After refund fiasco, why would you ever consider Royal again?

[jknc]

Still waiting for someone to defend what Royal told our agent. 
 

[Stick93]

1 hour ago, jknc said:

For those defending cruise lines. 
 

We also had a broadway show cancellation notice on 4/8. We received the refund on 4/25. It didn’t require me to make a phone call to Ticketmaster at all.
 

You think they have a several thousand cancellations as well w/ no new revenue? 
 

Bankruptcy is what these cruise lines deserve. 
 

 

Your clearly upset and I don't believe anyone here will defend the actions of the cruise lines delaying refunds if they can process them quicker. 

Here is where I don't see eye to eye with your statement - if the go Bankrupt it will help nobody. The industry maybe can survive one company losing everything and poss being bought out by  a different company at  a heavy discount. Number one Royal is not in the worst shape of the big three and two the devastation to the common folk who lose their money and the workers who wont have jobs will be endless. 

Don't root for other peoples pain as karma has a way of biting people back where they wish it. We understand your situation and are in the same ones ourselves, but we don't root for other to lose their money so we can bask in their pain.

Enjoy doubling down on what you are saying but its not making you look any better to the rest of us here. 

 

 

 

[Sunshine3601]

3 hours ago, jknc said:

Think about how much time you and your travel agent spent simply trying to get your money back. How many calls did you make?
 

Why would anyone do business with a company like that again? I certainly won’t. 
 

I’ll find more joy doing other things with my money.  

I have had very minor problems with rcl. Overall I am happy with rcl and how they handling everything.

My March cruise I cancelled on march 11th and received refund for all cruise planner items and port taxes on march 24th.  Still waiting for my fcc for cruise fare but was told i will receive in May.  

My May cruise they cancelled on April 16th i received full refund to amex card earlier this week.  

I have had no problems with their reps.  Never been on hold for more than 5 or 10 minutes.  IMO they are doing a great job in this time of the unknown.

 

I recently booked a december cruise and all in now have 5 future cruises booked and will keep on cruising with rcl.   

 

[jknc]

2 minutes ago, Stick93 said:

Your clearly upset and I don't believe anyone here will defend the actions of the cruise lines delaying refunds if they can process them quicker. 

Here is where I don't see eye to eye with your statement - if the go Bankrupt it will help nobody. The industry maybe can survive one company losing everything and poss being bought out by  a different company at  a heavy discount. Number one Royal is not in the worst shape of the big three and two the devastation to the common folk who lose their money and the workers who wont have jobs will be endless. 

Don't root for other peoples pain as karma has a way of biting people back where they wish it. We understand your situation and are in the same ones ourselves, but we don't root for other to lose their money so we can bask in their pain.

Enjoy doubling down on what you are saying but its not making you look any better to the rest of us here. 

 

 

 

In business as in life there are winners and losers.
 

If bankruptcy is warranted then bankruptcy is what the company deserves. 

 

For the record, I think all the airlines should have been forced to go bankrupt instead of being bailed out. 

[Sunshine3601]

7 minutes ago, Stick93 said:

Your clearly upset and I don't believe anyone here will defend the actions of the cruise lines delaying refunds if they can process them quicker. 

Here is where I don't see eye to eye with your statement - if the go Bankrupt it will help nobody. The industry maybe can survive one company losing everything and poss being bought out by  a different company at  a heavy discount. Number one Royal is not in the worst shape of the big three and two the devastation to the common folk who lose their money and the workers who wont have jobs will be endless. 

Don't root for other peoples pain as karma has a way of biting people back where they wish it. We understand your situation and are in the same ones ourselves, but we don't root for other to lose their money so we can bask in their pain.

Enjoy doubling down on what you are saying but its not making you look any better to the rest of us here. 

 

 

 

Ditto to everything you said.  Thank you!

[jknc]

How would I expect my customers to react if I told them after calling me multiple times:

 

Just wait a few weeks to see what you get refunded. 

