Just Say NO to Wyndham Rewards

May 9, 2010

Kristine McNamee

Wyndham Rewards

P.O. Box 4888

Aberdeen, SD 57402

RE: Wyndham Rewards Complaint

Dear Ms. McNamee,

My husband and I signed up for the Wyndham Rewards program when we moved from the West  to the East Coast. It was recommended that when doing a cross-country trip, a rewards program is a great way to reduce the cost of your trip, because the points could easily lead to a free night’s stay. As a result, we made a concerted effort to stay in Wyndham hotels throughout the entire trip, but we were unable to earn enough to yield the free night’s stay. However, we are now moving back to the West Coast and will be able to stay in Wyndham hotels and with the already accumulated points, will have enough to redeem at some point during the trip.

When I tried to log into my account, it indicated that the account had been closed. When I called customer service, I was informed that due to 18 month’s of inactivity, my account was closed. I explained to the customer service manager (“Brandon”) that in the next week we would be purchasing 7-8 nights of hotel stays and that I would like it to be with Wyndham, but only if I could get the account reactivated. Again, he said that this was not possible. What is extremely frustrating about this is:

a)      I received zero notification about my account being cancelled, leading up to cancellation. As Brandon informed me, it was in the fine print that I was provided with when I originally signed up, but I would have liked to have an additional notice, because I could have reserved my hotel at that time.

b)      I continued to receive Wyndham Rewards emails, even after the unknown account cancellation. In fact, the most recent email included my account number and number of points I had in association with the account. Why would I have any idea that my account had been cancelled and points lost, if I was still receiving emails about my supposedly active account? (Please see print out of email included in the letter).

a.        This seems to me, as false advertising.

b.       It also indicates that the capability of sending individualized emails does exist, and that this technology could be used to send an account termination email to individuals prior to their accounts being closed. When I asked Brandon why this doesn’t happen, he told me that this is not the focus of the marketing department.

c)       The mutually beneficial recourse was not an option. As a consumer, I have a choice. As I explained to Brandon, it seemed like an easy solution for him to reinstate my account. I had so few points earned, that it wouldn’t be much of cost to Wyndham for me to use them and I have to book 7 nights of hotel use which I can either do with Wyndham chains, or with another brand altogether. Of course at this point, my family and I will not be spending money at any Wyndham brands and I will be conscious of this when booking any future hotels or travel. But despite all of this, Brandon was unwilling or unable to be flexible and as result Wyndham lost a potential life-long customer.

Overall, I feel like I was tricked into purchasing your product through the guise of a rewards program.  I wish that this could have been resolved and encourage you reconsider the way you run the rewards program as a way to prevent customer service complaints of this kind in the future.  Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about my experience.

Sincerely,

Rachel

NOTES:
This is a letter that I wrote and mailed yesterday. I hope to hear back from Ms. McNamee ASAP with an explanation. 

WYNDHAM HOTELS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

Baymont Inn & Suites ,Days Inn, Hawthorn Suites, Howard Johnson, Knights Inn, Microtel Inns & Suites, Ramada Worldwide , Super 8, Travelodge , Wingate by Wyndham , Wyndham Hotels and Resorts