Anyone bought back status this year and seen a decrease in Lifetime points?
 

Just wanted to see if it was correct that my Lifetime MR points decreased by 40000 when I bought back Platinum. Anyone else can check their buyback and Lifetime MR points to see if they decreased for you too?

I queried it by email with MR as this wasn't stated in the offer that Lifetime points would decrease and got this response...."The balance of points transferred to other Marriott Rewards accounts are no longer on the source account and do not count toward Lifetime Elite status. Points deducted for any Elite Buyback purchase also do not count toward Lifetime Elite status, so if you select to buy your status back then the points used will be deducted from the Lifetime points balance. "

I don't get that as I thought it would work the same as a stay redemption certificate which doesn't decrease your Lifetime MR points.

Although I've never bought back status, I remember reading somewhere that buyback points were deducted not only from your account but from lifetime totals too. Now there's the lifetime points calculator on the website, I guess we can verify that, and it seems you do.

I was told by customer service via phone sometime last year that buybacks would reduce the lifetime balance, and for that reason, I would never do it.

Who would purchase Platinum status? Why? How many months will it take you to get Plat status back the traditional way?

Anywhere from 3-12 ;)

Cheers.

I won't get it the traditional way this year due to working patterns. But I have a few stays booked at hotels this year where they give free parking to Platinums but not Golds. The monetary equivalent cost of buying Platinum works out close to what my parking bill would be if I was Gold.

I saw the deduction from the lifetime balance as well - had not seen that in the offer anywhere :-/

A regular 1 night guest at FS paying $150/night would recoup the points via the 500pt arrival gift and the extra 2.5pts per $ over Gold within 44 nights. So I'd imagine any busted Plat who expects that kind of stay pattern this year!

Hmmm. So I was correct when I posted that Plat buyback would probably be deducted from LT totals?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marri...l#post24091356

Does anyone know of any other activity that lowers the lifetime points total?

Specifically, I am considering a nights and flights redemption, but don't want to do it if it will lower lifetime points.

A Travel Package award (airline miles + hotel) is a normal award and does not reduce your LT points totals.

I can confirm that they are deducting both renewals and transfers from lifetime points totals... WITHOUT ever having disclosed it. The current LT page says nothing about it, the T&C say nothing about it.

Arguing with them now as I 'was' within 20 nights and 50k points of LT Gold and discovered they have dinged me for three quarters of a million points on that total.

It's fine if I chose to do it knowing the rules, but not disclosing it and then smacking me back after YEARS of working at it (and even spending $$ to buy points) is simply unethical. :mad:

What do you mean by "transfers"? Purchased points? Points transferred into your account from an outside account (airline, etc.)? Points transferred into your account from someone else's Marriott account? Points transferred out of your account (to airline or someone else's account)?

Let us know what the final result is.

It cost you 750,000 points to buy back Plat status from having requalified for Gold? That seems like an awful lot of points for this.

They offered it to me for 25K points. Having seen on another thread that the points were deducted from lifetime totals, I declined. (I think someone on that thread got them restored, though.)

pjoalfa also included transfers in the deducted points. I'm waiting to find out which kinds (in? out? from/to other MR accounts or airline, etc. accounts?)