Unable to pay cruise bill?

[lindacat]

I have a card with a fairly high limit and carry no balance. I also like to gamble and rather than carry cash with me have been known to take advances in the casino. As it gets posted as a charge from the cruise line, I do not pay "cash advance fees", I rack up airline points and I pay the balance when I return home. On one RCCL cruise, my charges were pretty high, in addition to the actual charges they had placed holds which totalled two times my actual bill. Unfortunately when I returned home I went to use the same card to purchase some expensive software for my business and was declined. I was confused as there should have been plenty of credit, when I investigated it was the "holds" which were causing the problem. At the time the bank explained that if a company places a hold and then charges the exact same amount, the hold is automatically released. If the charge is for a different amount, the hold takes up to 10 days to release unless the company directs the hold to be released.

 

I know now to use a different card when I return from a cruise

[shaggyofwv]

Just so everyone knows the bank fraud alerts are automated by very sophisticated software. It's not like a rep is getting notified and then verifies your travel advisory. Some banks are smart enough to link the travel and fraud notice others are not. Some banks raise a flag and a call-out is sent to a call centre to verify the transaction. Some terminals will also say "Please call for Authorization"

 

So some banks computers "Freeze" the card and do not allow any more transactions until the card is verified by phone. Others have been known to outright "Cancel" the card and it must be destroyed and replaced along with updating any pre-auth's you have.

 

I do not have any inside knowledge on how AMEX works but it's probably similar.

 

So even if you notify your bank which you should there is still a good chance of being frozen and/or cancelled.

 

 

 

On our first couple of cruises RCI would not actually charge our credit card until the end of the cruise (although they probably put the invisible "hold" on there).

On our last few cruises I have noticed that they now charge our cc randomly, almost on a daily basis.

[lrn2cruise]

This is beyond my thinking and way of life. We would never even book a cruise without the cash flow to back it up. Matter of face, we dont do anything without the cash flow to back it up.

 

I guess that is a reality though. I would sure hate to be the RC employee to confron these passengers.:eek:

 

We used our RC Visa Card to book for onboard credit then just payed it off and we used our Discover for excursions etc.

 

 

We have not booked another cruise because we need $5000.00+ of freed up cash to go again. We are looking at paying off our house then after restoring our savings, we will see?

[KellyJean]

I have heard many people here say that it happens but I have NEVER had a hold put on my credit card while I was on a cruise. I check my account daily when we cruise to make sure that there are no suspicious charges. If a hold was there, it would show up on my account and there has never been one there.

 

We were on the Monarch last year. When we were checking in I asked the agent at the counter if I had to give her the cash for our onboard account or if we did it onboard. We were told that we were allowed to charge up to $250 before we would be required to make a cash payment. As I recall, one of us just went and paid our bill every other day do we didn't have to worry about it.

[emeraldcity]

I'm intrigued that there really aren't too many responses to the original question about what does the cruiseline do when the customer can't pay up. There were actually two such incidents on my April Cruise. A young couple was held up at disembarkation because they owed $20 and they didn't have it. None of their cards had any credit left, so they started calling friends and family trying to find someone to bail them up. They went through quite a number of folks before someone stepped up to the plate. The other person was a woman who had gone to the disco the last evening (which was jammed with people every night) and left her wallet unattended for "just a minute". She had intended to pay up with cash ... and all her cash was in it. mShe ended up signing a promissory note -- not sure how she made it home without money for ground transfers, etc, because by the time she had settled with RCI, the bus had left for the airport.

[gatour]

Just wait until someone gets your CC number/CVS, and does a "test" charge and then attempts to do a big charge. If both charges go through, you will get to fill out forms, and may have to answer phone calls for several months.

 

 

 

Your card might also be rejected because you are doing something outside of your normal pattern. The night that the new ipads were released, my husband was at Wal-Mart at 11:30 pm waiting for the ipad release at Midnight. He had my BOA card and it was rejected so he used his BOA card and it went through. He could have called BOA, but didn't want to lose his place in line.

 

I called BOA the next day and they said that I normally did not charge $900 at Wal-Mart after Midnight, so the charge was flagged. Now, they weren't really looking out after my interest but their own because if it had been stolen, my liability would have been far less than $900.

 

Please BOA, I don't need a Nanny!

[lovetotravel700001]

I have also seen people who forget to tell thier CC company they are traveling outside the country. They try to use thier card and a fraud notice is triggered and the card is declined. Last year in Italy, I gave a restaurant a card I had not done that with, it looked like another card, and it was declined for that reason even with a zero balance. I realized my mistake and gave them the correct card. Lesson is let your CC company know where you are going so that you do not get declined, even with an available credit line.

 

 

Thanks for the reminder, I put that on my list of things to do tomorrow. I triggered my discover card to shut me down by putting the wrong expiration date on something I purchased online. They allowed that charge, but the next charge got flagged and everything after that got declined including my cellphone and insurance. All over a $20 charge. But they were looking at for my best interests, so I can't blame them.

