Last edit by: margarita girl
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What is the Best Rate Guarantee (BRG ?)
If a lower rate at a Starwood Hotel is made available on a non-Starwood website or non-Starwood mobile application, upon its receipt of a claim that satisfies these Best Rate Guarantee terms and conditions, Starwood will honor that Competing Rate and provide the individual that submitted the valid claim one of the following rewards: (1) an additional 20% discount off the Competing Rate per room per night (up to a maximum of three rooms); or (2) 2,000 Starwood Preferred Guest® Starpoints® per room per stay (up to a maximum of three rooms).
BRG Wiki on Flyertalk
• You cannot BRG against a rate on a Starwood Website/App (hot escapes, promos, Gov. Rate etc.). It has to be a 3rd party website/App.
• The rate you submit the BRG against must be a rate that is available to the general public. SPG will deny member only rates from 3rd party websites.
• Cancellation policy has no bearing on a BRG claim with one exception if the rate difference is within 1%.
"Starwood may deny claims where the difference between the Competing Rate and the rate on the Starwood Website is less than one percent; provided that Starwood will not use the fact that the difference between the Competing Rate and the rate on the Starwood Website is less than one percent to deny such claims if the cancellation policy for the Competing Rate is more favorable to the guest than the cancellation policy for the rate on the Starwood Website."
• A valid Starwood website reservation is required to submit a BRG
• If a room category is available on an external website but not on Starwood, you may still make a claim. You still need to make a booking with Starwood using any other category of room - if your claim is approved the room type in the booking will be modified to match the room type you are claiming for
• Only one claim may be submitted per reservation number (If your first claim is denied, you may submit a new claim for that reservation if you find another lower rate after you receive the denial email)
• Make sure to book a flexible rate on SPG.com. This will allow you to then cancel this booking if you find a lower Starwood rate later (like the hot escapes etc.) or if your travel plans change.
• You can BRG with a flexible rate against a prepaid rate. In other words, if expedia is offering a room for $100 prepaid, and spg.com shows a prepaid room for $150 or a flexible room for $200, you can book the FLEXIBLE spg.com rate and BRG it against the PREPAID $100 expedia rate. And you will receive the flexible cancel terms if the BRG is approved. There are a few exceptions where properties impose stricter cancellation term based on competing rates.
• If your comparable rate includes extras like breakfast or parking, make sure there is a room available on spg.com that includes the exact amenities. If there is the same room type with the same amenities on SPG.com, they will compare and if lower on third party, the claim may be approved for the room type and with the amenities. If there is the same room type available but no/different amenities offered, the claim may still be approved, but the rate will be room only.
• Room types must be the same for a BRG.
• If you have an approved and finalized claim and you find an even cheaper rate later, then you may submit a new BRG claim that is not connected to any existing reservation. If this BRG claim is approved, you will need to make a new flexible reservation on SPG.com. Once the process is completed, you will then email the BRG desk to cancel your first reservation, if it is within the cancellation deadline.
• If you find availability for the room type you want on a third party website/app but there is no availability for that room type or no availability for any room type on the Starwood Website, then this may be an approved claim if it meets all other terms and conditions. You will need to make sure that you specify the room type you actually want on the Starwood Website section and enter 0 in the rate and currency. This will ensure that the processing associates know that the room type you want is not available on the Starwood Website. You may also add additional comments near the end of the claim form indicating that there is no availability on the Starwood Website to help clarify.
• Per the FAQ, "Any questions regarding claims should be directed to [email protected] or call 1-866-500-0368." A human is available at this number beginning at 9am EST.
OTAs not eligible because they do not confirm instantly:
Special Conditions for BRG & Design Hotels
How to add a SNA to a BRG reservation
POSTING FORMAT
Hotel Name:
Arrival Date:
Departure Date:
Number of Rooms:
Number of Guests:
Room Type:
Starwood Brand Web Site Room Rate:
Company Room Provider:
Other Company Room Provider:
Competing rate:
Comments:
Q: Are SPG benefits honored for BRG stays?
A: Yes. You should receive the same SPG elite member benefits and stay/night credit as for a normal paid stay.
