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SPG Best Rate Guarantee (BRG) 2018: Success, failure & discussion thread

Old Jan 1, 2018, 7:21 am
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Last edit by: Starwood Lurker
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POSTING FORMAT

Hotel Name:
Arrival Date:
Departure Date:
Number of Rooms:
Number of Guests:
Room Type:
Starwood Brand Web Site Room Rate:
Competing Rate:
Competing Web Site:

Comments:

FAQ

What is the Best Rate Guarantee (BRG)?

If a lower rate at an SPG Hotel is made available on a non-SPG website or non-SPG mobile application, upon its receipt of a claim that satisfies these Best Rate Guarantee terms and conditions, SPG will honor that Competing Rate and provide the individual that submitted the valid claim one of the following rewards: (1) an additional 25% discount off the Competing Rate (20% for Design Hotels) 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).

What should I do if my claim is successful?
  • Re-confirm 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 they have not posted, then contacted the BRG team to get it posted.
Are SPG benefits honored for BRG stays?

Yes. You should receive the same SPG elite member benefits and stay/night credit as for a normal paid stay.

How do I view my reservation after my BRG has been approved?
  • Log into your SPG account.
  • Click on your stays to view your current reservation.
  • Click on "Set Stay Preferences" link for the BRG reservation, 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 do I add a Suite Night Award (SNA) to a my BRG reservation?
  • Follow the steps as outlined under: How do I view my reservation after my BRG has been approved?
  • At the end of this process, you should be able to select "Apply SNA to this Stay" from within your stays page.
GUIDELINES FOR A SUCCESSFUL CLAIM

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
Cancellation/Deposit Policies and amenities must match on both websites to be valid

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 the next lowest category of room and must include the cancel/deposit polices and amenities you are wanting- if your claim is approved the room type in the booking will remain what is booked.


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)

You must book and submit a claim for the room type, cancel policy, deposit policy and amenities you are comparing. If you a flexible rate on SPG.com, they will look for a flexible rate when processing your claim, even if a lower rate for non-cancellable is available.
You cannot BRG with a flexible rate against a prepaid rate. All information must be the same on both websites and the claim will be denied.

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 no room available with the same amenities, it will be denied.

Room types must be the same for a BRG.

If you are booking and comparing rates for a non-refundable booking, note that you are responsible for any and all charges including cancellation charges, even if the claim is not approved

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 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.

The cancel policy of an approved claim will be the same as what was booked and approved. It will no longer default to flexible.

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 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 for that room type to help clarify.

If you find availability on a third party website/app but there is no availability on the Starwood Website, then this claim cannot be submitted as you must have a valid reservation to submit a claim. If it is submitted somehow without a reservation, the claim will not be processed as a valid Starwood reservation is required.

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
  • BestDay
  • Cancelon
  • Ctrip (Known as MyTrip from Dec 2017)
  • Elvoline
  • HappyRooms
  • Hoteling
  • Hotelreservierung.de (according to BRG team 5 Sept 2017)
  • 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 but it must be the lowest rate for the hotel and dates. 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 are not included in the comparasin
  • 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.
    • 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.

Differing currencies

Marriott may deny claims where the difference between the comparison rate and the Marriott rate is less than $1. Rate disparities primarily attributable to fluctuations and/or differences in currency exchange rates are excluded from the guarantee.

Link to T&C
https://www.starwoodhotels.com/bestrate/terms.html
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SPG Best Rate Guarantee (BRG) 2018: Success, failure & discussion thread

