Cancelled Cruises Refund Tracker/Discussion (merged topics)

[Roddo]

My cruise (Reflection on 3rd April) was cancelled by Celebrity on 13th March. I cancelled all my shore excursion etc on the same day. I received a refund for all these this morning. 
Today (within only a couple of hours of emailing) I received this reply to my enquiry about the main cruise cost:

 

‘Thank you for your email.
I am glad you have received your shore excursions money back.
For the main part of the cruise this was requested on the 19th March 2020, So this will be back to the travel agent within 30 days of this date, we are working through refunds ASAP as we have increased volumes to get though this is why we are giving a 30 day turn over.
The Agency will then refund you from there.
I hope this helps and we look forward to seeing you in the future.‘

 

I am impressed with how this has been dealt with at such a difficult time

Edited April 2, 2020 by Roddo

[hcat]

Thanks for the info...helps us feel we are not alone.

No receipts given, no  refund transaction numbers provided and  yet they claim it is done. Really amateurish!

 

Cruise With  Confidence  is a total misnomer in our view!

Will post when or if we get our card refunded for both cancellations . One more  $900 deposit cancellation to go but  we will wait a bit...

[Purplsmurf]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

We were also booked for a March 14, 21 and 28 Cruises and have heard nothing from Celebrity yet, but in my CC account they are showing as past cruises and actually have point applied against one.   hmmmmm....

Dang! I got excited so checked my account .....we didn’t get any points 😩

[hcat]

1 hour ago, Purplsmurf said:

Dang! I got excited so checked my account .....we didn’t get any points 😩

Salt in the wounds

[Essiesmom]

Got the points, but I'd rather have my refund.  EM

[Essiesmom]

Well there has been slight movement in the refund area.  Got an email from Celebrity that my prepaid internet package has been refunded to my card, but it may take up to two billing cycles to show.  Snail's pace, but at least there is movement.  EM

[rosadilla]

 I had planned a cruise next September. I ended up cancelling that on March 10th, and was told by Celebrity Cruises that I would get a refund in 10 days or so. Well, it's April 3rd and I still don't have my money. They keep saying it is "in process". Outrageous!

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, rosadilla said:

 I had planned a cruise next September. I ended up cancelling that on March 10th, and was told by Celebrity Cruises that I would get a refund in 10 days or so. Well, it's April 3rd and I still don't have my money. They keep saying it is "in process". Outrageous!

File a dispute on your Credit Card.    You will receive an immediate TEMPORARY credit.

[hcat]

We will do that on Monday if no progress .

Spoke with someone from resolutions  dept today after  very nice X rep had me on hold for a long wait    Reso person said dates that  were previously given to us for the refunds to card were wrong...last 2 were 4/1  April Fools Day..!

 

Also said that credit card co has a direct line to  check on the refunds.  Card co now has a 45 hold time...so we will have to wait on this ...

Cruising with X has become a big  p... i.... t... a......

[hdwgby]

Cancelled a Princess May 16th cruise, back on March 19th. Was told it would take 5 to 10 days for refund. When it didn't show up by the 29th, called Princess and was told 20 to 30 days. Called again this week, NOW PRINCESS IS SAYING 30 to 60 DAYS FOR A REFUND!! 

 

After watching CCL stock plummet and their issuance of $5+ Billion in 12% junk bonds to try and survive on, I began to wonder if they would declare bankruptcy before the credit even issued. Could it be they have made a high level decision to string refunds out as far as possible, which 60 days just happens to overlap with their "resumption" of operations? By doing so, they use our money for free and avoid 12% interest on the junk bonds. Just a theory. 

 

At any rate, I called the CC company and filed a dispute. They said I will have a temporary credit in two days, then Princess will have 45 days to respond to them. What is unclear is if they declare bankruptcy in the interim, whether the CC will reverse the temporary credit and force me to go after Princess, or whether they will convert the temporary credit to permanent credit and go after the funds themselves.

 

No matter what happens to Princess, they have lost the trust of so many long time passengers like my family. What has been the cruise industry's biggest asset, a large pool of cheap third world workers, that has now become one of their biggest liabilities. MANY times I have seen waiters and stewards working when they were quite obviously sick. Then there are the arrogant stupid cruisers that don't use hand sanitizer at the buffets! Now, we have all seen just how serious things can be on a floating Petrie dish. Not sure where all this will end, but cruising will NEVER be the same again.

[If only]

Just to let everyone know that we finally received our letters from Celebrity stating the 25% refund amount for our b2b cruises on April 12 & 20 that were cancelled on Mar 11 when our government issued 4 status of no travel.  Now let’s see how long it takes our Visa card to post the credits.   Btw letter was dated April 1..... They are correct amounts & sent by Celebrity Executive.

Edited April 3, 2020 by If only

[CulverCityCruisers]

Spoke to Celebrity today and not very pleased with the response.  I asked for a letter or email indicating that they ad received my request for a full refund on our cancelled cruise. The response was not acceptable to me.  " We don't have the capacity to issue a confirmation email or letter to you". WHAT??

