Amex Hotel Collection US$100 not honoured

[Daver6]

Not sure if this is a whinge or warning....or both really.

I booked a state at Smith's Beach Resort online through the Amex The Hotel Collection site to take advantage of the US$100 credit. I paid using my Platinum Reserve card to make use of the $400 travel credit too. It was a prepaid, none cancelable rate that also included daily breakfast.

I totally forgot about the $100 credit on check-in and nothing was mentioned. Next morning I remember and mentioned it at reception. They told me it was booked by Agoda and not eligible for the credit. They said generally its either the credit or the free breakfast. I realised there was no point taking it further with the hotel and gave Amex a call (Saturday morning). Being a weekend you get through to the after hours team. The guy was sort of helpful. He too said the booking was through Agoda. I said I don't really care what the backend says, I booked via the website and it showed all the right details so I expect it to be honoured.

He called the hotel who basically said I could have the breakfast or the credit. I said I expect both as that's what I booked. Since it was with the Reserve card some other team needs to investigate and if found in my favour they could credit my account. Someone would call me on a business day to discuss.

Fast forward a few days, someone calls, confirms details and said they'd need to investigate. Fast forward another 10 days or so, I get a call yesterday to basically so their logs don't show that I booked with The Hotel Collection so they "can't take full responsibility" for it and can't do anything about it. The guy without prompting says I can complain to AFCA if I want to take it further.

I point out not only are they not taking full responsibility, they're taking no responsibility. I pointed out AFCA are probably not the right people to deal with travel complaints either, so what's the point of mentioning AFCA to me. I said I definitely booked correctly and would be happy to sign a stat dec stating as much. I then asked for points as compensation and they said they can't do that either.

I made the point that in future, how do I know anything will be honoured. The guy just run through the booking process with me. I said that's precisely what I did and you're not honouring it. He then suggested after booking I could call to confirm. I pointed out what happens if I book a non-cancelable rate and its messed up, I'm still stuck then.

I told him to escalate this and get someone who can make a decision to get in touch with me. That should happen next week.

So consider this a warning and whinge about benefits not being honoured.

 

[Coops1]

I pointed out AFCA are probably not the right people to deal with travel complaints either, so what's the point of mentioning AFCA to me.

As a reference point I took a travel issue to AFCA after Amex wouldn't listen. Got $105, but only as a gesture of goodwill (no liability).

They had offered a 25% discount but it was only 12.5%. Their rationale, it was 12.5% for each night.!

 

[StayGoldPonyboy]

I thought to get the THC benefits it has to be "pay at hotel" rate, not pre paid.

 

[Daver6]

They had offered a 25% discount but it was only 12.5%. Their rationale, it was 12.5% for each night.!

Oh boy

I thought to get the THC benefits it has to be "pay at hotel" rate, not pre paid.

I've not heard that one before and that wasn't an option at the time of booking either.

No mention of that in the T&C's

The Hotel Collection (THC) benefits are available for new bookings of two consecutive nights or more, with participating properties, made through Platinum Travel Service, Centurion Travel Service or American Express Travel Online (americanexpress.com.au/travel or americanexpress.com.au/thc; Online bookings currently only available to Primary Card Members. Bookings are valid only for eligible Card Members of the following American Express Cards: American Express® Rewards Advantage Card, American Express® Explorer Credit Card, American Express® Platinum Reserve Credit Card, American Express® Gold Card, American Express® Gold Business Card, American Express® Platinum Card, American Express® Platinum Business Card and American Express® Centurion Card. Excludes Gold Credit Card Members who are not also Australian Rewards Advantage, Gold or Platinum Charge Card Members. Payment must be made in full with an eligible American Express Card in the Card Member’s name. Bookings must be made using an eligible Card and must be paid using that Card, Card Member must travel on itinerary booked to be eligible for benefits described. Noon check-in, late check-out and the room upgrade are subject to availability; certain room categories are not eligible for upgrade. The type of US$100 credit and additional amenity (if applicable) varies by property; the US$100 credit will be applied to eligible charges up to US$100. To receive the US$100 credit, the eligible spend must be charged to your hotel room. The US$100 credit will be applied at check-out. Advance reservations are recommended for certain credits. Benefit restrictions vary by property. Benefits are applied per room, per stay (with a three-room limit per stay). Back-to-back stays booked by a single Card Member, Card Members staying in the same room or Card Members traveling in the same party within a 24-hour period at the same property are considered one stay and are ineligible for additional THC benefits (“Prohibited Action”). American Express and the Property reserve the right to modify or revoke the THC benefits at any time without notice if we or they determine, in our or their sole discretion, that you have engaged in a Prohibited Action, or have engaged in abuse, misuse, or gaming in connection with your THC benefits. Benefits cannot be redeemed for cash and are not combinable with other offers unless indicated. Benefits must be used during the stay booked. Any credits applicable are applied at check-out in US Dollars or the local currency equivalent. Benefits, participating properties, and availability and amenities at those properties are subject to change. To be eligible for THC program benefits, your eligible Card Account must not be cancelled. For additional information, call the number on the back of your Card.

