Future Cruise Credit expires without notice after one year

[Nancy Janzen]

After a few HAL cruises and when about to book another one, we learnt that our future cruise credit expired 2 months ago! Apparently it was only valid for 1 year but NOWHERE on our cancellation notice did it mention that. They are able to send multiple advertising emails every week but fail to notify their customers when their credit is going to expire! In 2022, we ended up cancelling a cruise after the itinerary changed so many times with no compensation for the adjustments and no flexibility for changing to a different cruise. We decided to use our HAL cancellation insurance leaving us with a future cruise credit for part of the refund. We thought we'd give them a chance to resolve this so we emailed them regarding our missing cruise credit on Aug 17, 2023. After over 1 month with no reply, we called them on Sept 26, 2023 and were given a case number and told someone would get back to us in 7-10 days. Then 16 days later and no reply, we called again and they informed us that many customers have experienced this and they are sticking to their policy and offering us nothing! The customer service rep told us that the expiry date is visable on the HAL app; however, you only use this app when on a cruise! Very poor customer service and policies in our opinion! How simple would it have been to just put a text line on the original cancellation refund notice to let us know that the future cruise credit is only valid for one year! Seems like a great way to get people to rebook rather than lose customers instead! This lack of transparency is concerning. We have many cruise plans in our future but we are done with Holland America unless they offer some form of compensation.

[REOVA]

Our FCC and FCD show expiration dates when we log into the website and look at them. Did they not show up in your profile? 

[Nancy Janzen]

Not to our knowledge but it is gone now so I can't tell. I certainly never saw it there. The frustrating part was that we were never told in the first place. I have all the documentation from our cancelled cruise and no mention of the future cruise credit expiring after one year. 

[*Miss G*]

It should show in the emails they sent you.  If you booked with a TA (vs a PCC) the TA may have those emails and not forwarded them on to you.  I would take it up with your TA or PCC.  Hopefully you booked with a PCC and can deal with them directly.  Good luck!

[TiogaCruiser]

Welcome to Cruise Critic 

[kazu]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!  I’ve had several FCC’s (and countless FCD’s) and the expiry date had always shown.  

 

It’s a shame you were unaware of yours.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

30 minutes ago, kazu said:

Welcome to Cruise Critic!  I’ve had several FCC’s (and countless FCD’s) and the expiry date had always shown.  

 

It’s a shame you were unaware of yours.

and the expiry date had always shown.  us to 

[POA1]

I've always seen both a book by and a sail by date.

[FlaMariner]

Just looked at our account online and w/each credit, there is a column called "sail by" with a date.  That seems fairly clear regarding when they expire. 

 

I've got e-credits with Delta that expire 12/31/23 and I expect Delta to remain "radio silent" as far as any notification on those (I can view them in my Delta account)......I consider it my responsibility and HAL seems to be in line with the same method.....

 

It's very frustrating.....I am sorry for this.......We are struggling with how to use those Delta e-credits before end of next month.....but I am determined to not let them expire.  

 

 

[X-elite]

We had eight cruise cancellations during Covid. No confusion at all about when FCC expired. As a reasonable adult, it would be my responsibility to check that the FCC amount and expiration date was accurate.

 

For more recently issued FCC, I'd guess all the cruise lines have been able to perfect their FCC processes over the last three years.  Very doubtful that a consumer could provide cruise line documents that did NOT show an expiration date.

[crystalspin]

Pandemic FCCs were a little different, as they did keep being pushed off, allowing more time, as the unpleasantness dragged on. But we were informed of this, too. And finally booked for two days before final expiry!

[thinfool]

I need to check this out.  I bought some FCD's awhile back, long since expired, but I guess I just assumed that they worked like the one's for Princess.  After 2 years you get your money back although you can request an additional 2 years if you need to.

[kazu]

5 minutes ago, thinfool said:

I need to check this out.  I bought some FCD's awhile back, long since expired, but I guess I just assumed that they worked like the one's for Princess.  After 2 years you get your money back although you can request an additional 2 years if you need to.

 

The OP is talking about FCC’s - Future Cruise Deposits.

 

You bought FCD’s - Future Cruise Deposits.  They are good for 4 years.  If they are not used, the money you paid is automatically credited back to the credit card you used to purchase them with.  No worries at all 🙂 

[thinfool]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

 

The OP is talking about FCC’s - Future Cruise Deposits.

 

You bought FCD’s - Future Cruise Deposits.  They are good for 4 years.  If they are not used, the money you paid is automatically credited back to the credit card you used to purchase them with.  No worries at all 🙂 

You may be right, however I was told 2 years when I bought them.

