Just been downgraded from booked and allocated cabin!!!

[AuroraCruiser08]

Just found out we have been moved cabin on B213 currently booked E618 but have been told that that cabin in no long available. However the others in our party whose cabin is opposite and two down haven't been moved or received the email. 

[AuroraCruiser08]

Just had TA on to P&O about moving out cabin. We has specifically booked a cabin near our older family member traveling with us. They were not asked to move but we have been mkved from E deck after to A forward so as far from them as possible. We asked P&I could we both be moved and the answer was yes but at a fee of £100pp! 

[PenrithRambler]

6 minutes ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Just had TA on to P&O about moving out cabin. We has specifically booked a cabin near our older family member traveling with us. They were not asked to move but we have been mkved from E deck after to A forward so as far from them as possible. We asked P&I could we both be moved and the answer was yes but at a fee of £100pp! 

Were the two bookings registered as linked? Would be a stronger case with P&O in such case

[AuroraCruiser08]

3 minutes ago, PenrithRambler said:

Were the two bookings registered as linked? Would be a stronger case with P&O in such case

Yes they are, for this specific reason. TA checked and has specifically stated that to them! 

[PenrithRambler]

9 minutes ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Yes they are, for this specific reason. TA checked and has specifically stated that to them! 

Yet another big black mark for P&O

[Ardennais]

38 minutes ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Just had TA on to P&O about moving out cabin. We has specifically booked a cabin near our older family member traveling with us. They were not asked to move but we have been mkved from E deck after to A forward so as far from them as possible. We asked P&I could we both be moved and the answer was yes but at a fee of £100pp! 

That’s really mean of them. Terrible customer service. 

[Presto2]

5 hours ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Just had TA on to P&O about moving out cabin. We has specifically booked a cabin near our older family member traveling with us. They were not asked to move but we have been mkved from E deck after to A forward so as far from them as possible. We asked P&I could we both be moved and the answer was yes but at a fee of £100pp! 

That makes no sense whatsoever. Do they want people to cruise again or what ????!!!!!!

[AuroraCruiser08]

3 hours ago, Presto2 said:

That makes no sense whatsoever. Do they want people to cruise again or what ????!!!!!!

They are not helping! In a normal situation we wouldn't have cared but because of the older family member traveling with us we need to be close. 

 

P&O wouldn't tell us the new cabin assignment but we got our TA (who is amazing) to call and see what our cabin is. After about 30mins of discussion p&O finally told the TA the new possible cabin. E741 aft so probably a better deal than E618. So we are close together but it's the whole point. Charging us to be close together. Our bookings were linked and we had selected not to upgrade because of the need to be near each other! P&O isn't helping people. No offer of cabin type upgrade either without paying£500pp. 

 

Appears Britannia new isolation cabin is between E5xx and E6xx for anyone who's interested. Also anyone else in this situation worth calling your TA to see if they know. Appears P&O will tell TAs the new cabin but not the passenger (helpful) 

 

Anyway that's the situation. 

[Pippa04]

It's difficult to understand why they refuse to engage with customers to find out what would suit their needs.  They are making assumptions about what would be an upgrade etc when a simple conversation would sort many of the problems out.  

 

The standard letter that I was sent (well outside of ABTA guidelines I might add) bangs on about being unable to help me as they have to treat all affected passengers the same.  Unfortunately that uniform treatment is absolutely disgraceful.

[AuroraCruiser08]

Just now, Pippa04 said:

It's difficult to understand why they refuse to engage with customers to find out what would suit their needs.  They are making assumptions about what would be an upgrade etc when a simple conversation would sort many of the problems out.  

 

The standard letter that I was sent (well outside of ABTA guidelines I might add) bangs on about being unable to help me as they have to treat all affected passengers the same.  Unfortunately that uniform treatment is absolutely disgraceful.

That's what ours said. Please don't call as we are expecting a huge volume of calls (they always seem to be) and wait for confirmation. However TA rang up and they told him but wouldn't tell us what OUR cabin would be! 

[Pippa04]

2 minutes ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

That's what ours said. Please don't call as we are expecting a huge volume of calls (they always seem to be) and wait for confirmation. However TA rang up and they told him but wouldn't tell us what OUR cabin would be! 

That's because they know you won't like it!

[Selbourne]

9 hours ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Just had TA on to P&O about moving out cabin. We has specifically booked a cabin near our older family member traveling with us. They were not asked to move but we have been mkved from E deck after to A forward so as far from them as possible. We asked P&I could we both be moved and the answer was yes but at a fee of £100pp! 

So, in summary, P&O create a problem for you that didn’t exist and then charge you £100 per person to unravel it. A masterful stroke of pure exploitation. It won’t take a prolonged continuation of reduced passenger numbers to bring about their demise when they are so intent on harming themselves. 

[AuroraCruiser08]

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

So, in summary, P&O create a problem for you that didn’t exist and then charge you £100 per person to unravel it. A masterful stroke of pure exploitation. It won’t take a prolonged continuation of reduced passenger numbers to bring about their demise when they are so intent on harming themselves. 

