Marriott Points as Customer Service Comp
 

I am new to this forum so I'm not sure if this is the appropriate place for this question - this past weekend, I had a TERRIBLE experience at a Marriott hotel which for now will remain nameless. The long and short is that I crawled into a bed (and yes, layed on it) wet with urine. They, of course, switched my room, but this was probably one of the most disgusting experiences of my life. At the time, I wasn't sure what was an appropriate response on their part and they gave me an envelope with $175 in vouchers (they could not refund my night even because I booked through expedia). I really don't think that is enough to cover this kind of failing on their part. My friends have encouraged me to ask for points as compensation. Do you know if this is ever done? I haven't yet joined their points program. One friend suggested I ask for 100,000 points. Any thoughts?

I may be in the minority here but 100k seems excessive. 10-20k maybe? But it should be points OR the $vouchers. Probably not both. Just me.

welcome to FT...

so you're sure it's urine?

yes 100K points is excessive............... i will not tell anyone what was in the nightstand drawer years ago at the Ren in Portsmouth, VA but we got nothing in compensation.......but that's another story.

you got vouchers, that's enough IMO....................i agree with fireworksboy

you'd need to join marriott rewards to get the points anyhow......

Yes, sure it was urine. It reeked when I bent over to smell it and was soaking the sheets. I had been laying directly in it, so it must have soaked the mattress pretty well. I was just shocked that no one would have noticed it. The reason I'd rather have points is that it just seems more versatile. What they gave me was a $100 gift card and 3 $25 paper gift certificates. I don't even know if I could pool it all together to get one night at a Marriott. It is unclear if the paper ones are even for hotel reservations, much less using them all to get the best rate for my money.

Agree with the others. Disgusting as it was, you're not going to get 100K points (which depending on the property is equivalent to a week's stay somewhere). Unless you're planning on joining the program and staying at Marriotts more often to build up to an award, I'd say the gift card & paper certs is probably better for you. OVMV.

BTW - Welcome to FT! Hopefully you'll have better hotel experiences to report about in the future.

Cheers.

Agree with the rest.

Also, if you want points so much, why in the heck did you book via Expedia?

Welcome to FT.

I just started traveling again for work after a multi-year hiatus. Still have to renew or rejoin all my points/miles programs....

That's fair. What I would say is that, given you're just starting up again, look at where you'll be traveling to, what you want to achieve most out of a program, etc, etc, and then determine which program(s) to join/focus your attention on. It might be Marriott; it might not be.

But back to your original situation, I think you've gotten as good as you're going to get - or are entitled to. So take it; use it if you can. Give it/them to a family member or friend if you can't. Karma is a good thing. At least the $100 cert would defray a 1-night stay somewhere, if not cover it, depending on where you're at.

Cheers.

I totally agree with the others. You didn't get sick or have anything happen that landed you in the hospital. Yeah it was disgusting but not life altering.

Welcome to FT, BTW.

Bobette

Ditto.