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Hyatt - Best Rate Guarantee - Experiences - MASTER THREAD - WIKI

Old Jan 16, 2014, 2:16 pm
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Last edit by: coleslaw
Update in Hyatt BRG policy (April 2019): If your BRG claim is approved, you can choose either 5,000 World of Hyatt points or an additional 20% off the matched rate for your stay (defined as consecutive nights at the same location). Rates available on websites that require membership which is free of charge, or where membership is automatically created as part of the booking, are eligible for BRG claims.

.................................................. ..........

Recent Experiences Using the BRG (2018 and later)

YES
  • Hotels.com - April 2019
  • Booking.com - May 2019

MAYBE
  • Skoosh - April 2019 (initially rejected as "membership site" but approved on appeal)
NO
  • SnapTravel
.................................................. ..........

Update in Hyatt BRG policy (July 2017): if your BRG claim is approved, Hyatt will match the comparable lower rate, but will no longer offer a further 20% discount on the matched lower rate. Instead, after your stay on the BRG approved rate, you will receive a US$50 credit (or equivalent amount in the currency of your country of residence) to use on a future stay (completed within 12 months) booked on a Standard Rate, Advance Purchase Rate or Member Rate on Hyatt.com.

Q. How do I receive the $50 credit?
A. About 3-4 days after your BRG stay, Hyatt will email you a unique rate code to apply for your new reservation. You can either click on the link in the mail to book the reservation or manually enter it into the booking at Hyatt.com.

Q. Can I use the code more than once?
A. No. The code is invalid when it has already been attached to a reservation.

Q. Can I use the code to lower a rate like AAA or Double Points?
A. No. The BRG code books into its own unique rate class and can't be used with any other promotional rates.

Q. What happens if I cancel my reservation with the BRG code applied?
A. The code will can be re-used for another reservation. For this reason, DO NOT DELETE THE EMAIL FROM HYATT UNTIL AFTER YOUR STAY.

Q. What happens if a lower base rate appears available after I book the BRG rate?
A. You can cancel the first reservation (assuming there's no penalty) and then rebook using the code for the lower rate.

.................................................. ..........

If you are dissatisfied with the response to your BRG claim, and it was processed by the Hyatt Service Desk in Omaha (9805 Q Street), you can consider filing a consumer complaint (link to online form) with the Nebraska Attorney General's Office (Consumer Protection Division). Note that the online complaint form requires you to fill in a correspondence address in the US (though you can state a preference to receive correspondence by e-mail rather than by post). As reported in Post # 2691, if the AG's Office decides to investigate, it is possible that Hyatt will review your BRG claim again and, in addition, offer points for the inconvenience.

If your BRG claim was processed by the Hyatt Service Desk in Marion (1120 North Carbon Street Suite 70), you can consider filing a consumer complaint (link to online form) with the Illinois Attorney General's Office.

From Post # 12:
Originally Posted by Smart Shopper
If you cant solve your issue (please mind Hyatt's Consumer Affairs Department assists us at 1-800-323-7249) here are some other resources:

Sound Off
  • Contact Consumer Traveler (my pick: Christopher Elliott)
  • Consumer Tools (My3cents.com is a leading source of consumer advice)
  • Post a complaint for public view
  • Consumer Comment Form (please mind: If you file a complaint it becomes property of Consumer Affairs and they are not obliged to remove it if you solve the issue)

Conde Nast's Traveler's "Ombudsman" column features a traveler's complaint column. Send in your complaint to Ombudsman, Conde Nast Traveler, 4 Times Square, New York, NY 10036.

Legal Options
  • File a complaint at you state's attorney general's office
  • Small Claims Court (link provides also a helping hand on how to resolve problem without going to small claims court)
  • Federal Trade Commission (The FTC does not resolve individual consumer complaints.)
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Hyatt - Best Rate Guarantee - Experiences - MASTER THREAD - WIKI

Old Mar 22, 2015, 9:15 pm
  #1531  
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Programs: AA EXP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 273
This thread used to be on the top of the Hyatt forum at all times, now barely a post in a week. Has everyone just given up on BRG's?...... I haven't tried one in months, it sounds like it's gotten terrible though
dlandz is offline  
Old Mar 22, 2015, 9:33 pm
  #1532  
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: BCT. Formerly known as attorney28
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Posts: 6,819
There is one particular agent (but it is not limited to her), Shelly B., who just keeps rejecting claims in the most ridiculous way possible.

