flyerCO

Wouldn't there be a contractual obligation on the part of MR to keep you at the hotel? It's not as if the hotel is closing. It's still going to be open. Thus it should be between MR and hotel how payment will occur.

RogerD408

... being the operative word. I'm sure there is verbage in the contract that deals with this and I'd bet good money it is to the benefit of the chain and not the guest. Depending upon the cause of the deflagging may have a lot to do with how well the chain and the property will play together, the guest experience being inconsequential. I've seen chains step up and pretty much give away the store by comp'ing the entire stay elsewhere to absolutely nothing from either party. Always a good idea to have alternatives in mind, you never know what's going to happen.

travellingcari

Not when their contract ends, which is essentially what deflagging is

RogerD408

Three separate contacts, one between the hotel and the chain (franchise agreement), one between the guest and the chain (booking agent), and lastly, between the guest and the property (reservation). One ending does not necessarily mean they all end.

3Cforme

A hotel reservation is a contract between the guest and property, not between the guest and Marriott Rewards. I believe this, indirectly, is what MSPeconomist means when she speaks of poaching. Guests can't be redirected to other properties (logically so on paid reservations - what the convention is on points reservations is the point of much speculation).

flyerCO

Marriott is basically acting as a TA. They're making a booking at the hotel for you. If they misquote the price, it's on Marriott to cover the difference. Just because the hotel is no longer part of Marriott doesn't change fact you contracted with Marriott to pay X for a night at X hotel. If the contract between Marriott and the hotel allows the hotel to raise the rate, that is between them. You still contracted via Marriott to book at a hotel for X price. Thus Marriott would be the one that would need to pay the extra.

Think of it this way. Replace Marriott Rewards with Orbitz Cash Rewards.

cbn42

Orbitz doesn't have any relationship with most of the hotels on their website. They simply make a reservation for you through publicly available channels. Marriott, on the other hand, has a franchise agreement with each of their hotels. When you make a reservation on marriott.com, you are making a deal with Marriott, not with Bob's Hotel LLC. I haven't booked with Marriott in a while, but IIRC you don't even see the name of the owner of the property when making a booking, so you can't be entering into a contract with them.

Therefore, I believe that this is Marriott's responsibility to fix. In this case, I think it would be appropriate for Marriott to book a room for the OP at the cash price, and then put a clause in their future franchise agreements to address this scenario so that the franchisee cannot leave one of their customers hanging in case the agreement is terminated.

writerguyfl

I don't believe the highlighted text is true. From the Marriott.com Terms of Use (emphasis mine):

Marriott Information may contain technical inaccuracies and typographical errors, including but not limited to inaccuracies relating to pricing or availability applicable to your transaction. Neither Marriott nor Ritz-Carlton assume responsibility or liability for any such inaccuracies, errors or omissions, and shall have no obligation to honor reservations or information affected by such inaccuracies.
Source: https://www.marriott.com/about/terms-of-use.mi

My best guess is that the chain would say your reservation is booked at the "Marriott Oceanside Grand" hotel (or whatever other generic name). Once deflagged, that hotel won't have Marriott in the title. Hence, they would claim that legally it's a different hotel.

As someone who spent many years in the hospitality industry, I think this problem is one that most chains handle poorly. But, as travellingcari notes, it's been happening this way for decades. Nothing short of government regulation is going to change the process. Frankly, if the government wants to make the industry better for guest/customers, I'd rather they tackle resort fees instead.

AlwaysFlyStar

If this were the case, any business or person could run up loads of debt and then change their name and say they no longer owe it. So while US contract law is not my area of expertise, I can almost guarantee that this would not be a valid legal argument. (Nevertheless, I realise that a chain might be perfectly happy to state such a claim as fact)

RogerD408

I'm sure all of this is covered in any/all agreements, including the one adhered to the booking made by the guest. No one takes the time to read all the fine print and assume they are protected and jump to conclusions that are not supported by fact. Taking care of the guest is in the interest of the chain, but their ability may be limited depending what's available in the area. DBAs allow businesses to hide behind a fictitious name hoping the customer will never take the time to look up the true owners, so even if you are not fed the name, Bob's Hotel LLC, during the booking process, you are still dealing with them.

bhrubin

CO FF

I had this happen in 2009 with Starwood, when I was a pretty high-value PLT there (50+ nights/year in NYC alone). There was no other Starwood hotel within 2 hours of the one that withdrew from the program (having been in default for over a year), less than 3 weeks before my 10-day stay. Starwood found a comparable unflagged hotel and arranged for me to stay there - they took care of my tab. No elite benefits...other than actually getting a free room.

Now THAT was customer service...

travellingcari

I was speaking to the quoted portion about the contract between the hotel and MR

YuropFlyer

Imagine BA leaving One World for, say, SkyTeam. You had a mileage booking with CX miles on them for LHR-HKG, three weeks from now.

BA tells you to pound sand, it's gone. And to buy a new flight. At last-minute rates.

Would you accept THAT?

nacho

It's very different with airlines, if you booked an award ticket and if the ticket has been ticketed, then you will be on that flight unless CX went bankrupt. A ticketed airline ticket is a legal binding contract. An airline can't just take it away.

Hotels are different, OP paid points to Marriott and Marriott will settle the night with the hotel. I don't think Marriott will pay anything until OP has checked out. If it had been a cash stay I think the hotel will honour it.