somedude3210

Agreed. OP had a confirmed reservation and was told the reservation was not being honoured. Whether he was told at the hotel or they telephoned him ahead of time, his confirmed reservation was not honoured. I do not know the finer points of the guarantee so perhaps the way things unfolded is Marriott's "out." However, good customer service would see someone at Marriott live up to the spirit of the guarantee IMO.

Horace

The definition that matters is the one in the loyalty program Terms & Conditions, with the key phrase bolded by me:

"Pursuant to section 4.1.c. if an Elite Member has a confirmed reservation, but is relocated from the property upon arrival, the Participating Property will pay the Ultimate Reservation Guarantee compensation in place on that date under the Program Rules."

Although the Ultimate Reservation Guarantee does not apply officially, I agree that the spirit of the Ultimate Reservation Guarantee should still apply.

In a proper culture of customer service, this FlyerTalk thread would not exist. An empowered hotel employee or Marriott customer service employee would have provided an appropriate refund of points (partial or full, depending on how much the guest was being inconvenienced), without the guest even having to ask. The guest would conclude, "Well, I didn't get the hotel reservation I wanted because of some sort of glitch, but Marriott took good care of me under the circumstances." That didn't happen here — and it raises questions about what has happened to Marriott's customer service culture.

goldenbear

From the marriott website (there are probably more in depth rules but I can't find them now):

I don't see how the hotel cancelling the reservation in advance (28 hrs in this case) gets them off for the spirit of the guarantee, though that is not the official wording. It's a Marriott Corporate guarantee too, so they should reimburse themselves and punish the hotels for non-compliance in some meaningful way. If 'walked' only applied to customers that still have reservations when they arrive only to have no room, why wouldn't a hotel just cancel a reservation for whatever reason suits them... 12 hours in advance? 1 hour in advance? I mean the loophole is endless there.

I had a question re this but now I see you just linked the relevant terms. It does seem like the guarantee is not a guarantee at all. All they have to do is cancel the reservation before one arrives to get out of it? Even though many hotels are issuing a 72 hour cancellation policy themselves?

Now in this case, it could be an issue with the IT overhaul at marriott corporate. I mean would that surprise anyone? But in that case, it should be corporate providing something

ethernal

Then the OP is right. The Ultimate Reservation Guarantee is a sham. Section 4.1.c says Elite Benefit Guarantee (of which the Ultimate Reservation Guarantee is a subset) does not apply to bookings made within 24 hours of arrivals. Since a hotel can cancel 28 hours out, and bookings the day of don't count, there is no reservation guarantee at all.

If this is the new Starriott, I am out. One thing you DON'T mess with is a reservation. If this ever happened to me, I would no longer stay at Starriott properties.

goldenbear

https://www.marriott.com/loyalty/terms/default.mi

Upon reading the complete paragraph, anyone want to comment on whether listing the specific situation of being walked disqualifies other instances that are not as specific (ie cancelling before arrival)? I actually don't think that's necessarily true. The first statement I bolder still includes the OP's situation. The property was unable to honor the reservation.

OP, I might be inclined to contact one of the more prominent travel bloggers about this case - because if it's interpreted as they are doing it now, it absolutely makes the guarantee a complete sham.

swag

I'll agree that in general, the hotel calling the day before to cancel a reservation and owing no compensation at all makes a mockery of the spirit of the guarantee.

But I'm inclined to give the hotel a bit of a break in this case, since the notification came just a few hours after booking. That seems different than canceling a months-old reservation the day before check in.

ethernal

While vague, the answer is no, in contracts the additional terms in the same section are universally adding conditions to the sections.

KRSW

So, given the rules... Don't answer any phone calls from the property, don't acknowledge you received any e-mail. Just show up at collect the points + cash.

ethernal

Didn't notice this in the original post (I read "a week ago" and then "28 hours in advance of the booking" and assumed there was a 5 day lag - I didn't realize the whole story was being told in the context of the past). It is an important point. Agree that this is a mitigating factor.

While annoyed and a failure by either Marriott IT, the hotel itself, or both, it is more understandable.

yyznomad

@dnkywhisperer

Thanks for sharing your story.
That was brutal.

barracuda93

I don't think Elite Reservation Guarantee compensation applies here and according to T&C it clearly does not. However I would expect some compensation to be offered for the inconvenience caused. Indeed, the situation is not OP's fault. Would be appropriate for Marriott to compensate OP.

goldenbear

Anyone know if this language is new since the combine? I've been MR Plat for 10+ years now and honestly can't say I'd read through the rules with a fine tooth comb. No idea what SPG offered in the past.

But it sure sounds like a sham guarantee - this isn't just wiggle room, but a gaping big loophole.

Seems like a property could cancel any reservation they want if it's more profitable for them to do so.


Still quite possible that in this case it was bad IT, but
​​OP, I'm curious if you noticed what the room rate was when you booked on points. Obviously it was a high demand night. Did you by chance happen to check inventory after they cancelled?

I'm not saying every hotel is going to be a bad actor, but just that you can't discount it... And the reservation guarantee doesn't seem to protect against it.

In general, allowing a hotel to just cancel reservations could promote situations as simple as sellling a room block to a higher dollar client, then cancelling reservations of those who are staying at a lower rate or for one night. (That I know has happened to collegues before, with those of us with higher status having our reservations honored).

​​​​​
"Your reservation is guaranteed, except when we decide to cancel it at any time we feel like."

SkiAdcock

Agree. I'd push for points.

Cheers.

dcstudent

Yet another example of the lack of customer service culture at Marriott....So sad. Glad they at least helped you find a different hotel to stay in. Still should have done more for you regardless of the official written rules. You had a confirmation, it's up to Marriott and the hotel to figure out the screw-up.

Not too much different than my experience when two of my hotels left Marriott just a couple weeks before my stay this summer, would not honor my pre-existing reservation and Marriott didn't do anything for me (no offer to book me elsewhere, no offer of points or any other gesture as a "sorry we're leaving you hung out to dry a couple weeks before your stay").

lowmiles

+1