NCL screwed up & I didn't catch it.

[PassionFruit]

We are set to sail in 2.5 weeks. We got our travel docs yesterday. We have 3 rooms - 2 connecting and were suppose to have the HA room 2 doors down from the connecting rooms. I know I had requested it because I specifically remember talking the the booking agent about the proximity of the rooms, the fact that we needed the HA room, etc. Instead of having room X7XX, though, they booked us in room X5XX. This is not a HA room which we could deal with (although we do have a handicap person who would have had a much easier time maneuvering with the extra space - particularly in the bathroom) but the room is at the opposite end of the ship. We don't even have people close by who can help him when needed! I looked back on my confirmations and the room was wrong the whole time, I just didn't catch it. I'm kicking myself for that. I called the reservation desk (I refuse to call them customer service because there really is no service) and was told our cat was booked but we could "upgrade" from a BD to BB or BA on the same deck and have rooms in located together -- for a fee. There are still lots of those cat rooms available. I called the upsell desk on the outside chance we might get something at a lower price. No luck. The offered to upgrade us to 3 AC penthouses for $600/room. A great deal I'm sure, but considerably more than we want to do right now.

 

I'm in a slight quandry as to what to do. I'll probably suck it up and "upgrade" to the room down the hall for the addl money so we'll all be together. It will save a lot of back and forth hassle while on the cruise. I'm just aggravated that there has not been so much as a "let's see what we can work out" from NCL. Just "here's the cost." One rep told me I could wait to see if the price drops any, but they are offering BD, BB and I think BA gty right now, so I don't want them to assign those rooms and be left with no options.

 

UGH!!!

[*Wink*]

That does suck. I have no advice, but just to say I'm sorry this happened. I hope you will have a satisfying outcome. I know what you mean though. It's like if you don't check and double check something, it always comes back to bite you in the butt. Good luck

[Arwenmark]

It is too bad you didn't check it out when you first did it and then checked it regulary after that. You really have to do that these days.

 

I hope you are able to work something out. Is the HC person in a wheelchair or scooter? if it is a non folding WC it will NOT fit through the door neither will a scooter unless it is a very small travel model. and no room for it in the cabin.

 

So I assume they have NO HC cabins left anywhere on the ship? I know there are few enough to start out with, I book them and I know.

 

If there is one get it and try to move your other cabins or one of them close to IT.

Good luck.

[FanofFlorida]

reading these types of situations on the boards makes me soooo nervous about potential changes to my reservation that I keep checking it.......... it's like ocd; I'm obsessed! :eek:

I have already been through the "NCL messed up" situation with this reservation and lucky I called! Now I just dont think I could stomach another err on their part (even if the last one resulted in an upgrade)

[PassionFruit]

There are no HA rooms left on this sailing. I already tried for that.

 

I think I got distracted checking the price on the confirmations. It took me at least 3 or 4 phone calls to get them to charge the correct price on the rooms. I guess I just glanced at the room numbers - saw they were the right category and *thought* they looked right - and didn't check carefully enough.

 

Arwenmark - the HC person uses the wc (collapsible) for long distances mainly. He is able to walk short distances, so a regular room will be ok. The main concern is the bathroom, but we'll be able to make it work. Just more inconvenient.

[travel dog]

You say your the cabin you originally asked for was HA and I'm sure you told someone this, in fact you say you did. My point is that if the cruise line was aware you were booking an HA cabin and put you down for a non-HA cabin, then they were easily as negligent as you. (Or if you went through a TA who knew you wanted an HA and didn't tell them or let it go through and didn't catch it when the documents came in.) In other words, yes, you should have caught it ......... but so should they.

 

What if this was someone who absolutely had to have an HA cabin? There is arguably a higher duty placed on the professionals -- TAs and the cruise line -- when they know they are booking for a handicapped person.

