Whoever is negotiating the corporate contract for businesses throwing $15 Million+/year likely doesn't care about that. Room with bed + bath with towel is about it, so long as C-level complaints are handled and those are.

Was just reminded of the time when I asked about a long-term stay that would cost 15-20k (based on property), and asked about stove/kitchenette/microwave options as the hilton website wouldn't let me search for it specifically. Their response was to tell me to call each hotel to ask if it included a kitchenette, as they wouldn't be able to help me due to the time sensitivity of rates (????).

I went with Hyatt, which was fine since they had the stay more play more promo at the time.

In general I find Hotel CS to be terrible. Hilton is no exception. I've had multiple problems with points posting over the years and I'd say the CS agents don't read 95% of my emails when I inquire about the problem.

Right. Accor don't even bother with the nonense replies. They just skip replying altogether.

I think that part of your problem may be that you include too much information in your complaint emails. They would not have responded to your email with a comment about the Singapore Airlines promo offer had you not mentioned it in your email. But that was extraneous information. Your situation was simple: you had a stay at a Hilton, but the points didn't post to your account. Keep it that simple. That way, there's no way for them to mis-interpret your email as being about not getting bonus miles. In all likelihood, once you got the base points posted, the computer would have posted the bonus miles, since you already know that you're properly registered, so there's no reason to mention it now.

I don't agree with this assessment. Just this morning I had reason to call the Diamond desk phone number. My call was answered immediately, the US-based agent was friendly, and she took care of the issue as quickly as I expected (she had to put me on hold for about 2 minutes). And most importantly, what I wanted was outside Hilton's policy, so I was very happy that she was willing to help.

I'm not discounting others' experiences - I know it's frustrating when customer "service" can't or won't address an issue. But we've had 2 reasons to contact the Diamond desk since switching from Marriott to primarily Hilton last year, and both times I was completely satisfied with the resolution.

It's highly possible they have outsourced some of the call handling. They wouldn't be the first company to go down that route.

If they have it's then a lottery who you get.

3 emails trying to claim 5000 pts from visa points - first reply was to wait 8 wks, second claiming that it was paid with mastercard..

unfortunately at some places there are no alternatives to hilton chain properties...

FWIW, I generally get very good service over the phone. I wish email was better, as I get a paper trail, but alas, the email service is as terrible as others have claimed.

Unfortunately with customer service, especially via emails, you are dealing with very low-level employees that aren't making it a career to answer customer service emails. The ones that last a few months are probably moved up into better positions. I had one job where the majority of new hires don't make it beyond 2 weeks! (I was there 3.5 years, so I got to watch that revolving door quite often!)

It can be questionable if the email is read at all. It could be some program that scans the email for key words, thinks it knows what you are referring to, and automatically sends the response. And even if the email is actually read, they'll probably getting tons of email. They aren't sitting back and closely reading them. They probably have goals or quotas they have to hit, so lengthy emails aren't going to get the time needed to read it all...especially if all you want is a free night or some Hilton points.

Now, think of the posts on these boards when people say they've written emails. Almost every single time, the responses tend to say that the OP has provided way too much information not related to the issue. I'm kind of thinking that this goes on way too often. Email responses that have nothing to do with the issue seem quite often related to something written in the original email...which had nothing to do with the issue as well!

So...do shorter emails = better responses?

Generally correct, however I think Hilton has some particularly dumb employees, especially in their Texas office.

And people like the HHonorsRepresentative, routinely ignore complaints

Is there a trick to getting out of the auto-response robot recursive loop at the email Diamond Desk?

First email: Points for my recent stay haven't posted. This is the 3rd stay in a row where this has been an issue. Why does it keep happening?

HHonors Response: Thank you for your loyalty, your points have posted.

My reply: Thank you. Why does this keep happening at this hotel?

HHonors: Thank you for your loyalty. Rest assured your points have posted.

My reply: Please escalate to a supervisor. Why does this keep happening?

HHonors: Thank you for reaching out to us. (Lists 4 reasons points may not post automatically.)

My reply: I have double checked and everything is correct and none of the 4 reasons you've listed are applicable in my situation.

HHonors Response: Thank you for your loyalty, your points have posted.

If this is important to you, call them, and ask to speak to someone who will give you a real answer. It may help to tell them that it is a continual waste of your time to have to chase after points from every stay, and that they need to do better or lose your business.

Called and left VMs for the GM and sales manager. Sent emails to both, too. HHonors says they have formally requested a manager at the hotel contact me directly. There has been ZERO communication from the hotel.

I left my comments in a TripAdvisor review and the hotel's ownership company copy and pasted a boilerplate response apologizing and saying they'd look into it.

(from memory... do something like) put invalid hh membership number in repeatedly via phone/keypad when prompted, you then get queued to human operator