Return of payment for cancelled cruise

[Doc P]

NCL cancelled the Jewel 10 day Panama cruise for January 20, 2022 and has only returned some of the payment after two months.  Anyone else having this experience with NCL refusing to return ALL the funds paid on the cruise THEY cancelled?

[DanMartin8602]

We were on the same cruise and got refunds in about 10 days.

 

[MoCruiseFan]

1 hour ago, Doc P said:

NCL cancelled the Jewel 10 day Panama cruise for January 20, 2022 and has only returned some of the payment after two months.  Anyone else having this experience with NCL refusing to return ALL the funds paid on the cruise THEY cancelled?

 

How did you pay for that specific cruise?

 

[ChiefMateJRK]

I smell FCC.

[Doc P]

Here's the thing, there were 5 of us scheduled to cruise.  Three people got back their full payment, two of us were shorted, one $500, me $1300.  We paid by credit card but have not gotten Chase involved since as of October 6th, they have been "expediting" payment.  Furthermore there have been personal phone calls, calls from the travel agent, numerous emails and even a hard copy snail mail to headquarters.  They have stopped responding to me even though we are two months fro the cancellation!  

[Doc P]

I wish I could comment on the Jewel but NCL cancelled the cruise 26 days after accepting my payment then has refused to return nearly $1300 after two months.They have been contacted numerous times by phone, email, snail mail and intercessions by our Travel Agents. They provide no explanation just explaining that the return of MY money on the cruise THEY canceled is being expedited yet they do not return the money. I have taken many NCL cruises and brought over 25 friends and relatives, achieved Platinum Latitude status and am being treated this poorly. In addition the original cruise allowed for two Future cruise certificates but when I re-booked on another cruise for the same month, January, 2022, they only allowed the use of one certificate. Their answer was the promotion ended but THEY ended the promotion, not ME. It seems to me the administration of NCL is no where near the actual terrific experience on the ships.

[SeaShark]

Not sure I understand...when you book thru a Travel Agent, the TA owns the booking (thus why NCL won't deal with you directly when a travel agent is involved).

 

The travel agent should be refunding your money as your booking is with THEM. Why are they not refunding their customer (you)? You should not allow them to skirt their responsibility by shoving the blame on NCL. Tell them they should refund you and then they should get their money back from NCL. I mean, if this is just between NCL and you, then why have the travel agent at all?

[BermudaBound2014]

14 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

 

The travel agent should be refunding your money as your booking is with THEM. Why are they not refunding their customer (you)? You should not allow them to skirt their responsibility by shoving the blame on NCL. Tell them they should refund you and then they should get their money back from NCL. I mean, if this is just between NCL and you, then why have the travel agent at all?

This is completely false. A travel agent operates under different rules than a tour operator. Travel agents work for the cruise line (as that is who cuts them the commission check). 
 

Further, when you book with a travel agent please make sure they do not charge your credit card. If they do, it’s totally shady. The charge on your card should comes from the cruise line itself. 
 

This is one of the most common misconceptions in the industry. A travel agent works on the customers behalf, but it’s the cruise line who gives them a paycheck.

Edited December 1, 2021 by BermudaBound2014

[SeaShark]

15 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

This is completely false. A travel agent operates under different rules than a tour operator. Travel agents work for the cruise line (as that is who cuts them the commission check). 
 

Further, when you book with a travel agent please make sure they do not charge your credit card. If they do, it’s totally shady. The charge on your card should comes from the cruise line itself. 
 

This is one of the most common misconceptions in the industry. A travel agent works on the customers behalf, but it’s the cruise line who gives them a paycheck.

 

OK...then run with the narrative. Why on earth would a cruise line pay a TA to work for them when they already have reservation agents on staff who could do the same job without the cruise line having to cut them a commission check?

[Middleager]

1 hour ago, Doc P said:

I wish I could comment on the Jewel but NCL cancelled the cruise 26 days after accepting my payment then has refused to return nearly $1300 after two months.They have been contacted numerous times by phone, email, snail mail and intercessions by our Travel Agents. They provide no explanation just explaining that the return of MY money on the cruise THEY canceled is being expedited yet they do not return the money. I have taken many NCL cruises and brought over 25 friends and relatives, achieved Platinum Latitude status and am being treated this poorly. In addition the original cruise allowed for two Future cruise certificates but when I re-booked on another cruise for the same month, January, 2022, they only allowed the use of one certificate. Their answer was the promotion ended but THEY ended the promotion, not ME. It seems to me the administration of NCL is no where near the actual terrific experience on the ships.