 

So, it might be worth having another chat, or having one of the other members of the party have a chat, whoever can sound the most calm-but-serious, and approach it this way: "Yes, I didn't catch it but you didn't catch it either and you guys are the professionals .... plus you knew you were handling accommodations for someone who is handicapped" Toss in - very gently - a term like "comparative negligence" or "contributory negligence" (where the injured party is also at fault but can still recover for the percentage the other party is liable), and maybe between having an upset customer, having been at fault also, and dealing with the very touchy area of handicapped accommodation .... maybe they would agree to split the difference on the fees for upgrading.

 

Worth a try. Just be sure to be patient and civil but ....... well, simply wanting a "fair" solution (which means everyone who was at fault giving a little). And if you seem to have gone to the limit of authority of the person you're talking to, it's perfectly acceptable to ask to speak to their supervisor --- or to the "legal department."

[terrymtex01]

 

So, it might be worth having another chat, or having one of the other members of the party have a chat, whoever can sound the most calm-but-serious, and approach it this way: "Yes, I didn't catch it but you didn't catch it either and you guys are the professionals .... plus you knew you were handling accommodations for someone who is handicapped" Toss in - very gently - a term like "comparative negligence" or "contributory negligence" (where the injured party is also at fault but can still recover for the percentage the other party is liable), and maybe between having an upset customer, having been at fault also, and dealing with the very touchy area of handicapped accommodation .... maybe they would agree to split the difference on the fees for upgrading.

 

Worth a try. Just be sure to be patient and civil but ....... well, simply wanting a "fair" solution (which means everyone who was at fault giving a little). And if you seem to have gone to the limit of authority of the person you're talking to, it's perfectly acceptable to ask to speak to their supervisor --- or to the "legal department."

 

While I understand the intention is good, they might want to go ahead and ask for the legal department but I can tell you even most managers of customer service would have no clue what you were saying by using those terms. It would either go over their heads or they would immediately pick up on the fact you were trying to use some high end terms to intimidate them into doing something.

 

Also, its not as easy to get the legal department of most major businesses unless you are a lawyer yourself. I know for my company we would never transfer anyone to our legal department, but just give them legals address.

 

For me, the bottom line is both parties are at fault which unfortunately puts the OP at the mercy of the company. I can't remember nor do I feel like searching for it, but I believe on our confirmation it does say to let them know of error within 24 or 48 hours, something like that, so I can assure you when push comes to shove that is what the company will default to. Let's just hope the OP can get someone at NCL that will be willing to do "the right" thing.

[Jamisonke]

We are set to sail in 2.5 weeks. We got our travel docs yesterday. We have 3 rooms - 2 connecting and were suppose to have the HA room 2 doors down from the connecting rooms. I know I had requested it because I specifically remember talking the the booking agent about the proximity of the rooms, the fact that we needed the HA room, etc. Instead of having room X7XX, though, they booked us in room X5XX. This is not a HA room which we could deal with (although we do have a handicap person who would have had a much easier time maneuvering with the extra space - particularly in the bathroom) but the room is at the opposite end of the ship. We don't even have people close by who can help him when needed! I looked back on my confirmations and the room was wrong the whole time, I just didn't catch it. I'm kicking myself for that. I called the reservation desk (I refuse to call them customer service because there really is no service) and was told our cat was booked but we could "upgrade" from a BD to BB or BA on the same deck and have rooms in located together -- for a fee. There are still lots of those cat rooms available. I called the upsell desk on the outside chance we might get something at a lower price. No luck. The offered to upgrade us to 3 AC penthouses for $600/room. A great deal I'm sure, but considerably more than we want to do right now.

 

I'm in a slight quandry as to what to do. I'll probably suck it up and "upgrade" to the room down the hall for the addl money so we'll all be together. It will save a lot of back and forth hassle while on the cruise. I'm just aggravated that there has not been so much as a "let's see what we can work out" from NCL. Just "here's the cost." One rep told me I could wait to see if the price drops any, but they are offering BD, BB and I think BA gty right now, so I don't want them to assign those rooms and be left with no options.

 

UGH!!!

