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An unsettling situation with NCL. Your thoughts and suggestions ?


zdad59
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Does anyone, by chance have the email address for the CEO of NCL ?

 

Here is a solution to this:

 

LINK: http://www.elliott.org/about-elliott-consumer-advocacy/

 

Contact Elliott for ombudsman assistance in this matter - almost 100 % sure of favorable results also note

LINK to NCL front office with phone numbers email etc.:

 

LINK: http://www.elliott.org/company-contacts/norwegian-cruise-line-ncl/

 

Elliott publishes a column in a great deal of newspapers and other publications and has a way of encouraging

companies to resolve issues with positive results to the consumer.

 

The best of luck and come back later and tell us of the outcome !

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Here is a solution to this:

 

LINK: http://www.elliott.org/about-elliott-consumer-advocacy/

 

Contact Elliott for ombudsman assistance in this matter - almost 100 % sure of favorable results also note

LINK to NCL front office with phone numbers email etc.:

 

LINK: http://www.elliott.org/company-contacts/norwegian-cruise-line-ncl/

 

Elliott publishes a column in a great deal of newspapers and other publications and has a way of encouraging

companies to resolve issues with positive results to the consumer.

 

The best of luck and come back later and tell us of the outcome !

 

Dear "don't use real name". Thank you for your positive post. You gave some very helpful suggestions rather than lectures on trip insurance.

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I think they should cover the loss due to deployment, but since they don't can you not just change the name of the guest for a small fee and put someone else in his slot? Seems better than losing 75% of the cruise cost. Not sure how NCL does it but CCL charges 50.00 for a name change

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As upsetting at it may seem, and perhaps this is callus, but if you don't read the fine print, you can't blame the company or the cruise line for having such a policy, even if it appears to be unfair. It seems to be there are many insurance companies that will cover deployment as a reason to recover trip fare. Knowing many people in the military, the vast majority do not get quickly deployed and know deployment is always a possibility. There is also no reason the rest of the family cannot still go away and enjoy a vacation and spread the cost of the member of the military. Really though, you can't blame anyone but the person who chose that insurance company for not reading the fine print. There is nothing unsettling about a company following their own policy. There is something unsettling about people thinking they deserve special treatment.

 

This is happening to a close friend of mine, not me personally. I am reposting their Facebook post to me and others All I ask here is your thoughts and possibly suggestions on things they might be able to do.

 

Thanks

 

 

For those of you planning a cruise or family vacation please verify ALL of the fine print and study company policy before booking.



We were FINALLY able to schedule a family vacation. If you have adult children then you know how hard that is with schedules. Our trip is a Bahama cruise May 2018. So the short story is this - Apx 40 days from sail date we found out Anthony is being deployed overseas during the planned vacation. We contacted Norwegian Cruise Lines and CSA Travel Protection insurance company (where we purchased the travel insurance from) to notify them of the deployment.

CSA stated "Military deployment is not a valid reason for filing a refund claim". NCL basically said the same thing. NCL will cancel the cabin within 30 days but penalize us 75% of the trip value. This is inexcusable. NCL and CSA do not support our military personnel who have no control over these deployments. It's not like they can say NO. It's a terrible practice. These insurance protection companies are a scam. They'll do anything to deny claims. And shame on NCL for their policy.

So remember this the next time you plan a vacation. And yes, I've been filing the BBB complaints and other boards......

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As unfortunate as this situation is (and ditto to others thanking Anthony for his service), I do not think it is right to write reviews on the BBB, etc, for something that was seemingly in the terms and conditions of the travel insurance plan. NCL and the Insurance company were well within their terms and conditions, that were agreed upon when booking and paying for the cruise.

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zdad59

 

 

You are a nice guy just wanting to help a friend. But NCL doesn't care about you or your friend. Or the young man who is putting his life on the line for his country. NCL should be thanking him for his service as I am doing along with all the humans here. Instead they show again they only care about profit.

 

 

Time to take the fight to them. You or the family need to contact local news outlets and get the sorry told..... Big mean Corporation putting the screws to young American Military man. Do the Facebook thing, contact local Vet groups they may have some connect that can help you. Reach out to Fox News, CNN, etc. Tell the story to anyone that will listen.

 

 

Consider starting online petition about this. Maybe try a go fund me page, not really for the money but to be seen.

Another thing google cruise law news and then send the information to Jim, this is the stuff he puts on his Facebook page and blog. Jim Walker is a Miami based Maritime Lawyer, he is the go to guy for anything about cruise companies for the media, US Congress, etc. I know he has a special with the military, so he may get involved, without any fees. One email or SMS from him and it would be corrected.