OP you should change the tile to something like "Unable to get refund from NCL for cancelled Jewel cruise".

 

I had a scare, thinking NCL had cancelled my Jewel cruise again (after rebooking from a previously cancelled Jewel cruise).

[BermudaBound2014]

27 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

OK...then run with the narrative. Why on earth would a cruise line pay a TA to work for them when they already have reservation agents on staff who could do the same job without the cruise line having to cut them a commission check?

I have asked that same question for over a decade. The best answer I have gotten is that the cruise lines value their relationships with their outside agents. This was heavily discussed back in the early 2000s when rcl/celebrity came out with thier no discounting policy. It has never Made complete sense to me.

 

However, I would ask everyone to review their credit card statements. The charge for the cruise will come from the cruise line and not the travel agent. A travel agent does not take your money. You do not pay a travel agent. Travel agents work for the person who pays them, in this case it is the cruise line.

 

Hopefully some travel agents can come on and explain why NCL still uses external agents

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, Doc P said:

Here's the thing, there were 5 of us scheduled to cruise.  Three people got back their full payment, two of us were shorted, one $500, me $1300.  We paid by credit card but have not gotten Chase involved since as of October 6th, they have been "expediting" payment.  Furthermore there have been personal phone calls, calls from the travel agent, numerous emails and even a hard copy snail mail to headquarters.  They have stopped responding to me even though we are two months fro the cancellation!  

 

Just file the dispute with the charge card vendor.

That's part of the service, etc.

 

Maybe that will "expedite the expediting". 😠

The cruise lines are really hurting financially, so they'll likely string out whatever they can, or offer FCC/etc., where they can (or where they think they can get away with that).

 

GC

[GeezerCouple]

23 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

I have asked that same question for over a decade. The best answer I have gotten is that the cruise lines value their relationships with their outside agents. This was heavily discussed back in the early 2000s when rcl/celebrity came out with thier no discounting policy. It has never Made complete sense to me.

 

However, I would ask everyone to review their credit card statements. The charge for the cruise will come from the cruise line and not the travel agent. A travel agent does not take your money. You do not pay a travel agent. Travel agents work for the person who pays them, in this case it is the cruise line.

 

Hopefully some travel agents can come on and explain why NCL still uses external agents

[emphasis added]

 

How about because otherwise, anyone contacting travel agents will be told about many, many travel options, including cruises, but not NCL.

 

GC

[don't-use-real-name]

If this gets complicated time to bring in the resources of:

About Elliott Advocacy - Elliott Advocacy

 

Simply put the guest/client/customer is owed money due to a cancelled cruise.

 

Pay (REFUND) the amount paid less any agency fees if booked thru a TA.

 

Taxes and Port Fees Advanced Gratuities Refundable OBC paid Shore Excursions paid Wi-Fi

paid Transfer Fees are also part of the refund package - these have not been used or applied.

There could be some garble-de-gook fine print disallowing these elements depends on how

much NCL (and TA) want to stiff their guest/client/customer.

 

Insurance a whole-nuther ball game depending on it provisions about cruise cancellation.

 

OP

Was the form of payment made by Credit Card - contact that card issuer about any recourse ? 

 

[don't-use-real-name]

Another recent thread about this JEWEL cancellation:

 

 

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, GeezerCouple said:

[emphasis added]

 

How about because otherwise, anyone contacting travel agents will be told about many, many travel options, including cruises, but not NCL.

 

GC

 

I totally get what you are saying, But I think the bigger question is why hasn't each of the cruise lines developed their own inside sales force and cut out the independents? You call NCL to book a NCL cruise. You call CCL to book a ccl cruise, etc...  There was talk of this many moons ago and Celebrity/RCL made a run for it back in the early 2000's (I believe that time frame), but it didn't pan out. This doesn't just apply to cruising. All the big resorts could do it too. Marriott, Sandals, AmResorts, etc... all having their own inside sales team cutting out independent agents completely.

 

All the cruise lines (and resorts) still pay commission to independent travel agents because they find it beneficial to keep independent agencies on staff. When you book with a travel agent they are an advocate for the consumer, but they technically work for the cruise line. 

 

I'm totally off topic to the OP's issue, this was all in response to @SeaSharksuggesting the OP go after the TA for the refund. My point is simply the TA didn't collect any money therefore has no money return. To make matters worse, the  TA hasn't even gotten paid any commission yet for the work they have done, as they typically don't make a cent until AFTER the client returns home. 

