Hilton Hotels Honors program

***** UPDATE *****
11/10/14

final answer???  from "Norbert C."???  (previous replies from "Jhon C.", "Norbert C." and "Maria M."; now back to "Norbert C." for the latest reply):

"Upon further checking, the reservation you have referenced was confirmed at a restricted rate that does not allow changes. In lieu to this, our system is not allowed to override these restrictions to view or edit your reservation online."

Like I said: "restrictions, idiosyncrasies and a customer-unfriendly website make us wonder if it's worth the trouble having a HHonors account."  
Clearly the performance of HHonors doesn't match the advertising.

PS  "In lieu to this..."???     I wonder what part of the world that "Norbert C." is from??? 

********************************************************************************

my reply to Maria: 

The problem is not fixed. When I click on "View/Edit" under "Reservations", I get the same message: "The reservation you are attempting to modify is not associated to this account. Please sign in to a different account or call 1-800-774-1500 for assistance."

I made this reservation on 9/29/14 through my HHonors account (see attached). Immediately following, and for several weeks following 9/29/14, I could view the reservation. Then, a week or so ago, suddenly, for no apparent reason, I can't see it anymore.

It appears to me that there is something wrong with your website. At the very least, restrictions, idiosyncrasies and a customer-unfriendly website make us wonder if it's worth the trouble having a HHonors account. 


-----Original Message----- 
From: HHonors  
To: rkoenigsc  
Sent: Fri, Nov 7, 2014 10:17 am 
Subject: Re: questions (KMM8385936V73418L0KM) 

Dear Mr. Koenig,

Thank you for your reply.

I have updated your account to reflect your name change request. Please allow up to 10 weeks for the delivery of a new card. Rest assured that you may view your upcoming reservation at Hilton Ocean City MD Oceanfront Suites from November 17, 2014 to November 21, 2014.

If there is anything else we can assist you with, please do not hesitate to contact us. For immediate assistance, please click on the link below for the contact number of the Hilton Worldwide Service Center location nearest you.

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/support/index.html

Best Regards,

Maria M.
Email Coordinator
Customer Care Email Department
Hilton Reservations and Customer Care
www.hiltonworldwide.com

Original Message Follows: ------------------------

Norbert,

Please make the necessary changes so that we (my wife and I) can view our upcoming reservation at Hilton Ocean City MD Oceanfront Suites from 11/17/14 to 11/21/14.

My name is Raymond (Ray) Koenig, "Ray" being the common shortened version of "Raymond".

As stated in my original email below, my HHonors account number is 638875777.

My pin is 5804.

Attached is a scan of my VA driver's license.

My wife's name is Jenny.

We've been married and have shared the same bank accounts, credit cards, etc. for 48 years. Each month we get one statement (not two) that show our bank, credit card, etc. activities for the month. 

Thank you.

Raymond (Ray) Koenig

PS Hilton Honors program's restrictions, idiosyncrasies and customer-unfriendly website make us wonder if it's worth the trouble. 

-----Original Message-----
From: HHonors <HHonors@hrcc-hilton.com>
To: rkoenigsc <rkoenigsc@aol.com>
Sent: Wed, Nov 5, 2014 8:58 pm
Subject: Re: questions (KMM8360021V39061L0KM)

Dear Mr. Koenig,

Thank you for your reply.

We sincerely apologize for the insufficient details provided and for the inconvenience it may have caused.

Upon checking, the name registered on your reservation is Raymond Koenig while the name reflecting on your HHonors account is Ray Koenig, please note that the stay will not be visible online due to the name difference.

For you to better manage your reservations online and to ensure that you earn the points for this stay and for all future points earning to be credited accordingly to your account, we strongly recommend to update the name on your HHonors account.

As Hilton HHonors accounts are non-transferable, we require further verification to change the first name on your HHonors account. To update the first name on your HHonors account, please reply with the following information:

-HHonors account or Username: 638875777

-PIN or Password: *

-Current first name on account: Ray

-Requested first name change for account : Raymond

-Legal Document with legal name information as .doc, .jpg, or .PDF file: *

*indicates required information

If there is anything else we can assist you with, please do not hesitate to contact us. For immediate assistance, please click on the link below for the contact number of the Hilton Worldwide Service Center location nearest you.

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/support/index.html

Best Regards,

Norbert C.

Email Coordinator

Customer Care Email Department

Hilton Reservations and Customer Care

www.hiltonworldwide.com

Original Message Follows: ------------------------

You have not addressed the problem.

As I stated in my original email, I receive the following message when I click on "Reservations" in my HH account: "The reservation you are attempting to modify is not associated to this account." As I explained in my earlier email: "The link is "View/Edit". I was attempting to view the reservation, not to modify it."

Further, my wife and I have only one HH account between us: mine.  My wife does not have a HH account.

The question is: How do I view my reservation? (Ocean City MD suites, 11/1714 to 11/21/14)  See the attachment, which was also attached to my original email.