[Sunshine3601]

5 minutes ago, jknc said:

How would I expect my customers to react if I told them after calling me multiple times:

 

Just wait a few weeks to see what you get refunded. 

No need to call them multiple times.  Let them do their jobs and process what needs to be done.  Patience is required by everyone involved in this pandemic.

[badvector]

45 minutes ago, jknc said:

For those defending cruise lines. 
 

We also had a broadway show cancellation notice on 4/8. We received the refund on 4/25. It didn’t require me to make a phone call to Ticketmaster at all.
 

You think they have a several thousand cancellations as well w/ no new revenue? 
 

Bankruptcy is what these cruise lines deserve. 
 

 

I was frustrated with all of the run-around involved in getting a refund myself but I'm not sure bankruptcy is what is deserved.  Let's look at a couple brief scenarios.

 

XXX Company files Chapter 11 allowing them to reorganize their debt.  As part of the reorganization a lower interest rate is negotiated for some of the debt, some of the debt is discharged, and 1000's of employees are let go. In addition to the employees losing their jobs 10's if not 100's of thousands of jobs are eliminated that were originally created as part of the cruise companies existence due to cutbacks. 7 years later XXX Company is on solid ground again, making tons of money and running more streamlined. The management team of the company is recognized as brilliant for leading the company through such hard times and returning the company to it's former prestige. Who won here? 

 

XXX Company files Chapter 7.  All assets are liquidated.  There's not enough money to cover all of their debts so many creditors are left with nothing including those with large sums of money paid to the line for future reservations.  All of the employees lose their jobs and 100's of thousands more are eliminated that relied on the industry.  The management team is recognized for their ability and dedication to guide this company through such a hard time due to factors beyond their control knowing this may be the end result.  All the top players move on to other corporations gladly willing to pay those 7 and 8 figure salaries based on their past performance.  Who won here?

 

Now, by no means am I an attorney and I am sure this is over-simplified but I'm guessing it's pretty close to what happens.

 

By all means, take your business elsewhere as it's your money. If others want to continue cruising, why begrudge them that.  It is their money thus their choice. I no longer visit a certain restaurant based on past experience.  Am I angry that others do?Heck no. Am I hurting the company financially? Heck no.  I have just chosen not to give my money to that company.  Ultimately, my opinion is not yours and yours is not mine.  Sometimes they may match sometimes they won't.  I still wouldn't wish financial ruin on people I don't know just because I'm angry with company management.

[jknc]

Hey JKNC,

 

Thank you so much for holding.
 

We really value your business but unfortunately we don’t know exactly how much you’re gonna get refunded.

 

So, just wait a few more weeks and see what you get? 
 

We both know it won’t be accurate and you’ll need to call us a couple of more times, explain the issue again and again and then wait a few more weeks. 
 

But again, we truly value your business!

 

-RCI

[BND]

We made zero phone calls.  Our TA made zero phone calls.  She submitted the form requesting a refund and now we wait our turn.  Calling them over and over doesn't really help anyone.  I know we'll get our money back.  They have a lot of cancelled cruises to work through.  Your need to get revenge by saying they deserve bankruptcy reminds me of someone in my family who thinks their job is to exact revenge on anyone who disagrees with them.  I think if you'd just relax and see it from both sides, you might not be as angry.  No one wants the situation we're all in.  You think the cruise lines are enjoying any of this?

[sparks1093]

18 minutes ago, jknc said:

Still waiting for someone to defend what Royal told our agent. 
 

It's not justifiable, so what? 

 

22 minutes ago, jknc said:

 

if I qualified for a stimulus payment and didn’t have it by now, yes, I’d be upset.

 

How many transactions do you think royal does on a daily basis? New bookings, excursions + people on the ships buying food, drinks and whatnot.