 

[muppet]

I thought to get the THC benefits it has to be "pay at hotel" rate, not pre paid.

I’ve used pay in advance THC rates and received benefits at Hilton, along with Diamond benefits and HH points.

@Daver6 did your booking confirmation email from Amex have this header:


If it does - that’s pretty clear cut evidence for getting what you’re owed I would think.

 

[RealtimeY]

I've also been directed to AFCA in relation to other travel booking related issues with Amex. Is this really their escalation process?

 

[Hunter4vr]

I’ve taken Amex Travel to AFCA before and they ended up paying out what I wanted but of course they did not admit fault.

Surely receiving an AFCA complaint costs them more than just simply paying out the $100. Bit of a head scratcher on why they’re willingly letting customers escalate to AFCA.

 

[Cynicor]

I’ve taken Amex Travel to AFCA before and they ended up paying out what I wanted but of course they did not admit fault.

Surely receiving an AFCA complaint costs them more than just simply paying out the $100. Bit of a head scratcher on why they’re willingly letting customers escalate to AFCA.

I think a fair proportion don’t. And many don’t ask for much, not wanting to seem too entitled.
So if say 1/4 go and end up getting $100-$200 each, and a complaint only costs them $500-$600 they are still up.

 

[Daver6]

I’ve used pay in advance THC rates and received benefits at Hilton, along with Diamond benefits and HH points.

@Daver6 did your booking confirmation email from Amex have this header:

View attachment 401540
If it does - that’s pretty clear cut evidence for getting what you’re owed I would think.

Just checked and no it didn't. It looked like this. How is the average punted meant to know what it should or shouldn't look like though?

I've also been directed to AFCA in relation to other travel booking related issues with Amex. Is this really their escalation process?

Given other people's experience, if I don't get what I want from Amex, I'll just wait their money and raise an AFCA complaint then. In the end, they're telling me to do that.

 

[StayGoldPonyboy]

Just checked and no it didn't. It looked like this. How is the average punted meant to know what it should or shouldn't look like though?

View attachment 401543


Given other people's experience, if I don't get what I want from Amex, I'll just wait their money and raise an AFCA complaint then. In the end, they're telling me to do that.

My recent THC booking confirmation email header looked just like the usual amex header e.g. like @Daver6 screen shot, but it did have a paragraph further down that said "Congratulations on getting the most value on your stay by booking with The Hotel Collection. You will enjoy additional benefits when you stay two or more consecutive nights"... Bla bla etc .

Should be something on the confirmation email somewhere??

 

[Cynicor]

Interesting, I wonder what went wrong with your booking and how you went about it

 

[Daver6]

My recent THC booking confirmation email header looked just like the usual amex header e.g. like @Daver6 screen shot, but it did have a paragraph further down that said "Congratulations on getting the most value on your stay by booking with The Hotel Collection. You will enjoy additional benefits when you stay two or more consecutive nights"... Bla bla etc .

Should be something on the confirmation email somewhere??

That's missing from my email confirmation.

 

[Daver6]

This was the process used for booking. After logging onto Amex I clicked through where highligted



Obviously these are not he dates I selected as it's in the past, but you get the idea...



The URL below is https://travel.americanexpress.com.au/apps/shopping...



It's very clearly stating the benefits and its part of The Hotel Collection. Clicking through this is still confirmed...



Selecting a room, still all good



And finally on the payment page, still telling me it's The Hotel Collection


That's how I booked it. Something went wrong on the backend obviously and they're not taking responsibility.

Edit: In fact, I can't even see how you could book this not with The Hotel Collection!