Exactly! The original cabin free of charge was something like A105 (don't quote me on that though) P&O wouldn't tell us this though, they only told the TA after we rang and then TA rang. Miles away from the person we had a linked booking too for the reasons above aft on E deck. Then after asking to be moved as a group the cost would be £100 pp then after a bit more haggling by the TA they let us have E741. Which when I booked originally wasn't available so don't know how it's now available anyway it's sorted. But would have been so much easier if we didn't have to go through all the phones calls. Most annoying part is P&O would only speak to the TA in detail and just told us, you will have to wait! 

[Angel57]

5 hours ago, AuroraCruiser08 said:

Exactly! The original cabin free of charge was something like A105 (don't quote me on that though) P&O wouldn't tell us this though, they only told the TA after we rang and then TA rang. Miles away from the person we had a linked booking too for the reasons above aft on E deck. Then after asking to be moved as a group the cost would be £100 pp then after a bit more haggling by the TA they let us have E741. Which when I booked originally wasn't available so don't know how it's now available anyway it's sorted. But would have been so much easier if we didn't have to go through all the phones calls. Most annoying part is P&O would only speak to the TA in detail and just told us, you will have to wait! 

To me this seems like P&O still do not know how best to deal with infection on board and are like rabbits caught in the full glare of headlights. They have (at times) completely lost sight of how to properly treat their customers and don’t seem to care about any upset they cause….

To try and charge you for their decision to change your cabins is utterly mind boggling and wrong. I’m so sorry you have had all this stress before your hopefully wonderful holiday.

 

[davecttr]

1 hour ago, Angel57 said:

To me this seems like P&O still do not know how best to deal with infection on board and are like rabbits caught in the full glare of headlights. They have (at times) completely lost sight of how to properly treat their customers and don’t seem to care about any upset they cause….

To try and charge you for their decision to change your cabins is utterly mind boggling and wrong. I’m so sorry you have had all this stress before your hopefully wonderful holiday.

 

They appear to be struggling with the sub variant being more infectious coupled with the 'demise' of self testing etc. This means a increased number of infected people boarding who pass the tests. witness some ships running out of isolation cabins mid cruise. There is also the Carnival desire to maximise revenue, squeeze those passengers for anything you can get out of them. After all, dodgy business practices are now OK!

 

Of course this could be driving the passenger numbers down followed by a drastic reduction of ships or maybe get rid of P&O name and transfer some ships to Princess. Call it Princess Cruises (UK) 😉

[Megabear2]

When booking cruises this week for October and December I did as I normally do and looked for mid forward cabins as we like to use the front stairs as they are generally less busy - these are on Britannia. The agent I spoke with mentioned this was wise as he was confident I could lock these in "without a problem". When asked what he meant by that he said he was advising select passengers to tick the no upgrade button on most ships.  When I prodded for more information he intimated it was to prevent disappointment if moved to something unsuitable.  At the time I took it to mean if you've picked a cabin you like state you don't want to move but now the devil in me is wondering.

 

Two different agents, two different ships - I booked Arvia for 2023 a couple of days before - two different agents advising the same as saying forward is a good choice and clearly less choice in availability of mid forward and forward cabins has left me wondering are P&O holding some back "just in case"?

 

My local hospital just announced 78 incumbents testing positive with Covid, last week was 38.  If the problem within the community is virtually doubled in a week it is clear the cruise lines are going to encounter difficulties.  I understand from a friend onboard Queen Elizabeth that her Northern Lights cruise was severely impacted and the quarantine areas filled up rapidly and are now apparently full.  This despite testing on a relatively short cruise and mask mandates still in place. We know that Aurora and Azura have had major difficulties as well.  

 

I'm guessing Wowzz's extra test on Arcadia may have to become the norm and sadly there are going to be lots more disappointed people both in losing their cabins to make preparation for these new unfortunates and also becoming the inhabitants of them. 

 

We've a very long journey ahead of us I'm sorry to say.

 

[Pippa04]

I don't think it has anything to do with struggling to control covid onboard or anything like it - it's greed pure and simple.  They are absolutely terrified that if they are seen to treat one person with respect everyone will expect similar treatment and they will have to shell out an absolute fortune in compensation.

 

My 3 cabins were changed in November when everyone was optimistic that the worst of covid was over.  I politely asked to be moved 10 cabins down the corridor and was quoted more than £1k for the privilege.  The problem wasn't any more of my making than it was P and O's but that was blatant profiteering.  I was disappointed about being unable to have my chosen cabins but I did understand the reason for it and with a bit of compromise we could easily have come to an agreement.  I was asking for nothing but similar cabins to those I had booked.  Their disgraceful treatment of my complaint has led me to delve a bit deeper.  If a benefit of the select fare is as heavily marketed as choosing a cabin/location is surely it forms "a significant part of the package"?   Under the old terms and conditions a change such as this should have triggered an alternative offer, a future cruise credit/cruise booking or a full refund PLUS COMPENSATION.  I think this is where P and O are coming from in refusing to admit that they are treating customers so badly - they are trying to avoid paying out a fortune in compensation.

 

Interestingly these old terms and conditions are nowhere to be found in any of the usual places...

