Piddly Little $50 OBC Issue. No Flames Please.

[Aquahound]

Back in May, I booked a last minute cruise on Caribbean Princess. There were some minor clarical issues they blamed on it being a last minute booking. The first of which was a blue card and no past guest perks. No biggie. Only one past cruise with them, so it wasn't worth complaining about anyways. But the second was I didn't get my $50 OBC that was reflected on my booking invoice. When I contacted them after the cruise, they said it could take up 2 billing cycles to see the refund on my card. Well, 2 cycles have come and gone and...nothing.

 

I say this is piddly and I mean it. I don't plan on pursuing it and I'm just chalking it up as a customer service hiccup that is so common in the cruise industry. I guess I'm just curious....is this a typical problem with Princess. Do you think it's even worth pursuing? Be kind, please. :o

[custompcsys]

Heck, no flames from here....50 bucks is 50 bucks! I would at least invest the time in a phone call and say you patiently waited for their two billing cycles to pass and nothing has happened, so now what? I can honestly say that in 9 cruises with Princess I've never experienced a delay like that, although from threads I've read in the past this issue isn't unique.

Edited July 15, 2014 by custompcsys

[Colo Cruiser]

They can refund as fast as they want, they sure charge fast, but they sit on it for awhile. :(

[Homosassa]

Interesting hiccup. My husband and I are both platinum. We booked a cruise and when I went to do the pre cruise on-line paperwok, he was listed as never cruising before with Princess and not having on board credit. I was listed as platinum with on board credit.

 

I called immediately and got it all straighten out. They also said it was a computer hiccup which didn't make sense to me as we were on the same reservation number.

[JJ2sail]

I have had something similar happen also. I always carry a copy of my paper work showing obc with me on the cruise.

[hllwdcruiser]

The same thing happened to us on our last cruise - and ours was only a $15 pp obc. I followed up with Princess and since I had already booked our Alaska cruise, requested that they just give us the credit for that cruise.

 

It actually took several phone calls and e-mails but eventually we got the credit and an apology to boot. As someone already said, $50 is $50 - I say go for it!

[Aquahound]

Thanks friends. :) Yeah, maybe I'll give them a call and see what they say. I'll be honest...the reason I'm hesitant is it's a military OBC. This may sound weird, but I've alwaysbeen the type who doesn't receive gifts well. When I was a cop, I even insisted on paying for my coffee. :D

[JJ2sail]

Did you get confirmation from Princess before you sailed that they had received the Military obc paperwork? Just wondering if you sent it but they did not get it?

[hllwdcruiser]

Thanks friends. :) Yeah, maybe I'll give them a call and see what they say. I'll be honest...the reason I'm hesitant is it's a military OBC. This may sound weird, but I've alwaysbeen the type who doesn't receive gifts well. When I was a cop, I even insisted on paying for my coffee. :D

 

My DH just retired after 28 yrs as a LEO, here in South Florida. He paid for his coffee too....and never ate doughnuts!:D

[JF - retired RRT]

Thanks friends. :) Yeah, maybe I'll give them a call and see what they say. I'll be honest...the reason I'm hesitant is it's a military OBC. This may sound weird, but I've alwaysbeen the type who doesn't receive gifts well. When I was a cop, I even insisted on paying for my coffee. :D

 

FYI: on one of our cruises we had >$300 left on our OBC:eek:. The PAX desk told me it would show up on my credit card...nope. We got a check in the mail about 3 months later.:D

[bhopal21]

Thanks friends. :) Yeah, maybe I'll give them a call and see what they say. I'll be honest...the reason I'm hesitant is it's a military OBC. This may sound weird, but I've alwaysbeen the type who doesn't receive gifts well. When I was a cop, I even insisted on paying for my coffee. :D

 

You definitely need to give them a call.

 

I have started printing out a list of my OBC and checking it shortly after boarding to see that passenger services reflects the same.

 

Once you submit your DD214 you should not have to do it for future cruises.

 

Mike:)

[Pam in CA]

I've taken several cruises when my shareholder OBC, FCC OBC, etc. were not applied to my folio, even after several days. It added up to over $250, definitely not "piddly." Every time I went to the PSD and asked them to check, I was told that everything had been applied that I was eligible for. I even showed them email verification of the shareholder OBC and my FCC OBC. I had brought a copy of my fax to Princess along with all of my documentation so I brought that to the PSD. A day later, my shareholder OBC was applied. I emailed my TA and explained that my FCC OBC hadn't been applied and the next day, there it was.

 

My point is that even if you receive confirmation, mistakes are made and glitches happen. Bring not just verification but copies of everything to the PSD. It's far easier to resolve while onboard than it is after the fact.

