mitpat474

Nail on the head with part a) !

31570324

Any experience if they accept o*o***s.com (HK Company) now with foreign currencies? In the past they argued that this company charge only in Euro, but o*o***s.com wrote to me that they charge in the selected currency, e.g. CAD.

syntraveller89

A. From what I've read it would depend on the number of person you've put when the claim was verified ... if you put in 2 Adults then no problem but if when the claim was validated you put in 1 Adult you may encounter a problem with the hotel as they have been (from what i've heard) advised by the BRG people that occupancy can't be changed in BRG stays.

B. Elite benefits are up to the hotel ... and upgrades have always been subject to availability so you may or may not get it. Your getting the room free so I think that's a benefit enough.

mitpat474

I haven't had an issue and as scubaccr stated the max room occupancy is for 2, this is why when you may I have called and state you don't know if you have the name of an additional guest it is ok.

For instance at IC PL 2 weeks ago I had only one adult on my reservation, however at check in he took the name of my partner and added it to the reservation just incase she turned up and I wasn't around.

Elite benefits for RA/Amb should be honored just as a pay stay, guaranteed relevant upgrades , fruit, gift, minibar, film etc.

Oh and for the case of platinums, I have been upgraded in holiday inn, crowne plaza, indigo.

At indigo as the hotel was relatively new I had to get the BRG team to email them and to advise them that upgrades are still applicable - subject to availability of course alongside with other benefits.

To summarise a BRG should be treated as a paid stay.

tangey

No one has asked if your BRG rate includes breakfast.

If there is no breakfast in the room rate, then you should be fine.

However if there is breakfast in the rate, I strongly urge you to tread with caution, as your BRG would be based on 1 breakfast, not 2. It probably doesn't even really matter if your particular hotel doesn't charge more for 2nd or 3rd adult on a breakfast rate (some do, I frequent one that does), because a change of adults on a BRG would technically require your BRG claim to be reassessed to see if the hotel charges more for a 2nd person, and whether your original competing website was for 2 breakfasts etc, I'd suggest they are just more likely to decline citing the T&C of the booking being changed, than be bothered reviewing the whole thing again. It is likely one of the reasons they stipulate no changes in the number of adults.

Of course, if the hotel doesn't raise it, then it won't be an issue, but if they do, then you might be on dodgy ground

syntraveller89

I'm in agreement with the elite benefits here, as certain benefits are indeed subject to availability, and for Amb there is a guaranteed upgrade,etc. only in IC properties.

In terms of the occupancy I just based it on the e-mail of BRG which has part of it written as: "Changes to the reservation such as number of adults, length of stay, dates of stay, type of room and such are not allowed and would mean the forfeiture of your free night." so if the hotel is one that is BRG savvy or on alert then you may be advised to pay for the night or only stay up to the max of the original BRG reservation. Again, this is just my interpretation but a hotel will try to reverse a free night as much as it can and the BRG dept would support them for change of occupancy reasons.

FedUp2

Warum so scheu? Why not spell out what o*o***s.com stands for?

syntraveller89

So IHG has revised the t&c ... taken from https://www.ihg.com/hotels/us/en/cus...rms-conditions

HG Best Price Guarantee Terms and Conditions
Best Price Guarantee is our promise to guests who book directly on our branded websites. We have made additional adjustments to the Guarantee and to the Terms and Conditions to further define what claims will qualify and to further help identify and support valid claims

Best Price Guarantee: We guarantee that every hotel reservation booked through an IHG web site will have the lowest room price (room rate) or total room cost (including all taxes and fees) publicly available on the Internet. If you find a lower room price (room rate) and total room cost (including all taxes and fees) publicly available on the Internet on a non-IHG Website within 24 hours of booking, IHG will provide your first night’s room price free and match the lower average nightly room price found for that stay for the rest of the nights of that stay, subject to the following terms and conditions:

1. Book.
Complete a valid room booking with the lowest available price (room rate) on any IHG website for any IHG branded hotel using the “Best Available Rate Search.” A “valid room booking” means a complete booking with an approved credit card.

2. Lower Price.
If you find a lower room price that also has a lower total room cost (including taxes and fees) for a one-night stay, or a lower average nightly room price that also has a lower average total room cost (including all taxes and fees) for a multi-night stay, on a non-IHG website within 24 hours after booking on an IHG website for the same stay, we will provide you with the first night’s room price at the IHG hotel free and match the lower average nightly room price found for your entire stay for the rest of the nights of your stay after verification of the lower average nightly room price and lower average total room cost (including taxes and fees). Only one free night will be awarded per stay, even if more than one instance of a lower price is located. For valid claims, each additional night’s room price during the stay will be lowered to match the average nightly room price for the entire stay found on the non-IHG website.

