Very Disappointed - Celebrity Galaxy

[nps001]

Sorry...I mean no offense whatsoever, but if i had a 6-6 record cruising, I'd find something else to do that satisfied my needs and that I got enjoyment out of.

[Ma Bell]

I would agree that there are reasons for people to pursue a lawsuit but after reading the complaints of the OP I would say these are a little frivolous. This hardly rises to the level of lawsuit material. I suspect the OP is always going to be looking for a refund of some kind.

[Goofyisme]

I would agree that there are reasons for people to pursue a lawsuit but after reading the complaints of the OP I would say these are a little frivolous. This hardly rises to the level of lawsuit material. I suspect the OP is always going to be looking for a refund of some kind.

 

My opinion also

[usha]

I would agree that there are reasons for people to pursue a lawsuit but after reading the complaints of the OP I would say these are a little frivolous. This hardly rises to the level of lawsuit material. I suspect the OP is always going to be looking for a refund of some kind.

Do ya think?:rolleyes: (yeah, me, too.)

[Tricia724]

You are probably way to young to remember this but years ago in the US, GM sold the Corvair that had a defect and the gas tank would explode in a rear end collision. Now, GM knew about this possibility but the bean counters found it would be cheaper to pay off the several dozen people who were killed because of this known defect, rather than issue a recall and make the necessary repairs. GM found it was economically cheaper to just ignore this problem and continue selling these cars. Finally when word got out and people were fed up with this attitude, many people took GM to court and sued them and GM was forced to recall all the defective cars and fix them.

 

.....or maybe it was the Ford Motor Company and its infamous Pinto.

[Drew B]

If the customer base at large is suffering from a clear-cut, widespread problem, then it is helpful to all if somebody stands up and fights. That would have been true in the case of a faultily designed car that kills people.

 

If one person or several people perceive a problem (real or imagined) and launch lawsuits, that will harm those for whom there never was a problem. I consider it a very different scenario.

[Lois R]

Not sure how one can compare the Pinto to this experience.

 

The Pinto was known to have killed people due to the faulty

gas tank.

 

In my opinion (and I know what they say about opinions)

but in my opinion, the law suit in this case is due to the fact

the cruiser did not have a good time. And if that is wrong, oh wait,

it is just my opinion...opinions are just that....so they are not

right or wrong.:rolleyes:

Standing up for others? Again, not in my opinion.

[Coreopsis]

Lois, I love your opinions - even when I don't agree with them! (Although I couldn't agree more here!)

 

I am not suggesting it applies to this poster . . .

 

Sometime ago, I was truly stumped by a nasty letter from a customer. It was so over the top and I was distressed; I didn't even know where to begin in creating a response.

 

I showed it to our top Executive for advice and here was his response:

• Send it back to him with a note reading "We wanted you to be aware that some as**ole wrote this letter and signed your name to it."

When it comes to customer service - sometimes, it is just not possible to find an acceptable solution - except to take your business elsewhere. And when it comes to consumer information - these boards are full of great information. Everything from ship ratings, cabin suggestions, etc. You can choose to ignore it - but then shouldn't you take some responsibility for yourself?

 

I still find it SHOCKING that the OP could only find lettuce and crackers to eat. He found all sorts of other problems, but couldn't find the dining room or room service. In my opinion, if OP leaves Celebrity - well it would be a good thing for all involved. I also take issue with his comment about 5 star dining - I've not seen anyone claim that. Certainly not Celebrity. (Maybe he was misinformed by the TA he sued.)

 

Originally Posted by fireman999

You are right the food on the Turkish Night was the worst food that I have ever experienced on a cruise. Not being a lover of spicy food the only alternative that I found was a few lettuce leaves and some dry crackers - not exactly 5 star dining....

[fireman999]

Fireman, if you make a habit of taking these cruiselines to court, it costs them money to defend themselves. It also costs them money if you win and they have to pay you off. In order to make up for these losses, they have to earn extra revenue. They can do this either by raising prices or cutting costs. Both of which make things worse for the rest of us. I'm sure that some people will thank you, but not everybody will. I don't think it's correct to consider yourself a great hero championing the interests of cruisers everywhere. What you do does NOT help everybody. It may help some, but it hurts others...