[Aquahound]

My point is that even if you receive confirmation, mistakes are made and glitches happen. Bring not just verification but copies of everything to the PSD. It's far easier to resolve while onboard than it is after the fact.

 

That was part of the problem. Even though it is stated on my Booking Confirmation and I had a copy with me on board, they said they couldn't do anything about it. They said it wasn't in their system and that I had to contact Princess after the cruise.

 

I approached the PSD when I saw I didn't get the credit on my bill.

[Colo Cruiser]

That was part of the problem. Even though it is stated on my Booking Confirmation and I had a copy with me on board, they said they couldn't do anything about it. They said it wasn't in their system and that I had to contact Princess after the cruise.

 

I approached the PSD when I saw I didn't get the credit on my bill.

 

 

Thats a line, there is plenty they can do about it.

They have direct contact with the home office for this very reason and I am sure they do it several times a cruise. :rolleyes:

[hillslife]

I would definitely be hounding them...especially for Military Credit...you deserve it.:)

 

Keep up the fight....good luck....

[PescadoAmarillo]

We had an even piddlier $36 due to us. It was promised in a voicemail message that, luckily, was transcribed and sent to me via email. After a month I started phoning every Monday. I would leave a message for the person at Princess who had left the phone message and not hear back. Finally, I reached him one day. He said he had sent it to the Finance Department over a month earlier and would follow up. I had the refund 4 days later.

 

Whether it was he or Finance that sat on it, someone did. As soon as it was processed, I had it in a few days. I suspect yours is sitting on someone's desk too. Keep phoning.

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

We have had it happen to us.... Shareholders $100 not showing up. Said they couldn't do anything about it because we were already onboard. Yeah right!

 

When we got home I started kicking up a stink and finally got the email address of the Customer Services Officer in Australia.... sent him an email and it was fixed the same day with an apology. :)

 

It pays to persevere. :D

[islandatsea]

I have had something similar happen also. I always carry a copy of my paper work showing obc with me on the cruise.

 

We do the same thing. Always print out everything & have a copy to show what you are entitled to.

[canadarocks]

$50 is by no means piddly, and any amount owed becomes a matter of principle for me. Whether I owe it to someone else or they owe it to me! ;)

[lovevacadays]

I would pursue it. What is due you is due you. Just last week I had an issue with Princess transferring a $39 credit I had to my cruise in November. I called until it got transferred. It really wasn't so much about the small amount but about the fact that a cruise line should be able to do this without a hassle.

[sept10dsm]

As everyone has said, I would keep bugging them until you receive the $50. What a shame! I understand mistakes happen, but the time they are taking is much too much. They have no problem charging a Credit Card! I will say I did have to cancel a cruise I booked directly through Princess. They said the refund could take up to 2 billing cycles (no clue why credit should have to take that long in this electronic world) but I was refunded in a few days. Keep us posted as to when you get the money back!

[CI66774]

No flames here. I would absolutely pursue it. You were promised $50 and you didn't receive it. Keep hounding them until you see it reflected!

[Thrak]

Let's see... If Princess snaked $50 off of every booking that would equal... about a gazillion dollars. No way. $50 of my money is MINE and Princess can't have it.

 

I don't get this "we can't help you because you are already on board" stuff. I think I would insist on names. Exact names. I would then submit those names along with my complaint to Princess. I don't believe that they can't fix this while you are on board. If they tell you they can't then I think the person telling you that needs to be held personally accountable.

[Aquahound]

Thanks again for your responses. I'll pursue it today and see if I can get anywhere with them.

 

I'd like to agree with the on board part of this, but when you show them your Booking Confirmation and they insist they can't do anything about it, what more can you do? I could have stood there and argued it, or even escalated it to the Hotel Manager (I guess) but you know how it is when it comes to arguing issues like this on a cruise ship. Suddenly, there is a language barrier and all it does is frustrate you more than you were to begin with. I've come to learn when to just let something go when it comes to on board issues.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Thanks again for your responses. I'll pursue it today and see if I can get anywhere with them.

 

I'd like to agree with the on board part of this, but when you show them your Booking Confirmation and they insist they can't do anything about it, what more can you do? I could have stood there and argued it, or even escalated it to the Hotel Manager (I guess) but you know how it is when it comes to arguing issues like this on a cruise ship. Suddenly, there is a language barrier and all it does is frustrate you more than you were to begin with. I've come to learn when to just let something go when it comes to on board issues.

 

I agree with you, but will pick it back up again when I get home. People will often say that things should be resolved on board. I'm a pit bull about this kind of stuff, but with a couple of exceptions (shore excursion credits for poor excursions being one of them), I'll try once, possibly twice on the ship for resolution and then tell whoever that I'll be pursuing it further when I get home. I'm not wasting time on the ship standing at PSD one minute longer than I have to. But I will take a minute to document the who, what and when of who I talked with on board.