Depositing cash instead of using credit/debit card

Hi all,

Hoping someone will be able to help.

We are going on our first cruise in May and have read somewhere that we will be asked to register a debit or credit card upon boarding.

We dont have a credit card or rather choose not to have one and i am wary about using my debit card as dont want amounts being taken out or put on hold. Not entirely sure if they do this, but would worry that they are taking money i cant really afford:eek:

So was wondering if they would accept a cash deposit instead.

Many thanks in advance.

Sam

Hi all,

 

Hoping someone will be able to help.

 

We are going on our first cruise in May and have read somewhere that we will be asked to register a debit or credit card upon boarding.

 

We dont have a credit card or rather choose not to have one and i am wary about using my debit card as dont want amounts being taken out or put on hold. Not entirely sure if they do this, but would worry that they are taking money i cant really afford:eek:

 

So was wondering if they would accept a cash deposit instead.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

Sam

yep they will accept a cash deposit, i think the minimum is £200 (that may depend on ship?)

I think you can deposit a minimum of £200cash and they will let you know if it needs toping up. We have always used a debit card and have never had any problems at all. However we usually buy a drinks package so any on board spend is small, generally duty free, hair dressers or paying extra on premium drinks. Sometimes we buy nothing at all, depends on the cruise

:eek:

We always register a debit card (we don't do credit cards either) and have never had any problems. Why do you think they would take extra money?

We always register a debit card (we don't do credit cards either) and have never had any problems. Why do you think they would take extra money?

They don't, they pre-authorise payments which has caused problems for people in the past if they have limited funds available or if the bank thinks there is an attempted fraud.

It looks as though Thomson have just started using a chip and pin system as well, there is a thread on that other well known cruise forum where a customer is having this exact problem.

My advice which ever way you pay, have your bill printed out at every opportunity just to keep a check on things:rolleyes:

Stevie

My advice which ever way you pay, have your bill printed out at every opportunity just to keep a check on things:rolleyes:

 

Stevie

I do that about every 3 days to make sure all is well. They didn't give me my on board credit on one ship, I went to ask about it, not on their records but they gave me it when I showed them my paperwork.

They never take money from your Debit Card account until after you have had a statement under your door and had plenty of time to check and query it if necessary. (You get a receipt for every transaction as well.)

We have never had a problem with the accounting side on our many Thomson cruises. It's one thing they are accurate with.

There's no point in carrying loads of money around when you can keep it safely in your bank account until it's required. (You may also feel the need to pay the fee for a safe if you took cash which is an extra expense.)

yep they will accept a cash deposit, i think the minimum is £200 (that may depend on ship?)

Hi geomagot, thank you for your response. Its the thomson dream, dont know if that makes a difference.

We always register a debit card (we don't do credit cards either) and have never had any problems. Why do you think they would take extra money?

Hi Linda, I read on another forum, not sure if im allowed to mention the name, so wont !! Someone was saying they had registered their debit card and the cruise line, Thomsons had been taking daily payments from that account even though they hadn't spent nowhere near the amount they were taking. Hope this makes sense.

Hi Linda, I read on another forum, not sure if im allowed to mention the name, so wont !! Someone was saying they had registered their debit card and the cruise line, Thomsons had been taking daily payments from that account even though they hadn't spent nowhere near the amount they were taking. Hope this makes sense.

They have used my debit card on all of our cruises and only taken the amount spent halfway through the cruise approximately, then what was left on the account at the end of the cruise - no problem.

Hi Linda, I read on another forum, not sure if im allowed to mention the name, so wont !! Someone was saying they had registered their debit card and the cruise line, Thomsons had been taking daily payments from that account even though they hadn't spent nowhere near the amount they were taking. Hope this makes sense.

I have never heard of this practice on Thomsons - that's not how they work.

As explained above, you settle your account as it stands at the end of the first week, and the amount owed is taken from your cash balance (if you've deposited cash on joining) or debited to your credit/debit card.