 
Old Jul 4, 2018, 5:19 pm
  #886  
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 1,151
Originally Posted by craigthemif
YMMV. Just don't do the claims at the same time...
Doing them at the same time used to be OK because you could always cancel them if you got a combination of points / discount in one city. But now, unless you do a flexible BRG, youll be stuck with the possibility of your BRGs being invalid if you choose the points and you chose the discount BRG in the same city. So now it requires careful planning - if youre looking for more than 2 nights in the same city its almost always better to get the discount. But yes, plan and put the claims in carefully.
yorkboy24 is offline  
Old Jul 4, 2018, 5:23 pm
  #887  
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 1,151
I have a question about design hotels. It actually seems easier to get a BRG in design hotels now I think. I found a flexible rate as the absolute lowest rate on SPG (sesame for 1 or 2 which is crucial if booking for 2) but the competing rate is non refundable and also a room type not available on SPG (lower category). It seems they wont consider the cancellation or deposit policies for design hotels according to T&Cs, just the lowest rate on SPG for 1? Is that correct? It means if you find a flexible rate in such a case then its easier to do a BRG with design hotels now - no risk.
yorkboy24 is offline  
Old Jul 4, 2018, 5:44 pm
  #888  
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: LAS, ZQN
Programs: UA PP (2MM), BA gold
Posts: 2,168
Hotel Name: Sheraton Santiago Hotel & Convention Center (1 night in November)
Number of Rooms: 1
Number of Guests: 2
Room Type: Classic Room
Starwood Brand Web Site Room Rate: USD 198.55
Competing Rate: USD 175.63
Competing Web Site: Agoda

Took 25% off. Submitted and approved in 3 hours 4 minutes
zebranz is offline  
Old Jul 5, 2018, 9:25 am
  #889  
 
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: MEX/YVR/YYF
Programs: AS MVP/AC75K/AM Gold/UA*S/SPG-Marriott Lifetime Titanium/Accor-FPC Gold/HHDiamond/Hyatt Exp
Posts: 5,035
Hotel Name: Sheraton Lisbon
Stay Date: XXJUL2018
Number of Rooms: 1
Number of Guests: 2
Room Type: Deluxe Room
Starwood Brand Web Site Room Rate: 170 euros
Competing Rate: 144 euros
Competing Web Site: the usual one...
Final confirmed rate 114 euros, took the 25% this time
PointWeasel is offline  
Old Jul 5, 2018, 9:54 am
  #890  
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: In the air
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Bonvoy LT Plat, Hilton Diamond, GHA Tit, BA Gold, Turkish Elite
Posts: 8,683
Tried a BRG and was again rejected for no apparent reason. Like last time, I say very clearly where to look on what site, but somehow the SPG people can never see the rate. I've even checked it's not a localisation issue by using a VPN and checking that it is plainly there.

My Ambassador came back to say that his hands were tied despite me sending in a screenshot of the rates and implicitly agreed with my statement that either SPG was knowingly not adhering to its own policy on BRG for no apparent reason or held the view that I might be trying to scam them with a photoshopped picture. This is the kind of thing which massively impacts my loyalty to Starwood which in almost all other cases has been very thoughtful about living up to its stated service offering or making it right when things go wrong. It was only worth 200 to me which is not a lot in a 50K or so annual spend, but it has created a disproportionate annoyance to me which as a businessman myself I would consider ill-advised.

As I've previously done with BA, if I find a (legal) way to either get 200 back from SPG another way or simply see Starwood face those costs then I will make it happen.
EuropeanPete is offline  
Old Jul 5, 2018, 4:44 pm
  #891  
 
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: MEX/YVR/YYF
Programs: AS MVP/AC75K/AM Gold/UA*S/SPG-Marriott Lifetime Titanium/Accor-FPC Gold/HHDiamond/Hyatt Exp
Posts: 5,035
Originally Posted by EuropeanPete
Tried a BRG and was again rejected for no apparent reason. Like last time, I say very clearly where to look on what site, but somehow the SPG people can never see the rate. I've even checked it's not a localisation issue by using a VPN and checking that it is plainly there.

My Ambassador came back to say that his hands were tied...
Ambassadors have zero pull with the BRG Desk. I learned this years ago.