What is the Best Rate Guarantee (BRG ?)
If a lower rate at a Starwood Hotel is made available on a non-Starwood website or non-Starwood mobile application, upon its receipt of a claim that satisfies these Best Rate Guarantee terms and conditions, Starwood will honor that Competing Rate and provide the individual that submitted the valid claim one of the following rewards: (1) an additional 20% discount off the Competing Rate per room per night (up to a maximum of three rooms); or (2) 2,000 Starwood Preferred Guest® Starpoints® per room per stay (up to a maximum of three rooms).
BRG Wiki on Flyertalk
• You cannot BRG against a rate on a Starwood Website/App (hot escapes, promos, Gov. Rate etc.). It has to be a 3rd party website/App.
• The rate you submit the BRG against must be a rate that is available to the general public. SPG will deny member only rates from 3rd party websites.
• Cancellation policy has no bearing on a BRG claim with one exception if the rate difference is within 1%.
"Starwood may deny claims where the difference between the Competing Rate and the rate on the Starwood Website is less than one percent; provided that Starwood will not use the fact that the difference between the Competing Rate and the rate on the Starwood Website is less than one percent to deny such claims if the cancellation policy for the Competing Rate is more favorable to the guest than the cancellation policy for the rate on the Starwood Website."
• A valid Starwood website reservation is required to submit a BRG
• If a room category is available on an external website but not on Starwood, you may still make a claim. You still need to make a booking with Starwood using any other category of room - if your claim is approved the room type in the booking will be modified to match the room type you are claiming for
• Only one claim may be submitted per reservation number (If your first claim is denied, you may submit a new claim for that reservation if you find another lower rate after you receive the denial email)
• Make sure to book a flexible rate on SPG.com. This will allow you to then cancel this booking if you find a lower Starwood rate later (like the hot escapes etc.) or if your travel plans change.
• You can BRG with a flexible rate against a prepaid rate. In other words, if expedia is offering a room for $100 prepaid, and spg.com shows a prepaid room for $150 or a flexible room for $200, you can book the FLEXIBLE spg.com rate and BRG it against the PREPAID $100 expedia rate. And you will receive the flexible cancel terms if the BRG is approved. There are a few exceptions where properties impose stricter cancellation term based on competing rates.
• If your comparable rate includes extras like breakfast or parking, make sure there is a room available on spg.com that includes the exact amenities. If there is the same room type with the same amenities on SPG.com, they will compare and if lower on third party, the claim may be approved for the room type and with the amenities. If there is the same room type available but no/different amenities offered, the claim may still be approved, but the rate will be room only.
• Room types must be the same for a BRG.
• If you have an approved and finalized claim and you find an even cheaper rate later, then you may submit a new BRG claim that is not connected to any existing reservation. If this BRG claim is approved, you will need to make a new flexible reservation on SPG.com. Once the process is completed, you will then email the BRG desk to cancel your first reservation, if it is within the cancellation deadline.
• If you find availability for the room type you want on a third party website/app but there is no availability for that room type or no availability for any room type on the Starwood Website, then this may be an approved claim if it meets all other terms and conditions. You will need to make sure that you specify the room type you actually want on the Starwood Website section and enter 0 in the rate and currency. This will ensure that the processing associates know that the room type you want is not available on the Starwood Website. You may also add additional comments near the end of the claim form indicating that there is no availability on the Starwood Website to help clarify.
• Per the FAQ, "Any questions regarding claims should be directed to [email protected] or call 1-866-500-0368." A human is available at this number beginning at 9am EST.
OTAs not eligible because they do not confirm instantly:
- AsiaWeb
- Cancelon
- Ctrip (Known as MyTrip from Dec 2017)
- Elvoline
- HappyRooms
- Hoteling
- HotelsClick (Some rates on request, some instant)
- Ostrovok
- Roomertravel
- Laterooms (according to BRG team 24 Oct 2016)
- Hotelius (according to BRG team 21 Sept 2017)
- Zenhotels (according to BRG team 10 Nov 2017)
- Travelbag (according to BRG team 22 Dec 2017)
Special Conditions for BRG & Design Hotels
- You may only claim against the absolute lowest rate on SPG.com, for the date(s) in question.