My claim was for a flexible rate, competing site was hotels.com

Rejection e-mail:

Dear Mr. Football Fan,

We are pleased to hear of your desire to stay with us and happy to be of assistance regarding your Best Rate Guarantee submission. After researching, I was unable to validate your claim based on Booking.com not including tax. Please see below for the details of your claim and the rates we located in researching your claim.



Hyatt Destination: Grand Hyatt Berlin

Arrival Date: ...

Departure Date: ...

Third Party Website: Booking.com

Room Type: Grand King

Rate Plan: Advance Purchase

Third Party Rate: 876.00 EUR

Hyatt.com Rate: 876.00 EUR
1) Taxes are always included in the price by law in Germany, both on hyatt.com and 3rd party sites
2) I booked a flexible rate (and made a claim based on a 3rd party flexible rate), not an advance purchase rate
3) The competing website I quoted was hotels.com, not booking.com
4) The competing rate on hotels.com was significantly lower than what "Shelly B." claimed
5) Even on booking.com, both the advance purchase rate and the flexible rate were lower than what "Shelly B." quoted.

I am just wondering if anyone could really be this incompetent or if they are just being trained to reject no matter what.
Football Fan is offline  
Old Mar 22, 2015, 9:42 pm
  #1533  
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Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: New York, NY, USA
Posts: 12,461
Originally Posted by Football Fan
.....I am just wondering if anyone could really be this incompetent or if they are just being trained to reject no matter what.
I have a sneaky suspicion that BRG agents are paid by number of rejections they send.
TerryK is online now  
Old Mar 22, 2015, 11:06 pm
  #1534  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: SEA
Posts: 2,021
I just had two approved tonight.

The key I have found is making sure that you send a JPEG of a screen shot and make sure the ".jpg" is at the end of the file before you upload it.
Single_Flyer is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 2:12 am
  #1535  
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: BCT. Formerly known as attorney28
Programs: LH HON,BA GGL GfL,Hyatt LT Glob,Mrtt LT P,Hilt LT D,IC Amb,Acc P,GHA Tit,LHW Strlg,Sixt/Av/Hz D/Pres
Posts: 6,819
Originally Posted by TerryK
I have a sneaky suspicion that BRG agents are paid by number of rejections they send.
Yes, that would be the only logical explanation...but if that is the case, it would be quite shameful.
Football Fan is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 3:49 am
  #1536  
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Programs: AA EXP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 273
I am surprised just reading the wiki to see that sites are excluded because they create a login when you book? (ie otel). That is the worst logic imagineable. Do they want us to switch to a different program and only book hyatt when there are deeply discounted OTA rates? I don't necessarily care about 20% off every time but if Hyatt is offering a $350 rate and an OTA is offering a $110 rate, clearly my booking would not go through Hyatt, and at the same time I am insulted that Hyatt is obviously selling at such a low rate which they will not sell to me at
dlandz is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 3:54 am
  #1537  
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Programs: QF, VA, AC, Hyatt, Marriott
Posts: 3,765
Originally Posted by Football Fan
There is one particular agent (but it is not limited to her), Shelly B., who just keeps rejecting claims in the most ridiculous way possible.
Interesting. I searched my BRG records and found Shelly B had denied three out of four of my claims that landed on her desk. Two were denied for ebookers which has routinely been fine with other agents; the third was claimed to be within 1% when it wasn't.

Originally Posted by awaite01
I just had two approved tonight.