 

It is certainly your right to stand up for yourself when you don't get what you paid for. The first lawsuit is understandable. However, after the second or third time ending up in court, I have to wonder whether cruising on ANY line is right for you...

 

I appreciate that it costs them money but if they gave me the courtesy of a reply to my communications and explain what went wrong we may never get to this situation but their lack of courtesy gives me very little choice but to seek redress through the courts. You should also remember that my wife suffered a very painful knee injury because of the stair nosings that were damaged and she has to go and see a specialist tonight which is costing us money - are you also suggesting that we should bear these costs and not complain about them?

 

I don't see myself as championing the rights of other cruisers but if my actions help anyone else then I'm pleased that I could be of assistance - I guess that if my actions had helped you the story may have been different. If you had looked at my post about my previous Court action you will note that the Court made the Travel Agent pay all the costs because they failed to inform me of the changes even though the cruise company had sanctioned my refund. Clearly the Court action in this case recognised where the fault lay and it was they that paid all of the costs - so how does this affect the fellow cruiser? The action that the cruise company took was a gesture of goodwill because I had been treated so badly - are you also saying that I should not have accepted this?

 

I used to work for one of the worlds largest financial institutes and they took customer relations as a top priority because they realised that good customer service was good business - you treat the customer well and they will tell their friends which leads to more business, conversely if you treated them poorly one disgruntled customer could cause you to loose an amount of business that was impossible to calculate. They were not always one of the worlds leading financial institutions but have got there by standing by these principles - a lesson that some other companies need to recognise.

[fireman999]

I would agree that there are reasons for people to pursue a lawsuit but after reading the complaints of the OP I would say these are a little frivolous. This hardly rises to the level of lawsuit material. I suspect the OP is always going to be looking for a refund of some kind.

 

I looked up the meaning of frivolous in my dictionary and it stated "not serious, silly, shallow, paltry, trfling" and I'm sorry that this is how you see my complaints without even considering the evidence. If you had looked at my previous posts you will have noted that I offered to send anyone that was interested copies of the pictures and the audio recordings that I took , obviously you made this comment without considering this evidence - perhaps if you had seen and heard you may have had a different opinion but lets see what the Courts decide.

 

I don't think my wife will consider it frivolous either if she has to have an operation on her knee.

[Pontius Navigator]

Fireman,

 

I have read most of this thread. I will return to your original post and shove my oar in. I haven't decided which way to row yet but I will by the time I have finished this message;

 

My wife and I have taken 15 previous cruises . . . best one . . . the Constellation . . . our worst cruise was on board the Galaxy

 

Credentials proven and no antipathy to Celebrity.

 

1. The noise and vibration problems in the aft staterooms on Deck 4 were unbearable

 

Some cabins are noisy. We have had one. Our friends have had one. My Sister in Law had one. They were all on different ships and none were on Celebrity. We had ours fixed at 2am! Our friends were given an additional cabin, away from their suite. My Sister in Law got a substantial travel voucher.

 

2. The state of the stair nosings in the Celebrity Theatre are very dangerous - my wife tripped on them and so did another gentleman.

 

In my case I had a show ripped because of a sharp extrusion on a stair. I forced the issue and got a £50 cash in hand sum on the cruise.

 

3. On excursion days . . . close the Main Restaurant and everyone . . . to use the Oasis Cafe . . . you find yourself wandering around with a tray of food that is rapidly going cold trying to find tables and chairs

 

4. On the excursion to Egypt a considerable amount of time was wasted by the guide selling gold items, tee shirts, books and a visit to what was described as a Government approved Gold and Papyrus Centre. . . . The guide was quite annoyed by this . . .

 

It happens. It is one of the duties of tourists in the developed world to help those less fortunate in the developing world. Being pleasantly ripped off is a duty.

 

5. Other problems that we noted were electrical cable with a taped joint, cables across passageways without warning signs, obstructed exit routes and corridors, loss of hot water, inaudible phone messages, incorrect disembarkation instructions, smells from leaking services in corridor and very poor customer relations.

 

And?

 

We have had many of these too. We reported them. We found the Hotel Manager and we got most fixed. However on a British ship we did not have to force the issue - the Environmental and Health and Safety Officer was visible on deck every day.

