Norwegian Unresponsive to the Coronavirus in Asia

[ppcox]

1 minute ago, blcruising said:

Interesting read. The conclusion is an interesting one....

 

"it appears there should be legislation introduced to require cruise companies to provide insurance to protect the consumer from epidemics and other natural disasters."

Yes it is an interesting article that probably sums up my own thoughts on the situation.

[Masekr11]

2 hours ago, PhilBenz said:

This is my latest contribution to eTurbonews:

 

 

Excellent job! It seemed to have worked. I’ve been emailing, tweeting, sharing non-stop since Monday. Hopefully other major news channels will start running the story. Everyone get emailing, calling, tweeting, posting, etc. 

[MazzyKn]

16 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

Interesting. There are always two parties to a contract. However, it always seems to fall to the other party to "do the right thing".

 

If this is how the passenger views it, then shouldn't the cruise line take the position of: "We understand that we signed a contract when this guest booked their cruise, however, the guest should do the responsible thing and purchase adequate travel insurance to protect themselves from any potential loss from unforeseen circumstances".

 

People who bothered to adequately insure themselves are going to be reimbursed. They are not going to be here...or on any other online forum...complaining and attempting a public shaming in pursuit of compensation. They will be happy.

 

The people making the most noise are the uninsured. Why are they uninsured? Did they not want to be protected? Did they not want to spend money on insurance? Did they not feel that they were at risk? No matter the reason/excuse...ALL of the noise is from people who are not only uninsured, but who feel that their decision to not be insured means that someone else should dig into their pocket to make them whole again.

 

Why do we insist that others should be financially responsible for our decisions?

Sea shark

I am from the UK and have comprehensive travel insurance, however no UK travel insurance covers if you wish to simply cancel because you longer wish to go. We will only be refunded if someone is too ill to travel, we have a close family bereavement, the Cruise is cancelled or the Foreign Office advises against travel. NCL are putting lives at risk, and it is highly likely our itinerary will be severely compromised. A full refund or credit in these circumstances is not unreasonable.

[PhilBenz]

No, they didn't feel they were "at risk".

 

For those, like me, who booked before the coronavirus epidemic hit the news, it was business as usual. My wife and I are in good health, and we looked around and tried to figure out if there was any reason to spend another couple hundred bucks on travel insurance we thought we didn't need. And it's true that many so-called travel insurance policies wouldn't cover this situation anyway. Nobody could forsee that bats and pangolins would conspire in spreading a biological agent over half the planet.

 

It is not unreasonable to expect the cruise line to make what we call here in France a "geste commercial" towards their frequent passengers, in order to show that they really do have their passengers' health and well-being at heart. Nobody in their right mind will leave their cozy homes to venture unprotected into a virus-infested zone that has the kind of death toll we are hearing of daily from China. Singapore isn't at risk only because of its proximity to China, but because there are notable cases of local transmission taking place, like those two Brits who carried the coronavirus back home after a conference.

 

And from what we see happening on board the Diamond Princess, a cruise ship can become a veritable petri dish, infecting more and more victims as the quantine drags on. So I find SeaShark's remarks disingenuous at best, or just plain offensive. It doesn't help to badmouth people who didn't bother "to adequately insure themselves" and who are looking to the cruise line, NCL, to do the right thing. Sure, SeaShark is entitled to his opinion about the relative merits of travel insurance, but the way he's going about airing that opinion just seems sad.

[vpearlkc]

3 minutes ago, MazzyKn said:

Sea shark

I am from the UK and have comprehensive travel insurance, however no UK travel insurance covers if you wish to simply cancel because you longer wish to go. We will only be refunded if someone is too ill to travel, we have a close family bereavement, the Cruise is cancelled or the Foreign Office advises against travel. NCL are putting lives at risk, and it is highly likely our itinerary will be severely compromised. A full refund or credit in these circumstances is not unreasonable.

 

[jskeel]

6 hours ago, seafun said:

Come on Norwegian -- please!  Many of us have spent many thousands of dollars for an enjoyable cruise (2/27 for me), and you have had those dollars for many months.  I also put down a LOT of frequent flyer miles and cash for comfortable flights to and from the cruise, and hotel reservations.  You have told us that we will lose everything if WE cancel.  Come on, the writing on the wall is getting clearer -- it is not safe for most people (I am - ahem - over 65) to risk this virus.  Please, won't YOU cancel these cruises, and let us all get on with our lives?  Many of us stand to lose a lot, just on airfare to and from the cruise.

 

Most other carriers have cancelled their cruises -- RCI, Celebrity, Cunard, Princess, etc.  I hope you are having daily executive meetings, and will  make the right business decision, SOON!  There are people on my cruise that you have done this to before, cancelling a cruisewith 48 hours notice.  Don't do that again, please.  Please give us notice NOW, so we can make other plans, and cancel what we can cancel. People are watching.  Your reputation is definitely at stake.

