Princess wont refund me for cancelled trip

[Notonboard]

On 2/17/2020 at 11:17 PM, vampiress said:

this forum is not maintained or officially monitored by princess.  i recommend you check their official announcement on the website about how they are refunding for cancelled cruises.  they are very busy processing all requests, so you should expect some delay in response. 

 

but at the end of the day, you chose to travel without cancel for any  reason insurance, this was always a possibility.  you should temper your over the top statements when this would have been avoided full stop for cancel insurance.

 

i don't expect you will get a lot of sympathy here since this is your first post and you are very negative and over the top.  i'll be shocked if you even bother to come back and reply.

What is cancel for any  reason insurance?

[Ombud]

CFAR INSURANCE = it's often sold as an add-on or premium extended policy that doesn't require a reason to change / cancel / modify. 

 

I've used it when I changed my mind about an airline because I found them to be iffy. I've also used it when an unscheduled interruption happened 2 days before. I did not give a reason (ok. I told USAA that the airline sounded squirrelly but still got back all but the amount I paid for the policy)

 

When I used CFAR through Princess I got back future cruise credit not $$s but that was okay

Edited February 20, 2020 by Ombud

[geoherb]

5 hours ago, memoak said:

Must disagree. I have taken over 40 cruises over the last 30 years and never taken out insurance. Saved thousands of dollars and if I have a need to cancel generally know it months before the cruise

 

Then you've been extremely lucky. We've used the cancellation insurance once. We've used the insurance to cover onboard visits to the medical center several times. Most recently, I just received a check for having to see the ship's doctor in December. It wasn't an amount that would have broken me, but a more serious condition might have been a huge unreimbursed cost without insurance. 

[PrincessLuver]

20 hours ago, KikiKruiser said:

 

 

Ask yourself:  so, if you don't buy travel insurance,  what's your plan if something happens?

My philosophy:  if you can't afford the insurance, you can't afford the trip...

 

I always debated buying trip insurance because my wife and I are healthy but I usually buy it just to have it.  

 

It only took one time for me to learn the value of it.  We were on a 40 plus day cruise and 5 days into the cruise I slipped accidentally and severely broke my elbow.  I went to medical and they did what they could and then it was ordered by the doctor to be put off at the next port so surgery could be performed.  This was all out of country.  Once the doctor gives the order to have you put off the ship no officer can over-ride that oder we found out.

 

Thank god we had the cruise line trip insurance.  All medical costs were covered on the ship immediately which were about $5,000. The cost to fly home one way for both of us (out of our pocket before reimbursement) was $2000 each and that was in economy.  

 

We were fully refunded all costs for the cruise which was significant money.  It was quite an ordeal and recovery took about 7 months but without the insurance we would have easily been out about $35,000.

 

Lesson learned.....never leave home without it when cruising.  We have met plenty of other cruisers with unexpected medical emergencies and some had insurance and some not....it pays to have it in my experience.  If people want to gamble with something or something not happening then to me that is all on them.

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by PrincessLuver

[1965]

PrincessLuver-I hope you fully recovered. What an ordeal! We always buy the insurance. So far, we've never needed it but your experience confirms the need to have it. 

[vampiress]

thanks for the assist everyone, i wasn't going to be great in explaining and refer to the forum link in the upper right for the Q&a with Insure my trip to learn more about different types of insurance.

 

i'm reasonably healthy, and we sailed a few times with out insurance thinking it's local and mexico is technically driving distance for us.  but now i just get insurance because, in my logic, if i can afford the cruise, i can afford the insurance, and i'd rather pay and not use it than have an oh 💩 moment while cruising and need it. 

[TheRabbit]

2 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

The main reason we feel travel insurance is necessary is to cover the cost of an accident or illness while on the trip and, worst of all, the need for medical evacuation.

 

We are able to use a 'free' travel insurance that comes with our credit card. We have to pay at least $250 of the cost of the trip on the card. If we have to claim, we have to pay the first $200. This type of insurance is available in Australia, but may not be available in other countries.

Many USA credit card companies have started limiting their travel insurance to level way below anything that will cover even a third of our loss, and no money for emergency transportation home. As we feel even the $100K for medical transport from Princess Platinum Insurance is not enough, we typically go with another major company signing up for a minimum of 250K

[TheRabbit]

2 hours ago, Notonboard said:

What is cancel for any  reason insurance?

I'm assuming you are talking about Princess Insurance. Cancel for any reason does not reimburse %100 percent until you get the platinum level., but covers you for any reason. The only difference is you get credit toward another cruise and not cash back (there are some exceptions such as tours). The cruise must be booked within a year to take advantage of the insurance.

