Please let me know, Sharing onboard credit

[Dena]

If I have $200 on board credit and my husband has $100 and we each spend $150, will he need to pay $50 or can he use by unused $50. We are both in the same cabin.

[Pam in CA]

It used to be that the OBC would be combined. That's changed. If you have $150 in OBC and your husband has $50, use your card for as much as you can because that's the way the credit will be applied. If he spends $150 and you spend $50, he will have $100 due on his onboard account and you will have a $100 credit that won't be applied to his $100. At least, that's the way I understand it is now.

[Grey Nomad]

When we were on the Dawn Princess last year, I had $16.50 left on my husband's OBC account on the last night and we thought they would just combine the two accounts so went and spent $18 on makeup just to use it up. When we checked the next morning prior to departure we found that the $18 had been added to my credit card and there was still $16.50 on my husband's OBC. After a lengthy discussion with the Pursers Desk and them referring it to staff behind the scenes, they ended resolving the matter by leaving the $18 on my credit card as they could not credit or reverse the charge and then gave me $16.50 in cash.

 

So moral is, make sure you use your OBC separately.

[Dena]

Thanks Pam and Grey!

[fun cruiserz]

When I was on the Crown a few weeks ago I asked how this would work and they said it I had a 50 dollar credit left on my account, and my husband had already used up all his credits and owed money, they would start moving charges over one by one from his account over to my account until they used up my credit. That seems like alot of work to me to move one charge over and then say ohhh you still have some credit left, let's move another charge over to your sign and sail account.

 

They should just go back to adding them together so we will balance out each other!!

[tothemall&beyond]

It used to be that the OBC would be combined. That's changed. If you have $150 in OBC and your husband has $50, use your card for as much as you can because that's the way the credit will be applied. If he spends $150 and you spend $50, he will have $100 due on his onboard account and you will have a $100 credit that won't be applied to his $100. At least, that's the way I understand it is now.

 

This is true. But you can go to purser and have them move over

all charges to the account that has OBC available.

[Host CJSKIDS]

I asked last week at the purser's desk while on The crown and was told that it didn't matter who had the credits as the OBC would be combined if need be.

[Weluv2cruise2007]

I asked last week at the purser's desk while on The crown and was told that it didn't matter who had the credits as the OBC would be combined if need be.

 

This is correct...my husband and I usually have quite a bit of onboard credit each (FCC, military, TA etc) and it makes no difference which cruise card charges are charged to PROVIDED you both are using the same credit card! As long as you are using the same CC, the accounts are "combined" and reconciled in the end.

[windsor26]

We have always had our charges combined at the end of the cruise but this is because we use the same credit card. Never had a problem:D

[Pam in CA]

It sounds like Princess might have backed off on the non-combinable OBCs. There were a number of threads with lots of warnings when the change was made. Here's one of the threads: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1376428

[cactusrose]

Just got off the Ruby and our accounts were combined and one charge for the net amount was made to our credit card. We did use the same card to that may be the key. It does seem like different ships handle things differently but I don't know how that would work with a billing system. Seems like all ships would use the same system for that.

[Dena]

Thanks, all.

 

 

We are using the same card. I will report back.

[tothemall&beyond]

Was on the Grand last week, and purser told me outright that Princess had to back off its short-lived attempt to segregate the OBC's. Passengers revolted. Princess returned to its policy of it not mattering as long as all people are using same credit card to settle up.

[windsor26]

THEY DO COMBINE the accounts if you are using the SAME credit card We always have different credits as I have shareholders etc and we use the same credit card and they add the totals together at the end:eek:

[shepp]

It sounds like Princess might have backed off on the non-combinable OBCs. There were a number of threads with lots of warnings when the change was made.

 

I remember those warnings. Thinking of them, I checked last cruise: they said the OBCs - or rather, the use of them - would be combined, and so they were.

[1 HappyCruiser]

Was on the Grand last week, and purser told me outright that Princess had to back off its short-lived attempt to segregate the OBC's. Passengers revolted. Princess returned to its policy of it not mattering as long as all people are using same credit card to settle up.

 

That accounting procedure was short lived but as a precaution I always make sure I draw down each account to have them charge a few dollars on each using the casino account draw - just in case.

[tennisobo]

Just to safeguard against Princess changing the credit card procedure again, we use the same credit card and since I have more OBC (thanks CCL stock) mine is the primary card and in the personalizer I have my husband's account set up so he is using my card for his charges.

 

Hopefully that was clear.

[geoherb]

I just got off the Crown yesterday. The word I received from the pursers desk was since I had registered my credit card for both of our accounts, my leftover credit would cover DH's charges. And that's the way it worked in the end. He had a $32 charge to his account after his onboard credit. I still had a little over $7 in credit on my account. My charge card is going to be billed about $25.

[Kamloops50]

It used to be that the OBC would be combined. That's changed. If you have $150 in OBC and your husband has $50, use your card for as much as you can because that's the way the credit will be applied. If he spends $150 and you spend $50, he will have $100 due on his onboard account and you will have a $100 credit that won't be applied to his $100. At least, that's the way I understand it is now.

 

That is the way it was on the Emerald in Nov 2011.:cool:

[abbydancer2003]

I use my husbands card and we charge everything to his account - (he also gets the stockholder credit). A couple of times my OBC was more than the tip amount, and my balance was taken off of what he owed.

As others have said, it's the same card.

 

And I think on a coastal once, he spent less than the stockholder credit and what I owed on the service charge was taken from the stockholder credit.