- The rate must be the lowest on sale on SPG.com, and is regardless of the type of room you actually want, the number of occupants, cancellation policy and the amenities provided. In all likelihood this will mean you have to use a rate for a standard room, for 1 person, non-refundable and without any amenities.
- It is not necessary for the rate on the external website to match the SPG.com rate in any way including room type and number of occupants. The only requirement for a successful BRG claim is that the rate be lower than the lowest rate on SPG.com for the date(s) in question.
- As with normal BRG claims, you need to make a booking before submitting a claim. Since this will likely be a non-refundable booking, note that you are responsible for any and all charges including cancellation charges, even if the claim is not approved.
- Amenities that are included in the external website's rate but which are not included in the Starwood rate may or may not be provided.
- You will retain the category of room booked on SPG.com, even if the external website rate submitted for the claim refers to a different category of room. This is especially pertinent in situations where the hotel continues to sell lower categories of rooms on other websites, while not making them available on SPG.com. You will then be able to book a higher category of room on SPG.com, BRG the lower rate, and retain the higher category of room while paying the lower rate.
- If you need to BRG Design Hotels for Double or higher occupancy.
Differing currencies
• "The Best Rate Guarantee department will approve a claim if there is a difference of 2.5% or greater where the currencies are different or a difference of 1% or greater if the currencies are the same."
Link to T&C
https://www.starwoodhotels.com/bestrate/terms.html
Practicalities During/After Stay
• Reconfirm your rate at check-in; normally the hotel will have the correct BRG rate in your reservation, but sometimes you will need to remind them.
• If you choose points, they will be credited after the stay; check in one week to see if they have posted. If not contact the BRG office to arrange to have them posted.
How to view your reservation after BRG has been approved- The BRG will be processed for a single occupant, even if the rate does not change for more than one occupant. You must book the actual number of occupants intended. Effectively, you can only BRG for single occupant unless double rate happens to be the same as single. It is not possible to BRG if double rate is higher than single. No modification to occupancy is allowed if BRG is approved. If you submit with single rate, you will be stuck with single room; if you submit with double rate and single rate is lower, it will be automatically denied irrespective of competing rates.
- Log into your SPG account
- Click on your stays to view your current reservation
- Click on "Set Stay Preferences", then SAVE
- Refresh your stays page and the reservation should be visible again. You may need to repeat this step if the hotel touches your reservation. If you apply for Your24, you will not be able to view the reservation details.
How to cancel a BRG reservation
• Log into your SPG account
• Click on your stays to view our your current reservation
• Look for your BRG reservation and click on "Set Stay Preferences" link for the BRG reservation, then SAVE
• reload the page and you should now be able to cancel the reservation
• Click on your stays to view our your current reservation
• Look for your BRG reservation and click on "Set Stay Preferences" link for the BRG reservation, then SAVE
• reload the page and you should now be able to cancel the reservation
How to add a SNA to a BRG reservation
• Log into your SPG account
• Click on your stays to view our your current reservation
• Look for your BRG reservation and click on "Set Stay Preferences" link for the BRG reservation, then SAVE
• reload the page and you should now be able to select "apply SNA to this stay" link
• Click on your stays to view our your current reservation
• Look for your BRG reservation and click on "Set Stay Preferences" link for the BRG reservation, then SAVE
• reload the page and you should now be able to select "apply SNA to this stay" link
POSTING FORMAT
Hotel Name:
Arrival Date:
Departure Date:
Number of Rooms:
Number of Guests:
Room Type:
Starwood Brand Web Site Room Rate:
Company Room Provider:
Other Company Room Provider:
Competing rate:
Comments:
Q: Are SPG benefits honored for BRG stays?
A: Yes. You should receive the same SPG elite member benefits and stay/night credit as for a normal paid stay.
SPG Best Rate Guarantee (BRG) 2017: Success, failure & discussion thread
#451
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Toronto
Programs: UA 1K, AC MM E75, Marriott LT Ti, IHG Dia Amb, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 15,521
Whenever the hotel touches your reservation, it will become invisible so you will need to repeat the process to see it again. The only exception is after applying Your24, you can't bring it back unless you cancel Your24.