 

Also, it only covers those items bought through Princess such as hotels or flights. Anything purchased outside of Princess is not covered.

[kkmiausa]

I posted a new topic on this but my 2 cents. I bought the basic insurance through Princess the one that allows cancel with any reason but rebook at 75 per cent within the year.  I want my money back minus the 25 per cent and not rebook. I feel in light of the   abhorrent circumstances on the Diamond Princess as well as the Caribbean Princess that had to return to Ft. Lauderdale early that they should make exceptions to anyone cruising in the next few weeks.  Our cruise is to go out February 25 from Ft. Lauderdale. We booked a suite so we are already out over $1200 taking the penalty and having to rebook before next year.   I do not want to again go on a Princess ship for any reason.

 

This from the most recent articles on the death of 2 passengers:

The authorities have said they are releasing only people who have tested negative for the virus and are showing no symptoms. But experts on infectious diseases have pointed to deficiencies in the quarantine protocols on the ship and questioned the decision to let them go free.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by kkmiausa
additional info

[leck57]

1 hour ago, kkmiausa said:

I posted a new topic on this but my 2 cents. I bought the basic insurance through Princess the one that allows cancel with any reason but rebook at 75 per cent within the year.  I want my money back minus the 25 per cent and not rebook. I feel in light of the   abhorrent circumstances on the Diamond Princess as well as the Caribbean Princess that had to return to Ft. Lauderdale early that they should make exceptions to anyone cruising in the next few weeks.  Our cruise is to go out February 25 from Ft. Lauderdale. We booked a suite so we are already out over $1200 taking the penalty and having to rebook before next year.   I do not want to again go on a Princess ship for any reason.

 

 

 

Why are you linking the situations on the Diamond Princess and Caribbean Princess. They are totally unrelated. One has a Novo outbreak which has happened many times before on all cruise lines and the other has had a problem never experienced before.

As for the insurance, you bought the policy knowing what was in it. I certainly think the Diamond Princess passengers and any others booked on it in the next few months should get full refunds and some compensation but you are in nothing like that situation.

I can't see what you are complaining about and trying to link your situation to those on the Diamond is fanciful.

[Veerraj]

Leck57 that is cold and heartless post.

They are totally related (Diamond Princess and Caribbean Princess). You should understand that these are tough times and a cruise ship isnt a place where one wants to be right now. All it takes is 1 person to infect the entire ship. 

[Aus Traveller]

10 minutes ago, Veerraj said:

Leck57 that is cold and heartless post.

They are totally related (Diamond Princess and Caribbean Princess). You should understand that these are tough times and a cruise ship isnt a place where one wants to be right now. All it takes is 1 person to infect the entire ship. 

We leave on Sunday on our next cruise and do not anticipate any problems. If someone brings Noro on board, we are unlikely (I use the word 'unlikely') to catch it. It is usually transmitted by the person's own hands that have picked up the virus from hand rails or lift buttons or in the bathroom. They can then pass this onto their food (breadrolls etc) or directly if they put their hands in their mouth (rather unlikely).

 

I am reasonably confident that there will not be any cases of coronavirus on a ship operating out of Australia. The only cases we have had are from Chinese tour groups and these people were quickly hospitalized in isolation units. Others returning from Wuhan or from the Diamond Princess have gone into 14-day quarantine. They won't be on our ship on Sunday.🙂

[OzKiwiJJ]

26 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

 They can then pass this onto their food (breadrolls etc)

Another good reason to avoid the breadrolls (apart from the  effect they have on my waistline). 🤣

 

Have a great cruise.

Edited February 20, 2020 by OzKiwiJJ

[fragilek]

Firstly I hope for anyone caught up in this that princess can sort out a good solution  it does seem like they have tried to so far

It is a horrid position for those worried about their travel, however  it isn't princesses doing and I am sure it's a exeptional situation for them too.  

Secondly  can I say once again  to those shouting about insurance . Cancel for any reason it not available to all counties. Not for uk or Australia and I believe many other eu nations too. Infact with my health conditions  the best ( and very expensive ) insurance I can get has a $500pp excess for cancellation  even if I am ill 

 

UK can only cancel if u or someone travelling with is ill or die or a close relative is very ill from a previous non existing condition.

