IHG Rewards Points 'never expire' have expired!

mighty-mo

Hi

I am part of the IHG Rewards Club and have been for approx. 15 years. In my old job I accumulated approx. 37000 points for free hotel stays. I was sent written notification that those points will never expire.

I could never afford to go anywhere and only used the reward once but thought when I could afford it then I will use the points at that time.

I checked again in 2013 what my points were and it was confirmed.

It's my 50th this year and wanted to use those points for a trip to New York - been saving for two years and that was part of my costings (naive) - at least a couple of free rooms which would help the budget.

I contacted them in March to enquire about special deals and was told that all my points have been removed.

Apparently in 2015 they withdrew the 'never expire' policy but they never told me - I have not received any information from them by post and I would have spotted something that important in my emails even spam folder.

I have been in communication with them for a bit to resolve this and all the way to CEO but they have stated that their Terms of conditions are there and I should have logged on and found out about the removal of 'never expire' policy. There was no need for me to log on because I was not going to use them until this year and the documentation and telephone conversation I had with them previously gave me reassurance that points 'never expire'.

They have now stopped replying to my emails - I have been polite and kept matters to facts but I have no idea where to go with this, I really wanted to go to New York but that will not happen now.


[FONT=&quot]I am pretty good at dealing with issues like this but this one is too close to the bone for me and need a bit of advice from the MSE helpers. What can I do to get at least my points back and recover this situation? [/FONT]

cono1717

It seems you will be relying on their good will, you are correct that the points had a never expire settings way back when (see https://web.archive.org/web/20140430090444/https://www.ihg.com/hotels/gb/en/customer-care/faq ) , however they also have a clause for this under their T&C's

Programme Changes and Termination. SCH reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to modify, alter or otherwise update these terms and conditions, and/or to add, modify, restrict, suspend, discontinue, or cancel the Programme, including redemptions, status levels, or other Programme benefits, at any time, even though such changes may affect the value of rewards or points already accumulated. You should check the last updated date in the footer for notice of changes to these terms and conditions or to the Programme. If the footer indicates that the terms and conditions, or the Programme itself, have changed, immediately read it. By choosing to remain a Dining Rewards member after we have posted notice of such modifications, alterations, or updates, and after you have been provided an opportunity to read the revised terms and conditions or Programme information, you agree to be bound by such revised terms and conditions or to be a part of the Programme as revised. The current Programme terms and conditions supersede all prior published Programme terms and conditions.

Unfortunately this is a reward program and not a service you have paid for so I'm not sure how far the consumer legalities will get you I'm afraid.

Chomeur

mighty-mo wrote: »

Hi
I was sent written notification that those points will never expire.

Look into the law of estoppel.

What is their new policy on points expiring, and when was it adopted?

DoaM

Chomeur wrote: »

Look into the law of estoppel.

Aren't IHG Rewards part of IHG, which is a USA company? UK law thus may not be relevant.

Chomeur wrote: »

What is their new policy on points expiring, and when was it adopted?

The "when" is in the OP:

mighty-mo wrote: »

Apparently in 2015 they withdrew the 'never expire' policy

qsk

Yes. They added a clause in July 2015 to say the points expire after one-year of no use. I was caught by this last year and phoned them. The CS rep reinstated my points there and then but warned not again if I miss another time. She even suggested to book a point break and then refund to keep the points going. That's what I am going to do soon...

paddyrg

qsk wrote: »

Yes. They added a clause in July 2015 to say the points expire after one-year of no use. I was caught by this last year and phoned them. The CS rep reinstated my points there and then but warned not again if I miss another time. She even suggested to book a point break and then refund to keep the points going. That's what I am going to do soon...

37000 is almost enough for a night at Holiday Inn Mayfair - all the levels changed and it's not as good a scheme as it once was. May as well spend up TBH