3. Reporting to IHG of a Claim.
You must contact us using the online claim form within twenty-four (24) hours after completing your valid room booking on any IHG website to make a claim under the Best Price Guarantee. The average nightly lower room price and lower total room cost must be available for booking at the time of claim verification and both must be lower than those found on an IHG website, as determined by IHG customer service representatives, and in IHG’s sole discretion.

4. Matching Rooms.
The Guarantee is available only for the exact same room type and same view. For example, if you book a king bed with a sofa bed room type and with a] view (e.g., ocean) on an IHG website, and are comparing it to a non-IHG website, you must find a price with the same king bed with sofa bed room type and with a the same view on the non-IHG website.

5. Matching Terms.
All terms of the comparison room reservation, including, but not limited to pre-payment, deposit, number of guests, or other requirements must be equal in all respects to the terms found on an IHG website for your claim to be valid. For example, when you book a room that may be cancelled without penalty on an IHG website, you may not compare it to a room with a pre-paid or non-refundable price on a non-IHG website. At hotels in Greater China, however, pre-paid rates on non-IHG sites will be compared with the IHG hotel's lowest available rate. The Guarantee is not available for bookings on websites where the booking details are unknown until after purchase. Sites that do not reveal the hotel brand name until after the payment has been completed (including bidding sites) do not qualify for this Guarantee.

6. a. Matching Prices.
For multi-night stays, the Guarantee compares the average nightly room price and the average nightly total room cost for your valid room booking with those found on a non-IHG website.

6. b. Matching Prices - Currency Requirements.
The currency of the hotel controls the comparison with the room price and the total room cost on the non-IHG website, and the room price and the total room cost on the non-IHG website must be available, viewable, quoted, booked, and paid for in the currency of the hotel.

6. c. Matching Prices - Price Variance.
The nightly room price and the nightly total room cost (for one night stays) or the average nightly room price and the average nightly total room cost (for multi-night stays) must each be lower than the IHG room price and the IHG total room cost, respectively, by at least 1% or $1 USD (or the equivalent in the hotel’s currency) (whichever is higher). Coupons or vouchers may not be utilized to lower published room prices for the purposes of making a claim. The Guarantee does not include extra fees such as extra person charges, except as stated in paragraph 6.d.

6. d. Japan.
In Japan and on the ANAIHG website, the room price does include extra person fees. ANA hotels are not eligible for Best Price Guarantee rooms, but all other IHG hotels, including ANAIHG hotels, on the ANAIHG website are eligible.

7. Comparison Prices Must Be Available to the General Public.
The Best Price Guarantee applies only to prices both advertised and available to the general public on a non-IHG website at the time of verification. The Guarantee does not apply to prices offered on membership program websites; corporate discounts; negotiated prices; group, rewards program, loyalty program, incentive, meeting, convention, consolidator or interline prices; prices obtained via auction or similar process; or prices available only by using a coupon or other promotion not offered to the general public. The Guarantee also does not apply if the average nightly lower price is obtained from a website where you call to get the price, or from an e-mail that you received.

8. Packages Comparison.
The Guarantee applies to comparing exactly the same packages or inclusive prices with the same included items. Thus, room prices that include food or beverage items such as breakfast or dinner, entertainment items such as tickets to a show, and/or free local calls, parking or other bundled items will be considered as packages, and must be entirely equivalent to be eligible for the Guarantee.

9. Rewards Points.
IHG® Rewards Club points are determined based on the price actually paid by the guest at the time of check out, assuming the price otherwise qualifies for points. Points are not awarded on free nights. The Guarantee does not apply to IHG® Rewards Club Award Nights booked on an IHG website.

10. Additional Free Night Restrictions.
Claims for hotels within fifty (50) miles of your home address are not eligible for the Guarantee. Once a valid claim has been made and approved by IHG for a specific date, no further claims by the same person or anyone in the same household will be accepted for the same date. If an individual or members of the same household make multiple claims for two or more nights in the same seven (7) day period at the same IHG hotel or at different IHG hotels within fifty (50) miles of each other, the claims will be treated as, and limited to, one claim for one stay, even if booked through more than one reservation, and only the Best Price Guarantee claim for the first night will be honored. In the event of a valid claim, reservations are non-transferable after the claim is found to be valid, and the name on the reservation must remain the same as when the claim is verified and no additional names may be added to the reservation after the claim is found to be valid. Valid government issued ID is required upon check-in that matches the name found on the reservation. Employees of any IHG company or employees at any IHG hotel are not eligible for the Best Price Guarantee.