As has been stated in this thread repeatedly, try submitting a BRG claim with Hilton or Hyatt. Starwood and Marriott are better even with all of the recent issues.
PointWeasel is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 12:04 am
  #892  
 
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: bay area, ca
Programs: UA plat, , aa plat, marriott LT titanium
Posts: 4,820
Originally Posted by EuropeanPete
Tried a BRG and was again rejected for no apparent reason. Like last time, I say very clearly where to look on what site, but somehow the SPG people can never see the rate. I've even checked it's not a localisation issue by using a VPN and checking that it is plainly there.

My Ambassador came back to say that his hands were tied despite me sending in a screenshot of the rates and implicitly agreed with my statement that either SPG was knowingly not adhering to its own policy on BRG for no apparent reason or held the view that I might be trying to scam them with a photoshopped picture. This is the kind of thing which massively impacts my loyalty to Starwood which in almost all other cases has been very thoughtful about living up to its stated service offering or making it right when things go wrong. It was only worth 200 to me which is not a lot in a 50K or so annual spend, but it has created a disproportionate annoyance to me which as a businessman myself I would consider ill-advised.

As I've previously done with BA, if I find a (legal) way to either get 200 back from SPG another way or simply see Starwood face those costs then I will make it happen.
Wouldn't it just be easier to switch your business to another company and then send Starwood/Marriott proof of their lost business and why?
estnet is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 12:19 am
  #893  
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Programs: SPG-Plat, Hilton-Diamond, Club Carlson-Silver, Cathay-Diamond, Virgin-Gold
Posts: 2,179
Originally Posted by PointWeasel
Ambassadors have zero pull with the BRG Desk. I learned this years ago.

As has been stated in this thread repeatedly, try submitting a BRG claim with Hilton or Hyatt. Starwood and Marriott are better even with all of the recent issues.
Didnt actually used to be the case, BRG would interact with Ambassadors. That was however when Starwoods idea of the Ambassador program was to take the stress out of travelling and offer a proper service where your Ambassador was truely useful!

As for other claims have to say recently I have found Hilton far more straight forward than the new SPG one! I can survive Marriott's LNF to be fair as it so far seems to have rules and follow them! BRG on the other hand well it seems to be most claims either come back incorrectly processed or the form they send me back has typo's on and the typo is usually the rate so quite a big deal!

Not actually sure if its down to Marriott or continuing a trend from before then but SPG with Ambassador Status and BRG is essentially inconsistent and no idea what a loyalty program should be, which is a shame as it certainly was the best! Before people jump at me and say if you don't like it move I already have. Last night at Starwood was over 2 months ago and would have been 25-30 nights in that time otehrwise! I have decided to stay at Starwood hotels where I know the management but otherwise discovering that actually Hilton is consistent for Diamond benifits when I need a quick room somewgere but otherwise some of the other groups (smaller yes) offer far greater recognition and actually remind me of SPG 5-8 years ago. To say it is refreshing would be an understatement!
UKTraveller4Fun is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 2:40 am
  #894  
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: In the air
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Bonvoy LT Plat, Hilton Diamond, GHA Tit, BA Gold, Turkish Elite
Posts: 8,683
Originally Posted by UKTraveller4Fun
I have decided to stay at Starwood hotels where I know the management but otherwise discovering that actually Hilton is consistent for Diamond benifits when I need a quick room somewgere but otherwise some of the other groups (smaller yes) offer far greater recognition and actually remind me of SPG 5-8 years ago. To say it is refreshing would be an understatement!
I'm pretty surprised at that feedback on Hilton. This is off-topic. Have you written down any experiences that you could point me to? I'm an earned Hilton Diamond and haven't yet really got any benefit out of the programme - but I've been restricting my Hilton usage to uninspiring hotels so wouldn't necessarily expect much.
EuropeanPete is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 2:41 am
  #895  
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: In the air
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Bonvoy LT Plat, Hilton Diamond, GHA Tit, BA Gold, Turkish Elite
Posts: 8,683
Originally Posted by estnet
Wouldn't it just be easier to switch your business to another company and then send Starwood/Marriott proof of their lost business and why?
Thing is, I actually like Starwood hotels and generally prefer to stay at them. Try a European Hilton bed after you've been sleeping in Westins and W's for a while...
EuropeanPete is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 5:24 am
  #896  
 
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: ZRH
Programs: QR Gold / M&M FTL / Marriott Bonvoy Titanium
Posts: 648
I have a booking with BRG done yesterday.
Checkin is tmr.

