Melodsal

Hi all,

Hoping to have some help or advice here!

1. My last hyatt stay was from 20th to 22nd May. At both the time of checking in and checking out I was still a World of Hyatt member.
2. I had booked the stay with Hyatt for two reasons - mainly, my account was due to expire on 31st May, also- I am close to reaching 100 nights with SPG for this year and was thinking of diversifying my hotel programs and pushing a significant amount of my stays to Hyatt in the second half of the year to Explorist (and maybe Globalist) given the upcoming SPG/marriott merger and that I no longer have to requakify separately for both programs.
3. I found out yesterday that my Hyatt account had been closed!
4. The concierge on Twitter was very responsive and Hyatt created a new account for me and transferred over my old points. I was told that my account was closed due to system error. However, I am told that they can't give me back stays or point credit YTD or lifetime credit.

The whole experience has left a bad taste in my mind- I have a few trips coming up that I was planning to stay at Hyatts for and I'm on the verge of cancelling all of them. Anyone has any thoughts on what I should do? I think this is most likely a one off problem but I don't like the idea of trying to accumulate night/point credit when they may be arbitrarily or accidentally taken away from me at any time. On the principle of it I also don't feel inclined to just transfer all my points out and not to send any more money their way. Anyone encountered this before and maybe I should just stick to SPG and Marriott?

Input is appreciated!

MikeFromTokyo

I think cancelling the stays is a good idea. If they are so hasty to close an account they do not deserve the business. Why should you jump through hoops to sort something like that out?

I think Starwood/Marriott/Ritz-Carlton is the best way to go, at least as long as spg remains a stand alone program. Only time will tell how things will be in a few years, but I am certainly unimpressed with WoH.

Hopefully Hyatt will merge with another chain in the not too distant future.

MSPeconomist

It wouldn't hurt to try sending a PM to the Hyatt official representative here.

If Hyatt can transfer over your old points, they should be able to see your previous night count. Also, they should be able easily to retroactively give you credit for recent stays, including points for them.

However, why do they say that the account was closed? Did your hotel stay post late, after the account had expired? Or was there some technical rule, such as the two year rule applying to your previous check in or check out date, rather than when that old stay posted? Is Hyatt somehow rounding the two year rule to a delete batch run every month?

Still, I tend to agree with the advice to just enjoy your Plat100 status with SPG rather than switching stays to Hyatt where you apparently have no status, even if your account is fully restored.

austin_modern

Avoid hyatt like the plague. We don't need any more global people.

m0hamed

Escalate. While it doesn't surprise me their stupid IT can't run exclusions for closing accounts of those who have stayed in their final month, they definitely can add nights and stays manually.

IncyWincy

If the account was really closed due to error on part of Hyatt, then everything ought to be re-instated PLUS points/nights or something as goodwill gesture. Otherwise what is the point of accumulating points and staying loyal? Worse, what if booked stays are just cancelled? No respectable business will conduct themselves that way, much less a loyalty program.

Must confirm whether it was Hyatt's error.

MSPeconomist

What if Hyatt closes the account but doesn't cancel pending reservations, although one assumes that this has been done since you can't see the reservations any more? IMO that could be worse if you're then hit with no show penalties.

IncyWincy

Agree that the mess gets even worse.

How did Hyatt deteriorate that much?

IncyWincy

Just re-read your opening post.

You did not state years. So there are two possibilities.

1.Your last stay was 20-22 May 2015 and therefore you said your account was expiring on 31 May 2017. Correct? If so, you discovered yesterday that your account had expired, which would not be surprising and would have nothing to do with Hyatt being at fault.

2. Your last stay was 20-22 May 2017 and should have posted before the account expired on 31 May 2017 but somehow did not. In light of the proximity of stay to expiration of account, I would have checked before 31 May to make sure stay was posted. In any case, do you have your bill for 20-22 May 2017? If so, if the account number was stated there, then there was no basis for Hyatt to close your account after your stay. If account number not stated, it might be said that you never linked stay to your account.

notquiteaff

Hyatt, per the OP, already admitted that it was a system error.

Melodsal

Thanks for asking for clairification! Both stays and expiry were last month and, for full clarity, in 2017.

I do have my bill and it did have my Hyatt number printed on my folio. The stats were definitely linked- my corporate agent is extremely good at her job and knows that these small things are important for me.

Thanks everyone else for your replies: I am still hoping to diversify my hotel stays especially as I'm not sure how the SPG/Marriott merger will turn out. Also, I have fond memories of Hyatt from before I jumped ship - they used to treat me very well (even if the new program doesn't seem as good)

I have written confirmation (in Twitter DM for all that's worth) that my account was closed due to "an error on our (Hyatt's) end. No compensation has been offered but the twitter rep was very nice and courteous in our interactions, even if limited by the system.

My pending reservations were transferred to the new account they created for me so they're still there (for now). I'm wondering if asking my agent to cancel them on Monday is the rational thing to do.

IncyWincy

Whether you choose to still give business to a chain that has let you down badly and whether you have any confidence left in them is a matter for you.

Is there any consumer watch dog that you can complain to? This is bait and switch - get people to accumulate points over the years and then say "sorry, our error, too bad". Just not ok.

MSPeconomist

IMO you don't lose anything by keeping the Hyatt reservations for now, perhaps to use as a threat/bargaining chip, but you might want to proceed to making backup reservations that are refundable/cancellable elsewhere (note that Starriot just changed their normal cancellation deadline to three days, there are threads on this in the SPG and Marriott fora).

However you still haven't clarified the details:

1. Last account activity in 2015, nature (hotel stay or something else?) and exact date of the transaction as well as date of posting.

2. Exact dates for stay in 2017 and dates that these points/nights posted to your account.

Just saying May 201X isn't sufficient as the exact dates could matter crucially.

Melodsal

Previous account activity was 9 - 12 May 2015 - hotel stay. I'm not sure when this stay transacted or posted.

All emails from Hyatt about account expiration said that I needed account activity by May 31 2017. Based on email communication from Hyatt it looks like they use calendar months and not the exact dates of stay to determine activity.

My next stay was May 20 - 22 2017. On checking in I was still welcomed as a World of Hyatt member and thanked for my previous stays at the hotel. Folio was emailed to me on May 22 on checking out. The folio had my Hyatt number in it. I did not check when these points and nights posted to my account but assumed that some sweep would happen on checkout and trusted the system. The next time I tried to access my Hyatt account was yesterday.

Hope this helps!

MikeFromTokyo

The posting date is irrelevant, since that is the hotel's responsibility. The stay dates are what matters.

Hyatt had your reservation in their system, so if their IT weren't as lousy as it it, they should have known that a stay would post.

Why is it that in this new "world of Hyatt" fixing a simple problem takes time and effort, but when it comes to closing someone's account they do so instantaneously? Very irritating.

Unless the Hyatt properties in question are more convenient or materially nicer than the Starwood alternatives, I do not see why the OP would not avail of Plat 100 benefits while the spg program still exists...