Best method for final payment

[caribbeansun]

I'm afraid I can't agree with your logic.

 

Your bank charges you something they shouldn't and you complain that a GLOBAL company doesn't bank in your country. Maybe your bank should realize we are in a global economy and that "foreign" transactions are the norm these days or maybe they should stop charging you a bogus fee for doing nothing. Either way, I maintain that your beef is with your bank not Oceania.

 

FYI - I've never been charged a foreign transaction fee with my Visa, Mastercard or Amex in a whole host of countries that I've visited and/or purchased products and services from. I'd never even heard of them until I read about them on this site. If in fact I ever see one of these charges I will cancel the card immediately or only use it for domestic charges.

 

If I may, when you go on your cruise to a foreign country will you accept those foreign transaction fees or will you find another provider that doesn't charge them?

 

 

 

 

I would like to choose which credit card to use without having to factor in whether or not it is the best card to use with a particular cruise line.

[LHT28]

FYI - I've never been charged a foreign transaction fee with my Visa, Mastercard or Amex in a whole host of countries that I've visited and/or purchased products and services from.

 

Aren't you a Canadian?

 

Canadian Cards hide the foreign fee in the conversion amount

 

This is from my RBC card holder agreement

Foreign Currency Transactions

We will bill you in Canadian currency. If you or your Authorized Users use a Visa Card or your Visa Account number outside Canada or charge amounts to your Visa Account in a foreign currency, we will convert the charges into Canadian dollars no later than the date we post the transaction to your Visa Account at our exchange rate which is 2.5% over a benchmark rate set by Visa International, a subsidiary of Visa Inc. that is in effect and that we pay on the date of the conversion.

We will show the exchange rate for each transaction on your Visa Statement. If you are paying interest on your Visa Account, interest will also be charged on the full value of your foreign purchases, as determined using our exchange rate. For U.S. Dollar Visa Gold

Cardholders, transactions are shown in U.S. Dollars and the same principles will apply if an amount is charged in a currency other than U.S. Dollars.

[gillianrose]

gillianrose,

 

I agree with everything you have said and in fact, I have posted those very same points here in the past.

 

But the good news is... I have confirmation from my T/A that "O" WILL reimburse me ( and I assume you ) for the fee. Either in the form of a check or in OBC.

 

I'll take the OBC since I know my bar bill will be at least as much as the fee.....

 

Is this a "one time only" reimbursement, since I just learned about it, or may I expect Oceania to do this each time I book with them in the future (if I decide not to get a different card)?

 

And, by the way....thank you.

[gillianrose]

I agree with you, Pratzert, and I don't understand why anybody would consider a fee that will be reimbursed to be anything more than a minor inconvenience.

 

Although some of us may "consider" that this is an Oceania problem, the truth is that it is another in a long series of charges which are being added by Credit Card issuers to bump up their bottom lines.

 

Oceania does NOT assess this fee, and has no control over which credit cards do or do not assess it. They refund the fee, purely as a courtesy.

 

By choosing to bank in Ireland, Oceania DOES have control over the issue, in my opinion. At the very least, as I mentioned earlier, it would be a good policy for Oceania to NOTIFY people (especially new customers to Oceania) that the company banks in Ireland. How hard would that be?

 

Everyday products including food, clothing, plasticware, and whatever else are stamped with ORIGIN, and a reasonable person would expect that a company with headquarters in Miami (ORIGIN) would not be banking outside the country unless the customer were notified to the contrary so that one could choose a credit card accordingly.

 

I understand that you cruise only on Oceania and you have never been assessed a foreign transaction fee. So you have not been "inconvenienced."

I am happy for you, but a little sympathy for others would not be a bad thing...

[pratzert]

Is this a "one time only" reimbursement, since I just learned about it, or may I expect Oceania to do this each time I book with them in the future (if I decide not to get a different card)?

 

And, by the way....thank you.

 

I was told by my T/A and have read it on other posts here, that people have been reimbursed for even different bookings.

 

Even though I am now aware of the fee, I can still use my CC for my final payment and "O" has agreed to reimburse me.

 

So, at this point in time, I'd say they will reimburse you now and in the future. Of course I do not speak for "O" and can't guarantee they will reimburse you, at least "I" feel comfortable now using my credit card to pay them.

 

If you are using a T/A call them and have them ask or verify for you.

 

If you did your own booking... give "O" a call and ask directly. At least you will know and scratch the question off your list.

 

Let us know how you make out with it.

 

BTW.... when I first saw the charge I was SOOO upset, I "almost" cancelled my booking. I was just as upset at my T/A for not giving me a heads up as I was at "O". But after I calmed down and did some forum searching, I learned several people had been charged the fee and DID get reimbursed. So I kept after my T/A to check on it.

 

In the end... I am getting reimbursed and am happy I did not cancel. I hope you end up happy too.

 

Thank goodness for the great people on this forum and the knowledge found here.