 

 

I'm sorry to hear your troubles. Something similar happened to me a few years ago when sailing on the Pride of Aloha. I was bringing my parents on the trip, and had booked a handicap stateroom for them. When ended up being booked was not what we had requested. Because I caught it right away, and was persistent, we ended up getting a deep discount on our cruise to the tune of approx $400 per person for an 11 day trip.

 

While I understand you don't have a lot of time to spare, I would encourage you to continue to cordially address this issue. In my experience, I've found working with NCL to address issues to be fair (although time consuming). Who knows what you could end up with?!

 

I hope it all works out for you, and I wish you a great cruise!

[billie5]

I completely agree with Terry. IMO there is no more certain way to be ignored than to start using the word "negligence." (Ignoring the fact that the issue is presumably moot since NCL reserves the right to change cabin assignments)

 

Bill

[*Wink*]

Well I guess you guys are probably right, but I'm thankful to travel dog for offering this advice. Makes perfect sense to me, but I'm not a lawyer, but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night... ;)

 

Good advice, traveldog

[njhorseman]

Well I guess you guys are probably right, but I'm thankful to travel dog for offering this advice. Makes perfect sense to me, but I'm not a lawyer, but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night... ;)

 

Good advice, traveldog

 

 

Yes, free legal advice you receive from an anonymous poster on an Internet site is worth every penny of what you paid for it. ;)

[*Wink*]

Thanks, Judge Judy.. I'll keep that in mind. ;)

[peg013]

I hope you soon get things straightened out so you can go back to just being giddy about your cruise. Sorry this happened to you. Hopefully your TA and NCL will meet you half way at least. I think I would be more upset with the TA since they are the ones you talked to and explained the situation to and they made the actual contract with NCL for the wrong room.

[mlbcruiser]

Have you asked for and recieved the address of the president or some other high mgt. person w/NCL? You could try sending them a polite, succinct letter explaining your problem, asking for, as earlier stated, a fair resolution. If the type of cabins are avail, I would think you stood a decent chance of getting satisfaction. Be sure to send the letter REGISTERED mail, return receipt requested. Another option might be to speak to the hotel mgr. once you are on board and explain your plight. Perhaps if there are vacant rooms that would work, he would help you out. He would have the authority to do this, I am pretty sure.

[DMH15]

If they still have AC cabins available and you decide not to upgrade for a fee, maybe the upsell department could be notified of your situation and offer an upsell to someone near your friend, so that you could have their cabin?

[travel dog]

" I can tell you even most managers of customer service would have no clue what you were saying by using those terms."

 

You're probably right -- BUT most large corporations have informed the lower-level employees who deal directly with the public that they want to be given a heads up and a chance to step in and resolve things if the customer says certain things ..... like "negligence," etc.

 

I think some of you are assuming that any reference to something legal is going to immediately create a hostile, antagonistic situation. That's not true. I'm certainly not at all suggesting that the OP go storming in with a "You better make me happy or I'm going to sue!!!!" attitude. Agree that gets you worse than nowhere. But letting them know -- politely and calmly -- that you're aware they also made a mistake is a quick way to get to the staff level where the person you're talking to understands that using the accepted framework of resolving disputes (a lawsuit) is often the best way to reach a resolution directly between the parties -- calmly. Otherwise what are you left with? "I'm upset - angry - disappointed - etc." That's not a very productive way to solve a problem.

 

This is really a pretty simple situation: the OP is acknowledging that he "goofed" in failing to double check the cabin number; the cruise line "goofed" in assiging a non-HA cabin when they knew that they were being asked to reserve an HA room, for someone who needed it. Two people - two goofs - and (fortunately, since the person can make do with a non-HA cabin) a number of alternative solutions, where both parties that "goofed" will give up something, be penalized. Is the fee NCL is asking for an upgrade to a higher category the same fee they would be asking others to pay for the same upgrade? If so, pointing out that NCL is also at fault here - as it isn't with those folks who simply want to upgrade - is quite appropriate.

 

If you reach the upper levels, esp in the legal dept, they'll be so happy to be dealing with someone who is acknowledging some fault and who isn't insisting on the moon that the chances of a good upgrade or a reduced fee are very high. But *first* you have to get to those upper levels to be dealing with someone with authority to make concessions and offer alternatives.

