Lost Passport - Refund?

I just got back yesterday from the Majesty. We had a wonderful time (the ship looks great, weather was perfect etc), with one huge exception. My elderly mother lost her passport after going through security at the Philadelphia Airport. When we got to Miami, she was informed by RCI staff that there was no way she could board the ship. So, she and my father both missed the trip and spent the week in a Miami hotel. RCI told us there is no chance of a refund (no travel insurance was purchased). I suppose this sorrry episode is just a hard lesson learned, but does anyone have any advice, other than always buying travel insurance and keeping track of your travel documents? I think a refund would be a nice gesture, since their cabin was empty, they ate no food, etc. I know RCI is under no obligation, but does anyone have any experience with this? I'd love to know.

I think a refund would be a nice gesture, since their cabin was empty, they ate no food, etc.

I hate to sound hard about this, I really am sorry they missed out on the cruise, but... RCCL had already counted on them being there, had provisioned accordingly, could not sell their cabin to anyone else, etc.

I tried to post this previously, so there might be a duplicate post.

I am sorry to hear of your mother's lost passport. Although it would be nice for RCI to give a refund I doubt seriously that it will happen.

A couple that are friends with my dad had a cruise booked. The husband became ill and the day of the cruise the wife called the cruiseline to advise they wouldn't be going on the cruise. No refund or compensation was given.

I think the reasoning was that the cabin could not be resold to someone not on the ship as the manifest was already submitted. The ship is losing money that would have been spent on the ship, ie bars, bingo, excursions etc. Also, the staff is not getting the tips they would have had they traveled. So, even though they didn't partake of food etc. there still is a loss to the cruiseline.

Another thought. If they gave everyone who cancelled last minute a refund or other compensation, who is to say that people who just decided for whatever reason to not cruise, but made up an excuse, how far this would go? How many people would call etc. to get refunds. The cruiselines could be out a tremendous amount of money.

I guess they will have to chalk this up to experience and get travel insurance for their next cruise. (I don't know if this is a covered reason, but I sure would hope so.)

Katie

I hate to sound hard about this, I really am sorry they missed out on the cruise, but... RCCL had already counted on them being there, had provisioned accordingly, could not sell their cabin to anyone else, etc.

I am afraid that I agree...

I am so sorry that your parent's cruise was ruined - life can't be easier when you get older and I understand why RCCL couldn't let them cruise. It is incredibly sad. But I don't think that it is RCCL's responsibility to refund the cruise - everybody is responsible for turning up with the appropriate travel documents.

It is a horrible hard lesson. I agree with travel insurance - possibly particularly useful for the elderly anyway (although I am British and any sane Brit wouldn't dream of travelling abroad without travel insurance anyway - because of the medical coverage). Also if you travel with your parents on future trips (don't know if they originate from the same airport as you), maybe - if they tend to be a little forgetful - it is worth meeting them at your house before going to the airport and "double checking" the travel documents and then you taking responsiblity for all of them (just to keep them altogether and safe).

Boo

I had my passport and cruise tickets stolen in Miami the night before a cruise. I called the pier at 6 am and after explaining the situation was told I could not do the cruise I planned(Eastern) but could do a Western. We did have to show a police report. So we went on the Explorer instead of the Radiance. The Royal Rep. was great. What a nightmare though. We had a great cruise, lots of last minute planning.

Did they offer another cruise?

We always make a copy of our passport and keep it in our carry-on. I wonder if this would help me if, God forbid, something happened to my passport while getting to the pier.

I am so sorry that this happened to your folks. It sounds like they did the best they could under this circumstance.

Would travel insurance even cover this problem.

I am so sorry to hear that your parents missed the curise. It must have been a big disappointment. Maybe RCI would give them a discount on a future cruise.

Hotel's, airlines, etc. etc. Last min., or the day of......cancalations wont land you a refund hardley ever. Maybe southwest airline. :confused:

Thats sure a sad story though. I also wonder if having a photo copy would have helped at all. :confused: I kind of doubt it. This just gave me the idea of taking my wallet size birth cert card with too. Just in case.. At least for another year, that would work. ;)

I am sorry to hear that your parents were not able to cruise...but the cruise line did everything they are suppose to do. Bottom line, your parents did not have identification documents needed to travel. I can't see how you could expect them to do more than they did. Or refund money that they were entitled to keep.