[LHT28]

By choosing to bank in Ireland, Oceania DOES have control over the issue, in my opinion. At the very least, as I mentioned earlier, it would be a good policy for Oceania to NOTIFY people (especially new customers to Oceania) that the company banks in Ireland. How hard would that be?

 

.

Most people do not read the cruise contract terms & conditions or their credit card agreements

 

 

Here is Oceania's policy

http://www.oceaniacruises.com/corporate/legal/termsconditions.aspx

[pratzert]

Most people do not read the cruise contract terms & conditions or their credit card agreements

 

 

Here is Oceania's policy

http://www.oceaniacruises.com/corporate/legal/termsconditions.aspx

 

Well... can't argue since it right there in Black and White.

 

But as you mention... most people dont' read the fine print.

 

I still feel it's a matter of convenience or economic sense for "O" to use the Bank in Irelend.

 

I am also glad they have agreed to reimburse people for those fees in spite of their terms and conditions.

 

It's sort of one things that get people toasted... like the bunker surcharges or other disclaimers that the lawyers put in to cover their a**es. (Have you ever gotten a credit when the cost of bunker fuel goes down?)

 

I can't blame anyone for seeing red over that fee, even if it is a bank fee and not one that "O" assesses. I assumed that since they had a main office in the US, that that's is where their bank transactions would be.

[YoHoHo]

<SNIP> I can't blame anyone for seeing red over that fee, even if it is a bank fee and not one that "O" assesses. I assumed that since they had a main office in the US, that that's is where their bank transactions would be.

 

I agree.

Being as the fee, if charged, is credited to the customer it is largely a degree of expectation. To me Oceania is not a global company. There are no alternate language offerings on their website. Dealing with a 'perceived' US company the *expectation* is that the charge would be from a US company especially when it is in US$.

 

Not all of us are as knowledgeable or worldly are others on this board and would be unhappy if charged the fee. I imagine the response if say, Amazon did this without forewarning their customers.

 

WHO is at fault, O or the CC can be argued forever (good business sense for O to offshore their bank If it does not inconvenience or confuse their customers. good business sense for O if they can reduce their costs. Good business sense for the CC if they can increase profits - ask any bank :)

 

This issue is something that really DOES affect customer's attitudes. Look at the strong points of view on this post vs. others on Oceania board. Customer Service orientation would not rely on wording in a contract. That’s for lawyers and accountants and risk management. A simple statement at the bottom of the Invoice that "credit card payments will be processed in Ireland. Please contact O or your TA if you have questions." or something to that effect I think would calm me after seeing a charge on my statement 'because O banks in Ireland'. There is a section on the Invoice titled "Important Information". It contains an US address to send payments made by check.

 

Those who are complaining are blaming O. Those who are defending are blaming the Cc company. Whether it IS O's fault or not, that is the perception by those who are unhappy. And that is O's reality.

 

At least with something on the Invoice there is an attempt to forewarn. Reimbursing the fee after the fact for x number of clients means there were x number of clients who were unhappy at that point. And even after that leaves them something to chat about, in a negative way, on Community Cruise boards.

 

< Rumagging around old bank statments to check for unexpected fess ... >

[LHT28]

If you do a google search for Foreign Transactions fees you will see it is not something just related Oceania

 

How many companies disclose where they bank to their customers?

[LHT28]

I

A simple statement at the bottom of the Invoice that "credit card payments will be processed in Ireland. Please contact O or your TA if you have questions." or something to that effect I think would calm me after seeing a charge on my statement 'because O banks in Ireland'.

 

Do you think people would read the whole invoice? :D

 

Lyn

[caribbeansun]

That's not what we are talking about. There is always a spread on foreign currency buy/sell regardless of whether it's a credit card or cash.

 

The fees that are being discussed would be the equivalent of you buying from a company that is billing you in Canadian dollars and the credit card company adds a fee on top of the Canadian dollar amount because the charge has passed through a foreign bank.

 

The people posting here are transacting in their native currency (US$) on an expenditure in their native currency (US$) and being charged a fee by their credit card company because O banks in Ireland.

 

Aren't you a Canadian?

 

Canadian Cards hide the foreign fee in the conversion amount

 

This is from my RBC card holder agreement

Foreign Currency Transactions

We will bill you in Canadian currency. If you or your Authorized Users use a Visa Card or your Visa Account number outside Canada or charge amounts to your Visa Account in a foreign currency, we will convert the charges into Canadian dollars no later than the date we post the transaction to your Visa Account at our exchange rate which is 2.5% over a benchmark rate set by Visa International, a subsidiary of Visa Inc. that is in effect and that we pay on the date of the conversion.

We will show the exchange rate for each transaction on your Visa Statement. If you are paying interest on your Visa Account, interest will also be charged on the full value of your foreign purchases, as determined using our exchange rate. For U.S. Dollar Visa Gold

Cardholders, transactions are shown in U.S. Dollars and the same principles will apply if an amount is charged in a currency other than U.S. Dollars.

[caribbeansun]

Fair point and yes, perception is indeed reality so it's clear that at some people perceive that this is O's issue in which case it actually is.