 

Using words that perhaps aren't understood but that will trigger the "report this to someone higher up" will help with that -- so will the suggestion of someone else to put it in writing and send it to some upper level -- so is simply ...... and, most of all, so will simply being unfailingly calm, persistent, and immoveable. Large corps count on customers deciding that things are more effort than they are worth and just giving up in frustration. Once they know you aren't going to do that (and that you have some concept of legal terms, etc.), then you flip into another category and get to be handled by the folks up higher on the ladder.

 

The OP is not trying to ask for a "favor" -- he's willing to be cooperative in finding a good solution for a problem that they BOTH caused.

 

Does NCL has the right to arbitrarily move someone who *is* handicapped out of an HA cabin? I doubt it; I'd certainly ask for proof of that right.

 

Think about it this way: What if the person who needed the HA cabin couldn't 'make do' with a regular cabin? He simply wouldn't be able to sail because of this mistake, and so the people who were traveling with him wouldn't want to sail if their party is incomplete. If NCL took the same stance it is taking here, they would essentially be saying "you didn't catch our error and therefore you lose the entire cost of the cruise if all of you choose not to go" If that happened you better believe it **would** wind up in the courts, and NCL would not walk out unscathed.

 

They know that - they know they are darn lucky that that situation didn't happen, that this person can make do in a regular cabin and is willing to do so. The trick is to reach someone who is high enough in the corp. that he/she has the authority to act on their knowledge.

 

(And for the record, I take my own advice when having a conflict with large corporations and it's worked very well. Once they know you are reasonably informed and UNreasonably patient - which means you aren't going to go away and won't give them the excuse to hang up on you - it's surprising how quickly problems can get resolved.)

[PassionFruit]

Thankfully this has been resolved -- though it's in thanks to cruisecritic member HoopTroop and not remotely to NCL being helpful.

 

HoopTroop is on the same sailing as we are and has been posting on our Roll Call board. I posted over there what was going on, and he came back and said he had 3 cabins in the same cat that we're booked in, had let one go already to take an upsell and would be changing the other 2 today for the upsell. The cabins he was letting go were on the same end of the ship that we were on, so just getting one room would have been a huge help. I called yesterday evening to see if the one cabin he had already let go was available, but NCL said it was not. As soon as he let the other 2 go this morning he e-mailed me so I could call NCL. I did so immediately and found the 2 rooms available. I got one of the rooms for the party with the handicap person, and decided to ask about the room that was not available yesterday. Amazingly, the room that was gone yesterday was available today, so were able to move all 3 rooms together.

 

While it will inconvenience the handicap person traveling with us some to be in a regular cabin, having all 3 rooms together is such a relief that we'll deal with the other. I'm just so glad it worked out. Thank goodness for Cruise Critic and the helpful nature of fellow cruisers!! And (stick out tongue and make a raspberry sound) to NCL!

 

Now on to getting ready to enjoy my cruise.......

[*Wink*]

All's well that ends well.. Glad it worked out.

[travel dog]

That's wonderful news!!! Nothing beats community, does it? Tell HoopTroop there are a whole bunch of people on this posting thread who are grateful to him also!!

 

(If the whole thing still nags, however, don't hesitate to write a clear account of what happened and send it to someone high up in the chain of command. They are actually more likely to listen and take measures to prevent in the future if they aren't facing an immediate problem. Unless the fault was with an independent TA - and it didn't sound like it was - they got off very lucky.)

[newmexicoNita]

reading these types of situations on the boards makes me soooo nervous about potential changes to my reservation that I keep checking it.......... it's like ocd; I'm obsessed! :eek:

I have already been through the "NCL messed up" situation with this reservation and lucky I called! Now I just dont think I could stomach another err on their part (even if the last one resulted in an upgrade)

 

yep, things do get messed up from time to time, that is why it is so important to check as soon as email conformations arrive.

 

Nita

[LJH1]

I called the upsell desk I didn't know there was such a place.