 

Well it is only 2020 and IT just can't figure this out yet GIVE ME A BREAK!!  So disappointing that  ROYAL can't simply sent a confirmation that they have received your request to either take the 100% refund or the FCC

[barb-ottawa]

On 4/2/2020 at 12:28 PM, thon said:

I requested a refund online as soon as I got the 13 March email from Celebrity cancelling my cruise.  Today I got a 2nd set of luggage tags in the mail for the cancelled Silhouette cruise that would have left FLL last Friday!  I sure hope these tags aren’t sent as a replacement for my refund LOL.  Some things you just have to laugh at!!

Odd - I just got a second set of luggage tags for our cancelled March 23rd Reflection cruise in the mail today. I too am hoping these don't replace my refund and continue to check my credit card account a couple of times a day.

[Schmoe38]

2 hours ago, If only said:

Just to let everyone know that we finally received our letters from Celebrity stating the 25% refund amount for our b2b cruises on April 12 & 20 that were cancelled on Mar 11 when our government issued 4 status of no travel.  Now let’s see how long it takes our Visa card to post the credits.   Btw letter was dated April 1..... They are correct amounts & sent by Celebrity Executive.

Shirley

 

Thank you so much for giving us an update. We are in a similar position as you and it is refreshing to hear that being patient has its own rewards. 
 

Perhaps we can have a little contest to see whose credit shows up first....and no fair fudging on the date and time just to collect!
 

Randy

Edited April 3, 2020 by Schmoe38

[If only]

2 hours ago, Schmoe38 said:

Shirley

 

Thank you so much for giving us an update. We are in a similar position as you and it is refreshing to hear that being patient has its own rewards. 
 

Perhaps we can have a little contest to see whose credit shows up first....and no fair fudging on the date and time just to collect!
 

Randy

Ok, your on but no fair pulling strings cause you worked for the Royal Bank & we bank at CIBC.

 

[Bo1953]

4 hours ago, CulverCityCruisers said:

Spoke to Celebrity today and not very pleased with the response.  I asked for a letter or email indicating that they ad received my request for a full refund on our cancelled cruise. The response was not acceptable to me.  " We don't have the capacity to issue a confirmation email or letter to you". WHAT??

 

Well it is only 2020 and IT just can't figure this out yet GIVE ME A BREAK!!  So disappointing that  ROYAL can't simply sent a confirmation that they have received your request to either take the 100% refund or the FCC

I Am so sorry that you cannot be accommodated to your desire at the time you want it.

 

Notwithstanding that not every agent who receives a call has the capacity to do this 'special request'.

 

Unfortunately, each one of us will have to wait and create our own paper trail that we did cancel when we said we did and the type of refund, if applicable, requested.

 

I Am sure you will get something, just not on your clock, as there are thousands of others before you who require attention, for sure, this is not to say that your request is not as urgent or valid as yours, but not in the que for immediate attention, unfortunately.

 

Please give them time for things to work through the system, as most of us know about 'IT issues' not only at X, but at other cruise lines as well. This is not an unique situation to X.

 

bon voyage

Edited April 4, 2020 by Bo1953

[hcat]

Bo

The only proof that the refund was actually sent to our card  must come from X..and they have not provided it.  It is an electronic transaction so there must be a code or number or even a quick e mail would do. This should have been  auto generated  at the time the refund was allegedly sent to the card...

 

The  only alternative is to file a protest for a temp credit back on the card.

[GottaKnowWhen]

4 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

I Am so sorry that you cannot be accommodated to your desire at the time you want it.

 

Notwithstanding that not every agent who receives a call has the capacity to do this 'special request'.

 

Unfortunately, each one of us will have to wait and create our own paper trail that we did cancel when we said we did and the type of refund, if applicable, requested.

 

I Am sure you will get something, just not on your clock, as there are thousands of others before you who require attention, for sure, this is not to say that your request is not as urgent or valid as yours, but not in the que for immediate attention, unfortunately.

 

Please give them time for things to work through the system, as most of us know about 'IT issues' not only at X, but at other cruise lines as well. This is not an unique situation to X.

 

bon voyage

I am always amused by people who rant about how somebody should fix their IT issues. I wonder if they have ever written a program, set up a complex data structure, set up a network, ... It seems that they think this is all a simple process that can just get “ fixed!”

Frustration under our circumstances is understandable, but I don’t get why so many people talk about getting “their “ money back. It is not their money, they gave it to Celebrity! It is done, gone, spent. Oh, ok, now due to circumstances totally beyond Celebrity’s control, they can’t provide the product the customer had purchased. So they are graciously sending their money back to the customers. Sure, I will enjoy getting back the money I spent on my planned April TA, but it is not as though I was counting on that money to buy a new car or pay my taxes or whatever. It was budgeted for a trip including the TA. It was spent, gone from my account last fall sometime. Once it comes back, I am sure I can find a way to use it, but I can wait.

 

Relax folks, be grateful you are not trapped aboard a quarantine ship or in a foreign port. Stay safe, stay distant, enjoy the solitude, and think good thoughts about the trips coming up in a year or two.

Stan

[LMaxwell]

After 4 calls this week and another hour on phone today supervisor assured me I absolutely 110% sun rising in the East that at 5PM today I would receive confirmation of the refund of my taxes and fees. 