 

FWIW, I'd be royalty ticked if I saw such a fee albeit my ire would be directed elsewhere as stated (at least I think it would be) but that's more because I've got a real hate on for banks right now.

 

Those who are complaining are blaming O. Those who are defending are blaming the Cc company. Whether it IS O's fault or not, that is the perception by those who are unhappy. And that is O's reality.

 

[RetiredFL]

Ir's a new banking world.

We have been booking a couple of foreign land trips and every deposit to a hotel, etc had had a foreign transaction fee added to our VISA bill. Many were processed through sites that quoted costs in US dollars. (There was no caveat about fees)

I suspect that when we do travel every charge for a meal, souvenir, etc will have a fee attached.

I know there is one card that states it does not charge such fees but I bet they make it up somehow, perhaps in the exchange rate.

With the "banking reform" we will see many new charges and we will just have to adjust.

I am glad Oceania at least refunds the fee.

[pratzert]

Ir's a new banking world.

We have been booking a couple of foreign land trips and every deposit to a hotel, etc had had a foreign transaction fee added to our VISA bill. Many were processed through sites that quoted costs in US dollars. (There was no caveat about fees)

I suspect that when we do travel every charge for a meal, souvenir, etc will have a fee attached.

I know there is one card that states it does not charge such fees but I bet they make it up somehow, perhaps in the exchange rate.

With the "banking reform" we will see many new charges and we will just have to adjust.

I am glad Oceania at least refunds the fee.

 

I too, am happy "O" is reimbursing the Pax for the fee.

 

I would have expected the fee to be added if I booked a foreign land trip/excursion as they are usually based in a foreign land.

 

What caught me by surprise is that fact that "O" is based in the USA and I still got the fee.

[StanandJim]

What caught me by surprise is that fact that "O" is based in the USA and I still got the fee

 

I can't see why you would be surprised, Oceania operates all over the World, their clients come from all over the World, their financing is multinational and the ships are built overseas in a shipyard that is partially subsidized by the Italian Government.

 

What is odd about Oceania banking overseas? And why would it not be THEIR business decision if they are refunding the fee?

 

What exactly are we saying here? Should ALL COMPANIES be required to do all of their banking in the country where their home office is?

 

Or, should banking be based on where the majority of their customers live?

 

Then again, perhaps we should insist that they bank where their hardware is manufactured?

[susiesan]

I just returned from a vacation in Cambodia and Laos. Everything there is billed in dollars. No one uses the local currency. I put the hotel bills on my credit card, in dollars. No extra fees were charged. The transactions went through Cambodian and Lao banks.

[hondorner]

Everyone knows that several Oceania people read this board, including FDR. It goes without saying that they are well aware of people's perception in this matter. Obviously, they are also well aware that they are "refunding" fees tht were never "funded" to them in the first place, a direct liability.

 

They, and everyone else that has researched this situation, are very aware that it is the greed and arrogance of the banks and credit card firms that are charging this fee that is responsible. Think about it -- in this world of instant communication, when Google works seamlessly and free in most areas of the world, when banking transactions are instantly available regardless of location, exactly what expense to the banks justifies this fee? The answer is no expense, no delay, and no reason except opportunity and greed, along with a healthy dose of gullibility of those who continue to use the cards in question.

 

Considering all this, it is axiomatic that Oceania is getting a sufficiently high return for its commitment to the Irish band to counteract all of these perceptions, to be able to virtually give away "refunds" of money that it has never received, and to endure the perceptions of those who choose to blame the company for something that it had no hand in creating. Oceania management is not stupid, nor is it bind or deaf. Maybe when we get to run a multi-billion dollar global corporation (just because it's headquarters has to be somewhere does not mean that it does not do business all over the world), we'll understand more than our inconvenience over these fees.

[Rickey 88]

Everyone knows that several Oceania people read this board, including FDR. It goes without saying that they are well aware of people's perception in this matter. Obviously, they are also well aware that they are "refunding" fees tht were never "funded" to them in the first place, a direct liability.

 

They, and everyone else that has researched this situation, are very aware that it is the greed and arrogance of the banks and credit card firms that are charging this fee that is responsible. Think about it -- in this world of instant communication, when Google works seamlessly and free in most areas of the world, when banking transactions are instantly available regardless of location, exactly what expense to the banks justifies this fee? The answer is no expense, no delay, and no reason except opportunity and greed, along with a healthy dose of gullibility of those who continue to use the cards in question.

 

Considering all this, it is axiomatic that Oceania is getting a sufficiently high return for its commitment to the Irish band to counteract all of these perceptions, to be able to virtually give away "refunds" of money that it has never received, and to endure the perceptions of those who choose to blame the company for something that it had no hand in creating. Oceania management is not stupid, nor is it bind or deaf. Maybe when we get to run a multi-billion dollar global corporation (just because it's headquarters has to be somewhere does not mean that it does not do business all over the world), we'll understand more than our inconvenience over these fees.

 

Ah, finally, words of sanity and reason!