11. Verification of Claims.
All claims are subject to verification by IHG. IHG must be able to verify all elements of the claim and the required terms found on the non-IHG website at the time the claim is processed and verify that both the room price and the total room cost at the time of verification are lower than those found on the IHG website. IHG does not accept screen shots of imagery of lower prices provided by guests due to the ease of modification or alteration of such imagery.

12. Changes to these Terms and the Guarantee.
IHG reserves the right to modify, restrict availability, or discontinue the Best Price Guarantee and to make changes to these Terms and Conditions, at any time, for any or no reason, and without prior notice or liability to you. The IHG Best Price Guarantee Terms and Conditions that are in effect at the time of your booking will determine your eligibility under the Best Price Guarantee.

13. Abuse of Best Price Guarantee.
At any time up to the date of stay, IHG reserves the right to revoke any and all benefits of a Guarantee (including the right to cancel a previously awarded free night and the lower prices for the rest of the nights of a multi-night reservation if it is found that a customer has attempted to or has violated or circumvented the Best Price Guarantee Terms & Conditions. Resale of rooms eligible for the Guarantee is strictly prohibited. In the event IHG believes that a room eligible for the Guarantee has been resold, or the Guarantee is otherwise being intentionally abused or manipulated to circumvent its intent, IHG reserves the right to reject future Best Price Guarantee claims from any persons who participated in such actions.

14. Definitions.
A “non-IHG Website” is defined as a website not owned by IHG, that makes IHG rooms inventory publicly available and offers it directly to consumers, and that provides a confirmation of a completed reservation at the moment of completion of that reservation. A “stay” (for purposes of the Guarantee) may be one night; consecutive nights at the same hotel location, regardless of frequency of check-in/check-out; or two or more nights, even if non-consecutive, in the same seven (7) day period at the same hotel location. “Within fifty (50) miles” means within fifty (50) miles when seeking directions between locations on Google Maps. Guests are only able to claim one (1) free night per stay at an IHG hotel globally, regardless of location.

15. Disputes.
Any disputes arising out of these Terms and Conditions or the offer of the Best Price Guarantee shall be resolved individually, without resort to class action, and shall be governed by the laws of the State of Georgia, U.S.A., exclusively by an appropriate federal or state court located in the State of Georgia, U.S.A.

Updated on 07/30/13

there goes the previous discussions on consecutive nights and such haha

Pseudo Nim

Ohoo. Is the 7-day thing new? Not sure if any other difference.

GIJ

I was going to post it, it may due to many people called the hotline and asked if they can do 1st and 3rd night brg then 2nd night on points... HI just revised and no more doubles

syntraveller89

I bet its more about people who have multiple "every other night" stays at the same property. Can you imagine a person staying free at the same hotel every other night for a week or a month or a year ... cause I wouldn't be surprise if someone has this because it wasn't against the rules in it's previous form.

no2chem

I like that they clarified the distance as well:

. “Within fifty (50) miles” means within fifty (50) miles when seeking directions between locations on Google Maps.

31570324

Because we shouldnt publish some websites here... Anyway its olotels.com of course.

scubaccr

I think the new 7day restriction is fair and stops abuse, allowing IHG to continue BRG scheme which is to every ones advantage,

"10. Additional Free Night Restrictions.
If an individual or members of the same household make multiple claims for two or more nights in the same seven (7) day period at the same IHG hotel or at different IHG hotels within fifty (50) miles of each other, the claims will be treated as, and limited to, one claim for one stay,."

After all the BRG is meant to be a price match guarantee, not a multiple free night guarantee where if someone stays in a town regularly they maybe worked the system booking 3 BRG nights a week Mon+Wed+Fri, and stay in Hilton etc Tuesday+Thursday instead of as IHG's no doubt intended, 5day reservations with 1x free night and 4 price match nights under a BRG claim

I think frequent BRG'ers got off lightly, as not restricted to only 1x BRG per 30days or 12 claims a year. IHG have come up with a balance that works both ways.

And yes... maybe recent forum postss + brg desk calls about being able to book/not book an IHG Brand hotel on a middle second day between 2 BRG's a day apart in same city last week forced IHG into this immediate response.

mitpat474

Hmm not sure I like this one : "Claims for hotels within fifty (50) miles of your home address are not eligible for the Guarantee"

Oh well it just puts birmingham if anything remotely decent out of my reach

Also I wonder how this effects existing claims...

Scrap that to answer my own question:

"12. Changes to these Terms and the Guarantee. IHG reserves the right to modify, restrict availability, or discontinue the Best Price Guarantee and to make changes to these Terms and Conditions, at any time, for any or no reason, and without prior notice or liability to you. The IHG Best Price Guarantee Terms and Conditions that are in effect at the time of your booking will determine your eligibility under the Best Price Guarantee."