There a way to speed up the process ? or the BRG desk will volontary let it die as the rates will disapear from the OTA tmr ?

some advice welcome
GalaxyChris is online now  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 12:37 pm
  #897  
 
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: MEX/YVR/YYF
Programs: AS MVP/AC75K/AM Gold/UA*S/SPG-Marriott Lifetime Titanium/Accor-FPC Gold/HHDiamond/Hyatt Exp
Posts: 5,035
Originally Posted by GalaxyChris
I have a booking with BRG done yesterday.
Checkin is tmr.

There a way to speed up the process ? or the BRG desk will volontary let it die as the rates will disapear from the OTA tmr ?

some advice welcome
I wish you luck.

This was possible like 2 or more years ago, with a minimum of 24 hours before check-in and then it became 48 hours before check-in and now, with the many challenges with BRG claim approvals, you are 'playing with fire'.

Let us know how it goes.
PointWeasel is offline  
Old Jul 6, 2018, 9:29 pm
  #898  
fwb
 
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Hong Kong
Programs: CX Green, A3 *G, HHonors Diamond, SPG Plat, Marriott Plat
Posts: 74
BRG team play dumb on last 3 claims, how to file complaint?

Recently BRG team consistently play dumb on claims and deny the claims with stupid reasons or use such reasons to cause significant delay in order for them to buy time and let the third party rates disappear.

1st claim: W Los Angeles
Booked a Mega Suite, got denied because the rate of Standard Room on SPG.com is cheaper than third party.

2nd claim: Palace SFO
Filed for prepaid rate, got denied because flexible rate on SPG is cheaper than third party.

3rd claim: Le Meridien Seoul. First time handled by Chinese BRG team
Booked flexible rate with breakfast. First reply took more than 24 hrs and denied because they couldn't locate flexible rate w/o breakfast on hotelscombine.com. Wrong rate and I don't think there was no flexible rate there. Replied them a few min later with screen shot, they offered 500 points w/o discussion. I made the reservation through hotelscombine as an evidence and sent them, then call SPG immediately, customer service guy discussed with BRG team directly and told me they received my mail and processing, but no reply until next day (48 hrs since I filed the claim) and told me the rate is gone. They said they contacted the hotel during the process, not sure whether they worked with hotel to remove the rate.

I think that's not acceptable. Any suggestions on how to file a complaint on them?

Last edited by fwb; Jul 6, 2018 at 9:36 pm
fwb is offline  
Old Jul 7, 2018, 4:10 pm
  #899  
gre
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: IAD, DCA
Programs: UA-Plat, Marriott-Plat, AAI, AAII
Posts: 3,758
It should be much simpler

Twice this year I found better rates on hotels.com - and they included 10% towards another reservation. Most recently in Denver where the rate was $30/night cheaper (plus the 10% credit). I called spg both times and they said that I was being offered a "special" rate that they would not match. The "special" rate was simply offered through an email link that anyone could use.

What gives?
gre is offline  
Old Jul 7, 2018, 4:22 pm
  #900  
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: HKG/MEL
Programs: CX MP Gold, MR Titanium
Posts: 70
I've been having success lately with English language sites where flex vs flex regardless of deposit/prepayment has been approved quickly with no issues. I don't think that memo has been sent to all associates reviewing non-english language claims though. The reply I received this morning was:

"You have booked a rate that is fully flexible without any deposit. The competing website, [xxx] does only offer prepaid rates. Since the rates are not comparable, I am not able to approve your claim." It's clearly stated on the OTA that "Cancellation: Full refund will be possible until Wednesday, 09/19/2018, 12 o'clock (CET)."
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Yannie is offline  

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