Please address your emails of concern to:  guestrelations@ncl.com   I just wrote again today.  They do seem to monitor this box and send replies so everyone take a moment and write them right now!

[Masekr11]

6 hours ago, seafun said:

Come on Norwegian -- please!  Many of us have spent many thousands of dollars for an enjoyable cruise (2/27 for me), and you have had those dollars for many months.

Please tweet, email NCL, call, contact media, etc. NCL will not do this on their own. Below are some links for media as well as NCL executive email addresses:

 

 

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/submit-news/

 

https://help.foxnews.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

 

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/about/sfl-news-tips-ideas-form-htmlstory.html

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/tips

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/tips/

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/abcnews.go.com/amp/US/tip-share-abc-news/story%3fid=61304290

 

https://www.cnn.com/tips/
 

Executive members of NCL
 

hsommer@ncl.com

Astuart@ncl.com
kbyrd@ncl.com

 

 

[luckyinpa]

can someone link to an example of a policy that gives back 100% in a situation like this? would be very helpful to know exactly what to buy for everyones next cruise. 

[Masekr11]

1 hour ago, Longislandtea said:

I have a friend doing this cruise at the moment.  They are having a fantastic time.  Photos looks great.

How do you have a friend doing this cruise when it doesn’t sail until 2/17?? The 2/6 and 2/17 has different itineraries. 

[Atgatsea]

5 minutes ago, Masekr11 said:

Please tweet, email NCL, call, contact media, etc. NCL will not do this on their own. Below are some links for media...

Thanks for assembling all of this info.  I have already been contacting some of these outlets and individuals.  It was not as hard as I thought it would be and I did not have to leave my name or contact information.  Hopefully these outlets and individuals get flooded with complaints and speak out on our behalf - such as Eturbonews

Edited February 12, 2020 by Atgatsea

[hamrag]

1 hour ago, Atgatsea said:

....Glad to hear your “friend” is able to put all that aside and have a good time.  What is the point of posting this message?

 

Oh the irony!! 🤣

[vpearlkc]

4 minutes ago, MazzyKn said:

Sea shark

I am from the UK and have comprehensive travel insurance, however no UK travel insurance covers if you wish to simply cancel because you longer wish to go. We will only be refunded if someone is too ill to travel, we have a close family bereavement, the Cruise is cancelled or the Foreign Office advises against travel. NCL are putting lives at risk, and it is highly likely our itinerary will be severely compromised. A full refund or credit in these circumstances is not unreasonable.

 

I found out years ago that cruise insurance does not cover a lot of things that you might assume were covered. We were booked on a cruise out of New Orleans a few weeks after Katrina. I assumed the  cruise would be canceled. I was wrong. Our flight and hotel, both nonrefundable, were quickly refunded but Carnival refused to refund.

 

I was told the cruise might go on but out of Mobile or the port near Houston. I thought ok at least we have insurance but when I called about that it wasn't covered. We decided that if nothing else we would pray that Houston was chosen and make the 750 mile drive down. After about a week or two FEMA came to the rescue and paid Carnival to use the ship as a floating hotel. We ended up with a $100 future cruise credit and a full refund.  

[NLH Arizona]

I'm wondering why the Singapore port has not been closed.  

 

Whether it closes or not, NCL should, if they insist on letting the cruise sail, at this point allow those to cancel, giving them a FCC for the amount of their cruise.  That way everyone will be happy; those that want to continue on with the cruise and those that want to cancel.

[NLH Arizona]

45 minutes ago, MazzyKn said:

Sea shark

I am from the UK and have comprehensive travel insurance, however no UK travel insurance covers if you wish to simply cancel because you longer wish to go. We will only be refunded if someone is too ill to travel, we have a close family bereavement, the Cruise is cancelled or the Foreign Office advises against travel. NCL are putting lives at risk, and it is highly likely our itinerary will be severely compromised. A full refund or credit in these circumstances is not unreasonable.

Hasn't the UK put into effect a travel advisory to China?  If they did, wouldn't that be a reason to cancel for your insurance to give you your money back?

[PhilBenz]

5 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

Hasn't the UK put into effect a travel advisory to China?  If they did, wouldn't that be a reason to cancel for your insurance to give you your money back?

If we're still talking about the Norwegian Jade, it doesn't stop in China, as such. They changed the embarkation port from Hong Kong to Singapore, barred Chinese nationals from boarding, and keep flouting their "improved" screening methods.

 

Security precautions are all well and good under normal circumstances. But the current coronavirus pandemic is an extraordinary situation that NCL needs to acknowledge and take appropriate steps to remedy, such as offering full refunds to valued passengers.

[graphicguy]

Wait about 2 weeks.  This will all blow over....except for Princess, which is a whole other mess.