 

6. The noise/vibration and tripping hazards were notified to Daniel Stacy the Hotel Director and apart from a letter stating that he would pass it to the appropriate department, nothing happened. On our return we emailed and wrote to the President of Celebrity Cruises but to date have not received a reply.

 

Without knowing what you said to the HD and President it is hard to comment further. The crucial thing is to ensure that your complaints at the time, and to the President later, state clearly, and reasonably, what you expect them to do about it and what recompense you want.

In asking for recompense, remember that money back is a fixed gain for you and a fixed loss for them. OTOH if you ask for money value instead they can give you a credit of, say $500, which would actually only cost them $300.

 

And if the President didn't reply (too high up the tree) maybe you should have approached your travel agent or credit card company.

 

All in all I would say you have valid grounds for complaint and some slight recompense if you are ever to travel with them again.

 

As for:

 

"we are trying to provide a five star service with a three star ship" and personally we couldn't agree more

 

Our feelings exactly. We found the officers on our cruise almost completely indifferent whereas on our previous 3*/4* cruises we always had 5* service.

[Jade13]

I appreciate that it costs them money but if they gave me the courtesy of a reply to my communications and explain what went wrong we may never get to this situation but their lack of courtesy gives me very little choice but to seek redress through the courts. .

 

I agree that Celebrity has terrible customer service. A letter of apology or even acknowlegement can go a long way.

 

I may have missed it but did you file a law suit? And if so, exactly what are you looking for in the way of compensation?

 

I thought Celebrity was a Mass Market cruise line (like HAL), but supposed to be on the upper end of RCCL (Like HAL is supposed to be the upper end of Carnival). I am not sure I have read "5 star". Perhaps I need to look at their web site again.

[Ma Bell]

I applaud people who try to stand up for themselves too but this is a case of overkill. What the OP describes might make me a little unhappy and I would try to work it out with the cruiselines, but taking them to court over this is ridiculous.

If this is the reaction for these kinds of problems I can only imagine what he must have said to them to begin with.

If I got no response from Celebrity after civil communications I would take my business elsewhere. That would be the appropriate reaction to these problems. However, since this is not the first lawsuit, the OP will soon run out of cruiselines. If one is looking for problems some can always be found on any ship.

[Drew B]

Can you please explain to me what exactly the problem was with the stair nosing that led to your wife's injury? If this was truly a dangerous condition that was negligently allowed to remain, then I support your pursuit of damages. If, on the other hand, your wife had a simple accident that is really nobody's fault, and you're trying to pin it on the cruise line in order to collect, then I DON'T support you. Without actually knowing what was wrong with the stair, I cannot make that assessment. However, I will say that other consumers DO pay the price for these kinds of suits, even when they are justifiable...

[fireman999]

Can you please explain to me what exactly the problem was with the stair nosing that led to your wife's injury? If this was truly a dangerous condition that was negligently allowed to remain, then I support your pursuit of damages. If, on the other hand, your wife had a simple accident that is really nobody's fault, and you're trying to pin it on the cruise line in order to collect, then I DON'T support you. Without actually knowing what was wrong with the stair, I cannot make that assessment. However, I will say that other consumers DO pay the price for these kinds of suits, even when they are justifiable...

 

If you let me have your email address I would be quite happy to let you have a copy of the letter that I sent to the President of Celebrity which also contains photographs of the problems. If you don't want to let me have your email address this is the problem:

 

The stair nosings have a gold coloured strip on the nosings of the stairs that contain a series of lights to indicate where the edge is. At some time these have either been damaged or have come away from the substructure and it looks like someone has tried to repair this by using a hammer to flatten the strip. This has been unsuccessful as it has left many strips that are uneven and projecting above the carpet at irregular intervals.

 

Hope that helps.

[fireman999]

I applaud people who try to stand up for themselves too but this is a case of overkill. What the OP describes might make me a little unhappy and I would try to work it out with the cruiselines, but taking them to court over this is ridiculous.

 

If this is the reaction for these kinds of problems I can only imagine what he must have said to them to begin with.

 

If I got no response from Celebrity after civil communications I would take my business elsewhere. That would be the appropriate reaction to these problems. However, since this is not the first lawsuit, the OP will soon run out of cruiselines. If one is looking for problems some can always be found on any ship.

 

As I stated previously - lets see what the Courts decide as they will be able to make a fair judgement based on both sides of the argument.

