Would you fire this travel agent?

[Stockjock]

I usually do my own bookings and have not previously sailed on Oceania.  I had decided to book Oceania as a gift for my GF's upcoming 60th birthday next year.

Because I have an Amex Platinum card, I could book it through an Amex approved agent (didn't have to be their travel agency) and get a $300 onboard credit, bottle of wine, and invite to a wine-tasting event.  I found a supposedly Amex approved agent on a cruise competition site, who also offered $150 OBC.
 

It took her a few days to get me the invoice and do the booking (June 2022).  Months later, I noticed that she had not apparently added the Amex Platinum OBC/amenities to the booking.

On December 5th, I wrote, "Even though this cruise is a long ways out, I didn’t see any reference to the $300 Amex Platinum OBC or wine tasting amenities.  Should they be shown on the invoice?"  She replied, "It is on a list to be added but it has not been done yet.  Once they get added I will send you an updated invoice.  I’ll work on it this week."  On December 8th, I replied, "Sounds good.  I'll look for that when it arrives."

But that never happened.

On January 3rd, I wrote, "I don’t think I ever received the updated invoice showing the American Express onboard credit and amenities. If you could provide that I would appreciate it."
 

I haven't received a reply.

If you were in my shoes, would you fire this agent and transfer the booking elsewhere, or stick with her for now?

Edited January 10, 2023 by Stockjock

[PhD-iva]

I also struggle w a non responsive TA who, in the end, gets things done. For me, it’s a little more complicated as I also consider her a friend. But I get v frustrated from her “radio silence.”

Since you don’t have the same emotional attachment to yours, I’d use a different TA in future. Its too late to transfer this booking to another TA (30-day window).

Experienced posters will recommend you ask your fellow pax on your upcoming cruise which TA do they recommend and why do they recommend them.

Enjoy your cruise!

[MarkWiltonM]

I would not work with that agent again. 

[ORV]

8 hours ago, Stockjock said:

found a supposedly Amex approved agent on a cruise competition site,

There was your mistake. I checked that out 12 or 13 years ago, before I found the agent we have now, and had 2 or 3 replies. Talk about alarms and red flags going off pretty much the whole process. Poor grammar, incomplete sentences, unanswered questions among other things. I ran fast. 

[Stockjock]

19 minutes ago, ORV said:

There was your mistake. I checked that out 12 or 13 years ago, before I found the agent we have now, and had 2 or 3 replies. Talk about alarms and red flags going off pretty much the whole process. Poor grammar, incomplete sentences, unanswered questions among other things. I ran fast. 

I think it's quite possible to find a good travel agent anywhere.  This particular one seems to have the credentials.  A director at a decent-sized travel agency (but not one of the really big ones).  Decades of experience.

But...despite this, I am not thrilled with the lack of response/slow response.  I work for a big Wall Street firm and I get really upset when we don't deliver first class service to our clients, as it reflects poorly on the firm and on me.  But I also expect this from others in a professional capacity, within reason.

Edited January 10, 2023 by Stockjock

[LHT28]

18 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

I think it's quite possible to find a good travel agent anywhere.  This particular one seems to have the credentials.  A director at a decent-sized travel agency (but not one of the really big ones).  Decades of experience.

But...despite this, I am not thrilled with the lack of response/slow response.  I work for a big Wall Street firm and I get really upset when we don't deliver first class service to our clients, as it reflects poorly on the firm and on me.  But I also expect this from others in a professional capacity, within reason.

if you booked with her because of her credentials  maybe  she does have it under control

 Your cruise  is what 18 mths away??

Yes you may  like things done ASAP but she could have all the info in your file & it will be done before your sailing

give her  a chance  & if it does not work  then use another agent next time

JMO

[FlyerTalker]

9 hours ago, Stockjock said:

I found a supposedly Amex approved agent on a cruise competition site,

 

Buy on price, get the service to match.

 

There are agents and then there are order-takers.  You chose the latter, and now expect the former.

 

Working in the securities industry, you should be very aware of the difference.  Live and learn.

 

 

2 hours ago, PhD-iva said:

I also struggle w a non responsive TA who, in the end, gets things done. For me, it’s a little more complicated as I also consider her a friend.

 

Time to remember the line from The Godfather:

 

"It's not personal, Sonny. It's strictly business."

 

You have to decide....is this a business relationship or not?  If it is, then you have to take the personal side out of the equation.  If not, then you have to accept that you won't get the service you would get elsewhere.  The complication comes from your own choices.

 

My solution is that I don't do business with friends.  And when they ask why I don't do business with them, I reply "Would you rather have my business or my friendship?  Because in the real world, you can't have both."  And depending on their answer, that's how it goes forward.

 

 

[bob brown]

I believe I used that site a few years ago, to get competing offers from various agents for my first world cruise.  In the past, I always booked directly with the cruise lines myself, since I did extensive research, and felt that I knew as much, or more, than an agent would, of what I wanted.

Besides, cruise lines were generally more reachable for questions and perhaps modifications then most agents were, and if you did book thru an agent, the cruise line would refer you back to that agent if you did.

 

For my first ATW cruise, the lure of getting back additional benefits, beyond what the cruise line offered, made me decide to try using an agent.  So after getting about 8 different offers, I chose the one offering the most refundable shipboard credit…in my case $6,000., which was out of her commission.  That’s a lot, but she did not have to work hard to earn her commission, as I did the booking, and simply turned it over to her.

Anyway, as it turned out, she never gave me the final $1,000.  Went back and forth with emails for about 7 months with her promising to “ look in” to what happened to it, until I finally gave up, and decided it was not worth pursuing further.

I later went back to that site, and asked for more bids on some long future cruises, and guess who bid?  Right… she did.   I answered her bid, and asked her if she thought I would ever use her again, after my last experience with her.  She had the nerve to say, she would add that $1,000. to what she would give me on my next cruise.