[smoosh21]

I seem to recall a similar story about a woman who brought her mom on a cruise. Her mother proceeded to lose all their money in the casino so they were not able to pay their SeaPass tab. They also had no money to return home. She was humiliated but RCI did set up some sort of credit account for her if memory serves me well.

 

 

I wonder if the Mom ended up in Shady Pines.

[retiredonthesea]

When we cruise we always have one card just for the seapass purchases and one card for port or outside purchases that way if something happens to one we always have a backup. We also make sure our cards are paid in full every month. Also let our CC companies know when we will be traveling and where. Once we had a problem when we bought a ring for me and the cc company needed to talk to my DH before they approved the charge!

 

We have heard of passengers names be called over and over at debarkation and sometimes wonder did they pay their bill??:eek:

[bighairtexan]

i wonder if the mom ended up in shady pines.

 

giggle :d

[CARIBBEANBLUESKY]

i wonder if the mom ended up in shady pines.

 

lololol!!!

[Stich17]

Unfortunately I'm not lucky enough to have an unlimited credit card, like some have mentioned.

 

Anyway my credit card (capital one UK) does show online credit holds or hanging authorisations as they are called.

 

When I was last on a RCI cruise last year they requested an authorisation EACH day for my balance. These hanging auths drop off automatically in around a week.These do affect your available credit The cruise line at the end took the full balance and completed that transaction. The daily authorisations then fell away later that week.

 

The warning people need is to realise that they may need twice as much available credit on their cards than they plan to spend.

 

Since I'm paying the bill for 10 people for 2 weeks crusing I will have to keep an eye on it !!

 

Why the cruise company can't process the daily request properly, instead of just letting it drop off and credit this to your on board account I don't know !

 

I wrote to RCI about this and they said that's just they way te do things.

[mcdermott]

When we first came to live in Spain we didn't realize that the credit limit on our cc was very low and part way through the cruise we were in the dining room and we ordered wine with lunch and we were refused they said the limit had been reached and we should go to the office when we got there it was explained and I gave an alternative card very embarrassing.Also we were on a 7 week cruise on the QM2 and we got fed up being wakened in the night of the ship charging the credit card (my bank text me every time the card is used) so in the end we turned the phone off

[Lynnees]

To stop some of those daily holds simply have your onboard account set up as a cash account. On the second to last night take your credit card and have them run thru your charges to date. Then leave the cc on your account for the last couple of days.

[beardedladies]

I remembered a couple of years back a letter came in my name from Celebrity Cruises Miami saying that I owed $420... we had sailed a few weeks previously on Celebrity Eclipse back in April 2010 and found this very strange as my sea pass is linked to my partner's credit card and this should had been settled when we disembarked the ship.... I phoned Miami, as we due to sail on a Royal Caribbean cruise and worried we wouldn't be allowed to, but it seemed my sea pass card was never linked to my partners credit card, found this strange as I was allowed to leave the ship ( no boink) :eek: ... Settled the amount whilst on the phone panic over !....

Mark x

[temple1]

DH and I get a number of the Fraud department calls on our credit cards because DH works in one state and we live in another and we frequently will have charges on the same card in 3 or 4 states in one day within a very short period of time!

 

Does everyone end up with a cruise bill /huge cruise bill at the end? Is it possible not too?? I mean if you dont gamble and plan to just drink the included drinks and only eat at the included restaurants. Planned and paid for excursions on your own not through the cruise. Are those things so tempting that everyone ends up with a huge bill??? Im kinda afraid after reading all these posts lol Decided to take a cruise because liked the all inclusive idea not really planning on the extras.

 

Goodness no, when I cruise with DH we have a very low Sea Pass balance at the end of the cruise. Usually less than $100. On our upcoming cruise it will probably be a little higher because we do want to try one of the specialty restaurants on board. When I cruise with DS we tend to spend more quality time in the shops and testing the Drink of the Day. ;) As far as the casino - that is cash only for us and excursions are usually booked in advance.

 

I remembered a couple of years back a letter came in my name from Celebrity Cruises Miami saying that I owed $420... we had sailed a few weeks previously on Celebrity Eclipse back in April 2010 and found this very strange as my sea pass is linked to my partner's credit card and this should had been settled when we disembarked the ship.... I phoned Miami, as we due to sail on a Royal Caribbean cruise and worried we wouldn't be allowed to, but it seemed my sea pass card was never linked to my partners credit card, found this strange as I was allowed to leave the ship ( no boink) ... Settled the amount whilst on the phone panic over !....

 

Mark x

 

Another thing to watch - on our last cruise DS got Boinked because during the cruise she had to get a new SeaPass and the few dollars charged on the first card or vice versa, did not get applied to her credit card.

[charmay]

I had a nightmare once.

I checked into a hotel and they swiped my card.

