Hampton and Hilton Garden Inn don't pay guarantees quietly dropped?
Nov 7, 2017, 6:27 pm
#1
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 11,565
Hampton and Hilton Garden Inn don't pay guarantees quietly dropped?
I noticed that a few of the hotels have replaced the old Hampton Guarantee signs in the past month. I'm sure you all know how its often fixed to the checkin desk surface in metal. The new plastic one mentions nothing about not having to pay if you're not satisfied. Did I miss a thread on this?
The website now states:
No mention of whether you can have a refund, relying on this text it seems its not something you can rely on anymore and properties are being encouraged to make service recovery in other (cheaper?) ways.
Backed up by some other sites mentioning it Guarantee changes So it seems to have changed a long time ago.
So it seems only HGI has the not satisfied don't pay guarantee- for now.
The website now states:
100% Hampton Guarantee®
Making you happy makes us happy. So, if we can make your stay better, talk to any member of our team, and we'll make sure you're 100% happy. GUARANTEED.™
Making you happy makes us happy. So, if we can make your stay better, talk to any member of our team, and we'll make sure you're 100% happy. GUARANTEED.™
Backed up by some other sites mentioning it Guarantee changes So it seems to have changed a long time ago.
So it seems only HGI has the not satisfied don't pay guarantee- for now.
Our Promise
We promise to do whatever it takes to ensure you're satisfied, or you don't pay. You can count on us. GUARANTEED™. The Hilton Garden Inn Promise reflects our focus on hospitality and integrity. We are committed to providing an excellent hotel experience for every guest, every time.
We promise to do whatever it takes to ensure you're satisfied, or you don't pay. You can count on us. GUARANTEED™. The Hilton Garden Inn Promise reflects our focus on hospitality and integrity. We are committed to providing an excellent hotel experience for every guest, every time.
Nov 8, 2017, 1:12 pm
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: RSW
Programs: Delta - Silver; UA - Silver; HHonors - Diamond; IHG - Spire Ambassador; Marriott Bonvoy - Titanium
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I don't have a problem with this as long as the hotels themselves don't abuse it. If it's something that's not really an emergency, and they're able to fix it, then perhaps throwing a few points at you instead for a minor to moderate inconvenience is okay.
Nov 8, 2017, 1:19 pm
#4
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: SNA/LAX, PHL
Programs: AA Gold, AS MVP, WN A-List, Hilton Gold, Hyatt Exp, Hertz PC
Posts: 449
I never understood these "guarantees" anyways. What if I'm only satisfied when I'm upgraded even though it's not offered at Hamptons and HGIs? Are they still gonna guarantee 100% satisfaction?
Nov 8, 2017, 1:29 pm
#5
Join Date: Jul 2002
Posts: 3,642
Hampton Inn web site still has guarantee published
Nov 8, 2017, 2:47 pm
#6
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
Posts: 3,360
I used to work for a hotel chain that had a satisfaction guarantee. Everything was tracked, including the exact reason why the guest got a free stay. If a guest abuses the guarantee, the chain "fired" the guest. They got blacklisted at all brands under the hotel group.
Nov 8, 2017, 6:01 pm
#7
Join Date: Jul 2015
Programs: HH Diamond, HGVC, WN RR, National Exec, Avis Preferred
Posts: 1,055
I used to work for a hotel chain that had a satisfaction guarantee. Everything was tracked, including the exact reason why the guest got a free stay. If a guest abuses the guarantee, the chain "fired" the guest. They got blacklisted at all brands under the hotel group.
Nov 8, 2017, 6:03 pm
#8
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Location: TOA
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Posts: 20,061
Nov 8, 2017, 7:00 pm
#9
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: ATL - DL DM/3MM - HH Lifetime Diamond - Marriott Lifetime Plat
Posts: 3,117
Nov 9, 2017, 2:30 pm
#10
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Seattle WA, USA
Programs: Hilton Diamond, Marriott LT Plat, AS Lounge
Posts: 3,478
Hampton Inn web site still has guarantee published
Nov 9, 2017, 9:08 pm
#11
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,933
That's not abusing the guarantee, is it? Even though it wasn't an emergency.
Nov 9, 2017, 11:10 pm
#13
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
Posts: 3,360
Where I worked, we had clear signage at the Front Desk describing the guarantee. Still, having a guest invoke the guarantee wasn't something that happened very often. When I was Revenue Manager, I was responsible for submitting the information each time it happened. It really only happened once or twice each year. However, we were a solid AAA-rated 4-Diamond hotel. Lesser properties would certainly have it happen more often.
The most absurd example of abuse I recall was when a guest didn't get a wake-up call at the time requested. At our hotel, we did personalized wake-up calls. Just to be safe in case the hotel operator was too busy to make the call, we always set up an automated call for 5 minutes after the requested time.
Once, a guest didn't get the personalized call because the operator was taking incoming calls. Instead of getting the call at the requested time, he got the automated call 5 minutes late. The guy ended up invoking the guarantee over that issue.
Nov 10, 2017, 12:13 am
#15
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: SNA/LAX, PHL
Programs: AA Gold, AS MVP, WN A-List, Hilton Gold, Hyatt Exp, Hertz PC
Posts: 449
No, that's not even close to abusing a guest satisfaction guarantee. Something doesn't need to be an emergency to qualify. Additionally, a chain would need to see a pattern of multiple instances for it to be abuse.
Where I worked, we had clear signage at the Front Desk describing the guarantee. Still, having a guest invoke the guarantee wasn't something that happened very often. When I was Revenue Manager, I was responsible for submitting the information each time it happened. It really only happened once or twice each year. However, we were a solid AAA-rated 4-Diamond hotel. Lesser properties would certainly have it happen more often.
The most absurd example of abuse I recall was when a guest didn't get a wake-up call at the time requested. At our hotel, we did personalized wake-up calls. Just to be safe in case the hotel operator was too busy to make the call, we always set up an automated call for 5 minutes after the requested time.
Once, a guest didn't get the personalized call because the operator was taking incoming calls. Instead of getting the call at the requested time, he got the automated call 5 minutes late. The guy ended up invoking the guarantee over that issue.
Where I worked, we had clear signage at the Front Desk describing the guarantee. Still, having a guest invoke the guarantee wasn't something that happened very often. When I was Revenue Manager, I was responsible for submitting the information each time it happened. It really only happened once or twice each year. However, we were a solid AAA-rated 4-Diamond hotel. Lesser properties would certainly have it happen more often.
The most absurd example of abuse I recall was when a guest didn't get a wake-up call at the time requested. At our hotel, we did personalized wake-up calls. Just to be safe in case the hotel operator was too busy to make the call, we always set up an automated call for 5 minutes after the requested time.
Once, a guest didn't get the personalized call because the operator was taking incoming calls. Instead of getting the call at the requested time, he got the automated call 5 minutes late. The guy ended up invoking the guarantee over that issue.
Anyways I doubt anyone would solely rely on wake up calls nowadays but in the old days would 5 minutes be a valid reason?