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30-day cutoff for refund of points booking?

30-day cutoff for refund of points booking?

Old Jun 10, 2019, 10:31 pm
  #1  
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Angry 30-day cutoff for refund of points booking?

just booked a night on points as a placeholder for next week, and noticed on the confirmation email that it’s non-refundable unless cancelled 30 days in advance

when the heck did Marriott establish that customer-unfriendly policy?
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Old Jun 10, 2019, 10:40 pm
  #2  
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Originally Posted by jrl767
when the heck did Marriott establish that customer-unfriendly policy?
Marriott didn't establish the policy. The property sets the cancel terms. An increasing number are pulling this kind of bs.

It's really a good idea to read the cancelation terms before you book.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:30 am
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It depends on the property. I just booked a room in Aruba on points. 3 day cancellation. Knowing the property would help a lot. If its a place that wouldn't likely have many last minute bookings, they usually have tougher terms.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:41 am
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Originally Posted by Kacee
Marriott didn't establish the policy. The property sets the cancel terms. An increasing number are pulling this kind of bs.

It's really a good idea to read the cancelation terms before you book.
Hi,

And also to take a copy of your confirmation email in case the terms change after you book.

Regards

TBS
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:43 am
  #5  
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Properties have set their cancellation policies for as long as I can remember.

You simply hit one with a longer policy than most. Most likely reason is to discourage placeholder reservations. It serves a good purpose because, while you hold a room, another person can't book it. So, a zero-sum game overall.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 7:43 am
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Originally Posted by Often1
Properties have set their cancellation policies for as long as I can remember.
You simply hit one with a longer policy than most. Most likely reason is to discourage placeholder reservations.
Originally Posted by Kacee
Marriott didn't establish the policy. The property sets the cancel terms. An increasing number are pulling this kind of bs.
thx, obviously the first time I’ve seen it
Originally Posted by Mr. Vker
It depends on the property. I just booked a room in Aruba on points. 3 day cancellation. Knowing the property would help a lot. If its a place that wouldn't likely have many last minute bookings, they usually have tougher terms.
10 miles outside Omaha on a Monday ... there must be a good reason ... :/
Originally Posted by The _Banking_Scot
And also to take a copy of your confirmation email in case the terms change after you book.
yes, those are on my phone; I’ve had occasion to refer to them a couple times (for paid reservations at non-Marriott properties, but the principle remains)

*****************************
Originally Posted by Often1
It serves a good purpose because, while you hold a room, another person can't book it. So, a zero-sum game overall.
Originally Posted by Kacee
It's really a good idea to read the cancelation terms before you book.
to both
​​​​​​​thank you professors; may I please have another
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 7:51 am
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Originally Posted by jrl767
10 miles outside Omaha on a Monday ... there must be a good reason ... :/
Yeah, the property wants to discourage awards. Seeing more and more of this.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 10:00 am
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You’re booking during College World Series. Probably the reason for a 30 day window for an Omaha property. They have no problems selling rooms, I’m surprised there are points available anywhere closer than Lincoln.

I bet some of the cash terms are pretty rigid so people don’t book and then cancel when their team gets knocked out and they go home... is this what you were doing?
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 12:49 pm
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Originally Posted by bigshooter
You’re booking during College World Series. Probably the reason for a 30 day window for an Omaha property. They have no problems selling rooms, I’m surprised there are points available anywhere closer than Lincoln.
My first thought was that it was probably a special event time frame where the properties often have leeway to make booking terms stricter, and thanks for clarifying the likely suspect
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 1:48 pm
  #10  
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Not just Marriott--I have a points stay at Hampton Inn in New Orleans during July 4th weekend w/ a 30-day cancellation deadline--any high demand dates/locations seem to have similar restrictions on points stays.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 2:12 pm
  #11  
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Not just 30 days. I have seen 90 days and, for a non-Marriott property, completely non-refundable point bookings. The latter was for booking 11 months out. Yes, it is a good idea to read T&C before you hit "Confirm".
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:03 pm
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I would think that the OP with over 12,000 posts on FT would have a little more sophistication than to give a thumbs down to people who suggest they actually look at the cancellation policy before booking.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:03 pm
  #13  
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Originally Posted by bigshooter
You’re booking during College World Series. Probably the reason for a 30 day window for an Omaha property. They have no problems selling rooms, I’m surprised there are points available anywhere closer than Lincoln.

ah, that makes sense
Originally Posted by bigshooter
I bet some of the cash terms are pretty rigid so people don’t book and then cancel when their team gets knocked out and they go home... is this what you were doing?
nope, going to cheer on my son in the Formula SAE competition in Lincoln ... I need a rental car anyway, and airfares to/from LNK were on the order of $400 higher than to/from OMA ... 12.5k points was a no-brainer (cash rate was ~$189)
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:06 pm
  #14  
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Originally Posted by lougord99
I would think that the OP with over 12,000 posts on FT would have a little more sophistication than to give a thumbs down to people who suggest they actually look at the cancellation policy before booking.
Welcome to FT.
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Old Jun 11, 2019, 6:09 pm
  #15  
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Originally Posted by lougord99
I would think that the OP with over 12,000 posts on FT would have a little more sophistication than to give a thumbs down to people who suggest they actually look at the cancellation policy before booking.
I would think that folks with over 39k and 40k posts respectively might consider an individual's posting history (and implicit travel experience) before tossing out desultory and pedantic and poke-in-the-eye replies, but that's just me ...
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