Need help with reservation issue ignored by hotel & customer support
 

Hi everyone, posting for the first time here. I’m hoping to get some advice from others who’ve dealt with escalating issues with Marriott Bonvoy customer service.

Earlier this month, I booked a stay at a Marriott property for an overseas trip to Singapore. Just prior to my international flight, I noticed my reservation had completely disappeared from the Marriott Bonvoy app.
I called the hotel immediately after realising, and the staff member told me that they couldn’t find my name in their system and that my booking number was under another guest's name, hence, there was a possibility they wouldn’t be able to honor my reservation.
This obviously caused quite a bit of stress as I wasn't sure if I'd have a place to stay that evening and I didn't have time to book alternative accommodation prior to my flight.

When I arrived, the hotel did manage to locate my reservation and check me in. I learned that my original reservation's details were overwritten with the information of someone else due to what the hotel staff called a "technical glitch".
When confronted about the issue I experienced, hotel staff refused to take responsibility. Not wishing to cause a scene, I left it until I checked out to contact the hotel front desk via email, and then escalated to Marriott Bonvoy customer service after the hotel continued to dismiss my concerns. I have called them now a total of 3 times. Each time, the agents told me they could only “follow up with the hotel” and had no ability to escalate further.
After two weeks of prodding, the hotel manager offered a conciliatory gesture of 2000 points, which I find to be inadequate given the stress and inconvenience caused.
I also contacted Marriott Bonvoy via DM on X, but their team said they “cannot override the hotel’s decision” and redirected me back to the same channels I’ve already exhausted.

At this point, I feel like I’ve hit a dead end. I’m a platinum elite member and have generally had a good experience with Marriott properties worldwide, but this experience has really shaken my faith in their customer service.
Has anyone successfully escalated an issue like this beyond the hotel and customer service? If there is there a way to escalate to their corporate guest relations team, or some other department that could make a decision on this, I would appreciate any advice or similar experiences.

There are Marriott Bonvoy representatives here - contact them directly via PM with the details of your case. I am not saying they will necessarily be able to offer a different outcome, however I have always received support from them in the pasr.

Thanks for your reply. Could I trouble you to DM me with some users I could contact about my case?

What kind of “decision” are you actually looking for? This may not be clear to those that you have escalated your complaint to.

Expectations of significant compensation for “stress caused” are not really a thing in many parts of the world, particularly when nothing material seems to have happened (considering that you stayed at the hotel that you booked as planned).

Yes exactly.. Human error but issue was fixed by the time OP arrived at the hotel.

You sound very difficult. So what exactly do you want from the property??

I'm not sure I understand the issue.
You made a reservation, arrived at the hotel, checked in and received your room.
What is the problem?

In the unlikely event you were not checked in, unless it was F1 week, there are thousands of available
hotel rooms in Singapore.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/memb...oy-lurker.html
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/memb...lurker-ii.html
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/memb...urker-iii.html

DM all three representatives and make your case (taking into consideration what has already been noted above by others), someone will certainly get back to you.

or more likely, provide the same response that Bonvoy customer service had already provided. The Bonvoy Lurkers, unlike Starwood Lurkers, are just an extension of intake points for customer service. It's up to the hotel to provide the compensation, and the only time customer service issues additional compensation is when the hotel is not responsive.

To the OP: What is it that you are seeking in terms of compensation?
When all is said and done you made a reservation and the hotel honored it. I've had a similar thing happen to me at the PHL Marriott recently. My reservation was mysteriously "lost." I showed my printed confirmation number with my reservation. Front desk apologized, checked me in and I had a wonderful stay. Not every minor inconvenience or added stress equates to compensation. I'm amazed that the hotel manager even offered you 2,000 points. I would accept it and move on with life.

On a few occassions I've had my reservations not appear in the app the day before or the day of check-in, but the reservations were always valid. I've never sought compensation for that emotional distress, but I'd be very happy with getting 2000 points for it.

Seems like OP is looking for compensation for something that didn't actually end up happening or result in any kind of negative outcome or financial loss...total waste of time.

I don't understand the issue. The OP experienced stress over a software glitch or human error that was completely resolved before they checked in. It would never even occur to me to ask for compensation for such a thing. I imagine it must have been a fairly unpleasant conversation with the OP for the manager to even offer 2000 points. My advice to OP is to consider themselves lucky that they got the 2000 points and move on.

From experience, I can say that the best way to mitigate emotional distress is to let this go. Pursuing something like this for weeks and turning it into a battle is causing more emotional distress than the minor hiccup would cause a reasonable person.

Sounds like a happy ending. No harm, no foul (no blood, no ambulance).

On occasion there have been other similar posts on FT where an OP suggested that s/he was entitled to some type of goodwill compensation for something untoward or inconvenient that could have happened but didn't. The responses were much less polite and friendly than those that I've seen in this thread. OP's screen name says a lot.