When it came to checking out it wouldnt go through.

After alot of embarresment i called the bank.

Turned out i had been clearded out by a fraudulent transaction!

We already had our car in the garage as it broke down and had to pay to get that out too as the roadside assistance we had required you to pay then claim after?

In the end i had to promise i would pay when i got home.

I am using cash to run my sailpass account.

[smoosh21]

Same here. I check my CC account daily and have never seen any type of hold.

 

You can have a hold and not see it, because it is just that, a hold. there is no purchase, so the credit card company does not show anything on your balance.

 

Luckily, I am not in a position where I am close to my limit on Credit Cards, or minimums in bank accounts, but I know many people who have gotten dinged by this, Gas stations are notoriously bad.

[donaldsc]

I wonder what would happen if you were unable to pay your cruise bill, would they make you stay on board and scrub the decks?

 

But seriously I wonder what would happen!

 

I hope you enjoy washing and drying the dishes for all 6000 passengers and crew. You do not get lunch until you are done w the job.

 

LOL!!

 

DON

[donaldsc]

Does everyone end up with a cruise bill /huge cruise bill at the end? Is it possible not too?? I mean if you dont gamble and plan to just drink the included drinks and only eat at the included restaurants. Planned and paid for excursions on your own not through the cruise. Are those things so tempting that everyone ends up with a huge bill??? Im kinda afraid after reading all these posts lol Decided to take a cruise because liked the all inclusive idea not really planning on the extras.

 

Depends upon your spending habits. Generally, not counting tips, my cruise bill may be $50 max. We don't drink, gamble, spa, or buy things on the ship. We do all our excursions independently - most of the time.

 

A cruise can be essentially all inclusive if you want it to be. Just don't forget that tips will be $11.50 per person per day and the crew depends upon the tips for their wages.

 

DON

[Desert Cruizers]

The only issue we ever had with one of our CC's, ( diners) DH got the bill in and asked me what a $750 approx charge was. I looked at it and noticed it was for an airline flight from Mia to Chicago. He called the CC company ASAP to object to it. They told him the charge originated from Germany, and they cancelled the card out immediately and issued him a new Card. No futher charges had been made. We use Am Exp for our cruises and there is no set limit, but pay off in full each month any charges that go on it.

[mommabean]

Our friends put cash on their account. On April 5th of this year they were not allowed OFF the ship because they still had money on their account. They had to go to guest services and pick up less than 25 cents. They didn't want the money. They wanted to leave and let RCI keep the change. They were "bonked" when their seapass card was inserted into the machine as they were about to walk off and they were not permitted to go even when they insisted.

 

We had to hang out at baggage claim waiting for them. In the meantime the immigration line got longer and longer.

 

Very weird. They won't let you leave if they owe YOU money no matter how little it is.

 

Gina

[1SMURFF99A]

Does everyone end up with a cruise bill /huge cruise bill at the end? Is it possible not too?? I mean if you dont gamble and plan to just drink the included drinks and only eat at the included restaurants. Planned and paid for excursions on your own not through the cruise. Are those things so tempting that everyone ends up with a huge bill??? Im kinda afraid after reading all these posts lol Decided to take a cruise because liked the all inclusive idea not really planning on the extras.

 

Our bill is never hugh. We don't usually buy alcohol, eat at specialty restaurants, nor gamble. We usually do have some excursions but thats it.

[Lauriejl2]

Our bill is never hugh. We don't usually buy alcohol, eat at specialty restaurants, nor gamble. We usually do have some excursions but thats it.

 

 

whew that makes me feel better! LOL A small bill I can handle. I prepaid gratuties so that wont even be on there for us. I just can't imagine a bill like some postings refered too. We are saving and saving for this trip as it is and dont want any BIG surprises.

[reeran]

The only issue we ever had with one of our CC's, ( diners) DH got the bill in and asked me what a $750 approx charge was. I looked at it and noticed it was for an airline flight from Mia to Chicago. He called the CC company ASAP to object to it. They told him the charge originated from Germany, and they cancelled the card out immediately and issued him a new Card. No futher charges had been made. We use Am Exp for our cruises and there is no set limit, but pay off in full each month any charges that go on it.

 

 

We had the same thing happen with my husband's Chase card two times. One was Swiss Air and one was Air Italia both fraudulent charges and both times they cancelled his card and reissued a new one. Funny thing is, that card never leaves the little safe in our house. It is just a back up emergency card and the only time it is ever used is every once in the while I will pay a utility bill on line with it to keep it "in action" so they don't cancel it on him. So we told the fraud dept. that the only leak would be either at the credit card company or the utility company.

 

Be careful with Visa/master card gift cards. The cruise line will only honor 80% ...so if it's a $500.00 card you can apply $400.00 to your cruise, then you have to go back another time and apply $80.00, then you have to go back and apply $16.00...what a pain and if you don't use them ...after a while they start to lose valuse.