I answered, “fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me”…

 

She lost a whole lot more than that thousand dollars, in future bookings I have since made.

 

That said, I have learned from shipmates, who the really good  agents for Oceania were, and chose accordingly, rather then gamble with unknowns from the competing bids site.

Edited January 10, 2023 by bob brown

[no fuss travel]

When covid arrived the travel agency laid off my incredible TA.  They left me with one who did not answer phone calls promptly or never, did not follow up with instructions, and messed up a rather multiple tours/cruises trip.  I did all the work and am now back with my incredible TA who is working for another agency.  Unfortunately I could not leave the one who gave me bad service as the trips were over the 30 day change period.  Fortunately for me, I got excellent response from Oceania, and the other tour companies who fixed up her mistakes.  Live and learn as they all say.

 

[Cruzin Terri]

The $300 AMEX benefit is applied after final payment to make sure that it is paid with the AMEX platinum card.  Have you made final payment?

If not your TA cannot apply the $300 benefit yet.

Terri

[Stockjock]

4 hours ago, Cruzin Terri said:

The $300 AMEX benefit is applied after final payment to make sure that it is paid with the AMEX platinum card.  Have you made final payment?

If not your TA cannot apply the $300 benefit yet.

Terri

We're well away from final payment.  That said, the cruise is nearly paid for.

[Cruzin Terri]

6 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

We're well away from final payment.  That said, the cruise is nearly paid for.

Well, If you have not paid in full, you will not see the $300 AMEX benefit until it is fully paid for.

I would not blame your TA until you have paid in full.  Then again, why would you pay that far in advance and give Oceania an interest-free loan?

Have patience.  Your TA has done nothing wrong.

Terri

[Stockjock]

17 minutes ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Well, If you have not paid in full, you will not see the $300 AMEX benefit until it is fully paid for.

I would not blame your TA until you have paid in full.  Then again, why would you pay that far in advance and give Oceania an interest-free loan?

Have patience.  Your TA has done nothing wrong.

Terri

The travel agent did not explain this.  If you scroll up, you'll see it's much the opposite.

As to the "loan", received 2 Amex offers for $200 if I paid $800, so did that twice ($1,600) and picked up $400.  If they offer it again, I'll do it again.

[Cruzin Terri]

33 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

The travel agent did not explain this.  If you scroll up, you'll see it's much the opposite.

As to the "loan", received 2 Amex offers for $200 if I paid $800, so did that twice ($1,600) and picked up $400.  If they offer it again, I'll do it again.

Your TA should have explained the paid in full requirement.  

I would have done the same thing if AMEX would have given me the same offer.  Unfortunately, I only got that once.  $1500 for $250 statement credit.  I used that for a deposit.

Terri

[Stockjock]

Just a follow up, she did send me an invoice this morning and it does show the $300 AMEX platinum benefit on it, and no, the booking is not paid in full, as mentioned.

[MarkWiltonM]

On 1/10/2023 at 11:09 AM, bob brown said:

That said, I have learned from shipmates, who the really good  agents for Oceania were, and chose accordingly, rather then gamble with unknowns from the competing bids site.

 

We found our current agent from that website. Prompt communication is of paramount importance to us, even more so than the perks. The agency is an Oceania Cruise Connoisseur member, though I didn't know that at the time.

[bob brown]

15 minutes ago, MarkWiltonM said:

 

We found our current agent from that website. Prompt communication is of paramount importance to us, even more so than the perks. The agency is an Oceania Cruise Connoisseur member, though I didn't know that at the time.

You were fortunate.  I suppose there is nothing wrong with using that site, if you carefully research the chosen offer’s reputation, before taking it…

[itzfitz]

I have always used Amex Platinum paying for cruises.  The last one, on Oceania, I was told by my TA that since I was getting my gratuities paid for that they could not apply the $300 Amex credit!  Has anyone every been told that?

[msn123]

We use AMEX to receive the credit, too. In our years of cruising, once or twice we have been told that on some special fare offers the AMEX credit is not able to be combined.  My agent figured out what was the best way to book it and we took whatever it was.  If you read the Oceania fine print you can see that they make (and can change) the rules. 

 

We always ask for an invoice after final payment to make sure it shows.....and that is after we deal with the shareholder credit, too!

[Stockjock]

3 hours ago, msn123 said:

We use AMEX to receive the credit, too. In our years of cruising, once or twice we have been told that on some special fare offers the AMEX credit is not able to be combined.  My agent figured out what was the best way to book it and we took whatever it was.  If you read the Oceania fine print you can see that they make (and can change) the rules. 

 

We always ask for an invoice after final payment to make sure it shows.....and that is after we deal with the shareholder credit, too!

I think that Amex credit could be applied towards just about any fare.  Not sure about something like Friends and Family type of fares, but probably most other fares.

[Mura]

On 1/10/2023 at 9:49 AM, MarkWiltonM said:

I would not work with that agent again. 

Ditto. Use one of the Oceania approved TAs.

[Stockjock]

2 hours ago, Mura said:

Ditto. Use one of the Oceania approved TAs.

Is there a list somewhere?

[Mura]

58 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

Is there a list somewhere?

There is but since I've never had to use it (we got our agent from Renaissance Cruises of lamented memory so we never needed to use the Oceania recommendations).  Perhaps do a search on CC, or someone may mention it.

 

Mura

 

[PhD-iva]

The usual advice is to google a certain phrase. Hmmm. Don’t recall exactly but FF will chime in soon with the words at his fingertips.

[LHT28]

10 hours ago, Stockjock said:

Is there a list somewhere?

there is  no "List"  if thee was  we cannot mention it on CC anyway