#452
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: SCQ
Programs: tk gold, lh ftl, ab gold
Posts: 352
Any exceptions regarding BRG'ing Design Hotels?
As far as i can see, the rate on Design Hotels' website is almost always lower than on SPG, but not sure whether it is allowed to BRG that way...
As far as i can see, the rate on Design Hotels' website is almost always lower than on SPG, but not sure whether it is allowed to BRG that way...
#453
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: LHR
Programs: Accor PLT,Thai Silver, HH Dia, SPG Titanium (LT Gold), Aegean Gold, BA Silver
Posts: 5,120
Well just completed an ex CAI QR fare and all my BRGs have posted incorrectly so far. Either room credit missing on multiple rooms ( one was 5 x 2 rooms and only 4 posted). Pain chasing everything up.
#454
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 58
My BRG claim was "approved" but in Euros instead of USD (and in the wrong amount, whether accounting for the conversion or not). I asked them to fix but wouldn't bet the farm.
#455
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Toronto
Programs: UA 1K, AC MM E75, Marriott LT Ti, IHG Dia Amb, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 15,521
Actually, a lot of the questions posted in this thread are answered in the wiki. Folks please take the time to read what's written there, and if you have further questions, ask away!
#456
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: CEB - primary/YVR -secondary
Programs: AC*Super Elite (100K) / PR*Elite / AY*Platinum (OWE) / SPG*Bonvoy Titanium (LTT)
Posts: 2,273
#457
Join Date: Jun 2007
Programs: AA EXP 3MM, UA 1K 2MM, CZ Gld, VS Gld, SPG Lifetime Plt, IC PltAm, Hilton Dmd, Shangrila Diamond
Posts: 189
Hotel Name: sheraton jfk airport hotel....
Dates: 1 night in june....
Number of Rooms: 1....
Number of Guests: 2....
Room Type: traditional room....
Starwood Web Site Rate: $209.00 + taxes per night....
Competing Website: ....
Competing rate: $174.68 + taxes per night....
BRG Reward: 20% off....
Actual confirmed rate: $139.74 + taxes per night....
Comments: wait times are still pretty long....even this claim took about 48 hours....
Dates: 1 night in june....
Number of Rooms: 1....
Number of Guests: 2....
Room Type: traditional room....
Starwood Web Site Rate: $209.00 + taxes per night....
Competing Website: ....
Competing rate: $174.68 + taxes per night....
BRG Reward: 20% off....
Actual confirmed rate: $139.74 + taxes per night....
Comments: wait times are still pretty long....even this claim took about 48 hours....
#458
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,687
How long does it actually take on average to put in a claim, deal with the BRG team and deal with any mistakes/issues that might get made? I am skeptical of the value of doing BRG -- suppose I just booked the US$174.68 or something like it at another property, I might not get the elite benefits (I am liftetime platinum) but correcting for the time on the phone, the rejection rate (I don't think I ever had a BRG request approved and the cases I remember were quite unfair), the time to get a claim approved, etc., I just don't think it's worth it. I also find the practice of helping Starwood drive competitors who offer good prices out of business quite distasteful. And I don't like Starwood's attitude when I do call them and tell them there is a better rate elsewhere like I did recently in Taiwan (I ended up staying somewhere else).
recently i've had a few bad experiences with the team in india but a 5-10 minute call to the brg desk has usually taken care of the issue....wait times have also been a bit on the longer side as of late but i still get the majority of my brgs approved....
for an upcoming family vacation i have booked 4 rooms at a property for 5 nights (3 rooms from my account & 1 from my father's account)....the claims were initially denied by the team in india so i had to call to get it approved....the agent could not see the lower rate even though i could....spent about half an hour on the phone but she still couldn't find the lower rate so eventually had to deny the claims....i resubmitted the claims & they were denied a second time by the team in india again....resubmitted them again & got lucky the 3rd time....
the net result was that i probably spent 15-20 minutes in total submitting the claims 3 times & half an hour on the phone with the brg agent....with the 20% off i have saved about $85 per room per night so a total savings of $1,700....add to that the fact that i get my elite benefits like free breakfast, lounge access, free internet, etc & the savings are more....
at the end of the day i guess only you can decide if the whole process is worth it or not for you but i am very happy with the program....
