Points Scrounger

Not just a Platinum problem!

As a gold, Courtyard Bellevue WA gave me a voucher at checkin with three options: movie(?), FB (snack) or 250 points. I handed the voucher back at checkout requesting the 250 points, which I was told would be applied. I waited a couple of days, made a call, told it would be taken care of; I waited a few more days, called again same response, no points.

As a new Marriott member (Platinum AMEX card SPG gold reciprocity), kinda soured me on the brand. Other Marriott chain stays have been great, enough to get me to sign up for Platinum challenge.

lexdevil

Not going to dig through the entire thread, but I wonder if anyone else has had a Platinum Amenity fail be ascribed to using mobile check in.

I currently have 17 rooms at the Santa Clara Marriott. Didn't really think about the amenity at check in because I have 17 rooms (and 49 high school kids) to distract me.

At dinner a coworker used his $10 credit and it dawned on me that I had not been asked for my choice of amenity. In fact my status was not even mentioned.

It was late (just before midnight), but I went to the desk to ask about the amenity. I did not even ask for the $100 guarantee and they told me I had to wait for a manager. After a few minutes waiting the manager came out and told me that when you do mobile check in they automatically assign you points for your amenity. I asked why they don't give you a choice when you show up for your keys. She did not answer this question, but replied, "Would you like me to change your amenity to the F&B credit?" I answered, "No, I'd like my $100 Platinum Guarantee."

I have been promised that I will have an answer to my request tomorrow (by phone or email). I guess they have to decide if automatically choosing points for everyone who uses mobile check in is a violation of the guarantee. I can't imagine that this has not come up before, so I'm really not sure this makes any sense.

So...is this a thing? Do we lose the Platinum Guarantee if we use mobile check in? Has anyone had to appeal this? How did that work out?

samosa

I use the mobile check-in about 75% of the time, but almost always get asked about the PAG when I grab my keys.

Side thought-- The most rooms I have booked together has been 3, but don't remember if you can get 3 PAGs. Interesting if you can get 17 PAGs, but if I recall there is a limit on number of rooms you can get points for.

SkiAdcock

You get 1 PAG, regardless of # of rooms booked. The PAG is for the elite.

Cheers.

RogerD408

This is just another swing at defaulting to points if they don't ask. The terms call for you being asked and not they get to choose. Get MR involved if you need to. Any interaction with a FDC is their opportunity to deliver as promised.

SkiAdcock

Stick to your guns. There is nothing in Marriott T&Cs that say if you use mobile check-in you automatically get points/waive the $10FB coupon. They owe you the $100.

Wonder if the new mobile app (which has a bunch of issues) offers either/or as a choice).

Cheers.

joshua362

FWIW, this is a tremendous FS whose management bent over backwards for me personally (opened up a point redemption and gave us a huge suite on points when rooms were going for $450 per) in the summer 2015 under some very trying times (invaded for 3 nights by the grossest deadheads you'll ever see). Yet the treated everyone with respect, service and a huge weekend breakfast buffet for elites.

Unless thing went downhill fast, I bet your 17 rooms & stay have been afforded the same treatment and perhaps take that into consideration before you hammer them over a possible app problem or a simple oversight given the size of your party?

A very, very rare Marriott FS gem... Just my 2 cents.

hhoope01

Sometimes the check-in agent will offer the amenity for each room. If that happens, don't ask for points on all the rooms. You will only get it for one room. Marriott will catch that. But if ask for the F/B amenity the hotel will give you all those as Marriott Corp will never see those and know to remove them.

lexdevil

My 17 rooms are part of a much larger block for an event at Stanford. I stay here every year at this time, and I am almost always mildly disappointed. The restaurant is unusually good, the sports bar is okay, I am not a fan of the lounge breakfast served in the sports bar in the morning, and the rooms are quite small but in good repair. I have never had any type of upgrade at this location, and the front desk folks have made it clear that my status means next to nothing because their customer base is so elite heavy.

NDDomer86

I had this happen a few months ago at a Marriott that I can no longer remember. Spoke with a manager who claimed the same thing, that they default to points with a mobile check-in and typically don't ask since the point of mobile check-in is to get you to your room as quickly as possible.

I contacted the Platinum Line who even spoke to a supervisor and came back and said that it was in the property's discretion to default to the points for MCI and that it would not qualify for the guarantee.

The manager did admit that it is a very gray area and did comp a full room service meal for the inconvenience, so I did not push it any further...

lexdevil

Manager called me back today and said the guarantee is waiting at the desk for me. She also said she would pass on my suggestion that they add an amenity choice button to the app for mobile check in. She liked that idea a lot. I think it might be mildly complicated to only show the button to Plats, but it would be cool if they could do it.

^^^This was one of my more pleasant experiences with this hotel, so props to them. Appreciated the lack of push back.

lexdevil

How many more seconds would it cost to ask if I prefer points or F&B credit? If I say points, which is their default, this costs about 5 seconds. If I request F&B credit, it takes more time, but I get what I want. In a world increasingly moving to mobile check in, the rationale above simply means the end of the choice. If that's what they want to do, they should just say so and change the policy. Otherwise they have simply created a disincentive to use mobile check in.

RogerD408

Sounds like an excuse to me, even from the MR folks. I would be inclined to run it up a bit further to see what their take is on the situation. The benefit does say a choice would be offered and choosing for you is not an offer.

NDDomer86

This was my take on it and the manager did state that he understood my viewpoint, but that was not the property's take on it.

As it was clear that the manager was not going to relent, and Marriott Rewards backed the Manager up, I settled to a comped room service meal instead since I didn't feel like traveling out for food.

I am trying to remember the property, I believe it was the Marriott Suites Deerfield.

nacho

Exactly - but when you started to fight, then you are wasting your time because it doesn't work. I tried fighting this for an hour at a RI and the FDC just credited the 200 points to me and said they have given me something and case closed.

I was on the phone with MR CS and they didn't care.

I actually wrote an email complaining that a lot of properties don't bother asking and just threw me the points - guess what MR replied something like, 'thanks for telling us - we'll look into that'. No apologies, nothing.