 

Got nothing. 

[Luvcrusn]

48 minutes ago, LMaxwell said:

After 4 calls this week and another hour on phone today supervisor assured me I absolutely 110% sun rising in the East that at 5PM today I would receive confirmation of the refund of my taxes and fees. 

 

Got nothing. 

But the supervisor got you off the phone! 😜

[Schmoe38]

We are currently in Day 24 of a suggested “approximate 30 day processing time” for our refund. 

 

Apparently, we may have to re-assess the expected time frame for our refund, based on the number of calls Celebrity must be handling. Surely to goodness, it is not hard to understand that processing efficiency of the refunds suffers when staff are called upon to field “status update” inquiries. Now just think how much that efficiency is reduced when staff are called upon to field multiple inquiries from the same people. 
Rather than call Celebrity every name in the book, take their number off of your speed dial and allow them the opportunity to do their jobs, within their originally suggested time frames. 
 

By the way, tomorrow will be our Day 25, and we have not placed a single call to Celebrity about our refund status, nor are we planning on calling, even if it goes slightly past 30 days.

 

Lighten up... the people on the other end of the line didn’t ask for this. Flexing your muscles on the phone and in print is not helpful.

 

Randy

[RodPat]

20 minutes ago, Schmoe38 said:

We are currently in Day 24 of a suggested “approximate 30 day processing time” for our refund. 

 

Apparently, we may have to re-assess the expected time frame for our refund, based on the number of calls Celebrity must be handling. Surely to goodness, it is not hard to understand that processing efficiency of the refunds suffers when staff are called upon to field “status update” inquiries. Now just think how much that efficiency is reduced when staff are called upon to field multiple inquiries from the same people. 
Rather than call Celebrity every name in the book, take their number off of your speed dial and allow them the opportunity to do their jobs, within their originally suggested time frames. 
 

By the way, tomorrow will be our Day 25, and we have not placed a single call to Celebrity about our refund status, nor are we planning on calling, even if it goes slightly past 30 days.

 

Lighten up... the people on the other end of the line didn’t ask for this. Flexing your muscles on the phone and in print is not helpful.

 

Randy

Randy, since we were on the same sailing that you cancelled, we have received our FCC but they still owe us for the taxes and fees.  Our agent told me it might take 8 weeks to see our refund for that.  I am truly hoping for our November cruise taking place but I will cancel before final payment if things don't get better.

 

Pat

[gaunerdog]

I had sent an e-mail  on 3/22 to the Captain's Club Celebrity Engagement Center for our cancelled 4/5 sailing on the Edge. I received an e-mail yesterday for me to call with the number given. I called today and got another representative apparently in that department. She indicated that we should receive refunds for taxes and gratuities in approximately one month from the 4/5 sailing date.The 125% offer would also be provided in the form of credit to me or the Travel agent for our already booked cruise on The Equinox on 6/23. If this materializes and all is well by then we hope to cruise with our youngest grandchildren prior to the 20-21  school year. 🛳️slow boat to🏝️???

Edited April 4, 2020 by gaunerdog
misspelling

[son3cruisers]

8 hours ago, CulverCityCruisers said:

Spoke to Celebrity today and not very pleased with the response.  I asked for a letter or email indicating that they ad received my request for a full refund on our cancelled cruise. The response was not acceptable to me.  " We don't have the capacity to issue a confirmation email or letter to you". WHAT??

 

Well it is only 2020 and IT just can't figure this out yet GIVE ME A BREAK!!  So disappointing that  ROYAL can't simply sent a confirmation that they have received your request to either take the 100% refund or the FCC

We had the same response. Almost word for word. 2020 - that they can’t issue a confirmation by email. Very strange. 
FYI I cancelled our March 14th cruise on March 12th and they confirmed we would be receiving a refund for taxes/fees/booked items/ move up offer .  I followed up last week and they stated refund was issued to my credit card on March 17th. I had the agent recite back the credit card it was refunded to ( it was correct) and still no refund.

 Also followed up with our credit card company, no pending refunds. 
So, yes. Poor practice.
Hotels , airfares all refunded/ credit received with in 10 days of cancelling. They also all provided emails with confirmation of returns and credit issued. 10 days. 

We have trip insurance, so we might be going that route instead. I’m going to wait a few more weeks. We were hoping and waiting for our  125% FCC as promised, but with Celebrity’s handling of the refund so far, I think a full refund of the cruise fare might be a much better  idea. 

[son3cruisers]

3 hours ago, hcat said:

Bo

The only proof that the refund was actually sent to our card  must come from X..and they have not provided it.  It is an electronic transaction so there must be a code or number or even a quick e mail would do. This should have been  auto generated  at the time the refund was allegedly sent to the card...

 

The  only alternative is to file a protest for a temp credit back on the card.

Exactly.
I actually called our credit card company, and the policy we have with our card is the purchase  must have been with 100 days. That’s fine for the move up bid  we made to be refunded but we paid off our cruise in Sept. 

Not sure what other cards will do, but that’s what I was told . 

Edited April 4, 2020 by son3cruisers