Certificate expiration
 

I have a travel cert for a Category 4 (Got it for signing up for my second MArriott Reward card) that expires this week, and I will be staying at a Category 4 next week. Will they allow the expiration date to be moved back?

Sorry no such luck. Certificate will become void.

Is it transferable?

Most are not. It should say on the certificate.

How would you be able to use it next week as an award stay if it isn't booked as an award stay? Award stays have to be reserved in advance. Although I've done same day award stays, I still had to go through the booking process.

On the other hand, it might be worth a try to call Marriott Rewards and see if they have mercy on you by cancelling the current certificate and reissuing another. Not sure what the outcome will be, but I've found them very helpful with other issues.

In April 2006 I posted this on a different thread, and there was a response from BigLar questioning the accuracy of my post

=========================
Quote:
Originally Posted by TOMSURFER
However I had a recent query on an outstanding hotel portion of a travel package and was told the following by e-mail "The Reward is an electronic certificate which does not expire like a
paper certificate after 12 months".

BigLar :

I recently had reason to talk with the folks at SLC. The CSR noticed that I had a travel package (hotel portion) due to expire in May, and she offered to extend it a year. I declined, figuring I would wait until May to do so (if I don't forget).

But the point is, as far as they were concerned, the cert would indeed expire.
========================

I can now confirm that the written statement I got from Marriott was incorrect - my hotel portion of a travelpackage did expire after 12 months as BigLar stated - in December 2006. However I have rung up TODAY and it has been reinstated for 12 months from today. :)

I don't know if this was because of my status - but I am obviously pleased by this.

Tom

Sell it on ebay.

TomSurfer your certificate came from the pts in your acct. The OPs didnt come out of their acct but cause they got the Visa CC. I have a 7 night award cert that Ive been sending back for a number of yrs now as I dont find the time to use it (good to a Cat6), when I too called about getting an extentsion or a replacement for the Visa Cert I was told No Go on that, I asked what if I had taken the pts out of my acct, was told no problem they would reissue that one.

This was addressed in a further thread which I'm too lazy to look upright now, but:

craz is essentially correct, and this has been confirmed by Marriott Concierge, to wit - a cert that was paid for with points out of your account is extendable indefinitely. Which means, if you get a travel package, you can use the 7-nighter sometime between now and the time Marriott goes out of business.

The certs you get with the Visa card have definite expiration dates, typically 6 months after issue and they cannot be extended.

Since both myself and my wife have the visa card, it makes it possible for a nice free weekend getaway every year. :)

Finally, the certs do not appear to be transferable. In fact, we had a bit of a to do at checkin, because I had made the res for two nights in my name (to make sure of the platinum bennies) but the certs were one night apiece in each of our names. We straightened it out very quickly, but they did notice the name difference. IIRC, it states right on the cert that it is for use of the person named on the cert exclusively.

In reality you might get away with it.

Now I have found it !


http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showp...66&postcount=5

What to do with an expiring Cat 4 cert?
 

I have a category 4 certificate from the credit card offer which will expire soon. Not trave.ling in the next few weeks, so I was wondering if there is a way for me to deposit as points, or extend the certificate's lifetime?

Thanks!

I believe it is use it or lose it.

Sorry, T&Cs prohibit both those options, and they mean it! :(
The only rule that U can try to circumvent is non-transferability by making a res in both your name & that of the real guest who checks in and either says or implies that you'll be there later.

Find a nice hotel fairly close by that you can use the cert at and take the SO there for a nice evening. I've done that a couple of times with some of my certs. It makes for a nice evening of fun. @:-)

What excellent timing of this post. I'm in the same boat - mine expires June 5.

Guess it's off to the new CY in town to check it out Monday night - we've been meaning to try it out for awhile now.

How can you tell when it expires if it is an eletronic certificate? I have searched on the MR site to no avail.
THanks!

Sorry, dont' know...mine's a paper cert.

extending the deadline for Mariott Rewards Visa Free night e-certificate
 

I have a Mariott Rewards Visa Free Night e-certificate that is going to expire soon. Has anyone succeeded in getting this type of certificate use deadline extended?

I requested and was refused. Called again to try another CS - same result. I would plan on using if I were you!

also - YOU must personally use it - and they will ask for ID. I could not even get acceptance to let my husband use it - and I am a plat.

I have tried in the past to get one extended, was told absolutely not.

Called back and was told the same thing.

Plan a trip and use it up!

I went on line to book a room in June and the option to book using my e-certificate was selectable although the expiration date on my certificate is in April. Is there any chance that if I attach the certificate to the reservation now, would it still be accepted at check-in, or would the request be denied at the point of check-in? Anyone have any first hand experience?

Thanks,

Certificates must be valid at the time of use. I've had some success in the past if my check-IN date was prior to the expiration, presenting it at check-in and ensuring they made a note on the folio. However, even that is bending the rules a bit.

Attaching a certificate that will expire before res?
 

I need to make an award reservation for May. I have an e-certificate (from credit card) that expires in March. Marriott lets me apply the ecertificate to the reservation.

Will it be valid?

Technically, no. Would it be accepted by a front desk person who doesn't look too closely at the expiration? Maybe...Would not count on it, though.

I had this experience last year. Upon making my online reservation, the computer notified me I had an e-cert and asked if I wanted to use it. I did it, not realizing it would expire before my trip. I only realized there was a problem just before my departure. I called & e-mailed Marriott Rewards and all they would do is take points from my account to cover the room.

Only when I contatced Marriott Concierge here in FT, did it get resolved. I was able to use my expired certificate for the 1 night. Even then, when I checked out there was massive confusion that held me up about 20 minutes while the meter on my taxi was running outside the lobby.