Edited December 1, 2021 by BermudaBound2014

[julig22]

1 hour ago, don't-use-real-name said:

Another recent thread about this JEWEL cancellation:

 

 

Same person

[Arizona Packer Backer]

On 12/1/2021 at 4:11 PM, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

I totally get what you are saying, But I think the bigger question is why hasn't each of the cruise lines developed their own inside sales force and cut out the independents?

There's a lot of reasons for that, but one reason is because they value travel agents and our clientele that we work hard to acquire. We then book that clientele on the various cruise lines. I've introduced numerous clients to cruising, that would likely have never otherwise taken a single cruise. The cruise lines advertise to the general public, yes, but travel agents have that direct connection to our clients, and we can sell the cruise that best fits them. The cruise lines know this, and so they also work hard to keep us informed through their Sales Managers and BDMs (Business Development Managers). They spend anywhere from a few hours to a few days doing webinars that reach, say 1,000 travel agents, and those travel agents then go on to personally reach out to 100,000 or more clients. How many reps would the cruise lines need to employ, in order to have that kind of reach and personal touch?

 

On 12/1/2021 at 4:11 PM, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

All the cruise lines (and resorts) still pay commission to independent travel agents because they find it beneficial to keep independent agencies on staff. When you book with a travel agent they are an advocate for the consumer, but they technically work for the cruise line. 

I would like to clear this up for anyone reading this; travel agents don't "technically work for the cruise line". We get paid commission by the cruise line, yes, but we're not employed by them, nor are we required or contracted to be loyal to one cruise line in particular. I would argue that most (if not all) of us consider ourselves completely independent, and that first and foremost, we 100% work for our clients. I will advocate for my clients 'til the cows come home, as do my colleagues. I book trips all around the world (land vacations as well as cruises), and while I have contacts with countless vendors, I don't consider a single one of them an entity that I work for. 

 

On 12/1/2021 at 4:11 PM, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

To make matters worse, the  TA hasn't even gotten paid any commission yet for the work they have done, as they typically don't make a cent until AFTER the client returns home. 

This is very true, and it's what has made the last 2 years incredibly difficult for travel agents. Imagine dealing with cancellations, re-bookings, more cancellations, being on hold for hours at a time, dealing with understandably angry clients who haven't gotten their refund yet (even though it's completely out of our control because yes, we pay the cruise lines/vendors directly), and staying on top of all the constantly changing Covid requirements/closures, all while not getting paid. To say that we're tired and frustrated is a huge understatement!

 

To Doc P, if you're considering contacting your credit card company to process a dispute, make sure you know the deadline for doing so. There's usually a time limit on how long you have to dispute a charge. I have had clients go through their credit card company and successfully dispute delayed refunds, so that's an option. That said, the cruise lines and airlines have been some of the slowest in processing refunds, which is admittedly frustrating, and there seems to be no rhyme or reason for who they refund first. Either way, I hope you get your remaining refund soon!

Edited December 2, 2021 by Arizona Packer Backer

[BermudaBound2014]

@Arizona Packer Backer thank you for replying. I knew a TA would jump in and confirm what I shared. As mentioned, the cruise lines (and resort chains) tried to cut out independent travel agents and hire their own travel agent sales team many years ago, but it didn't pan out for much of the rational explained above.

 

22 minutes ago, Arizona Packer Backer said:

I would like to clear this up for anyone reading this; travel agents don't "technically work for the cruise line". We get paid commission by the cruise line, yes, but we're not employed by them, nor are we required or contracted to be loyal to one cruise line in particular. I would argue that most (if not all) of us consider ourselves completely independent, and that first and foremost, we 100% work for our clients. I will advocate for my clients 'til the cows come home, as do my colleagues. I book trips all around the world (land vacations as well as cruises), and while I have contacts with countless vendors, I don't consider a single one of them an entity that I work for. 

 

I've had this discussion with dozens of travel agents over the years. No doubt TA's will work on behalf of their clients. I will also agree that  you don't 'technically' work for the cruise lines as a direct employee, but they are the ones 'actually' cutting your paycheck (aka commission).  On this subject we will just have to agree to disagree.

 

For the record, I always use a travel agent. I make sure they are not charging my card (my cc is charged by the venue). I have three that I work with consistently. Each has a different cruise line they prefer (ironically their cruise line preference directly coincides with their commission percentage lol).