Am I being unreasonable?

[Georgia_Peaches]

8 hours ago, ramdoggiesmom said:

I absolutely would’ve done what you did! They hit a reef and expected you to wait and then get back on it? NO WAY! That’s like saying “I know your ferry captain is incompetent but it’s free so that’s ok”! Well sorry but it’s not OK. And by the way, NOTHING is free. And yes, I would’ve expected NCL to reimburse me for my trouble. NCL is lucky there were only a few people that needed medical attention. What would you all think if THEY asked NCL to pay for their medical bills? I guess the injured people should’ve just sucked it up and said “that’s ok NCL, I’d be happy to pay for the medical attention I needed because the ferry that YOU own and operate hit a reef”. Before you all get your panties in a bunch let me say I’ve cruised on NCL 15+ times, they are by far my favorite cruise line so I’m not here to just bash NCL. But I personally think in this case, they should’ve bent over backwards to take care of the passengers of the ferry in any way they could. Just sayin.

Actually, you make some very good points that I had not considered.  I still don't think I would have asked for reimbursement but the fact that the OP did, doesn't make it wrong.  If the ferry is owned by NCL then I believe there is some culpability on their part...especially if someone was injured. That's what they have insurance for.  Thanks for the counterpoints...

[StolidCruiser]

9 hours ago, ramdoggiesmom said:

I absolutely would’ve done what you did! They hit a reef and expected you to wait and then get back on it? NO WAY! That’s like saying “I know your ferry captain is incompetent but it’s free so that’s ok”! Well sorry but it’s not OK. And by the way, NOTHING is free. And yes, I would’ve expected NCL to reimburse me for my trouble. NCL is lucky there were only a few people that needed medical attention. What would you all think if THEY asked NCL to pay for their medical bills? I guess the injured people should’ve just sucked it up and said “that’s ok NCL, I’d be happy to pay for the medical attention I needed because the ferry that YOU own and operate hit a reef”. Before you all get your panties in a bunch let me say I’ve cruised on NCL 15+ times, they are by far my favorite cruise line so I’m not here to just bash NCL. But I personally think in this case, they should’ve bent over backwards to take care of the passengers of the ferry in any way they could. Just sayin.

 

....and they did.  They treated the injured and arranged for alternate free ferry service to passengers.

 

What else should they have done in response to the accident?

[Outerdog]

25 minutes ago, StolidCruiser said:

 

....and they did.  They treated the injured and arranged for alternate free ferry service to passengers.

 

What else should they have done in response to the accident?

 

Full refund and future cruise credit in the amount of current cruise fare is probably what most folks would shoot for.

[ramdoggiesmom]

No, Outerdog, I don’t think most people would expect a full refund on the cruise. I would think it reasonable to expect a “goodwill” credit for the taxi and perhaps a note from NCL stating they hoped her son was doing ok. Seems like good PR to me. 

[foreverinmyheart]

1 hour ago, Outerdog said:

 

Full refund and future cruise credit in the amount of current cruise fare is probably what most folks would shoot for.

If you really READ my post you would see that is most certainly not the case.  But thanks for your two cents.

[KarlChilders]

So Forever, did anything you read here (aside from probably making you wish you hadn't asked in the first place) change your mind, help you place in perspective or otherwise change your perception of the events. Or are you still going with never sailing NCL again.  Just wondering.

[AL3XCruise]

11 hours ago, ramdoggiesmom said:

I absolutely would’ve done what you did! They hit a reef and expected you to wait and then get back on it? NO WAY! That’s like saying “I know your ferry captain is incompetent but it’s free so that’s ok”! Well sorry but it’s not OK. And by the way, NOTHING is free. And yes, I would’ve expected NCL to reimburse me for my trouble. NCL is lucky there were only a few people that needed medical attention. What would you all think if THEY asked NCL to pay for their medical bills? I guess the injured people should’ve just sucked it up and said “that’s ok NCL, I’d be happy to pay for the medical attention I needed because the ferry that YOU own and operate hit a reef”. Before you all get your panties in a bunch let me say I’ve cruised on NCL 15+ times, they are by far my favorite cruise line so I’m not here to just bash NCL. But I personally think in this case, they should’ve bent over backwards to take care of the passengers of the ferry in any way they could. Just sayin.

 

First, I agree that the OP was smart to take a taxi.  That option was obviously the best for the family after a difficult day.  However, I think you are making several assumptions.

 

The news article regarding the incident states passengers were placed on a public ferry, not the same vessel.  I was not there so I can't be sure.  Either way, NCL's obligation is to provide safe transport back to Dockyard.  They are not responsible to provide an alternative means in accordance with the desires of every passenger.  

 

Comparing injury to a desire for alternative transport is a false equivalence.  One is an obligation of NCL and the ferry operator, the other, as I explained, is not.

 

As pointed out previously, it does not appear NCL operates the ferry.  However, I will agree that if you own it, contract a third party, advertise it, and plaster your name on the side you can't really hide behind your contractor.

 

In short: I think the OP made a good decision; I think some sort of acknowledgment of the inconvenience from NCL would have been nice; I don't think NCL is responsible for providing alternative transport if someone doesn't want to use the ferry.