PS  We're retired. Why would we be interested in "...monitor(ing) and report(ing) on multiple accounts for small businesses" ? 

-----Original Message-----
From: HHonors <HHonors@hrcc-hilton.com>
To: rkoenigsc <rkoenigsc@aol.com>
Sent: Tue, Nov 4, 2014 3:06 am
Subject: Re: questions (KMM8333111V88364L0KM)

Dear Mr. Koenig,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding your HHonors account. We appreciate you taking the time to contact us.

I apologize as joint accounts are no longer available for enrollment. HHonors accounts may only be created in one person’s name. Corporations, associations, groups or couples cannot share or maintain joint HHonors accounts. The one exception to this practice is if spouses jointly own a timeshare through the Hilton Grand Vacations Club.

For the ability to monitor and report on multiple accounts for small businesses, please visit www.hiltoneadvantage.com.

If there is anything else we can assist you with, please do not hesitate to contact us. For immediate assistance, please click on the link below for the contact number of the Hilton Worldwide Service Center location nearest you.

http://hhonors3.hilton.com/en/support/index.html

Best Regards,

Jhon A.

Email Coordinator

Customer Care Email Department

Hilton Reservations and Customer Care

www.hiltonworldwide.com

Original Message Follows: ------------------------

This morning I checked my Honors account for a upcoming reservation (two weeks from today) that we (my wife and I) have at Hilton Ocean City MD Oceanfront Suites. I received the following message: "The reservation you are attempting to modify is not associated to this account. Please sign in to a different account or call 1-800-548-8690 for assistance." 

The link is "View/Edit". I was attempting to view the reservation, not to modify it.

We are retired. We often take trips. We share the same credit cards. The trip that we are taking in two weeks is to celebrate our 48th wedding anniversary.

Don't you think that it's ridiculous that we can't share a Hilton Honors account? Don't you think that it's ridiculous that we need two accounts ("her points" and "my points") instead of one account with our combined points?

BTW, the confirmation that we printed for the trip in two weeks when we made the reservation (see attached) says: "Thank you for booking with us, Raymond Koenig." In light of this, explain why I can't view the reservation on my account (#638875777).

Raymond Koenig

540 212-7622

I wonder if Ray Ramano ("Everybody Loves Raymond") has this problem.

a renter's plight: fickle homeowners, unscrupulous management companies, and no government protection

I give!

After more than 40 years owning a home, for the last 2 and a half years we've tried renting. Three strikes and we're out!

The first house was in Culpeper VA. A summer storm washed out the driveway and reopened a roof leak. A month later neither the driveway nor the roof leak had been repaired. Two months’ later, thanks to VHS Management and the owners, the roof was still leaking onto our kitchen table. We filed a Tenant Assertion and Complaint with the Culpeper General District Court. The judge failed to rule on the case. We also filed a complaint against the property manager with the Virginia Real Estate Licensing Board, who dismissed our complaint. Thank you, Commonwealth of Virginia, VHS Management and the Wyetts—for nothing.

The second house was in Nokesville. Coming up on the end of the one-year lease, the owner asked us if we would continue to rent the house for 5 more years. Our response: “Sure, as long as our good health holds up.” A couple weeks later the owner informed us that she was moving back. On to house #3.

The third house is in Fauquier County. There are two renters here—us and a renter in a basement apartment. Unbeknownst to us, the electrical breaker panel and furnace are in the other renter’s space, that we don’t have access to. We also didn’t know that there are no workable coaxial cable outlets for cable or satellite TV, that the clothes washer and dryer, that according to the lease are supposed to be “in good working condition”, don’t work, and that the house, that we were told by the management company is “all electric”, is actually propane heat (from the propane furnace that we can’t get to), and that the propane tank is empty, and has been for some time. There are numerous other things that we’ve discovered wrong with the house, including the dishwasher that leaks. When we found the first problem (no coaxial cable outlets for our TVs), the management company, ARMI in Warrenton VA, said “call back when you have a real problem” and hung up on me.

over-the-floor coaxial cable feed to TV in the living room

over-the-floor coaxial cable feed to TV in the living room

ARMI: "Call me back when you have a real problem."
Then he hung up on me.

empty propane tank at move-in

Porpane companies typically charge a "service fee" when the propane tank is less than 20 or 25% full. Am I going to shell out $1,000 for a "service fee" and the first 125 gallons of propane, that the owner should be responsible for, in the "hopes" that I'll be reimbursed for those charges, plus any unused propane that we bought, but didn't use? Not on your life! That's a sucker deal!

one of the many other items on our 2.5 typwewritten pages of problems at move-in: our mailbox: beat up, door doesn't stay closed, hanging on by a thread, no flag.

I'd post a photo of the breaker box and furnace; but, they're in the neighbor's space, and we don't have access. Fauquier County says that's OK, because the space is "grandfathered". As useless as teats on a boar hog.

Three strikes! We're out (of here)! counting the days until the lease is up, when we will rent an apartment from a company that is in the business of renting to renters, rather than a "Caveat Emptor" management company that is in the business of screwing renters for their benefit, and for the benefit of their homeowner clients, all with the approval of consumer-unfriendly government.

The facts are that we got "suckered" again:

• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that the house would have coaxial cable outlets since cable or satellite TV are the norm everywhere.  Buyer beware! 
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that because the lease says that there are a working clothes washing machine and dryer that they would actually work. Buyer beware!
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that the electrical outlets work when half are painted over such that you can't get a plug into them and the other half the plug won't stay in. Buyer beware!
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that all of the doors had hardware, when one (outside door) has only knobs and nothing else.  Buyer beware! 
  
• "suckered" by the owner, the management company and Fauquier County into a house with a very obvious fire hazzard, and for thinking that Fauquier County cares. Buyer beware!

  

  Flexible clothes dryer exhaust vent that rises through a wall from the basement floor and then through an enclosed ceiling space

• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that the house is "all electric" when the management company told us that it is, then finding out that it's heated by propane and that the propane tank is empty. I don't mind buying propane that we use, but I'll be damned if I'm going to pay a service fee because the tank is empty and pay for the first 25% in the tank that should always be in there. Buyer beware!
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that we'd have access to the elecrical breaker panel and the furnace for the space that we are renting. Buyer beware! 
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that the mailbox would have a flag and be attached. Buyer beware!
• "suckered" by the owner and management company into believing that there wouldn't be two and a half typewritten pages of other non-tennant-ready items at move in. Buyer beware!
• "suckered" again by the Commonwealth of Virginia and Fauquier County into believing that consumers, especially senior citizens, would be protected from fraudulent landlords and property management companies.  Buyer beware! 

Shame on us! Buyer beware!

Beware of the Buyer (ARMI, Warrenton, VA)

My Google customer review of ARMI, Warrenton VA:

"When I told them that there wasn't a receptacle for either cable or satellite TV in the living room, ARMI's representative said to me "Come back when you have a real problem", and hung up on me. Needless to say, ARMI isn't going to win any tenant customer satisfaction awards with their "Caveat Emptor" attitude towards tenants. 

forget the one-star rating--go with the word description for one star: "hated it".

********************************************************
The list just keeps on growing; and, we moved in only 2 weeks ago. The latest issues are the clothes washer and dryer, which, according to the lease, are supposed to be “in good working condition”. Neither worked. We discovered that the electrical breaker box is located in another renter’s space that’s inaccessible to us (so is the furnace). We also discovered about 10 pounds of lint in the dryer exhaust, which is no surprise since the lint screen for the dryer that doesn’t work is nowhere to be found. We also discovered that the dryer exhausts at first floor level (the dryer is in the basement). In between are about 20 ft. of flexible dryer exhaust hose inside a wall and in between the basement ceiling and the first floor. Next stop, Fire Marshall. C’mon, renters! Let’s change ARMI’s SOP from “Caveat Emptor” to “Beware of the Buyer”. Post your reviews; and, keep them coming."

Tenants rights in the Commonwealth of Virginia

If you're a renter in the Commonwealth of Virginia, then you're out of luck.

In the past three years we've rented three houses. The first, managed by VHS Management, Inc., was in Culpeper VA. In 2012 a summer storm washed out the driveway and reopened a leak in the kitchen. The standard Northern Virginia Association of Realtors Inc. lease says that the landlord is responsible for promptly repairing damage not caused by the tenant. After six weeks of roofwater leaking onto our kitchen table we filed a Tenant Assertion and Complaint with the Culpeper General District Court. The judge declined to rule on the case. Such that it is in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

We are currently renting a house in Warrenton VA. ARMI is the rental property manager. When I told them that there wasn't a receptacle for either cable or satellite TV in the living room ARMI's representative said to me "Come back when you have a real problem", and hung up one me. 

Do you think that the jerk from ARMI has one of these in his living room? in other rooms in the rest of his house? I'll bet that he does. In any event he surely has more in his house than we do in the house that we are renting through ARMI, which is ZERO.

Needless to say, ARMI isn't going to win any tenant customer satisfaction awards with their "Caveat Emptor" attitude towards tenants. Check out ARMI's customer reviews in Google and Yelp.

Such that it is in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

T-Mobile 2

The FTC couldn't have picked a more deserving company for it's lawsuit:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/07/01/ftc-lawsuit-bad-news-for-tmobile/11921735/

http://customertalk.blogspot.com/2012/09/t-mobile.html

Silver Spring Transit Center

It's not only in private business where the finished product doesn't equal the hype--in government too:

http://silverspringtransitcenter.blogspot.com/ 

video status report: http://youtu.be/31bAYkx9eBY