If you've overspent your cash credit balance before the end of the first week then customer services will ask you to visit and lay down some more readies to keep you in "the black" - or register a card.

You can ask for a printed statement of your account on a daily basis regardless of how you've chosen to settle - that lets you cross reference the details against your sales receipts which are issued for every transaction from the bar or shop.

We pay £200.00 cash up front when joining the ship and when that's exhausted I register my debit card to meet the rest -never had the slightest problem.

I suspect if people have had problems with debit cards it's because they have had insufficient funds in their account to settle their account - that's not of Thomsons doing, it's an issue between the bank and their customer.

If you follow the normal rules of debit card usage then you'll have no difficulties.

The cardinal rule is to make sure you have enough money in your debit card account - better to have too much and it's not needed than vice versa.

we always use a debit card on dream, if you use a credit card that will incur a 2.5% surcharge, i'm guessing this works the same way on all the ships?

they usually take 2 payments per week, one about mid cruise the other at the end of the cruise if you are on a 2 week b2b they will take 4 payments over the 2 weeks.... if you buy anything on the last day they will take a further payment a couple of days later, I dont believe they hold any funds on your debit card (dunno about credit cards?) they just charge the balance(s) on your bill ....charges are made from the Uk in sterling so there is no problem with the banks (international transactions) security check, when travelling abroad its always best to tell the bank where you are travelling too and have some sort of back up card just in case?

this works quite well.... if you need a refund for anything? they will credit it straight back onto your card

if you deposit cash and your balance gets low? they will block your onboard swipe card until you have deposited further funds.... we have heard stories about people who have run out of money and had their onboard swipe cards blocked

hope this helps

I have heard of car rental companies taking more than the cost of the rental, to cover for any damage to the car but not heard of cruise companies doing it, especially not Thomson. Our experience is they give you a bill half way through and then I believe that is taken out of your bank, then another bill at the end and that is taken out plus anything you may have spent on the last day.

We had a trip cancelled and when it came to final day we were owed £31 and they said they could pay it back to my debit card or give me cash, so I opted for the cash - no problem. They took money from my debit card halfway through the cruise and I didn't spend much in the second week. Never had debit card problems.

"if you deposit cash and your balance gets low? they will block your onboard swipe card until you have deposited further funds.... we have heard stories about people who have run out of money and had their onboard swipe cards blocked"

I didn't know they blocked your card if you were heading into "the red" - but it makes sense.

I've experienced a couple trying to get away from a Med resort hotel holiday without paying their outstanding £70 (ish) bar bill due in Euros.

It was eventually settled in Sterling (favourable exchange rate to the hotel) after a "meaningful discussion" between the principals before the transfer coach was allowed to proceed to the airport.

The pair of wiseguys didn't realise that the hotel manager had had their luggage removed from the bus before it departed to hold as collateral - so they had to get a taxi both ways to collect it and return to their airport at their own expense !!!

Great entertainment and rough justice was served.

It's also a good idea to notify the bank that you are going on holiday and they will note the dates and countries/ports you will be visiting. Cards can be blocked if unusual activity is suddenly taking place.

My husband has a horror about using his debit card for anything other than using the cash machine, and then it has to be one inside a bank. So, we always deposit cash, more than we think we are going to use. When we go to settle the account, we get back what we haven't spent, in cash of course.

I have heard of car rental companies taking more than the cost of the rental, to cover for any damage to the car but not heard of cruise companies doing it, especially not Thomson. Our experience is they give you a bill half way through and then I believe that is taken out of your bank, then another bill at the end and that is taken out plus anything you may have spent on the last day.

Virtually every cruise company, just like virtually every hotel, will put a hold on funds in your account if you use a debit card, which is what the OP is concerned about. Generally it won't cause you any issues, but if you have £210 in your account, and the cruise company puts a hold on for £30 per day for a 7 day cruise, you may not be able to use the funds in your account. Just because you don't see this happening, it doesn't mean it doesn't happen. There are lots of reports of this on this forum and others.

