Recovering Comp'd Plat Status?
 

About 15 years ago I owned a business that booked a LOT of business (seminars - large seminar rooms and tens of thousands of guest rooms) in Marriott hotels coast-to-coast over a 5 year period. As part of the deal I worked out with a VP at Marriott (name now long lost) she offered me, to seal the deal, lifetime personal Platinum status regardless of my future Marriott usage. We sold the business about 6 years ago, but all was still well until last year, when I showed up in a Marriott and was informed that my status is now whatever the lowest level is.

Any suggestions on who to talk with or how to go about getting back what I'd been promised (not in writing that I have a record of)?

So if I understand you correctly, you received a verbal commitment 15 years ago of LT Plat from someone in Marriott whose name you can't remember? You might just be out of luck on this one. With no paperwork showing the LT Plat commitment, Marriott may be under no obligation to honor it (assuming they would even acknowledge it.)

Since you and your company worked out a corporate agreement with Marriott, were you given any contact names? If so, that might be a good place to start. If not, you might try really hard to find out what the VP's name was you worked with and then find out her replacement's name (if she's not still in that position).

I guess if you haven't been staying a Marriott's very much and somehow had been keeping Plat, someone in Marriott must have been keeping you at that level. (And maybe that someone left or changed jobs last year and hense no Plat this year.) Possibly you could call Marriott Rewards and escalate the issue up the management chain. If they look at your account and see that for 15 years you have been kept at Plat, but without the required yearly 75 nights, then maybe someone will admit that your story has some merrit. But without paperwork or a name, you probably have an uphill battle.

Another option is you might send Marriott Concierge (Chris) a PM and ask him for help in this. One of the reasons he is here on FT is to help us out. And since he is on the inside, he may have some ideas and know some persons to contact.

In terms of providing evidence that you had LT Plat status, if you have it, a copy of your Plat card (presumably showing some indication of permanent status such as the 'LIFETIME' that's printed in the expiration date field on current LT cards) might help establish your case.

You ran a successful business but did not get that in writing? :confused:

it's been there for years
 

I've been staying in Marriotts for all those years - it's always been my hotel of choice - but up until last year the card they sent me was always plat per that agreement (I don't stay often enough to earn the status - hope that hasn't offended those here who do). I'll have to dig through some old boxes and see if I can find a previous card and see if it says "lifetime" on it.

Apparently lifetime plat isn't a benefit that Marriott has offered often in the past to secure business, given that nobody has jumped in with a "me, too" type story here. (If I'd been an employee and not the owner of the business, presumably it could be considered a bribe by the employer, I guess, so this probably was a pretty rare situation.) I should add that this wasn't a "we'll give you this if we get your business" thing, but was more of a "thanks for your business" thing. I think my first post implied the former, which was wrong.

Anyhow, thanks, everybody, for the reality check.

Actually this is a somewhat common practice and some of the members here on FT will remember that their "lifetime" Platinum status was comped a few years back when Marriott did a gesture to many original members of the "HGA" program.

I'll trade PM with you to get the right contact, Ed French, the SVP of the program to see if we can get you in a dialogue with Marriott.