Reader Email: Marriott’s Guaranteed 4 PM Late Checkout Not Guaranteed?

A LoyaltyLobby reader sent us a maddening case with Platinum and higher member guaranteed late checkout benefit and the lack of enforcement.

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You can access the Marriott page for elite benefits here.

READ MORE: Marriott Bonvoy Rate & Bonus Points Offers

Reader’s Email To Marriott:

To avoid any confusion here I will provide a complete list of what occurred, which is actually very simple, and ask for the answer, which appears not to be simple:

(1)  Marriott Bonvoy Titanium members are guaranteed a 4:00 PM checkout at all properties except for Resorts, Convention properties, Design Hotels, Vacation Club and Ritz-Carlton Reserve properties.  This is said in both the Bonvoy website and Terms & Conditions:

https://www.marriott.com/loyalty/member-benefits/titanium.mi

https://www.marriott.com/loyalty/terms/default.mi#elite

(2)  I stayed at the Courtyard Raleigh Cary Crossroads under two reservations 12 – 20 September.  A copy of the bills are attached

(3)  On check-out day, September 20th, I requested the 4:00 PM late check-out via the app at 10:30 AM.  The associate denied this request, in writing.  A copy of the screnshot is attached.

(4)  I asked the associate their name in an attempt to escalate to a manager.  They ignored me.  This is also in the screenshot.

(5)  I reviewed the Bonvoy Elite Benefits Guarantee which provides compensation for guaranteed elite benefits not provided.  Every benefit had compensation listed except for this benefit.

(6)  I called Titanium Customer Care and asked the agent what is the compensation for a property not honoring the guarantee?  The agent could not find the answer and directed me to send an email to the “Research Department” via bonvoy.program@marriott.com which I did.  This email is a reply to that message.

(7)  Per the Bonvoy Terms & Conditions, I notified the property in writing, prior to checking-out, that I was making a claim.  This was via an email to the property’s General Manager, Bernadette Atwater:  batwater@cmchotels.com.  A copy of that email is attached.  Ms. Atwater did not reply to this email.

(8)  Apparently, someone from Marriott Customer Care interpreted this to mean I was unhappy with my stay, and sent an email to Ms. Atwater.  Ms. Atwater sent a rather defensive and factually inaccurate email to me this morning, attached.  Everything was done in writing, dated and time-stamped, so there is no question about the facts.

This is not a question which involves this or any property at all – This is a question for Marriott Bonvoy and/or Marriott Corporate:

If a qualified property does not honor the guaranteed 4:00 check-out for Titanium members, what is the compensation per the Elite Benefits Guarantee?

Can you help me answer that question, as it appears that no one knows – And it is not anywhere in the Terms & Conditions.

Marriott’s Response:

Thank you for inquiring with Marriott Bonvoy. I would love to assist you with this.

I am sorry that your original request was miscommunicated. I am also sorry that you felt the Marriott Bonvoy Chat agent did not accept your 4:00 checkout or provide you with their name.

Marriott Bonvoy allows a 4 pm checkout as long as it is available, they do their best to accommodate. This is why the Chat agent asked if you would be ok with a 2:00 checkout, they likely needed the room and needed to factor in cleaning before another elite member needed the room.

Please follow this link https://help.marriott.com/s/article/Article-22352  it explains the late checkout for Titanium Elite members, explaining: “where it is based upon availability.”

Please respond to this email, if you should have any further questions or concerns.

You are very much appreciated, thank you for being a Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite member. At Marriott we always strive to accommodate and satisfy the guest. We look forward to hosting you soon at Marriott Bonvoy.

Kind Regards,

Danica C.
Marriott Bonvoy® Customer Care

Wonder why a person like Danica C. is working for Marriott Bonvoy Customer Care if they have not been able to familiarize themselves even with the most basic elite benefits?

APP Notification:

The message that you see on the app is NOT correct. There is no “priority late check out,” and there is no need to “do the best to accommodate your requests” at most Marriott hotels outside resorts and convention ones. The benefit is GUARANTEED.

Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite Benefits:

There is no question

Marriott Bonvoy T&Cs About 4 PM Check-out:

v. 4 p.m. Late Checkout. Platinum Elite Members and above may check out as late as 4 p.m. local time of the Participating Property. Members can request late checkout when making a reservation through central reservations, at check-in, via the mobile app (where available) or at any time during their stay. This benefit is guaranteed at all Participating Properties, except at resort and convention hotels and Design Hotels, where it is based upon availability. Marriott Vacation Club, Marriott Grand Residence Club, Sheraton Vacation Club, Westin Vacation Club, The Phoenician Residences, a Luxury Collection Residence Club, Scottsdale, and Ritz-Carlton Reserve are excluded from this benefit.

The terms and conditions are crystal clear regarding the late checkout benefit.

Why Marriott Struggles With Enforcement?

You must remember that Marriott Bonvoy is essentially Marriott Rewards with an updated name, the old Marriott IT, and the benefits integrated from SPG.

Marriott Rewards didn’t have significant elite benefits, but most properties were run professionally then, customer support was excellent, and things were running smoothly.

Most customer service personnel replying to consumer messages and responses today, however, are utterly misinformed regarding benefits and program rules.

You would think that by 2022 they would have their customer service squared out.

Conclusion

The reader refers to Elite Benefit Guarantees adopted from Marriott Rewards without implementing benefits from SPG, such as the 4 PM checkout. Essentially, there is no downside for properties to deny it because it is not backed up by compensation and the corporate customer support is helpless.

Even when Marriott Rewards didn’t have the benefits extended to SPG members, they enforced the available ones.

The issue here is that if properties and employees start to decide what benefits are extended and when and to whom, the system collapses.

Why would consumers deal with businesses incapable of delivering promised benefits and lacking enforcement? When Marriott started not to care?