[MazzyKn]

9 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

Hasn't the UK put into effect a travel advisory to China?  If they did, wouldn't that be a reason to cancel for your insurance to give you your money back?

We are sailing from Singapore on 27/2, no travel advisory for Singapore just China. Had we been booked on the sailing on 17/2 which changed embarkation from Hong Kong to Singapore, we would have been entitled to a full refund via our UK travel agency due to the significant change in itinerary.

[Atgatsea]

14 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 

Oh the irony!! 🤣

Isn’t it ironic that NCL’s posting of the ‘health and safety of our guests and crew is our number one priority’ messages have stopped and we are now hearing from user names never heard from before in this thread, saying they have “friend” having a wonderful time (sailing on a ship in the middle of a public health crisis), shifting blame from NCL to cruisers for not purchasing (worthless) insurance, and defending NCL’s position.  We know NCL monitors this forum, we know they have a social media team...  The timing of all this pushback, given the traction we are starting to see and the heat starting to be felt at NCL, is, I agree, hamrag, ironic indeed.

[vpearlkc]

1 minute ago, graphicguy said:

Wait about 2 weeks.  This will all blow over....except for Princess, which is a whole other mess.

 

Those poor people stuck on that ship. I am guessing that as long as there are new infections on board the quarantine will keep getting extended. Is there no way to test passengers before everyone on ship get this virus?  

 

 

[graphicguy]

Just now, vpearlkc said:

 

Those poor people stuck on that ship. I am guessing that as long as there are new infections on board the quarantine will keep getting extended. Is there no way to test passengers before everyone on ship get this virus?  

 

 

Not sure it’s a Princess thing.  I think it’s probably a Government thing.  But, the only people who really know what’s going on aren’t communicating very well...at least to the outside world.

[JCopp]

1 hour ago, Masekr11 said:

Excellent job! It seemed to have worked. I’ve been emailing, tweeting, sharing non-stop since Monday. Hopefully other major news channels will start running the story. Everyone get emailing, calling, tweeting, posting, etc. 

Good morning everyone , I've woken up and ready to fight. Glad to see others are too. Dont just read the boards. Do something! I will be calling NCL again today on top of having my travel agent call and apply pressure.  I will be using social media and email to contact as many people as possible and share the truth about what NCl is doing to its customers. I have meetings over the next 2 days where we are supposed to be going over the plan of what everyone is doing while I was meant to be on a cruise in Asia but Instesd I will be sharing with nearly 50 supervisors my experience with Norwegian Cruise Lies. For all the negative people on the board who keep saying you should have bought travel insurance STOP! If he had chosen any other cruise line we would have been refunded and planning our next cruise. Fight On!

[PhilBenz]

NCL's latest response to my persistent emails:

 

Quote

Dear Philip,

Thank you for the email.  We understand your concerns and strive to assist our guests whenever possible.  It is because of unexpected situations that we strongly recommend that guests obtain travel protection insurance. As a convenience to our guests, we offer various travel protection plans at time of booking, as well as during several follow up communications. Unfortunately it appears you elected not to purchase travel insurance.  

Furthermore, Norwegian Cruise Line has a cancellation policy which is communicated to our guests at time of booking and can be found on our website here: https://www.ncl.com/sites/default/files/Guest_Ticket_Contract_04-2017_2.pdf. This is a policy that our company strictly adheres too. 

We apologize for the frustration you are experiencing, regrettably we are unable to provide you with the resolution you seek.  All guests who opt to cancel are advised to contact their travel insurance carrier.

We thank you for your time concerning this matter and the opportunity to respond.

Needless to say, this is unhelpful and irresponsible. I'll keep you posted if I get replies from any of the news services I've contacted.

Edited February 12, 2020 by PhilBenz

[Atgatsea]

5 minutes ago, JCopp said:

Good morning everyone , I've woken up and ready to fight. Glad to see others are too. Dont just read the boards. Do something!

Bravo!

Edited February 12, 2020 by Atgatsea

[MadManOfBethesda]

7 minutes ago, PhilBenz said:

NCL's latest response to my persistent emails:

 

That boilerplate response borders on being insulting.  It would be interesting if any reporter (because NCL definitely isn't listening to passengers) asks NCL specifically why it is the only cruise line that is still marketing cruises sailing in Asia this month, is the only cruise line that hasn't cancelled cruises into or out of Singapore departing in February, and hasn't offered its passengers an opportunity to sail at a different time or in a different region.

[luv2kroooz]

Sure, that's an easy message to deliver to a passenger. That's a tougher message to deliver to media and the public given the events in and around the region. Notice that hasn't been distributed to the public.

 

No mention of passenger safety here. Just $$$. And what about their crew? They evidently couldn't care less about keeping them in the region.