 

Just to give you an update on my wife's condition she saw a consultant last night and he feels that she may have damaged either her cruciate ligament or the meniscus and is worried about the amount of play in her knee joint and has now sent her for a scan.

 

Whilst we have a National Health Service in the UK there is quite a long waiting list for this type of complaint so we have chosen to use our Private Health Insurance which as you know costs a lot of money and we have to pay part of the cost of treatment ourselves. If I took your option to walk away - is it fair that our insurers and I meet all of these costs so that it doesn't impact on Celebrity's profits if the Courts decide in our favour?

 

One of the other outcomes of my previous court action was that the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency became involved following an article in the UK Press and the cruise line was made to address the safety issues that I had raised - is this not in the interest of fellow passengers?

 

PS If you would like to see a copy of my letter to the President of Celebrity showing the problems I am quite happy to send you a copy.

[Desertbelle]

PS If you would like to see a copy of my letter to the President of Celebrity showing the problems I am quite happy to send you a copy.

 

It would be far more interesting to see a picture of the offending stair nosing.....please post one.

 

Thousands of people every year have accidents and try to blame someone else for the outcome. People trip on minor things or even nothing and hurt themselves. Is it possible your wife was wearing high heels that made her less stable on her feet, or was a little tipsy and less able to notice what her feet were doing. Perhaps her husband was hurrying her along and made her trip. Maybe she was turning her head to talk to someone and misstepped. I can think of even more scenarios that could cause her to trip and fall. Why must the cruise lines pay for any of those? Perhaps the stair nosing contributed to her tripping, but just because you know of two people who tripped (no idea what conditions might have causes the other gentleman to trip)what were the thousands of other people doing special to avoid tripping?

[Ma Bell]

It seems the focus of he complaint has changed recently. Not much mentioned about any injury until lately. Previously the issue seemed to be mostly one of noise and comfort and the non-response from customer service.:confused:

Why not post a copy of your court award when you receive it. I'm sure if your wife was injured because of some negligence on Celebrity's part you should get a very nice one.

[Goofyisme]

A quick question for the OP. Did you take your wife to see the doctor on the ship and did you file a written report of the incident while onboard?

Thanks in advance for you answer.

[ECCruise]

It seems the focus of he complaint has changed recently. Not much mentioned about any injury until lately. Previously the issue seemed to be mostly one of noise and comfort and the non-response from customer service.:confused:

 

 

Was the number 2 issue on the OP's original post:

2. The state of the stair nosings in the Celebrity Theatre are very dangerous - my wife tripped on them and so did another gentleman. If this was in a building in the UK the owner would face legal action by the enforcing authorities.

[Ma Bell]

I read that and all the posts. As I said not much mention of a serious injury until lately.

[Ma Bell]

A quick question for the OP. Did you take your wife to see the doctor on the ship and did you file a written report of the incident while onboard?

Thanks in advance for you answer.

 

Good question. Nothing ever mentioned about seeing a doctor until today. I think most people would have emphasized a serious injury rather than some noise and vibrations.

[Desertbelle]

This poster reminds me of a patient I had once.

 

At the time I had an office in my home and after her appointment I walked her out to her car. I noticed her license plate read "4MYPAIN" I asked her what that meant and she told me she had bought the car with the money she got from "one of the times she sued someone"!!

 

I went into the house and thought a long time about it and decided she wasn't worth taking care of knowing how easy it was for her to sue someone...why would I put myself in that position? I called her and told her I couldn't be her midwife, and she was plenty upset at me. I called a few close midwife friends and told them to beware. Never heard from her again, but often wondered who she ended up having her baby with and whether or not she sued them.

[Nonna and Papa]

I continue to read this thread with abject wonder. By the way, you never answered a question I asked you many posts ago. Which Ancient Empires sailing were you on? The November 10 sailing from Rome, or the November 24 sailing from Athens?

 

Mary

[nps001]

Not that my opinion matters but I vote this board gets closed/locked asap!

 

I'm tired of the ridiculous comments.

 

P.S. In many businesses, those that are repeat complainers, (and to a greater extent, those that show a pattern of lawsuits) can be banned from entering those businesses---including cruise ships and airplanes (airlines are notorious for doing so).