Those transactions are irrelevant to what is going on right now. As I've laid out on other cruise line forums let's say that an employee can process 6 refunds an hour, that's 240 refunds per week. If they have 100 employees processing refunds that's 24,000 refunds per week. With a million refunds to process that's almost 42 weeks to process them all. Yes, customer service reps should be on the ball and not be rude and not say stupid things but that doesn't change the fact that it is going to take time for this to all be done.

[jknc]

5 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

It's not justifiable, so what? 

 

Those transactions are irrelevant to what is going on right now. As I've laid out on other cruise line forums let's say that an employee can process 6 refunds an hour, that's 240 refunds per week. If they have 100 employees processing refunds that's 24,000 refunds per week. With a million refunds to process that's almost 42 weeks to process them all. Yes, customer service reps should be on the ball and not be rude and not say stupid things but that doesn't change the fact that it is going to take time for this to all be done.

 

thank you for acknowledging. 

[Hoopster95]

29 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Just as a point of reference, and only considering the cruises that were cancelled by the CDC suspension order beginning on 3/15 and presumably ending on 6/12, and based on RCL's latest 10-K SEC filing, the company is processing ~2 million reservations fleet wide that it was forced to cancel. If you factor in the number of additional reservations that were cancelled or postponed by customers using the Cruise with Confidence program, you can probably add another 500,000 to their refund/FCC processing workload. 

 

I'm confused... Are credit cards being delayed 30-60-90 days in charging for new deposits and current final payments?

Or are those credit card charges being done immediately?

[Stick93]

16 minutes ago, jknc said:

Fake News. Dead Wrong.

Hahah - I'm not news but thanks for elevating me 

 

Hope you get your money soon - you seem like a really nice guy that we are all going to miss on the ships. 

 

 

Edited May 8, 2020 by Stick93

[jknc]

2 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

I'm confused... Are credit cards being delayed 30-60-90 days in charging for new deposits and current final payments?

Or are those credit card charges being done immediately?

 

Immediately. In nano-seconds. 

[jknc]

Mr Customer,

 

We know you can show definitively that you paid us $xxxx in September and $xxxx in January but unfortunately we have no idea when or how much you’re gonna get back from us. 
 

So, just chill out bro.
 

And check out our latest promotion to come sail with us again when in reality we have no idea when we sail or how we will sail in a global pandemic.

 

But get those deposits in ASAP for the best choice of cabins.

 

 

-RCI

[Clancy14]

58 minutes ago, jknc said:

How would I expect my customers to react if I told them after calling me multiple times:

 

 

OMG! Someone like you owns a business?!?!?  Boy, you must REALLY need that refund!  With your acerbic attitude, mixed with the droll sarcasm you're spouting, your business must have been bad before the shutdown. 

Stay home in NY/NJ and let the rest of us enjoy our cruises.  We don't need your verbal tantrums anywhere!

[nbsjcruiser]

5 hours ago, jknc said:

Think about how much time you and your travel agent spent simply trying to get your money back. How many calls did you make?
 

Why would anyone do business with a company like that again? I certainly won’t. 
 

I’ll find more joy doing other things with my money.  

Princess fan checking in. Been waiting almost 60 days for our refund. Ain't just RCI. Funny thing is, Princess called my wife and offered her a free cruise. All we had to do was pay taxes. We declined for a couple reasons. 1. We haven't received our refund so why would we book again when Princess is holding $500 of our money? There is no guarantee we would get even our tax money back if we cancel and 2. Any form of activity that involves packing in 3 or 4 thousand people into a confined space for a week is definitely not a good idea right now and doesn't appear it will be a good idea until at least 2021 sometime.

Sad times for sure.

[KsucAts]

55 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

I'm confused... Are credit cards being delayed 30-60-90 days in charging for new deposits and current final payments?

Or are those credit card charges being done immediately?

 

They don't have an automated process for returns and they must be manually processed/approved?  They are not designed and are not prepared to handle mass cancellations like they are having to deal with now.  Nobody is.