I had this happen to me last year. I made a reservation using the certificate and I asked if it would still be valid prior to making the reservation. I was told it would, since I was making the reservation prior to the expiration of the certificate.

Just prior to my travel date, I called again to make sure it was valid and was told it was not. I was told to send a letter to Marriott. I did so, and received another certificate good for an additional six months.

Moral of the story--use the certificate before it expires. I was lucky.

Expiring Certificate
 

I have a certificate in my account called:

2010 SUMMER PROMOTION FREE NIGHT CERTIFICATE, CAT 1-4 HOTEL

that expired end of year. Can I use that certificate to make a reservation for someone else in my family, or do I have to occupy that room?

I dont know about this one, but they are VERY tough on the Chase free night certs. Totally NOT transferrable. Not even husband to wife if not travelling together. Best bet is to call and ask.

Asked Marriott about this promo a couple of months ago as I wanted to let my wife use it. Answer was no.

If it's an electronic certificate, and if it's someone you trust, why don't you make the reservation in your name and call the hotel to add the person onto the reservation as a 2nd guest? I've never had a problem on paid or award nights of adding a 2nd name to my reservation and having that person check in before I arrived at the hotel. They won't really know whether you actually arrive later or don't show up at all.

Expiring Certificate
 

FWIW, I've also had them extend them or reapply them after I forget to use them. sometimes, they are pretty generous with reinstating them. Worth it to ask.

Thank you for your good ideas. I would like to have my adult son use it so I will make the reservation in my name and add his name to the reservation. Since it is an electronic certificate in my account, I will have to call Marriott to make the reservation I guess...so I can ask them at them time if they can put both names on there.

Marriott and Chase arrangements
 

I recently posted the following message in a discussion centering on the new Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas ( a Marriott associate), and helpful readers suggested it might be more appropriate here. The suggestion seemed sound, so I've reproduced it below.

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Here's an issue related, not to the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas particularly, but to the relationships among hotels with some sort of Marriott affiliation. In my case, I stayed at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco (at a fairly steep price) only to learn after getting my bill from Marriott's (Chase) credit card that the Marriott multiple (5X) to get MR points was not applied to the dollars spent there. Since my reservation was made via Marriott and, I had been led to believe, Ritz-Carltons bear the same relationship to Marriott, as St. Regis's and Park Hyatts have to their parent brands (with the exception of club welcoming), the differerentiation was, to me, unexpected (disappointing). Requests for explanation from both Marriott and Chase employees brought no insights, except perhaps into the confused state among those representartives.


On the other hand, I did receive the usual amenties that go with Marriott Platinum level membership at the RC SF, including impressive upgrading. As an aside, my opinion (and I've stayed at Park Hyatts and Luxury Collection hotels around the world) is that this RC SF is a magnificent hotel - my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our stay, including superb dining. Can't imagine staying anywhere else on returning to SF (and I have stayed in SF at the St. Regis, the Sheraton Luxury Collection, and the long-gone Park Hyatt).

I would be delighted to learn about the experiences of others regarding the ratio crediting of Marriott points on the basis of Chase credit card dollar expenditures at Marriott affiliated properties beyond the traditional ones. Better still would be an explanation of why the Ritz-Carlton is not considered the equivalent of, say, a Residence Inn in allowing points.

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As mentioned by many here (and noted by yourself), Marriott's online reservation system will allow you to "attach" an e-cert when you create the reservation even if the e-cert will expire before the actual stay. Unfortunately, when the e-cert's expiration date passes, that cert will "disappear" from your reservation.

Therefore, if you don't order another cert or link another one to the reservation, come a week before the actual stay, the system will automatically try to order you the needed award. If you have the points, it will deduct the points for the award. If you don't have the points, you will get notified that you need to contact Marriott get the reservation "fixed".


As for Ritz Carlton charges not being treated as a Marriott charge, that has been discussed here before. If I remember correctly, Marriott Concierge stated that Marriott and Chase are working on trying to get RCs treated the same. I don't remember an explanation as to why there is a problem. I would guess it has something to do with the amount of points Chase purchases from Marriott. They may not want to pay for the extra points for RC stays.

Expiration Date on E-Certificate
 

I have an e-certficate for a 2011 Summer Promotion Free Night Certificate, Category 1-4 Hotel. It says that the expiration date is 12/31/11. I just went online and tried to make a reservation for the night of 12/31/11, and it says the expiration date is invalid. Am I doing something wrong? I'm trying to use it for the night that it expires.

Thanks so much in advance.

Just call them. Try reservations, and if that doesn't work, call the Rewards number. I was able to use two certificates from Spring that said they expired on September 30 for a stay in October, but it was a bit complicated. I had to call reservations to book as if I were using points, then call the Rewards desk to have them attach the certificates. And even after that, they deducted the points as if I had no certificates, so I had to call Rewards again and they returned the points to my account. (I also had to book it by September 30 when the certs expired, but that doesn't seem to affect you.)

Good luck.

Read the T&Cs on the cert. There may be wording that states stay must be completed by expiration date. In which case the night of 12/31 is not valid according to the terms. But still give MR a call and see if they can and are willing to override. Ask politely and anything can happen.

Good luck.

Sorry, that was my point, that they seem to be willing to override within limits. I've had them extend the free night from the Marriott credit card for 6 months with no question. The MegaBonus free night certificates were less flexible, but as I noted not completely inflexible either.

I am using that exact same cert for a 12/31 reservation with no issues. I called to make the reservation because I am using a different cert (my Visa CC free night cert) for the following night. It was too complicated to do it on line, in fact, it took 2 calls to get it done correctly over the phone.

Call!