Likelihood of Princess modifying their cancel policy

[Potstech]

DW and 5 other relatives n that same Mar 22 Regal cruise. None are talking about canceling. With the many ships and thousands of passengers it would be devastating to allow any and all passengers to cancel for this reason.  I could see certain cruises to highly affected areas but not all cruises going anywhere.

[fluffybunny22]

We are booked on the 6/8 sailing of the Sky with my in laws who are in their 70's. This weekend we discussed if we still wanted to go. We all still do. My FIL does not seem to think he's elderly or falls in the high risk category. Who am I to burst his bubble? Last night my MIL texted to have me check the cancellation policy. We have until the 10th to cancel and get everything back. Just in case something happens last night we booked next year's Sky Baltic sailing. We've been trying to do this itinerary for a while and something always comes up. We might just not be destined to do the Baltics. My husband's biggest worry is our dogs so we called the kennel to tell them we would be out of the country and don't have anyone local to pick up and care for the dogs should we get stuck somewhere. They assured us they would continue to care for our dogs should we not make it home on schedule. I think my husband feels better knowing this. My husband is taking his work laptop with us anyways so if we get stuck somewhere he can work remotely.

[lkoegle]

57 minutes ago, voljeep said:

then I want a refund of all the CFAR insurance we have purchased over the years and never used a single time, not even a visit to the on board doctor 

Pretty sure that’s not how insurance works. That’s like saying you want a refund for all of your years paying car insurance cause you’ve never had an accident... yeah no. 🙄

[bnickle]

1 hour ago, luckyinpa said:

 

i submit us that like cursing be permanently put on a ship, all expenses paid, that way the people scared of us never have to see us again 🙂 

 

1 hour ago, weedpindle said:

So, don't go to the grocery store, WalMart, Wally World, anywhere there are more than 2 people and you may be safe. No Doctor visit, Dentist, restaurant. Or go on the cruise, live life normally.

 

It’s normal for people to have concerns, especially about travel.  It’s not only possible exposure that is worrying.  It’s the possibility of sudden quarantine, more missed work, lack of accessibility to other family members...there are a lot of reasons for someone to be concerned.  What should not be a concern is expressing, calmly, something that worries you and having people snark on you because you simply have a question about wellbeing not only for you, but those traveling with you who may be facing additional challanges.  We can all try to be a little kinder right now.  There’s a lot of information (and misinformation) to sift through.  But any concerns someone has for themself and those around them is legit and should be treated with respect.

[2wheelin]

24 minutes ago, lkoegle said:

Pretty sure that’s not how insurance works. That’s like saying you want a refund for all of your years paying car insurance cause you’ve never had an accident... yeah no. 🙄

You totally missed their point. It being that if the cruise line allowed anyone to cancel with no penalty, those who had purchased insurance would have paid a premium for it but still be treated the same as you who did not purchase. That is like saying you don’t pay for car insurance but if you get hit you should be totally compensated because it was not foreseeable.

Maybe the cruise line could relax the cancel penalties but to say they should take the full hit financially is ridiculous. Sure some of those who cancel now will sail later but that ties up cabins which otherwise would be paid for by another cruiser so the line is still out the money for empty cabins now.

[Ombud]

1 hour ago, resistk said:

Cruise lines depend on consumer goodwill and spend millions on marketing to get that "love."  Being viewed as profit oriented in a crisis sounds like a good way to lose consumer confidence.

When is your Princess Cruise? Are you able to cancel?

Edited March 5, 2020 by Ombud

[bookmama22]

Personally I think Princess is being extremely short-sighted here. Everyone has their own opinion about trip insurance. In the past have never used beyond what is covered by my AMEX and homeowner's policy. As we get older I think about it more. Be that as it may we are dealing with unknowns with this coronavirus situation and I believe it will be much worse before it gets better and there isn't anyone out there with a clue as to when that might be. Might be a year or two. I understand that Princess is a corporation and looking for revenue and profit. It is unfortunate for them as it is for hotels, theme parks, tourist destinations, restaurants, shopping malls, movie theaters and possibly the Olympics and so on but the bad press they are getting here and for everyone who turns on nightly news to see that now 2 princess ships have been affected directly as well as ships including the Sky in which ports are turning ships away from disembarkation will last much longer outweighs the revenue hit they will take for this fiscal year.