[caribill]

 

Posted by kkmiausa

"I posted a new topic on this but my 2 cents. I bought the basic insurance through Princess the one that allows cancel with any reason but rebook at 75 per cent within the year.  I want my money back minus the 25 per cent and not rebook. I feel in light of the   abhorrent circumstances on the Diamond Princess as well as the Caribbean Princess that had to return to Ft. Lauderdale early that they should make exceptions to anyone cruising in the next few weeks.  Our cruise is to go out February 25 from Ft. Lauderdale. We booked a suite so we are already out over $1200 taking the penalty and having to rebook before next year.   I do not want to again go on a Princess ship for any reason."

 

 

You were not booked to cruise in an area where the virus is a problem. "Fear of cruising" is not a reason to not follow the contract as far as refunds are concerned.

[Reader0108598]

On 2/18/2020 at 11:38 PM, Veerraj said:

Ok that is really symapathic from you KiKi. Despite knowing my situation, you are going to dwell on me not buying travel insurance and make it sound as if this is all my fault? Where is your heart? 

I worked many a double shift to afford our vacations always bought trip insurance ! Paid off the time I got dizzy fell backwards hit a night stand and fractured 3 ribs!!Pulling doubles in your  late fifties midnight to 4pm the next day was not easy but that is what I did to afford vacation.No money did not come easy to us either!  We still bought trip insurance!

 

 

 

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by Reader0108598

[leck57]

3 hours ago, Veerraj said:

Leck57 that is cold and heartless post.

They are totally related (Diamond Princess and Caribbean Princess). You should understand that these are tough times and a cruise ship isnt a place where one wants to be right now. All it takes is 1 person to infect the entire ship. 

 

Not intending to be heartless at all. I maintain that the situation on Diamond Princess and Caribbean Princess are worlds apart. The Diamond situation is a one off tragic situation that requires full support from everyone. Nervous types that want to cancel a cruise because of the unlikely event that they might be on a cruise where Novo breaks out is entirely different. 

You may not want to be on a cruise ship right now and in relation to Asia I agree with you but I can't wait until my next cruise. My Asian cruise on Sapphire Princess was cancelled on Sunday and by Monday I had booked a replacement. 

 

[kywildcatfanone]

The cruise line would cancel cruises they needed to that were affected by the virus.  You sound a bit paranoid, and that is not the cruise line's fault. 

 

I hope you find another cruise line that suits you.

[fluffybunny22]

3 hours ago, kywildcatfanone said:

The cruise line would cancel cruises they needed to that were affected by the virus.  You sound a bit paranoid, and that is not the cruise line's fault. 

 

I hope you find another cruise line that suits you.

I think they should find a different kind of vacation to take. If they have an issue with Princess they are going to have an issue with any of the other cruise lines. May I suggest Disney where everything is magical and they bend over backwards for their guests. If you want to experience the world just go to Epcot.

[LDVinNC]

53 minutes ago, fluffybunny22 said:

I think they should find a different kind of vacation to take. If they have an issue with Princess they are going to have an issue with any of the other cruise lines. May I suggest Disney where everything is magical and they bend over backwards for their guests. If you want to experience the world just go to Epcot.

I doubt you are any safer at Disney.  All those little kids running around, touching everything...lots of germs coming from all over the world!  You just have to take whatever precautions you can - everywhere you travel.

[Gwendy]

You can get sick from sitting next to someone with poor hygiene in a plane, train, bus or anywhere.  Practice good hygiene yourself and avoid messy situations.  corona virus is a one off and unfortunate but Princess and other cruise lines are bound by the regulations of the country they are in.

i believe they have tried their best in a difficult situation.  However I read a post the other day about a woman wanting to cancel a cruise on the Mississippi because of Corona!

Travel insurance, Australia’s foreign affairs travel web page says it all.  If you can’t afford insurance you can’t afford to travel.

yes I have “wasted” thousands over the years on travel insurance, but one case stays in my mind.  A very fit, healthy young woman tripped over a gutter in Noumea and broke her ankle.  No travel insurance, but had to fly home to Australia.  All up costs were in the thousands.  

[Cindy]

On 2/18/2020 at 8:22 PM, Veerraj said:

I am here, I didnt run away. I just returned from finishing 2 shifts. I work double shifts as I am a single income earner of a family of 6. I sincerely hope that Princess does refund me. I mean I worked double shifts to be able to book this trip for my family and I dont know about others of you on this forum but living pay cheque to pay cheque isnt easy. It took me 4 years to save up for this trip. I hope you guys can understand the distress this has been for me. I have lost money in hotel cancellation as well. Saving every penny has been difficult. If I had the luxury to afford for travel cancallation insurance I would have but if you look at my situation, things dont come easy. When you are the single income earner, you try and save every penny.  I hope you guys on this forum as well as Princess Crusies.