 

 

Become the flat tire on the NCL bus. If the corporate office feels any heat past the normal customer service people they will fix this. Because it is good for business. Best of luck hopefully they will be am to take the cruise in the future,

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Oh for crying out loud. NCL is not putting the screws to anyone. Military folks are able to read insurance policies and plan just like anyone else. If things come up then that's when your proper covered insurance kicks in. NCL owes them nothing. Not sure what your major problem is with NCL in all your posts. Do you even sail on this cruise line?

 

Oh and before I get accused on not caring about the military, I am a retired Navy man.

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zdad59

 

 

You are a nice guy just wanting to help a friend. But NCL doesn't care about you or your friend. Or the young man who is putting his life on the line for his country. NCL should be thanking him for his service as I am doing along with all the humans here. Instead they show again they only care about profit.

 

 

Time to take the fight to them. You or the family need to contact local news outlets and get the sorry told..... Big mean Corporation putting the screws to young American Military man. Do the Facebook thing, contact local Vet groups they may have some connect that can help you. Reach out to Fox News, CNN, etc. Tell the story to anyone that will listen.

 

 

Consider starting online petition about this. Maybe try a go fund me page, not really for the money but to be seen.

Another thing google cruise law news and then send the information to Jim, this is the stuff he puts on his Facebook page and blog. Jim Walker is a Miami based Maritime Lawyer, he is the go to guy for anything about cruise companies for the media, US Congress, etc. I know he has a special with the military, so he may get involved, without any fees. One email or SMS from him and it would be corrected.

 

 

Become the flat tire on the NCL bus. If the corporate office feels any heat past the normal customer service people they will fix this. Because it is good for business. Best of luck hopefully they will be am to take the cruise in the future,

 

 

That is waaaaay too much of an over reaction. Absurd suggestions.

 

There are many reasons why people in all kinds of professions cannot make their cruise. That is why to you tailor travel insurance to your needs and circumstances.

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That is waaaaay too much of an over reaction. Absurd suggestions.

 

There are many reasons why people in all kinds of professions cannot make their cruise. That is why to you tailor travel insurance to your needs and circumstances.

 

Sorry I get results and really do not care how I get to the end as long as it is legal. You may see it as a over reaction that is your choice, as it is my choice to consider it as the best way to correct this.

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Sorry I get results and really do not care how I get to the end as long as it is legal. You may see it as a over reaction that is your choice, as it is my choice to consider it as the best way to correct this.

There is nothing to correct, NCL and the insurance company did nothing wrong. The consumer made the only error. Personal accountability.

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If he's military, he had to know that this could be a possibility, so he had to know he was taking this risk. I'm glad that the enlisted man isn't the one who is playing the victim here. If he didn't know he could potentially be deployed, then he isn't worthy of all this praise.

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I guess this is a lesson for all of us to read terms of insurance carefully. Does any insurance cover military deployments?

 

USAA has a very reasonable insurance that includes deployments and leave cancelations. I use that because I know one day Uncle Sam is going to stomp on a vacation I already paid for.

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The issue is NOT with NCL but with the third party insurance company. NCL is very forgiving in these circumstances and will allow a name change up until about 72 hours prior to sailing, and it is normally without charge. If the family want to cancel everyone, forget about it, no one should expect that just because one traveler in an all adult family can't make a trip.

 

There has to be a friend who can take the persons place which solves the money issue.

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Travel insurance is quite complicated to get any assistance from. Did you know that if a family emergency happened and you needed to go home sooner than expected, if the emergency involved someone over 80 years old - they won't cover any expense you incurred in canceling, changing your flights,accommodations, etc? Even if it was a life or death situation, if your relative is over 80 years old - you need to shoulder all the costs of your decision. That's from QBE.

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zdad59

 

 

You are a nice guy just wanting to help a friend. But NCL doesn't care about you or your friend. Or the young man who is putting his life on the line for his country. NCL should be thanking him for his service as I am doing along with all the humans here. Instead they show again they only care about profit.

 

 

Time to take the fight to them. You or the family need to contact local news outlets and get the sorry told..... Big mean Corporation putting the screws to young American Military man. Do the Facebook thing, contact local Vet groups they may have some connect that can help you. Reach out to Fox News, CNN, etc. Tell the story to anyone that will listen.

 

 

Consider starting online petition about this. Maybe try a go fund me page, not really for the money but to be seen.

Another thing google cruise law news and then send the information to Jim, this is the stuff he puts on his Facebook page and blog. Jim Walker is a Miami based Maritime Lawyer, he is the go to guy for anything about cruise companies for the media, US Congress, etc. I know he has a special with the military, so he may get involved, without any fees. One email or SMS from him and it would be corrected.

 

 

Become the flat tire on the NCL bus. If the corporate office feels any heat past the normal customer service people they will fix this. Because it is good for business. Best of luck hopefully they will be am to take the cruise in the future,

 

 

 

This is a major problem in the US today. They didn’t read the contracts they signed, and then it becomes the company’s fault, and then all the cheerleaders start calling for boycotts and protests.