Virtually every cruise company, just like virtually every hotel, will put a hold on funds in your account if you use a debit card, which is what the OP is concerned about. Generally it won't cause you any issues, but if you have £210 in your account, and the cruise company puts a hold on for £30 per day for a 7 day cruise, you may not be able to use the funds in your account. Just because you don't see this happening, it doesn't mean it doesn't happen. There are lots of reports of this on this forum and others.

ahhh.. this is interesting

so they pre-allocate an unspecified daily sum? to themselves weather you spend that sum or not...... meaning that you could be unable to make a withdrawal on your card or your card could be declined at point of purchase (if it were to put you over your limit) is that how it works?

i didnt know that

my bank luvs it when i go overdrawn....then they can sting me with a myriad of unspecified charges? which no amount of bleating on my part can ever allay :o

Hotels (in my experience) don't stick on a % for using a credit card.

That may not be universal of course, or even the norm ?

As long as Thomsons add 2.5% on to credit cards, punters will prefer to settle by debit card where possible.

I was unaware that Thomsons (or any other business) put a "hold" on a daily spend figure for a debit card, although I can see the logic from their perspective - stops people spending money they might not have.

In future I'll make sure there are sufficient funds on my debit card account over and above the number of days x daily "hold" amount formula.

I'm Captain Paranoia about things like this.

On our second cruise we tried to register the same debit card on the same ship as our first cruise and were refused because they had changed policy as to which cards were acceptable. Fortunately I had taken some GBP and was able to set up a cash on board account.

After that holiday we got a credit card as a backup.

A friend of ours entered their debit card for pre-booked airport parking at Manchester and then paid for every customer afterwards. No notification from the bank until credit limit expired (£000s).

We keep getting debit card problems with Visa texting for acceptance of a transaction, me returning the text to accept and them them saying to phone as there is a problem with the card. They said their system is at fault. It's a pain phoning from the UK to put them right but from abroad???

Now for holidays its belt & braces with GBP, credit and debit card plus some pre-bought things such as some trips or even drink with AI. Like to carry the credit card ashore just in case we get left behind at the port. It happens!!!!

Most hotels & cruise lines will either;

Pre authorise a nominal amount (£1 - £10) when you register the card to check the card is valid and not reported as stolen / lost & then take payment from the card when you hit whatever limit the company allows you to rack up.

or;

Pre authorise for a set amount to ensure you have sufficient funds to pay the bill onboard, when you reach that limit they'll either raise a new pre-authorisation for the next amount or charge your card for the amount and raise a new pre-authorisation to cover the remaining period.

The pre-authorisations don't normally show up on your statements - you can see them if you have online banking as you'll see your available balance drop, while your actual balance remains the same.

Basically once a pre-authorisation is put on your card, the funds they pre-authorised for are not available to you to spend, the company then has 7 - 10 days (depending on card issuer) to confirm the payment or void it. If they do nothing the funds will be automatically released back to you after the 7-10 days have elapsed.

The above is what catches people out, in that they have registered a card where they are near to their limit and then try and purchase something ashore on the same card, resulting in the transaction being declined.

On a side note, if you're worried about the above but don't want to carry a load of cash, you can get pre-paid visa debit cards which you top up with cash in the UK, and can then give the card to the cruise line.

As I understand it, if you use a credit card to buy anything you are protected for anything :rolleyes: with a direct debit card you are not :eek:

Sorry if I am wrong but I am just a simple man:cool:

Stevie

As I understand it, if you use a credit card to buy anything you are protected for anything :rolleyes: with a direct debit card you are not :eek:

Sorry if I am wrong but I am just a simple man:cool:

Stevie

http://www.money.co.uk/article/1004510-is-debit-card-protection-the-same-as-for-credit-cards.htm