[CHB007]

14 minutes ago, 2wheelin said:

You totally missed their point. It being that if the cruise line allowed anyone to cancel with no penalty, those who had purchased insurance would have paid a premium for it but still be treated the same as you who did not purchase. That is like saying you don’t pay for car insurance but if you get hit you should be totally compensated because it was not foreseeable.

We are Elite and are on the Sky Princess for a 17 nt. TA in April, but got third party insurance for higher medical and medical evacuation coverages and also for coverage for time we have scheduled in Europe after the cruise.  We did not elect to get the CFAR through the third party provider, which was maxed out at 75% benefit.  The COVID-19 was not an issue at that time.  Just for information, our policy is the same underwriter as the Princess Policies.

 

If I book at this cruise today through the Princess website, for the same perks and cabin class (and cruise fare as I originally paid), I would pay $193.83 pp (roughly 7.25% of the cruise fare) for Platinum coverage through Princess.  I would gladly be open to Princess allowing me to purchase Platinum Protection with CFAR now, AFTER we have already made final payment, under these extreme circumstances.  Our final payment was in December, before this all escalated.   

 

Would that not be more than fair to everyone?  In that case, I am not getting off for free, I would have paid the same as everyone for princess CFAR protection, (actually more, I would now have two travel protection policies) but now have the option to make better decisions about this cruise and our health.

 

We are worried that as things develop here  with the Grand, and in Europe overall, people with the CFAR for our cruise may cancel last minute, within the cancellation parameters, and the cruise could not go, albeit a low probability.  There are quite a few empty cabins for the shorter 14 nt. TA only portion of the cruise as of yesterday,  I counted over 100 as being available for reservation through the Princess website.

[jat1977]

1 minute ago, CHB007 said:

The COVID-19 was not an issue at that time. 

 

If I book at this cruise today through the Princess website, for the same perks and cabin class (and cruise fare as I originally paid), I would pay $193.83 pp (roughly 7.25% of the cruise fare) for Platinum coverage through Princess.  I would gladly be open to Princess allowing me to purchase Platinum Protection with CFAR now, AFTER we have already made final payment, under these extreme circumstances.  Our final payment was in December, before this all escalated.   

 

Would that not be more than fair to everyone?  In that case, I am not getting off for free, I would have paid the same as everyone for princess CFAR protection, (actually more, I would now have two travel protection policies) but now have the option to make better decisions about this cruise and our health.

We were in the same circumstance in that at time of final payment in mid-December, Covid-19 hadn't been announced yet.  If Princess were to offer this an an option --i.e., currently booked passengers can cancel/modify as long as they forfeit the price of Princess Platinum protection--we would likely take advantage of that offer.  I think that would be very fair since as you mentioned, we wouldn't be getting anything better than those who purchased the PP plan earlier.  Indeed, like you, we would still be in a worse position because we also purchased a basic travel insurance policy so we would be out that money too.  But it would still be better than eating the full cost of the cruise.  But there is no way Princess's underwriter would allow that . . .

[Sunwanabe]

With another Princess ship in limbo of the west coast for possible outbreak, it would be prudent for Princess to step up and give customers choices on upcoming cruises. At bare minimum I would expect a credit for a future cruise. The current state of things is a major blow to the cruise industry. Princess should care for their existing customers now in this predicament in order to retain their loyalty for the future when things improve.   

[Fido Chuckwagon]

2 hours ago, Jaylaw2 said:

So far, Princess has made no offers to passengers booked on their future cruises.  We are on the March 22 sailing of the Grand Princess and I just asked them for an option to get a credit for a future Princess sailing.    We are 78 and 80 and I explained that we were concerned that some of the crew may be incubating the virus.  The answer was "no".

