Mastercard Guarantees Hotel Stays For World, World Elite Cardholders

Mastercard is providing increased peace of mind for World and World Elite cardholders, announcing on Tuesday (Oct. 9) two new benefits for those customers.

In a blog post, the payment company said it is launching a Hotel Stay Guarantee, which enables cardholders who have experienced any problems with their stay at a three-star or higher-rated hotel to contact a so-called lifestyle manager 24 hours a day, seven days a week, who will work with the hotel to resolve the issue. If it cannot be resolved, the lifestyle manager will book the customer at a comparable hotel.

The company also rolled out the Mastercard Lowest Hotel Rate Guarantee to ensure that its World and World Elite cardholders get the best value possible. If a cardholder books a hotel with Mastercard but then finds a lower price online, the difference will be completely refunded, the company said in the blog post.

These guarantees are available through Mastercard’s updated travel service, both online and offline, in North America. Mastercard said that in the coming months, these guarantees will be available across 37 markets globally.

“These perks complement the things we already do to take the hassle out of travel, like offering free Wi-Fi at millions of worldwide hotspots, access to airport lounges and car rental deals,” said Mastercard in the blog.

In September, it was reported that Mastercard filed three patent applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Amid those patent filings came details that the payments giant had developed a blockchain-based system, aiming to streamline high-volume B2B transactions. The patents are titled “Method and System for Recording Point-to-Point Transaction Processing.” In those filings, Mastercard noted that the infrastructure underpinning B2B payments is unwieldy and still focuses on individual payment transactions. The number of transactions/settlements is on the rise, though, and there is strain on current infrastructure. The company’s embrace of digital ledger technology (DLT) could help transaction-related data to be stored and used securely.