 

Can you think of any company that has an automated refund/return process?  I can check myself out at Wal-Mart and the payment is processed immediately.  There isn't a self service return process (for good reason).  In fact right now I am not sure if Wal-Mart is allowing returns at all.  

[orville99]

56 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

I'm confused... Are credit cards being delayed 30-60-90 days in charging for new deposits and current final payments?

Or are those credit card charges being done immediately?

Two completely different systems and processes involved. The CC charge falls under ABA rule set, and is required by Federal Law to clear all interbank entities within 48 hours. The refund process is a manual reconciliation of  credits due against any outstanding balances due, determining which portion goes back to which card, which portion is non-refundable at all (insurance) which portion is accrued as a FCC, etc.

[orville99]

47 minutes ago, jknc said:

Mr Customer,

 

We know you can show definitively that you paid us $xxxx in September and $xxxx in January but unfortunately we have no idea when or how much you’re gonna get back from us. 
 

So, just chill out bro.
 

And check out our latest promotion to come sail with us again when in reality we have no idea when we sail or how we will sail in a global pandemic.

 

But get those deposits in ASAP for the best choice of cabins.

 

 

-RCI

These would be interesting if any of these conversations actually happened even remotely close to the way you are representing your interactions with either the company or your TA. How can you expect anyone to take your rant seriously if all you do is spin folk tales of what you imagine they are saying? You ask for a defense, yet you give nothing concrete for anyone to defend, or dispute.

[Hoopster95]

5 minutes ago, KsucAts said:

They don't have an automated process for returns and they must be manually processed/approved?  They are not designed and are not prepared to handle mass cancellations like they are having to deal with now.  Nobody is.

 

2 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Two completely different systems and processes involved. 

 

Now I'm even more confused....

 

I cancelled my Marriott/Bonvoy reservation. I suspect they have tens of thousands of bookings/cancellations/new bookings all over the world. I had my credit card refund in 4 days.

 

I called my TA to cancel my AirCanada flights to Newark... just like the cruiselines, airlines facing bankruptcy, cash flow issues/likely thousands of calls daily with changes/refunds/etc. My future flight credit was emailed to me in two days.

 

Are these two major international corporations also not designed and not prepared to handle mass cancellations and refunds?

[jalves]

5 hours ago, jknc said:

Think about how much time you and your travel agent spent simply trying to get your money back. How many calls did you make?
 

Why would anyone do business with a company like that again? I certainly won’t. 
 

I’ll find more joy doing other things with my money.  

We had no problem at all with Royal's affiliate Celebrity.  Went ahead and booked a cruise for January.

[maxcat910]

The ticketmaster analogy is interesting, but I don't think it holds over that well. Is ticketmaster building new stadiums or concert venues? Is it spending money to maintain the stadiums or venues and keep them actively running with the equivalent of crew members on them even as the money making events are cancelled? I don't see that much of the usual cruise industry costs have gone down as of yet... Except they are probably using a lot less toilet paper and food (although perhaps they have contracts for those they must still meet)?

[hazence]

I think we all have some free floating anger these days...our lives are diminished by this virus and too many things are not functioning as they should be.

 

Even in the very lightly affected area where I live...(have I told you about my zip code😎)...many young people, self employed  and small business owners are struggling with the economic issues and the uncertainty about their future.

 

Its not right that you don’t have your refund. And dealing with spin and a non caring and non functioning customer service who just spin nonsense by rote would make anyone furious.  In good times, this is annoying. In these times, it’s infuriating. 

 

I have been livid over careless, inaccurate, incomplete or politicized reporting of this pandemic. In good times, it’s annoying...right now, it’s unconscionable.

 

If I’m understanding your post, you want people to do their jobs with professionalism  and you want honesty , not spin and information you can trust when you deal with them. 

Me too. 

 

But I’m thinking that our anger has very little chance of effecting those changes. But I do understand why you want to expose what happened.