 

In contrast to this, Viking has already offered us the option to change to any cruise, river or ocean, in the next 2 years.  More than fair.

 

It's time for Princess to step up and do the right thing.

This is terrible.  With that said, looking at what's happening to stock prices for the cruise lines, I'm guessing that one or more of the major ones are going to be bankrupt within 6 months.  Given policies like these I certainly won't shed a tear for them, they're getting what they deserve.

[2wheelin]

11 minutes ago, CHB007 said:

We are Elite and are on the Sky Princess for a 17 nt. TA in April, but got third party insurance for higher medical and medical evacuation coverages and also for coverage for time we have scheduled in Europe after the cruise.  We did not elect to get the CFAR through the third party provider, which was maxed out at 75% benefit.  The COVID-19 was not an issue at that time.  Just for information, our policy is the same underwriter as the Princess Policies.

 

If I book at this cruise today through the Princess website, for the same perks and cabin class (and cruise fare as I originally paid), I would pay $193.83 pp (roughly 7.25% of the cruise fare) for Platinum coverage through Princess.  I would gladly be open to Princess allowing me to purchase Platinum Protection with CFAR now, AFTER we have already made final payment, under these extreme circumstances.  Our final payment was in December, before this all escalated.   

 

Would that not be more than fair to everyone?  In that case, I am not getting off for free, I would have paid the same as everyone for princess CFAR protection, (actually more, I would now have two travel protection policies) but now have the option to make better decisions about this cruise and our health.

 

We are worried that as things develop here  with the Grand, and in Europe overall, people with the CFAR for our cruise may cancel last minute, within the cancellation parameters, and the cruise could not go, albeit a low probability.  There are quite a few empty cabins for the shorter 14 nt. TA only portion of the cruise as of yesterday,  I counted over 100 as being available for reservation through the Princess website.

That is kind of like not getting liability insurance on your car and now you have a freak ice storm in FL (unexpected for sure) and total your car. Should you now be able to add liability insurance?

I agree that full cancellation penalties could be relaxed to maybe withholding at least double the cost of CFAR insurance from full refund. This would still put some responsibility on the consumer as it should be, unless the cruise line cancels.

As an insurance purchaser, I do not feel those who felt it was not necessary should get the same benefit without a higher cost. The argument that this was totally unpredictable doesn’t cut it. This is the reason for insurance.

[CHB007]

10 minutes ago, jat1977 said:

We were in the same circumstance in that at time of final payment in mid-December, Covid-19 hadn't been announced yet.  If Princess were to offer this an an option --i.e., currently booked passengers can cancel/modify as long as they forfeit the price of Princess Platinum protection--we would likely take advantage of that offer.  I think that would be very fair since as you mentioned, we wouldn't be getting anything better than those who purchased the PP plan earlier.  Indeed, like you, we would still be in a worse position because we also purchased a basic travel insurance policy so we would be out that money too.  But it would still be better than eating the full cost of the cruise.  But there is no way Princess's underwriter would allow that . . .

I don't think that is part of the coverage provided by the Underwriter.  The screenshot I attached shows that it is separate, except for NY and Washington State (See numbered footnotes).  The Cancellation Fee Waiver Program is  shown as a non-insurance benefit provided by Princess Cruises itself.

[crystalspin]

3 hours ago, afurman said:

I'm debating what to do for a cruise in June out of Rome.  I called Princess and asked what's the status of the Enchanted Princess and they said the ship is still on time, is that true or not.  Money is due tomorrow for that cruise and I'm worried about putting down that type of money for it to either be cancelled or Italy is out for travel.  

If a drastic itinerary change is not to your liking -- Now is the time for you to cancel. Call early; the lines may be jammed.

 

The people past their Final Payment Date who did not choose to buy CFAR insurance, I'm not so sure about. Lots of people watching their house burn down, wish they had bought fire insurance -- State Farm does not write them a check. Whatever the cruiseline(s) gives you is a step towards their financial demise.

