Lifetime Status Has Me Worried About Complaining & Getting Booted
 

Now that I'm Lifetime Titanium with points out the wazoo I am worried about giving Marriott a reason to kick me out of the program just so they can save money on lounge access/breakfast, and by taking away my points.

Anyone else feel the same way? This gives me pause about complaining about little things like the ultimate reservation guarantee or making a big deal about "no lounge access" on the odd occasion where my room is being master billed to a client, etc.

The former has happened once in 10 years of traveling, and the latter has happened about 4 times (at the same three hotels) since the programs merged.

Likely it would not make financial sense for Marriott to boot lifetime Titaniums, but most of my nights these days are $100 or less per night (and those which aren't are still very cheap compared to rack rates)- $48/night at DTW (this really was a rate they offered for AAA) ; US$50 at a hotel in Canada; $40-ish at a hotel in Seoul, $80 in Atlanta, $90 in Manhattan for weekends in February/March, $150 in Tokyo, $150 at the Osaka Marriott etc. etc. etc.

I also have about 1.2 million miles.

Has anyone ever kicked out? Anyone else worried about this?

Not gonna happen unless you give then cause . Its no different then any Airline program that gives/gave out LT status. If any program would do anything it would be AA where for years they counted miles earned via their CC towards LT status as well, and AA didnt do anything.

Once Ive gotten my LT status with a program I still use it but have greatly cut the rev I give them, its more like unless they have a flight or night that is the cheapest or 1 that I need they wont be seeing any rev out of me. So why get LT sinply to have the benefits should I need them, but as more and more programs change for the worse and base everything on the amount you Spend with them = past Loyalty is useless, I apply the same to them what they did for me yesterday isnt important its what they are doing for me today is and few if any are doing anything positive

Have you ever considered taking the time to send in a compliment or two? Whist Marriott is pretty hard to like these days on a corporate level, surely you encounter individual contributors who go above and beyond that you could single out (and in doing so offset your profile as a serial complainer). These days the primary purpose I see for my Ambassador is to channel positive feedback to properties where I've had a really good experience. Also, on the complaining front, I choose my battles very carefully - I want them to hear my roar when I'm truly angry and not just yawn at a song and dance they've seen at least a hundred times before.

Marriott can kick a member out of Marriott Bonvoy for a number of reasons. See "1.7.a. Cancelling or Suspending Membership Accounts" in the Marriott Bonvoy Loyalty Program Terms & Conditions.

In short, if you commit fraud against Marriott, fail to pay, or violate the rules in some other way, Marriott can (and probably will) take recourse.

Marriott is not going to kick a lifetime member out of Marriott Bonvoy to save the cost of breakfast or because a member invokes a published guarantee when a hotel fails to comply with the Terms & Conditions of the program.

Marriott Bonvoy has 100 million plus members. The program gives members an incentive to strive for elite status over a course of many years by dangling the prospect of Lifetime Status in front of them.

Marriott would jeopardize its entire program if travel bloggers could write about how Marriott kicks out loyal members who properly follow the rules, just so that hotels can save the cost of a scoop of scrambled eggs and a cup of coffee for longtime members who earned Lifetime Status but may no longer be staying 50 nights per year.

And if a hotel offers an excellent rate to fill rooms that would otherwise go empty, Marriott is not going to penalize the Marriott Bonvoy member who books such a rate.

I am in your shoes/ Only difference being, it's not just Marriott, its also Hilton, Amex points, British Avios, National, Avis and Hertz.

As someone mentioned its a two way street. positive comments account as well.

$40 in Seoul? Do tell!

No, I'm not worried about this in the least. Your $8 breakfast cost is a rounding error on a rounding error on a rounding error for a $20B company. Even 200 of them a year.

So the hypothesis here is someone that spend thousands or possibly hundreds of thousand dollars with Marriott would get kicked out of the program to save on a $5 lounge breakfast?

No offense, OP, I can't tell you what to be afraid of, but to me this is the definition of an irrational fear.

A few are my corporate rate - a few are AAA, some are pay in advance. I've never done a BRG. The $48 looked like a mistake but the Delta DTW did it intentionally when they were slow a few weeks ago (I couldn't believe it).

I don't know why you would think I'm a serial complainer - I said I rarely complain? 4 times in 10 years. But good idea re: the compliments.

My conversion may have been a bit off since I book at the Korean currency price, but check out the Fairfield Inn Seoul on Google, it shows up around US$68 for most nights, and you get a discount if you pay in advance!! 65,000 to 70,000 KRW.

Perhaps this should be a separate thread - but by way of example, I am going to Asia soon for a quick weekend, but I'm not sure which country yet - and likely won't decide until a week before based on work (i.e. is midnight flight from Atlanta to Seoul more convenient than a daytime flight from DTW or MSP, etc. etc.)... anything wrong with, let's say for example, having simultaneous reservations in Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai, and Beijing for the same weekend, and then cancelling three of the four, 2 to 5 days before?

I agree as it appears you've highjacked your own thread! :D

But let's take the Westin Bonaventure for example, there you get breakfast in the restaurant which I have been told is $40+ (I'd be surprised if it is less than $30 - best breakfast ever) - multiply that by two people... wouldn't Marriott beancounters count that as $80 in breakfast (even if you eat $10 worth of food), then you have the Titanium point bonus, the double point promo, etc... And suddenly if you have someone paying $150/night or less, Marriott may conclude it's better to boot the person, especially if they have, just by way of a crazy example, $80,000 worth of points...

Likely my fear is irrational, but still - you'd think Marriott would want to get rid of Lifetimers who don't spend much per night and get a lot of benefits.

Lifetime titanium is a thing now? I thought it only went to platinum?

It's for us who are grandfathered in as being Life Plats at Marriott before the plans merged last year. You are either LifeTit now or you never will be.