 

NCL is not a party to this at all. This is between the purchaser and the third-party insurance company. NCL does not have to make good because their insurance doesn’t cover their claim because the policy specifically excluded the condition.

 

The only thing that makes this “special” is the deployment and the knee-jerk reaction to it. If their son got the flu and couldn’t travel, but the insurance wouldn’t cover it because they didn’t get medical insurance, would you be threatening to burn down corporate headquarters? It would be the same result.

 

Read the contracts, people.

 

Any person that starts with “you need to read the contracts” implicitly knows it is their fault for failing to do so. The rest is just distraction from the fact they bought the wrong insurance.

 

 

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Travel insurance is quite complicated to get any assistance from. Did you know that if a family emergency happened and you needed to go home sooner than expected, if the emergency involved someone over 80 years old - they won't cover any expense you incurred in canceling, changing your flights,accommodations, etc? Even if it was a life or death situation, if your relative is over 80 years old - you need to shoulder all the costs of your decision. That's from QBE.

 

This generalization is simply NOT TRUE for all travel insurance policies.

 

(I have no idea what "QBE" means. You should write out such abbreviations, for other people.)

 

You might be from Australia, from your "name".

 

There are vast differences in insurance rules and offerings in different countries, but even within countries - at least within the USA - there are also differences in the types of coverages allowed/offered among the various states.

--> And there are far more differences in the specific types of policies offered by each company.

 

MIL is approaching 100, and our travel insurance absolutely would cover if she became gravely ill. We made sure to select coverage that included this.

And if we "just worried about her", then our CFAR (Cancel For Any Reason) would allow us 75% cash back if we simply chose no to go - for this reason or any other. If she was gravely ill, we'd get 100% cash back.

 

By the way, the policies we get also cover travelers over 80. The coverage does cost a bit more than for someone in their 60's, for example, etc.

 

One of the biggest problems is people here (and elsewhere, of course) making generalizations that are then "believed" by others, who then rely on that mis-information without CAREFULLY checking the policies they could purchase.

 

It is ESSENTIAL to READ *VERY* CAREFULLY *ALL* the terms of whichever insurance one is consider. That includes the "fine print", of course.

 

GC

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Well.....if this proves one thing it is that Cruise Critic can certainly overreact completely fueled by emotion.

 

 

The proper answer, as unpleasant as it is when heard by those on the losing end, they screwed up. This is something everyone who is active or in the reserves deals with and if you are booking a trip that has a cancellation policy you better be certain you get the level of insurance coverage that will protect you if things change. They didn't purchase enough coverage for whatever reason and it has now come back to bite them.

 

NCL has done no wrong, their contract is clear. The insurer has done no wrong, their contract excludes the coverage they are claiming which I'm sure would've been covered on a higher priced plan.

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Travel insurance is quite complicated to get any assistance from. Did you know that if a family emergency happened and you needed to go home sooner than expected, if the emergency involved someone over 80 years old - they won't cover any expense you incurred in canceling, changing your flights,accommodations, etc? Even if it was a life or death situation, if your relative is over 80 years old - you need to shoulder all the costs of your decision. That's from QBE.

 

 

 

Nope. Wrong

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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There are many compelling stories where it is sad that someone has to cancel:

 

1. Death or death of loved one

2. Sudden illness or accident or sudden illness or accident of loved one

3. Natural disasters such as Hurricane Sandy or the volcano eruptions in Italy

4. Personal emergency such as a house fire

5. Job related vacation change or cancellation.

 

The OP falls under this one. It might be a more noble profession that you or I and I am grateful to our military but any military person should understand, as you and I should, just to what the possibilty is that plans could change.

 

It is OUR responsibility to procure the correct insurance - or - we choose to self-insure. Aka, roll the dice.

 

I had to cancel a land trip in Sept when my mother was terminally diagnosed. Luckily, I knew if I had to cancel for any reason, what I would lose. It was only $30 with Southwest for them checking me in early bird.

 

I have taken insurance on about 1/2 my cruises. My choice.

 

 

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That is waaaaay too much of an over reaction. Absurd suggestions.

 

There are many reasons why people in all kinds of professions cannot make their cruise. That is why to you tailor travel insurance to your needs and circumstances.

 

I concur with the over reaction. I am from a lifelong military family who has a son currently on his second deployment. His first deployment got extended and we too had a family cruise vacation planned. We did not have insurance that covered his absence, and we too, didn't get any money back when requested. What did we do as a family? We went ahead and went on the cruise, enjoyed ourselves, then when our son returned 4 months later before he went back to his normal day job his step-dad and I took him on a cruise. It was filled with memories of a lifetime. Thank you Anthony for your sacrifice and service. I wish you the best, and your family, and hope you get to take a cruise very soon!

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