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Ever since Marriott merged with SPG back in 2015 to become the world's largest hotel chain, the giant has also become the world's biggest headache for many of its customers. From stories of disappearing reservations, to be being “walked” from your hotel, and not earning the Bonvoy points you should, customers have story after story of getting “Bonvoyed.”
And now, for its latest issue: Marriott may have “accidentally” added award surcharges and point redemption fees to the room bill of customers booking with Bonvoy points.
Key Points
- Marriott may have erroneously added extra fees to some award bookings throughout 2021.
- These fees are NOT resort fees, a tax, or room incidentals — they are accidental charges that should not be on the customer's bill.
- Login to your account and check your previous stays to make sure you were not charged.
- Look specifically for line item “Rm Charge – Reward Redemption”.
- If you were charged this additional fee, you will need to contact Marriott to have it canceled.
- Some of the hotels erroneously charging this fee:
- JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort & Spa in Orlando, Florida
- Perry Lane Hotel in Savannah, Georgia
- Sheraton Springfield/Monarch Place in Springfield, Massachusetts
- Westin Crown Center in Kansas City, Missouri
- Westin Maui Resort & Spa in Lahaina, Hawaii
How to Check Your Marriott Account for Award Surcharges
It would probably be worth your time and energy to pull up your old Marriott receipts and make sure you weren't charged. You can do so by first heading over to Marriott.com and logging into your account. You can find the login at the top right of the page. Once logged in, do the following:
- Find your name and click on it.
- Navigate to the “Activity” option.
- Find the “Latest Activity” part of the page.
- Change the filter to “hotel stays.”
- Finally, hit the Download option next to the stay in question.
- Repeat this for all stays in 2021.
Once you have your receipt, you'll want to look for a line with the following text: Rm Charge – Reward Redemption. If you see this on your bill, then you have paid award night surcharges (which shouldn't exist), and you'll need to contact Marriott.
If by chance, you are unable to pull up your receipts following the above method (which was the case for me), you can contact Marriott instead. You can find Marriott's contact info here. Once there, follow the next steps:
- Login to your Marriott account.
- Navigate to the drop-down menu below the Contact Us header.
- Select “Copy of Hotel Bill” from the options.
- Fill out the requested information, which includes the name of the hotel property, the dates of your stay, and any additional comments.
- Lastly, hit the submit option.
Related Content: 15 Best Marriott Points Redemptions for Luxury Stays
What To Do if You Find a Charge
Your first option is to contact the property which initiated the charge. If you don't have luck going that route, the next step would be to contact Marriott Bonvoy. You can reach out to them by using the form on the Contact Us page. Additionally, you can call in and work with a representative over the phone. Don't forget that you can also use Twitter to reach out to Marriott. Believe it or not, Twitter can be one of the most effective ways to get solutions and answers when dealing with companies like Marriott.
If using Twitter, make sure to send a private message (“DM”) with any personal details, like your hotel bill, email, confirmation numbers, etc. Don't tweet this information at Marriott publicly.
Final Thoughts
Check your past Marriott stays to make sure you were not hit with these award surcharges on your bill. And in the future, always be sure to take a look at your bill when you check out to ensure that everything looks correct.
Finally, although Marriott has its fair share of issues, remember that there are thousands and thousands of customers booking and staying at Marriott properties with no issues or problems whatsoever. Marriott has some amazing properties and incredible redemptions, and the Marriott Bonvoy program shouldn't be overlooked because of these issues.
Have you been erroneously charged a reward redemption fee from Marriott? How did you get it resolved?
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Why can’t they just do it automatically?
Seriously! You would think that Marriott would be proactive about fixing this. Part of the problem is that this fee was charged by local hotel owners – where the hotel isn’t owned by Marriott. Still, Marriott should be able to access the records for these reservations.