 

Travel insurance isn’t a luxury — it needs to be considered part of the cost of a luxury vacation. I know this sounds uncaring, but if you can’t afford the insurance then you really can’t afford the trip. I am fortunate in that I could absorb the cost of an unexpected cancellation (even though I wouldn’t want to!). What I couldn’t afford is the cost of a medical emergency overseas — a medical crisis or serious accident requiring surgery, evacuation, and repatriation could run into the tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. For that reason I often pay an up-charge to make our travel insurance our primary coverage so that the travel insurance would pay without us having to pay out of pocket and then file with our regular insurance company first.

 

 

On 2/19/2020 at 11:30 PM, Veerraj said:

I hope they refund you the money in full in light of the situation of coronavirus. If they don't refund you outright cash then Princess wont only lose you but many other customers, this includes existing and new customers as well. Princess has disappointed as well. I do hope that I get full refund as well as per their announcement. That being said, I was insulted by how the Princess Agent treated me. My flight was scheduled from Beijing to Singapore for March 12 sailing. The agent kept saying,  that you need to rebook a flight at your own expense through a non China route. This would have meant additional $350 to $400 in costs.  The agent kept pressuring me into not cancelling saying that, I will lose more money if I do so. This was unacceptable. It felt like all they cared for was my money.  Iam lucky that Air China understood to my situation and refunded me. I am also glad that I didnt book another flight. In the end I might get the refund but Iam disappointed at Hugh Forty the Princess agent and how they treated me through out the whole process.

Since you cancelled before Princess cancelled your cruise, the agent was correct in his advice. The phone agents aren’t authorized to deviate from the policy. This is all new and sudden — it takes time to look at all the options and get things in place. Fortunately for you Princess is going to offer a compensation package for people like you who cancelled on or after January 20. This is unprecedented, and I’m sorry you think it’s OK to publicly name/shame a Princess rep who was just performing his job.

 

I’m a cruise fan and follow several lines on Facebook. Every day there’s a complaint from someone who had (fill in the blank) emergency and is angry because the cruise line won’t allow a date change or a cancellation. All those people think they should be the exception to the policy, and they make a scene when they’re not.  I hope you get your money back, but I also hope you learned something from this experience. All cruise lines have very similar cancellation policies. Whether you agree with them or not, you have to accept them in order to cruise. If you can’t afford to self-insure (lose the cost of the trip) because of a cancellation then you can’t afford the cruise. 

Edited February 21, 2020 by Cindy

[RocketMan275]

On 2/19/2020 at 10:01 PM, kkmiausa said:

I posted a new topic on this but my 2 cents. I bought the basic insurance through Princess the one that allows cancel with any reason but rebook at 75 per cent within the year.  I want my money back minus the 25 per cent and not rebook. I feel in light of the   abhorrent circumstances on the Diamond Princess as well as the Caribbean Princess that had to return to Ft. Lauderdale early that they should make exceptions to anyone cruising in the next few weeks.  Our cruise is to go out February 25 from Ft. Lauderdale. We booked a suite so we are already out over $1200 taking the penalty and having to rebook before next year.   I do not want to again go on a Princess ship for any reason.

You should be contacting the Japanese government.  They are the ones imposing those conditions on Diamond Princess.  I see no reason for Princess to pay you for their compliance with a foreign government.

 

Noro on Caribbean Princess is a 'red herring'.  Cruise ships have noro all the time.  In fact, there are an estimated 19 to 21 million cases of noro in the US every year.  

[Veerraj]

I still havent received an email from Princess regarding anything about the compensation package. I know it is on their announcements on their website but I am wondering if any of you got an email from Princess Cruises directly.

 

I did email the Princess Cruise Agent but not even a courtesy reply. Funny thing is before I booked this trip, I would get a call every 4th day to convince me to book or try and sell me future cruise.

 

Anyways let's see what happens.

[frugaltravel]

On 2/18/2020 at 11:06 PM, KikiKruiser said:

 

 

Ask yourself:  so, if you don't buy travel insurance,  what's your plan if something happens?

My philosophy:  if you can't afford the insurance, you can't afford the trip...

Not true at all. Glad it is only your philosophy and not everyone's 😀

 

Some people self insure. They have enough funds to cover any such expenses. For me, the main reason I buy travel insurance is the med evac and emergency medical benefit. I can self-insure trip delay etc. Some people kissy don't want the added expense of travel insurance and are willing to take the risk. That is their choice.

Edited February 21, 2020 by frugaltravel