The key I have found is making sure that you send a JPEG of a screen shot and make sure the ".jpg" is at the end of the file before you upload it.
Also interesting as I've had more success with PDF files than JPG. In fact, for several weeks now I've only submitted PDFs.
danger is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 4:44 am
  #1538  
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: BCT. Formerly known as attorney28
Programs: LH HON,BA GGL GfL,Hyatt LT Glob,Mrtt LT P,Hilt LT D,IC Amb,Acc P,GHA Tit,LHW Strlg,Sixt/Av/Hz D/Pres
Posts: 6,819
Originally Posted by dlandz
I am surprised just reading the wiki to see that sites are excluded because they create a login when you book? (ie otel). That is the worst logic imagineable. Do they want us to switch to a different program and only book hyatt when there are deeply discounted OTA rates? I don't necessarily care about 20% off every time but if Hyatt is offering a $350 rate and an OTA is offering a $110 rate, clearly my booking would not go through Hyatt, and at the same time I am insulted that Hyatt is obviously selling at such a low rate which they will not sell to me at
That's exactly true - I have taken a lot of business elsewhere because of these shenanigans. They are obviously selling at much lower rates through 3rd party sites, and then they are trying everything to prevent you from using their own best rate guarantee. It's really annoying and insulting.

Originally Posted by danger
Interesting. I searched my BRG records and found Shelly B had denied three out of four of my claims that landed on her desk. Two were denied for ebookers which has routinely been fine with other agents; the third was claimed to be within 1% when it wasn't.
I have found one more thing she did: Once, she approved one of my claims, but completely miscalculated the rate with 20 % off (of course, to my detriment). My follow-up e-mail was ignored.

Originally Posted by dlandz
Also interesting as I've had more success with PDF files than JPG. In fact, for several weeks now I've only submitted PDFs.
I didn't have the feeling that they even look at those, but I have been doing PDFs instead of JPGs simply because most of the info doesn't fit on one JPG screenshot.
Football Fan is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 5:31 am
  #1539  
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Programs: AA EXP, TK Elite, LY Top-Platinum, HGP Diamond, HH Diamond, IHGR Platinum Amb
Posts: 280
Originally Posted by Football Fan
There is one particular agent (but it is not limited to her), Shelly B., who just keeps rejecting claims in the most ridiculous way possible.
My record with her: two claims - both denied.

To be fair, the first one was for a night at the LAX Concourse hotel at a time when all claims were automatically denied because is not a Hyatt yet (this was reported here by many).

Besides that - the BRG program is working just fine for me. I use it pretty often nowadays (MER R.I.P) and almost all rejections make sense.
FlyingOutTLV is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 8:21 am
  #1540  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Chicago
Posts: 425
Originally Posted by FlyingOutTLV
My record with her: two claims - both denied.



Besides that - the BRG program is working just fine for me. I use it pretty often nowadays (MER R.I.P) and almost all rejections make sense.
I think you should consider yourself extremely lucky.

IMO, the program isn't working at all as intended. Hyatt clearly will find any reason, often unjustified, to deny claims.

I asked a few months ago and I ask again - If promotion codes are not allowed for BRG claims, why is there a space for a promotion code on the BRG page? It would take the IT team less than ten minutes to rewrite the code on the page to remove the promotion code box. The GP Concierge here has ignored the question repeatedly and the reps on the phone just continue to say that promotion codes aren't allowed per the terms and conditions. They ramble on with meaningless blabber, yet never provide an explanation. The few reps with whom I've talked on the phone have been curt to the point of being unprofessional at times.

Requests frequently take 24 hours to be acknowledged and even worse, are often ignored.

This is in stark contrast to Marriott's program where requests are processed in the span of a few hours and sometimes in the span of a few minutes.

I am not so loyal to Hyatt that I will not book at other brands or via channel's other than Hyatt's website. I'd much rather save hundreds of dollars. Brand loyalty is worthless.

Last edited by Andrea Waters; Mar 23, 2015 at 9:00 am
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Old Mar 23, 2015, 2:32 pm
  #1541  
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Programs: AA EXP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 273
Originally Posted by Football Fan
There is one particular agent (but it is not limited to her), Shelly B., who just keeps rejecting claims in the most ridiculous way possible.
If everyone is getting claims denied by this particular agent I suggest contacting [email protected] which is Hyatt's consumer affairs department. This just sounds ridiculous and I hope people are reporting every wrongly denied claim to them so that their time becomes properly allocated to the problem just as much as your time is being wasted by their pseudo-offering
dlandz is offline  
Old Mar 23, 2015, 3:23 pm
  #1542  
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: BCT. Formerly known as attorney28
Programs: LH HON,BA GGL GfL,Hyatt LT Glob,Mrtt LT P,Hilt LT D,IC Amb,Acc P,GHA Tit,LHW Strlg,Sixt/Av/Hz D/Pres
Posts: 6,819
Originally Posted by dlandz
If everyone is getting claims denied by this particular agent I suggest contacting [email protected] which is Hyatt's consumer affairs department. This just sounds ridiculous and I hope people are reporting every wrongly denied claim to them so that their time becomes properly allocated to the problem just as much as your time is being wasted by their pseudo-offering
Thanks for the e-mail address. I did write to them now.
Football Fan is offline  
Old Mar 25, 2015, 9:48 pm
  #1543  
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: BKK
Programs: World of Hyatt Globalist; Marriott Bonvoy LTP; IHG Plat
Posts: 2,224
Another fail, as always.

