IHG Rewards isn’t all that generous with its elite members. The most tangible benefit of the top-tier Spire status might just be the annual gift of 25,000 points.

However, they don’t just magically appear in your account, you do actually have to make an effort.

How do I Claim My 25,000 Points?

The easiest way is to use a web browser on your computer – just log in to IHG Rewards and click on “Your Account” on the top right of the page.

Then, scroll down a little bit until you see this:

If you decide to “explore your benefits”, you should see this…

What About Gifting Platinum Status to a Friend?

IHG was recently selling points for 0.5 cents each. So you would be giving up $125 of value to gift Platinum status to somebody else.

And what might this Platinum status be worth to a friend? Especially one who doesn’t stay enough to reach Platinum status on their own account? Well… the only truly guaranteed benefit of Platinum status is a 50% bonus on base points earnings – essentially 5 points per USD spent. That friend would have to spend a lot of money to earn 25,000 bonus points! Of course your friend might receive a room upgrade once in awhile, but those are rather uncommon with IHG.

So long story short… DON’T gift Platinum. TAKE THE POINTS!

When Will the Points Arrive?

Straight away…

The Bottom Line

If you are a Spire member with IHG Rewards, you should now be able to make your annual benefit choice (which should be points!).  So head over to IHG Rewards, login to your account and confirm your selection.