[kazu]

5 minutes ago, thinfool said:

You may be right, however I was told 2 years when I bought them.

 

I have been buying Future Cruise Deposits (FCD’s) for decades on and off and the expiry has always been 4 years.  Info from the FCC’s (Future Cruise consultants) is only as good as the person giving it.  I have heard a lot of misinformation on board and one of the reasons I am hesitant to book on board.

[StLouisCruisers]

1 hour ago, thinfool said:

You may be right, however I was told 2 years when I bought them.

 

Are you thinking of Princess Future Cruise Deposits?  They are only good for 2 years these days, but the HAL ones I bought this summer are still good for 4 years.  

[kdakda]

On 11/25/2023 at 5:06 PM, thinfool said:

I need to check this out.  I bought some FCD's awhile back, long since expired, but I guess I just assumed that they worked like the one's for Princess.  After 2 years you get your money back although you can request an additional 2 years if you need to.

You can check FCCs/FCDs under "My Profile" on your Holland account on line. There's an expiration date---- the ones I bought 11/22 don't expire until 11/26

[Ken the cruiser]

Just for clarity, the Princess FCDs now expire within one year of purchase if you don't book a cruise with it.

 

About future cruise deposit

You can purchase a Future Cruise Deposit (FCD) on board as part of our Future Cruise Deposit Program.

The Future Cruise Deposit is a reduced, fully refundable deposit of $100 per person that secures a booking until final payment and gives you up to $150 Onboard Credit!

You’ll have up to a year to book your cruise with your preferred Travel Advisor or Cruise Vacation Planner or directly through Princess. If you don’t book during that time, we’ll automatically refund the FCD to the credit card used to purchase the deposit.

 

Princess® Cruise Credits - What are Cruise Credits? - Princess Cruises

 

Edited November 27, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[thinfool]

I have a form filled out for our next cruise that states this "the Future Cruise Deposit, and will be automatically refunded if not applied to a new booking created within two years from date of purchase"

 

And I wlll add that if the one year change is true, Princess will see a drastic drop in their loyalty participation.

[Ken the cruiser]

6 minutes ago, thinfool said:

I have a form filled out for our next cruise that states this "the Future Cruise Deposit, and will be automatically refunded if not applied to a new booking created within two years from date of purchase"

 

And I wlll add that if the one year change is true, Princess will see a drastic drop in their loyalty participation.

That's cool. What is the "revised" date in the bottom left-hand corner of your Princess FCD form? The "old" form that I have that states the 2-year time frame states "Revised 7/2018". However, we have purchased a few FCDs since 2020 and you might notice the below expiration dates in my Personalizer have progressively gotten shorter. In 2020 it was 2 years (but got extended 1 year because of the pandemic), in 2022 it was 2 years, and in 2023 it has been reduced to 1 year. 

 

 

[StLouisCruisers]

1 hour ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Just for clarity, the Princess FCDs now expire within one year of purchase if you don't book a cruise with it.

 

About future cruise deposit

You can purchase a Future Cruise Deposit (FCD) on board as part of our Future Cruise Deposit Program.

The Future Cruise Deposit is a reduced, fully refundable deposit of $100 per person that secures a booking until final payment and gives you up to $150 Onboard Credit!

You’ll have up to a year to book your cruise with your preferred Travel Advisor or Cruise Vacation Planner or directly through Princess. If you don’t book during that time, we’ll automatically refund the FCD to the credit card used to purchase the deposit.

 

Princess® Cruise Credits - What are Cruise Credits? - Princess Cruises

 

 

So this must be a new development since my Feb. 2023 Princess FCD's say Book by Feb. 2025.  So I don't have to sail by that date, just be sure to use it on a booking by then.  Honestly, we look at Holland America for our itineraries and Princess rarely has a comparable itinerary.  I'll be hard pressed to find a good cruise to book by then.

[Ken the cruiser]

32 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

 

So this must be a new development since my Feb. 2023 Princess FCD's say Book by Feb. 2025.  So I don't have to sail by that date, just be sure to use it on a booking by then.  Honestly, we look at Holland America for our itineraries and Princess rarely has a comparable itinerary.  I'll be hard pressed to find a good cruise to book by then.

Understand. We like longer 3-5 week cruises and currently have PCL ones booked to Antarctica/SA, Alaska, the Baltic, and TAs going from BA to Ft Lauderdale by way of Brazil and one from Barcelona to Boston by way of the UK and Iceland. But we're also looking to book more with HAL in 2025 and beyond, as they also have some pretty cool 3-5 week itineraries.