#459
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: SIN
Programs: Marriott - Platinum/LTG | KF *G QPPS (working on TPPS) | OZ - Diamond Plus
Posts: 188
Also, would love to compare which sites you've been using to get some of the BRGs - particularly in the US!
#460
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,687
hotelscombined is what i usually use....
#461
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Toronto
Programs: UA 1K, AC MM E75, Marriott LT Ti, IHG Dia Amb, Hyatt Glob
Posts: 15,521
#462
Join Date: Apr 2017
Posts: 7
While I see that Priceline does have a Mobile Exclusive rate, I have determined that this rate is "on request" based on the Booking Conditions of the rate. With the Mobile Exclusive rate you will submit your request and Priceline will contact hotels to see if the rate is available.
#463
Join Date: Mar 2012
Posts: 989
Hi
I have some problems re BRGs for my upcoming stay in Bangkok.
1st night Aloft (multiple rooms)
2nd night Westin
3rd night Four Points
4th nigbt Aloft (multiple rooms)
My first claim was for the first room at the Aloft- it was approved with 2000 points.
I made the second claim for the Four Points (I chose 20%) but the agent commented like following:
While I was reviewing your claim, I noticed that you have multiple approved Best Rate Guarantee claims in Bangkok. Please, note that you will only receive on Best Rate Guarantee reward within a seven day period when staying in the same city or at the same hotel. Since the first claim that we received and is still linked with an active reservation was for Starpoints, I have processed your claim for Starpoints.
I know that I only can get 2000points for one time per week. So except my first night at the Aloft, I would like to get 20% discount but this agent seems to think "you only get 2000points as you chose this so no more 20% discount for further stays in this week".
Any light?
Thanks
I have some problems re BRGs for my upcoming stay in Bangkok.
1st night Aloft (multiple rooms)
2nd night Westin
3rd night Four Points
4th nigbt Aloft (multiple rooms)
My first claim was for the first room at the Aloft- it was approved with 2000 points.
I made the second claim for the Four Points (I chose 20%) but the agent commented like following:
While I was reviewing your claim, I noticed that you have multiple approved Best Rate Guarantee claims in Bangkok. Please, note that you will only receive on Best Rate Guarantee reward within a seven day period when staying in the same city or at the same hotel. Since the first claim that we received and is still linked with an active reservation was for Starpoints, I have processed your claim for Starpoints.
I know that I only can get 2000points for one time per week. So except my first night at the Aloft, I would like to get 20% discount but this agent seems to think "you only get 2000points as you chose this so no more 20% discount for further stays in this week".
Any light?
Thanks
#464
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: body: A stone's throw from SFO, mind: SE Asia
Programs: Some of this 'n some of that
Posts: 17,263
I've been denied a few times. A few times been able to call and have a second look and gotten the BRG accepted. Some times not. It is what it is.
For the first time though I must call shenanigans.
At 10PM EDT i received a decline because neither the hotel nor the site in question were selling rooms for the hotel anymore. Immediately I checked and the same inventory that was available 24hours prior was still there. However due to the time there was nothing I could do.
Now, the hotels prices have increased and the 3rd party website as well making the BRG no longer attractive (still BRG-able, just not attractive).
For the first time though I must call shenanigans.
At 10PM EDT i received a decline because neither the hotel nor the site in question were selling rooms for the hotel anymore. Immediately I checked and the same inventory that was available 24hours prior was still there. However due to the time there was nothing I could do.
Now, the hotels prices have increased and the 3rd party website as well making the BRG no longer attractive (still BRG-able, just not attractive).
#465
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,687
i've been having a real hard time lately with the brg team in india....filed a claim yesterday which was denied today because the agent said the rate on the third party website was higher....what he failed to realize is that the rate on that website includes tax (it clearly states that on the final booking page) while the rate on spg does not....i guess i'll have to make another call to the brg team to get this approved....