I got the same message as yerffej201 just now.

yeah 2 3 days ago

same here.
Looking in London, it's easy to find sites that include breakfast with lower rates. Tried to claim that and was denied as best flex w/o breakfast is cheaper, even though the rates with breakfast are cheaper than any ihg rates...

I got this and also a few other ridiculous excuses today. Some are just made up by their desk. I hope it is only a snap-shot :rolleyes:

It seems in recent weeks the interpretation changed. Or maybe there is a totally new BPG terms & conditions coming soon and they are already working at the helpdesk with these?

Got a response in 7 hours, denied. I took the cheapest room type, 12 bucks cheaper on hotels.com....cancellable rate VS cancellable rate, and they denied, saying they had a lower rate with the prepaid rate (actually it wasn't, still 6 bucks more than flexible rate on hotels.com)

You'll have to book the non-refundable rate and then probably BRG team will use another bogus reason to deny your claim.

IHG can't and won't introduce such a room type limitation to entry level rooms in each hotel, as whole point of guarantee is to encourage booking of rooms on IHG earning avenues and to have guests not book via an OTA which means no commission on room rate to IHG corporate

If or As soon as, such a limitation is introduced all non basic rooms will be better booked by guests on OTA's resulting in a massive revenue loss to IHG corporation from resulting lost commission

Why do you think IHG don't earn on OTA bookings? They primarily operate a franchise model, and franchise fees are usually revenue based, not channel-dependent.

It's all happening.

The money that goes to the OTA website in commissions doesn't go to the IHG website in commissions. And since each company has to GROW and GROW and GROW, they decided they HAVE to HAVE that MONEY as well :(

HTB.

Most of that unpaid commission on direct bookings goes to the hotel, not the chain (who get their franchise fee anyway). Not that I am underestimating the greed of the chain, they love any model where the customer pays the property directly (whether direct or via third party distribution), as it increases franchise fees.

Haven't read the whole thread but based on the wiki and prior experience this seems like a new interpretation to me.

Found a substantially cheaper (over $100) rate on Priceline than on IHG. Booked the IHG rate and was initially denied because Priceline allowed me until midnight 2 days prior to check-in to cancel while IHG required 6 PM three days prior and thus the cancellation terms didn't "match." I pointed out that the OTA's terms were actually more customer-friendly by 6 hours and asked for reconsideration. After a full week, a "Senior Case Manager" wrote back and said since the cancellation terms did not match exactly, the claim is denied.

This is obviously against the spirit of the program, but based on the other interpretations it seems the focus of the BRG desk has shifted to denying claims rather than increasing IHG channel bookings.

I've submitted two claims for an Executive Room with Breakfast at the Intercontinental London Park Lane. They have both been rejected, despite quite a bit of back and forth by email, and even after my request for the claim to be reviewed by a supervisor.

I had a claim approved in December for a Best Available Rate with Breakfast.

So it seems that no more rates with breakfast are going to be allowed. :-(

Here some extracts from their replies:

It seems to be even worse than that. I've tried to submit a valid claim 3 times now, each time I booked with the best flexible rate. And each time they said:

"A lower room rate was found offered on the IHG website for the same room type booked based on the details found for the reservation on your claim. The Terms and Conditions require that the claim be for “a valid room booking with the lowest available price (room rate)” on the IHG website. The lower room rate was found for the same reservation details including, but not limited to: room type, check-in date, number of guests, number of nights.

Lower Rate Details: Book Early & Save - Advance Purchase"

Keep in mind, i did not book any special packages or even include breakfast, this is simply the best flexible rate, the lowest rate available with free cancellation.
I rarely ever reply to the BPG email's because I find arguing with them useless, but after my 3rd attempt and getting the same comment regarding booking the lowest rate, i decided to reply.
I stated that although the advance rate is lower, it is non-refundable and therefore does not match the terms of the price im claiming on the competing site. and to please revisit my claim and note that I booked the best flexible rate with free cancellation.

My reply from BPG:

"Thank you for contacting IHG’s Best Price Guarantee Helpdesk with regard to your claim decision.

Per the program Terms and Conditions, to be eligible for a Valid Claim a guest must: “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.’” It has come to our attention that some previous claims were deemed “valid” contrary to the intent of this statement. All previously awarded claims will remain “valid” and will be honored in full by IHG and our hotels. However, we will continue to uphold this portion of the Terms and Conditions moving forward. "

So what's going on here? Have they changed their policy? According to their website terms it still looks like you have to match the refundable or non-refundable rate. Although their first statement says:

"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 a valid form of payment."

Is this a new term?:confused:

BPG may be dead if this is the new rule, since you'll never be able to book a room with free cancellation. :td: