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Cosmo status renewals and inanely detailed questions

Discussion in 'Comps' started by simonay, Aug 14, 2015.

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  1. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    I've just emailed the Identity team at Cosmo with the most detail based questions ever, i feel a bit bad about it but i really would like to understand the program and benefits better.

    My question is essentially based around working out whether its best to qualify for Platinum status now or later and how status renewal is handled. I need c10k points to hit Platinum before my expiration year on 15th September and i'm there from 13th-18th. I'm guessing the response will be valuable information to others so i'll post that if i get any back, feel free to pipe in with your own opinions at any time too :)

    Here are the two scenarios i could think of:-


    Scenario 1 - I make platinum on 14th September 2015
    Questions -
    Does this mean that my Platinum status will last till September 13th/14th 2016 or will it last to September 15th 2015 and then be renewed?
    Does this mean on September 16th 2015 my annual tier qualifying identity points balance will be 0 or does it move to a calendar year or is it a rolling 12 month total?
    On achieving Platinum I will earn 2 free nights and two free companion nights, are these separate to the marketing offers i receive and do these have an expiration date on them?
    Will i have to make use of the $250 resort credit either before September 15th 2015, September 14th 2016 or is there no time limit for redeeming presuming i return 1 per year as a minimum?
    Can these resort credits be used against paid for room upgrades?
    Would it be possible to request the platinum benefit of the complimentary upgraded room (where available) mid stay and change rooms?

    Scenario 2 - I do not make Platinum before 15th September 2016
    Questions -
    What will my status be, will it remain gold and how long would it be valid for?
    If my status remains at gold will i receive another two free annual nights and two free companion nights usable from 16th September 2015
    If my status remains at gold and i qualify for platinum during the coming year will the additional free nights and companion free nights stack with the gold benefits so i would have a total of 4 free nights and 4 free companion nights to use?
     
  2. MWJ51102

    MWJ51102 Low-Roller

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    As much as I love Cosmo and stay there every time I'm in town, I can't stand the identity program. It's very hard to understand.

    I emailed Identity about a month ago for my tier points. I was told the same number as my Identity points. I know they aren't the same but the Identity rep insisted they were the same thing.
     
  3. shifter

    shifter Degenerate Gambler

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    With all the programs you earn the status for the next year.

    If you earn it early you get more than a year.

    It's not going to expire a day after you earn it.
     
  4. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    I agree it is a very difficult one to get to grips with, i'm hoping some of these questions will help me answer popular questions about benefits and rollovers etc

    And Shifter, you say that but the anniversary of me opening the identity card was Sept 15 2014 so if i get it one day before the end of this first year why wouldn't i get the stated benefits and then get them again the following day when it rolls over into the next status year?
     
  5. BayouBengal

    BayouBengal VIP Whale

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    So I've dealt with this a good bit. I think I sort of have handle on it. Two of the basics are "how is my current tier calculated" and "how close am I to the next tier".

    Progression to the next tier is based on a rolling 365-day window. So for you, on Sept 15 2015 if you have earned 50k points in the previous 365-days you will become Platinum for 1 year. If you earn another 50k before expiration you will renew your status for another year. If you don't when it expires they will look back and assign you a tier for your points accordingly.

    My gf was only a few hundred short of Sterling back in Jan and she was going to have the points she earned in Feb 2014 roll off soon. When she hit 4k her status was good until Jan 2016. We returned in June and she earned a bunch more points. She had earned 4k between Jan 2015 and June 2015 so it re-upped her for another year of Sterling. Her status is good until Jan 2017.
     
  6. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    Thanks for this and glad one of us gets it haha, So if i test my understanding of what you're saying...

    If i qualify earlier than my anniversary date of 15th September then i will be platinum for 365 days from this qualification date. After these 365 days my tier points will be recalculated and if i'm over 50k i stay platinum and if less then i drop down, most likely to gold.

    So if i achieve platinum i won't essentially get it twice in a week with the year rolling over.

    So based on that, would you recommend it being better to go down to gold, get the two free nights + two companion nights and work your way up to platinum to get the extra 2 x 2 free nights? It seems i'd be exchanging a total of 4 nights for $250 annual resort credit, complimentary upgrades and vip checkin which i'd qualify for later anyways... hmm i'm thinking myself into a confusion.

    From memory i earned:-
    25k identity points in September last year
    15k identity points in June this year

    So i might actually drop down to sterling i guess if all of my september activity drops out...

    You know it would be a hell of a lot easier if they had an online status bar like any other casino program!

    Don't suppose you know how stackable the free rooms are and also if the 'annual resort credit' means calendar year or qualification year?
     
  7. Chuck2009x

    Chuck2009x VIP Whale

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    It'll be interesting to see what kind of reply you get, but here is how to think about the tier credit bucket:

    The day you advance your tier becomes your anniversary date, and it stays on that date until/unless you advance a tier.

    The tricky question is what happens if you fail to maintain your tier, drop a tier, and then advance again

    • So you make Platinum on Sep 15, 2015. You have until the same date in 2016 to earn 80,000 TCs.
    • You only earn 25,000 by the 2016 date. So you get downgraded to Gold on Sep 15, 2016, but your anniversary date should stay the same. You should have two new Gold comp nights to work with.
    • You go a couple of times in 2017 and earn 80,000 TCs on July 1, 2017. Does your anniversary date change from Sep 15 to July 1? I think it probably does.
    • Advancing your tier can occur on any date, and reset your date, but downgrades can only happen on your anniversary date, as a result, they don't reset your date..


    Comp nights due to Tier status are in addition to any marketing offers you get, and you can back-to-back them during the same stay (subject to restrictions on the marketing comp such as certain days of the week. Tier status comp nights should be usable any day of the week).
     
  8. BayouBengal

    BayouBengal VIP Whale

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    I will fall into this situation in October. I was once Gold, lapsed to Sterling and I plan to earn gold back in Oct. I was Gold until Dec 2014 at which time I went back to Sterling and was set to be Sterling until Dec 2015. I have taken 2 trips this year and have earned well over the 4k requirement to keep Sterling. Identity has told me my expiration for Sterling is now Dec 2016. In Oct when I hit Gold I will confirm the expiration date but like you I assume it will be the date I cross the threshold. Also I seem to recall the point multiplier to be automatic. When the gf was pretty sure she had made Sterling, she pulled her card and reinserted to see the 2X message pop up.

    It's so much easier with Boyd, MLIFE and TotalRewards to know where you're at.

    Also don't forget that you get 5 points for each dollar you spends as well.
     
  9. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    So i got the following answer from them:-

    Scenario 1:
    Your platinum status will start the day you've earned platinum status and will last for 1 year exactly.
    Tier status are based on rolling 12 month period.
    The Platinum status benefit of $250 must be used within the dates in which you will be platinum status. Benefits do not roll over if you fail to use them within that year.
    Resort credit may not be used to pay for room upgrades.
    The complimentary room upgrade are not eligible mid-stay. You must redeem this either during reservations or during check-in.

    Scenario 2:
    You have maintained enough points in order to remain gold status for the upcoming year. This will renew your membership for another 12 months.
    You will receive refreshed gold complimentary benefits. Please allow 2 weeks for these benefits to be posted on your account.
    Offers do not stack. If you change tiers without using your previous status benefits, they will be null and void.

    ------------------

    So this really helps me understand what's what with Cosmo in conjunction with the other discussions. So providing i get to Platinum before the deadline date my annual status year will always run to September 15th ish. The only way that will change is if i downgrade and then requalify for a higher grade at a different point in time.

    Reward nights have to be redeemed before the higher status is achieved otherwise they are lost, resort credits can't be used on upgrade fees and don't roll over either.

    For my purposes then this helps me decide upon my options, so hopefully it helps and clarifies for others too...

    The only things i'm left unclear about are:-

    - When it says you have to redeem the benefits does that mean book them or use them
    - Whats the mechanism for finding out about and redeeming any additional free nights as part of the platinum (not offers but something above the 'minimum 2 annual free nights)
     
  10. shifter

    shifter Degenerate Gambler

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    No your annual status year won't always be Sept.

    Since it's rolling, it all depends and when you earn TCs and when they fall off.

    It's really confusing and really hard to track,

    which is why Mlife went to the Oct 1 date.
     
  11. simonay

    simonay Low-Roller

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    Respectfully i disagree, on the proviso that i don't upgrade a status level (at which point the year at that status will start from the day of award) i'll always be based on the 365 days from September is my interpretation. So if i get platinum its valid till Sept 2016, if i lowroll next year and go down to gold it will be effective Sept 2016 for another year and only if i up the play and move to platinum during that year will my date change.

    Unless i've completely confused myself haha
     
  12. BayouBengal

    BayouBengal VIP Whale

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    When my gold lapsed in Dec 2014 they looked at my previous 365 days and assigned me Sterling expiring in Dec 2015. I have since earned more than the 4k to reearn sterling. My new expiration date is Dec 2016. I expect to earn gold in October. I assume the new anniversary will be Oct 2016 since it's a bump up. I will confirm in October and post in my trip report.
     
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