 

I've been told to claim on my insurance but why should the insurer take the hit in this situation?  They have also told me to pass my complaint on to ABTA.  I wonder why.  Is it because they are convinced they are in the right or is it because they know that ABTA have a horrendous backlog of cases and I'd also have to pay £135 to register and they think I'll tire of complaining?

 

I have genuine sympathy for the situation P and O have found themselves in but they need to step back, take stock and start treating their customers in a fair and honest way as people who are lucky enough to have spare cash over the next few years are going to want to spend it with a company like the old P and O, that treats them as if their enjoyment of their holiday is the most important thing to them.  If that sort of customer service no longer comes as standard with P and O I'll just spend my money with a company where is does.

[Harry Peterson]

Companies that play fast and loose with their customers do so at their peril, because word spreads online pretty quickly via Trustpilot, social media etc.. Word of mouth too. Our next cruise will probably be with Saga, having been with P&O for years, and although it’ll doubtless cost more the two companies couldn’t be more different in what they provide and how they look after their customers.

 

Currys was once a company that looked after its customers, admittedly a long time ago, before Dixons got their sticky hands on it. Fine company it was - excellent customer service. After years of treating customers like dirt though, who under the age of 65 goes there now? It’s very much a company to avoid - P&O looks set on the same long term downward path to protect short term profits. Or maybe even survive?

[terrierjohn]

46 minutes ago, Harry Peterson said:

Companies that play fast and loose with their customers do so at their peril, because word spreads online pretty quickly via Trustpilot, social media etc.. Word of mouth too. Our next cruise will probably be with Saga, having been with P&O for years, and although it’ll doubtless cost more the two companies couldn’t be more different in what they provide and how they look after their customers.

 

Currys was once a company that looked after its customers, admittedly a long time ago, before Dixons got their sticky hands on it. Fine company it was - excellent customer service. After years of treating customers like dirt though, who under the age of 65 goes there now? It’s very much a company to avoid - P&O looks set on the same long term downward path to protect short term profits. Or maybe even survive?

A company to avoid in your opinion Harry, it managed to increase its profit in 2020 to £156m, from £115m the previous year, despite your downbeat view.

[Harry Peterson]

14 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

A company to avoid in your opinion Harry, it managed to increase its profit in 2020 to £156m, from £115m the previous year, despite your downbeat view.

In the opinion of quite a large number of ex-customers complaining about it too, John. Think what those profits might have been if it had a decent reputation.

 

I see it’s getting rid of its HQ building in West London, and there’s talk of a takeover bid because the share price has dropped.  Ashley’s Frasers Group perhaps? A fitting stablemate!

[terrierjohn]

3 minutes ago, Harry Peterson said:

In the opinion of quite a large number of ex-customers complaining about it too, John. Think what those profits might have been if it had a decent reputation.

 

I see it’s getting rid of its HQ building in West London, and there’s talk of a takeover bid because the share price has dropped.  Ashley’s Frasers Group perhaps? A fitting stablemate!

Harry, you should not believe everything you read in Trustpilot, nor in fact quite a lot you read on the internet.

[Harry Peterson]

4 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Harry, you should not believe everything you read in Trustpilot, nor in fact quite a lot you read on the internet.

Quite, John. I don’t even believe what I post online myself!

[NotDelilah]

As we booked Select Price and chose No Upgrade we have cancelled as the alternative was unacceptable and are to receive refund less the 25%.

Had booked a C deck balcony on Ventura. Moved to A deck cabin with a much smaller balcony, despite being told on Monday there were cabins available on C deck. So 2 weeks looking down on the balconies we had booked. Adding insult to injury or what?

[Selbourne]

35 minutes ago, NotDelilah said:

As we booked Select Price and chose No Upgrade we have cancelled as the alternative was unacceptable and are to receive refund less the 25%.

Had booked a C deck balcony on Ventura. Moved to A deck cabin with a much smaller balcony, despite being told on Monday there were cabins available on C deck. So 2 weeks looking down on the balconies we had booked. Adding insult to injury or what?

Why did you lose 25% when the change was P&O’s and not yours? I wouldn’t have accepted that. If they wouldn’t have budged I’d have called them the week before the cruise, told them I have Covid and got 100% back. 

[Megabear2]

59 minutes ago, NotDelilah said:

As we booked Select Price and chose No Upgrade we have cancelled as the alternative was unacceptable and are to receive refund less the 25%.

Had booked a C deck balcony on Ventura. Moved to A deck cabin with a much smaller balcony, despite being told on Monday there were cabins available on C deck. So 2 weeks looking down on the balconies we had booked. Adding insult to injury or what?

Why couldn't you have a C deck balcony if they are still on sale? Surely making you lose 25% is unacceptable if P&O refused you the same type/grade of cabin if there was availability. What reason did they give for refusing you that option?  Others travelling on Iona have been allowed to move their deck 8 reallocation to deck 9 so there is a precedent you could quote. Suggest you contact ABTA for clarification on that one. I most definitely would not accept that penalty. As Selbourne says if you'd completed the medical questionnaire stating you had Covid contact they would have given you all your money as FCC.