms. x and changing the rate back to the original non-price matched one on multiple occasions. After contacting the best price team they changed my name back to how it should be (Mr.) but the hotel changed it again to ms. The best price guarantee team are now saying they will contact the hotel to get them to change my name back again and change the price to the approved price match claim price and it feels like they (the hotel) are doing this to avoid having to settle with the priced match rate.
The best price guarantee team said that there is nothing they can do from there side apart from email the hotel and try get them to change it back but it feels like the hotel are doing this on purpose.
Does anyone have any other suggestions on what I can do? , as they shouldn't be allowed to do this.
The best price guarantee team said that there is nothing they can do from there side apart from email the hotel and try get them to change it back but it feels like the hotel are doing this on purpose.
Does anyone have any other suggestions on what I can do? , as they shouldn't be allowed to do this.
Apr 25, 2019, 9:23 pm
#159
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Atlanta Metro
Programs: DL , AC, BA, Hhonors Diamond, IH Platinum, Bonvoy Gold, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 2,352
Wow. I guess ultimately Hilton just manages the hotels. If the hotel owners want to break the rules, they can do so. And Hilton is not likely to "punish" the Waldorf Astoria Bangkok. All they could do is say it was a violation of the management contract and remove the Hilton branding. And you know they won't do that.
Apr 26, 2019, 12:01 am
#160
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 278
BRG has become absolutely worthless?
Hi, has anyone noticed the Hilton BRG is now worthless., I used to be able to get approvals once in a while for my stays.
Since the introduction of allowing members to call in, there is an imaginary list of sites that are not in their t&c anywhere that are not eligible for BRG. Hilton will also reject claims where the site in question offers better policies than Hilton itself (more flexible cancellation, free breakfasts).
I rarely see any approvals at all in the BRG thread now.
So the question is, what the heck happened to the BRG? Is there anyone we can contact moving forward to get our claims processed? Why the heck are there 100 sites on the 'do not match' list? And this list is not available anywhere online.. doesn't that completely ruin the point of the BRG?
Since the introduction of allowing members to call in, there is an imaginary list of sites that are not in their t&c anywhere that are not eligible for BRG. Hilton will also reject claims where the site in question offers better policies than Hilton itself (more flexible cancellation, free breakfasts).
I rarely see any approvals at all in the BRG thread now.
So the question is, what the heck happened to the BRG? Is there anyone we can contact moving forward to get our claims processed? Why the heck are there 100 sites on the 'do not match' list? And this list is not available anywhere online.. doesn't that completely ruin the point of the BRG?
Apr 26, 2019, 1:21 am
#161
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Silver, HHonors Gold
Posts: 7
Wow. I guess ultimately Hilton just manages the hotels. If the hotel owners want to break the rules, they can do so. And Hilton is not likely to "punish" the Waldorf Astoria Bangkok. All they could do is say it was a violation of the management contract and remove the Hilton branding. And you know they won't do that.
Apr 26, 2019, 8:23 am
#163
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: SAN, BOS
Programs: AS MVPG100K, BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond, Bonvoy Plat,
Posts: 2,281
Apologies if this has been answered I couldn’t find it within the thread
Is the price match based on the Hilton honors rate or the regular rate without hilton honors?
Is the price match based on the Hilton honors rate or the regular rate without hilton honors?
Apr 26, 2019, 8:57 am
#164
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: NYC
Programs: HH Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 694