 

It's a choice Viking has made, but most of us weren't paying the cost of Viking's product. It's fair to say their business model is different than mainstream lines.

Edited March 5, 2020 by crystalspin

[CHB007]

4 minutes ago, 2wheelin said:

I agree that full cancellation penalties could be relaxed to maybe withholding at least double the cost of CFAR insurance from full refund. This would still put some responsibility on the consumer as it should be, unless the cruise line cancels.

The CFAR is something Princess is still offering at the same price I quoted for cabins on my same cruise for anyone who purchases them today, so Princess is obviously willing to take the same liability today for the same cost of benefit on new reservations.  If that is the case, not sure why should I pay more than I would if I reserved today and purchased the protection under this extreme situation of a possible pandemic.  Ordinarily, I might agree, but not with this situation.  We always get travel insurance, just not always  CFAR unless we get it through Princess for certain cruises closer to home.

 

I did not cancel my cruise and then now asking for a refund, and my cruise has not yet departed, so my car is not quite wrecked yet........

[KevintheIrishDJ]

3 hours ago, jat1977 said:

Did you have basic travel insurance?  And the suggestion is that you file a claim with the travel insurance and then when it gets denied, you can ask Princess for a future cruise credit?

 

Or did you have CFAR insurance?  That would make more sense to me since you mentioned getting a cruise credit for the full amount of your cancelled cruise.    

We have Aon insurance from Princess.

[jat1977]

9 minutes ago, 2wheelin said:

That is kind of like not getting liability insurance on your car and now you have a freak ice storm in FL (unexpected for sure) and total your car. Should you now be able to add liability insurance?

I agree that full cancellation penalties could be relaxed to maybe withholding at least double the cost of CFAR insurance from full refund. This would still put some responsibility on the consumer as it should be, unless the cruise line cancels.

As an insurance purchaser, I do not feel those who felt it was not necessary should get the same benefit without a higher cost. The argument that this was totally unpredictable doesn’t cut it. This is the reason for insurance.

Except that both the person who posed the hypothetical and myself did already purchase travel insurance--just not CFAR.  So in the hypothetical, we are still being held "responsible" for our decision to not purchase the CFAR in the first place, albeit in a lesser amount (i.e., the cost of the basic travel insurance + cost of CFAR) than what you propose.  Considering all the things that our basic travel insurance did cover (pre-cruise illness, job loss, job requirement to be at work, natural disaster impacting home, death in the family, jury duty, illness on the cruise, emergency evacuation, etc.) and considering that there was literally no reason that we would cancel (all school/job schedules verified and everyone firmly committed to go), that is why we elected not to spend the extra money on the CFAR; we thought we had sufficiently protected our investment.  Yes, insurance is for unpredictable events.  But this is more than that.  We have had other virus scares over the years, but I don't recall them ever resulting in cruise ship quarantines and deaths.   

 

Based on what other cruise lines are doing, why wouldn't Princess just modify their policy to allow people who are scheduled to depart within the next two months the chance to at the very least move their cruise, especially those who fall into the high-risk category?   Princess can still keep the money and just issue a future cruise credit that has to be used within a certain time.  The currently booked passengers can adjust their plans and won't be out the money.  And Princess can then resell the now-empty cabins to those who wish to take the risk.  Meanwhile only those with CFAR coverage can cancel and get a refund, something that those without CFAR would not get.  How is that not a win-win situation for everyone? 

 

Don't get me wrong - I totally understand the cruise lines are a business, and I agree they shouldn't have to bear all financial responsibility here.  But I think some sort of compromise in these extremely unique circumstances could go a long way for Princess's reputation.  And if I was someone who had purchased CFAR, I wouldn't want to *punish* those who had not under these extreme circumstances.  In any event, I think the point of my post has been lost . . . this wasn't about whether or not people should have purchased CFAR insurance to protect against a pandemic.  It was simply seeking opinions as to the likelihood that Princess will modify their cancel policy.  