I am surprised that with the age of the travelers that you did not get travel insurance.

Sorry about what happened. Hopefully you'll get another chance to cruise together.

When I first started reading this site, one of the first tips I read was to scan all of your important documents and e-mail them to yourself. I think I may do that from now on. Anything can happen.

i do not believe travel insurance would cover you for a lost passport. It is not the responisbility of either the cruise line or the insurance company if you do not have the required identification or documents to travel. I dont think we as americans really appreciate the importance of passports-in many countries you can not travel with in the country without your "papers" let alone leave the country. A copy of your passport will not suffice if you are traveling where one is required-the ONLY thing a copy will do is provide a US consulate in a foriegn country the number of your passport so they can replace it if you loose it-or give a theif the information they need to steal your identity. It will not serve as identification and it will not let you back into the country if something happens that will require you to fly home.

i do not believe travel insurance would cover you for a lost passport. It is not the responisbility of either the cruise line or the insurance company if you do not have the required identification or documents to travel. I dont think we as americans really appreciate the importance of passports-in many countries you can not travel with in the country without your "papers" let alone leave the country. A copy of your passport will not suffice if you are traveling where one is required-the ONLY thing a copy will do is provide a US consulate in a foriegn country the number of your passport so they can replace it if you loose it-or give a theif the information they need to steal your identity. It will not serve as identification and it will not let you back into the country if something happens that will require you to fly home.

Remember the cruiseline asks for your passport number when you fill out their paperworkfor your tickets. God forbid, should you loose your passport, you might beable to call ahead to a consulate for a new one.

I hate to sound hard about this, I really am sorry they missed out on the cruise, but... RCCL had already counted on them being there, had provisioned accordingly, could not sell their cabin to anyone else, etc.

I completely agree with you Cindy.

Without wanting to give the OP a hard time and while feeling for this bad situation, but I keep reading stories on these boards about people missing the ships for various reasons and very often a sad story is involved.

However almost any of these stories end with we didn´t buy insurance and shouldn´t the cruise line give a refund or future cruise credit or......

wouldn´t it be a nice gesture?

Yes it would be a nice gesture but frankly I don´t think the cruise line should do it. They are there to stay in business. It´s not a charity corporation.

I wouldn´t even think about asking for anything if this happened to me.

I sympathize with the OP but it does indicate why it is advisable to purchase travel insurance. If RCI provides a refund to those who didn't purchase insurance, what kind of message does that send to those who do incur the added expense of purchasing it?

Since this was in no way the fault of RCI, I can't see them doing anything about it. Even if you buy insurance, you need to make sure it will cover something like this--not all will!

I had my passport and cruise tickets stolen in Miami the night before a cruise. I called the pier at 6 am and after explaining the situation was told I could not do the cruise I planned(Eastern) but could do a Western. We did have to show a police report. So we went on the Explorer instead of the Radiance. The Royal Rep. was great. What a nightmare though. We had a great cruise, lots of last minute planning.

Did they offer another cruise?

I had my passport and cruise tickets stolen in Miami the night before a cruise. I called the pier at 6 am and after explaining the situation was told I could not do the cruise I planned(Eastern) but could do a Western. We did have to show a police report. So we went on the Explorer instead of the Radiance. The Royal Rep. was great. What a nightmare though. We had a great cruise, lots of last minute planning.

Did they offer another cruise?

Why couldn't you do the Eastern? Did the ship visit a country which required a passport? I don't see why the Eastern itinerary could not have still been an option but the Western itinerary was.

I had my passport and cruise tickets stolen in Miami the night before a cruise. I called the pier at 6 am and after explaining the situation was told I could not do the cruise I planned(Eastern) but could do a Western. We did have to show a police report. So we went on the Explorer instead of the Radiance. The Royal Rep. was great. What a nightmare though. We had a great cruise, lots of last minute planning.

Did they offer another cruise?

Why couldn't you do the Eastern? Did the ship visit a country which required a passport? I don't see why the Eastern itinerary could not have still been an option but the Western itinerary was.