-----------------

Dear 3rdworldresident,

We are pleased to hear of your desire to stay with us and happy to be of assistance regarding your Best Rate Guarantee submission. After researching, I was unable to validate your claim based on Hotelscombined.com requires a membership to book reservations. The rates offered on Booking.com were higher then found on Hyatt.com.

If you have reserved a reservation, the booking is still confirmed at the original rates held. Should you like to make any changes or cancellations, please contact our Hyatt Reservations Office at 800 233 1234 (from within the US and Canada). Please do not reply to this email as this mailbox is not regularly monitored. To view a list of contact numbers available in other countries please visit: http://www.hyatt.com/hyatt/customer-service/numbers.jsp
Please let us know if we may be of further assistance!
Best Regards,

Sxxxxx Bxxxxx

Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee Specialist

------------
First, I did not use hotelscombined as competing website. She didnt even tell me what was the rate she found and what the hyatt rate was, just said the competing rate was higher.

Second, booking.com still shows the competing rate that is lower than hyatt's rate.

I'm speechless. Hyatt's BRG for me is no longer exist.

I'm a bit glad they did not approve my claim because i dont actually want to spend my money at their properties anyway.

Last edited by 3rdworldresident; Mar 25, 2015 at 9:58 pm
3rdworldresident is offline  
Old Mar 25, 2015, 10:11 pm
  #1544  
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Programs: QF, VA, AC, Hyatt, Marriott
Posts: 3,765
Originally Posted by 3rdworldresident
Another fail, as always.

-----------------

Dear 3rdworldresident,

We are pleased to hear of your desire to stay with us and happy to be of assistance regarding your Best Rate Guarantee submission. After researching, I was unable to validate your claim based on Hotelscombined.com requires a membership to book reservations. The rates offered on Booking.com were higher then found on Hyatt.com.

If you have reserved a reservation, the booking is still confirmed at the original rates held. Should you like to make any changes or cancellations, please contact our Hyatt Reservations Office at 800 233 1234 (from within the US and Canada). Please do not reply to this email as this mailbox is not regularly monitored. To view a list of contact numbers available in other countries please visit: http://www.hyatt.com/hyatt/customer-service/numbers.jsp
Please let us know if we may be of further assistance!
Best Regards,

Sxxxxx Bxxxxx

Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee Specialist

------------
First, I did not use hotelscombined as competing website. She didnt even tell me what was the rate she found and what the hyatt rate was, just said the competing rate was higher.

Second, booking.com still shows the competing rate that is lower than hyatt's rate.

I'm speechless. Hyatt's BRG for me is no longer exist.

I'm a bit glad they did not approve my claim because i dont actually want to spend my money at their properties anyway.
The infamous Shelly?

One of my big gripes about the new process is the barren responses: no mention of the website, the rate, the dates and often not even the damn hotel.
danger is offline  
Old Mar 25, 2015, 11:58 pm
  #1545  
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: BCT. Formerly known as attorney28
Programs: LH HON,BA GGL GfL,Hyatt LT Glob,Mrtt LT P,Hilt LT D,IC Amb,Acc P,GHA Tit,LHW Strlg,Sixt/Av/Hz D/Pres
Posts: 6,819
This particular agent seems to do this on purpose. The question is whether it is systematic/encouraged or just a rogue agent. The fact that it has been going on for a while without intervention is not encouraging for us as customers. My e-mail above to the consumer affairs department was not answered. I would encourage you to write to them as well.

My new personal line representative has now offered to process claims for me, but she also does not reply very fast, usually.
Football Fan is offline  

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