This week’s Compensation Clinic case comes from my stay at the InterContinental Sydney more than a month ago. The hotel charged me using a Dynamic Currency Conversion without my consent (a big nono).
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You can access InterContinental Sydney here.
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My stay at the hotel was pleasant, and I really like the corner suites that you get when using one of the confirmable suite upgrade certs:
IHG Confirmable Suite Upgrade Cases: InterContinental Sydney & Perth
When I checked the statement from the IHG & Chase cobranded card late last month, something didn’t quite look right. There was no indication that the charge would have been made in a currency other than USD.
I checked the settled folio that I had received from InterContinental Sydney. There was no indication that the charge currency would have been any other than AUD, but they had put it through in USD.
I forwarded the reservation to ambassador@ihg.com with a note that the hotel had applied a DCC without my consent, and I would either like the extra refunded or 15,000 points issued as compensation.
Please be advised that I will forward your concern to our hotel since the hotel is our merchant and manages all billing-related matters,.
Please expect the hotel to reach out to you within 24–48 hours to assist with this matter. Should you need further support or have additional questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact me directly.
I apologize for any inconvenience caused and I appreciate your patience and understanding throughout this process.
InterContinental Sydney took more than a week to respond, and they requested copies of the images that I had sent to the Ambassador’s desk (basically a copy of the folio, the relevant part of the Chase statement, and the difference in USD).
I sent them those with a note that I would either want a partial refund or 15,000 points (the approximate value of the extra), and they shortly deposited them into my account.
Conclusion
I am always meticulous when settling hotel and other expenses to ensure that the charge is done in the local currency, not the currency of the card used.
A few exceptions exist, mainly in countries that use USD and their local currency interchangeably.
I still don’t quite understand how InterContinental Sydney managed to do this. The settled folio that I received indicated that the charge was made in AUD when, in fact, it was not.
The DCC is NEVER beneficial for you; it is basically another money maker for the merchant and their bank, as they usually split the extra.