 

[StolidCruiser]

57 minutes ago, ramdoggiesmom said:

No, Outerdog, I don’t think most people would expect a full refund on the cruise. I would think it reasonable to expect a “goodwill” credit for the taxi and perhaps a note from NCL stating they hoped her son was doing ok. Seems like good PR to me. 

 

While that may be what you find reasonable, given these particular circumstances the vast majority disagree with you.

 

 

[foreverinmyheart]

 

33 minutes ago, KarlChilders said:

So Forever, did anything you read here (aside from probably making you wish you hadn't asked in the first place) change your mind, help you place in perspective or otherwise change your perception of the events. Or are you still going with never sailing NCL again.  Just wondering.

Thanks for asking.  I can actually see both sides which gives me a better perspective.  I did have an option to wait for another ferry and take that back at no charge but hindsight is 20/20 and we did not even know at that point if there would be a ferry going back and the thought of hundreds of passengers scrambling to get rides back to the ship was going through my mind.  I guess I am more upset about NCL's lack of customer service.  A small gesture (even if it wasn't the $60.00 refund would have gone a long way).  I did not mention this in the original post because it was just here say but another passenger that actually took the alternate ferry back asked one of the crew members how it happened and he replied 'the captain was not paying attention'  which makes it even worse.  If it had been bad weather, an engine malfunction etc, I probably would have chalked it up but it was the captains negligence that caused me to choose another mode of transportation.  Still on the fence about my future with NCL.    I do appreciate everyone's input, it  has been eye opening to say the least! Lol

[Seany527]

Reduce your tips by $60 and if NCL decides to refund the money, tell them to pass it along to the crew. 

[Mike_DeA]

8 minutes ago, foreverinmyheart said:

 

Thanks for asking.  I can actually see both sides which gives me a better perspective.  I did have an option to wait for another ferry and take that back at no charge but hindsight is 20/20 and we did not even know at that point if there would be a ferry going back and the thought of hundreds of passengers scrambling to get rides back to the ship was going through my mind.  I guess I am more upset about NCL's lack of customer service.  A small gesture (even if it wasn't the $60.00 refund would have gone a long way).  I did not mention this in the original post because it was just here say but another passenger that actually took the alternate ferry back asked one of the crew members how it happened and he replied 'the captain was not paying attention'  which makes it even worse.  If it had been bad weather, an engine malfunction etc, I probably would have chalked it up but it was the captains negligence that caused me to choose another mode of transportation.  Still on the fence about my future with NCL.    I do appreciate everyone's input, it  has been eye opening to say the least! Lol

Since you didn't know what caused the accident at the time you decided to take a taxi back to the ship, wasn't it your son's reaction that caused you to do that?  I doesn't matter what caused it really, your son wasn't going to be able to get back on the ferry.

[StolidCruiser]

11 minutes ago, Seany527 said:

Reduce your tips by $60 and if NCL decides to refund the money, tell them to pass it along to the crew. 

 

Considering this event took place more than six weeks ago, your suggestion of penalizing uninvolved staff for recompense on something undeserving is useless.

[foreverinmyheart]

18 minutes ago, Mike_DeA said:

Since you didn't know what caused the accident at the time you decided to take a taxi back to the ship, wasn't it your son's reaction that caused you to do that?  I doesn't matter what caused it really, your son wasn't going to be able to get back on the ferry.

Yes, absolutely.  I did not know at the time what the problem was, I was merely saying it just makes it that much worse (if that even is the reason, I probably will never know)

 

For all I know, the person driving the ferry could have been the same crew member that was left on the dock.   How do any of us know if he had been at a bar getting drunk and that was the reason he almost missed the departure.   I will say honestly that the other crew members were angry at whoever was driving. I saw and heard that myself.  And before you all flip out, I am not saying that's what happened....I am saying anything is possible. 

[BKFlowerMound]

Let it drop and cross NCL off your list. They had a customer service opportunity and they failed. Spend your future vacation dollars on smarter companies. 

 

Did they owe you $60, no.  Should they have reimbursed you for it, probably not. What they should have done is made an apology and gesture while on the ship. A comped bottle of wine would’ve cost them $5 or less. Strike one. Onshore customer service could’ve given you $60 in future cruise credit as a goodwill gesture while both apologizing and explaining why they couldn’t provide reimbursement; that would have MADE them money if you used it. Strike two.  

 

Either nearly costless gesture would have shown they cared. You showed you cared about this issue by stopping by the desk AND writing them. Since this isn’t baseball, they need to pay the “I’m a stupid company tax” and be out with two strikes. Spend your money elsewhere. 

 

 

[ramdoggiesmom]

Foreverinmyheart, I am sorry this all happened to you and your son and hope the experience doesn’t sour you on cruising. As I’m sure you know, it can be such a wonderful way to  vacation and spend quality family time. 

I also hope the opinions you received both for and against do not sour you on Cruise Critic. We cruisers seem to be a very passionate bunch when it comes to all things cruising. 

[cruiser1955a]

Nobody should request a refund for a free service they didn’t like. It makes no sense.

[ray98]

Unreasonable?  Absolutely.

Edited September 6, 2019 by ray98