[cherylandtk]

1 hour ago, CHB007 said:

 

If I book at this cruise today through the Princess website, for the same perks and cabin class (and cruise fare as I originally paid), I would pay $193.83 pp (roughly 7.25% of the cruise fare) for Platinum coverage through Princess. 

You are incorrect. Princess insurance is not available to anyone booking after final payment date.

 

https://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/prepare.jsp

 

(It’s about halfway down the page, 2nd paragraph under the bolded heading that starts with “24/7”)

[voljeep]

Princess has set a new "Princess precedent" on this latest cancellation of the Grand cruise on 3/7

 

If you cancelled beforehand, you cancelled under the terms and conditions you agreed to at the time of booking

 

When Princess just cancelled that cruise, it was their terms that you would get a full refund credited back to your method of payment, plus a 100% of cruise fare as a future cruise credit - regardless of insurance or not

 

you roll the dice and take your chances ..

Edited March 5, 2020 by voljeep

[mek]

3 hours ago, resistk said:

 

Cruise lines depend on consumer goodwill and spend millions on marketing to get that "love."  Being viewed as profit oriented in a crisis sounds like a good way to lose consumer confidence.

So at what point do you determine what is good will?  Let anyone who wants to cancel do so with no financial consequences?  Just restrict it to anyone over 60, 70, 80????? People under 60 who want to cancel will love that. This should not just be a one way street where the cruise line has to suck up all of the loss.  If it is too dangerous to cruise, then the cruise should be canceled and people given a full refund, but if it's not canceled, then it's up to people to bear some of the responsibility if they decide not to take the trip.

[cruis'nrachel]

First time posting on this site, first time cruiser and I'm booked for the Regal on March 15th.  Fort Lauderdale - Eastern Carribean.  I purchased the standard vacation protection when I booked my cruise a year ago and I'm confused about the rules.  Is CFAR different than this?  I don't want to go anymore but also can't really afford to be out all the money I spent.  I saved for 2 years to take this cruise as a single mom with my teen daughter for my 40th birthday.  I'm just sick over all this.  Any advice is appreciated!    

[cherylandtk]

7 minutes ago, cruis'nrachel said:

First time posting on this site, first time cruiser and I'm booked for the Regal on March 15th.  Fort Lauderdale - Eastern Carribean.  I purchased the standard vacation protection when I booked my cruise a year ago and I'm confused about the rules.  Is CFAR different than this?  I don't want to go anymore but also can't really afford to be out all the money I spent.  I saved for 2 years to take this cruise as a single mom with my teen daughter for my 40th birthday.  I'm just sick over all this.  Any advice is appreciated!    

If you purchased Standard Princess insurance it covers 75% CFAR. (As credit-not cash)

Edited March 5, 2020 by cherylandtk

[luckyinpa]

1 minute ago, cruis'nrachel said:

First time posting on this site, first time cruiser and I'm booked for the Regal on March 15th.  Fort Lauderdale - Eastern Carribean.  I purchased the standard vacation protection when I booked my cruise a year ago and I'm confused about the rules.  Is CFAR different than this?  I don't want to go anymore but also can't really afford to be out all the money I spent.  I saved for 2 years to take this cruise as a single mom with my teen daughter for my 40th birthday.  I'm just sick over all this.  Any advice is appreciated!    

 

the princess platinum paid back 100% of my cruise in form of a future credit i had to use by the end of the next y ear when i couldnt go. the std. plan is less, someone else will have to tell you the percent. i think 80 maybe?

 

i now buy true CFAR insurance from trip insurance store. it pays you in cash 75% if you decide you just dont wanna go. i think it was about 100 more than just the standard plan. concrete example. cruise fare was 5K and my insurance was 340 for 2 ppl. age matters with this kind of insurance

[voljeep]

start with … did you book thru a Travel Agent (TA) or directly with Princess ?

 

did you book the 'standard' or upgraded insurance thru Princess ?

[voljeep]

1 minute ago, cherylandtk said:

If you purchased Standard Princess insurance it covers 75% CFAR.

for a March 15th cruise , that would be a future cruise credit, correct ?