 

[MathNerd]

This was the process used for booking. After logging onto Amex I clicked through where highligted

View attachment 401582

Obviously these are not he dates I selected as it's in the past, but you get the idea...

View attachment 401583

The URL below is https://travel.americanexpress.com.au/apps/shopping...

View attachment 401584

It's very clearly stating the benefits and its part of The Hotel Collection. Clicking through this is still confirmed...

View attachment 401585

Selecting a room, still all good

View attachment 401586

And finally on the payment page, still telling me it's The Hotel Collection
View attachment 401587

That's how I booked it. Something went wrong on the backend obviously and they're not taking responsibility.

Edit: In fact, I can't even see how you could book this not with The Hotel Collection!

Your screenshots are golden. That's ample proof of your entitlements to THC benefits.

They're just being stingy, and hoping you'd give up out of sheer frustration, and just cop a 100 USD "loss". Don't let them get away with it, they're banking on you putting in an AFCA complaint in the "too hard" basket.

Jump on Live Chat (maybe the Travel version of it?) and ask to be escalated to a supervisor.

This is what I've had to do, to get a Statement Credit honoured. It's still not honoured as yet, so it looks like it's a long battle ahead.

I don't recall the care factor at Amex ever being so low during my long membership with them. It's really concerning.

 

[Cynicor]

Your screenshots are golden. That's ample proof of your entitlements to THC benefits.

They're just being stingy, and hoping you'd give up out of sheer frustration, and just cop a 100 USD "loss". Don't let them get away with it, they're banking on you putting in an AFCA complaint in the "too hard" basket.

Jump on Live Chat (maybe the Travel version of it?) and ask to be escalated to a supervisor.

This is what I've had to do, to get a Statement Credit honoured. It's still not honoured as yet, so it looks like it's a long battle ahead.

I don't recall the care factor at Amex ever being so low during my long membership with them. It's really concerning.

Those screenshots are not of the original booking! Just an example (the checkin/out date is in the future)

 

[velli25]

I experienced something similar when booking through FHR. Initially, I searched for a hotel through FHR and selected a room. After clicking on one of the rooms and then going back to the previous page, I noticed the room rates had significantly dropped. Without initiating a new search, I quickly booked to lock in the lower rates. However, when I received the confirmation email, I noticed that the booking wasn’t labeled as FHR, but rather as a standard booking with a no-cancellation policy.

I immediately reached out to the hotel / American Express to cancel the booking and rebook it through FHR. Fortunately, they refunded the full amount without any issues, and I was able to make the booking through FHR, albeit at a higher rate. It seems there might be a glitch where the page reverts to a standard AMEX booking instead of staying under FHR or THC (?)

 

[andye]

I have a vague idea that FHR is only open to Charge and I wondered if using the Reserve to pay was the problem. However THC is eligible to Reserve

 

[StayGoldPonyboy]

This was the process used for booking. After logging onto Amex I clicked through where highligted

View attachment 401582

Could it be that you didn't click the third link that says "Book the Hotel Collection"?

Bonkers web design, if so. Should make it clearer which pathway you are on.

 

[Daver6]

Could it be that you didn't click the third link that says "Book the Hotel Collection"?

Bonkers web design, if so. Should make it clearer which pathway you are on.

Shouldn't matter. THC is all over the method I use with stated benefits. If that's not the right way, then it's misleading and deceptive which wouldn't be legal in Australia.

Your screenshots are golden. That's ample proof of your entitlements to THC benefits.

Screenshots aren't my original booking. The problem is who keeps screenshots of bookings. It becomes my word against there. As I said to Amex, I'm more than happy to sign a stat dec about the process I used.

They're just being stingy, and hoping you'd give up out of sheer frustration, and just cop a 100 USD "loss". Don't let them get away with it, they're banking on you putting in an AFCA complaint in the "too hard" basket.

I won't let this go. They've tried to screw the wrong person

 

[RealtimeY]

The travel website seems to only recognise your plat benefits (FHR/THC/IAP) if you are logged in at the time of your initial search. If you log in later during the booking, the plat benefits don't appear unless you restart the entire search.

Given that the website times you out very quickly, maybe it logged you out before/during your search and quietly removed your THC benefits? I suspect this may be another case of the Amex website not behaving like a travel website should.


Here, I've managed to get to the booking page while signed in as a plat member with no mention of the THC benefits: