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Anyone receive fuel surcharge credit lately?


TMWOOD1012
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Celebrity, RCCL and most other cruise lines instituted their option to charge a FUEL surcharge to all customers in 2009 when crude oil was above $100/barrel.

 

We had two cruises in 2009 that oil was above the ceiling they set. We were NOT charged the additional fees. I don't think anyone ever was...from reading the CC boards.

 

Actually the US economy was so shaky then that prices on cruises dropped and dropped. (one cruise a total of 9 price decreases after booking). Back then you could continue total advantage of price drops AFTER final payment....and would receive additional OBC.

 

Continuing to observe ships with many open cabins close to sail date. Economy and stock prices are a factor....as is the Zika virus and allowing people to cancel cruises past final payment.

 

Watching to see what Celebrity's next moved is going to be to fill those ships....

Edited by lobster129
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With fuel prices so low I was wondering if anyone has received a credit once onboard for the fuel surcharge they've been charging

 

I don't know of any cruise line that has been charging a fuel surcharge . Most put the notice on in case the cost of fuel skyrockets. Even when crude was over $70 a barrel they still didn't charge a fuel surcharge.

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Fuel Surcharge option dropped by RCCL (including Celebrity, Royal & Azamara) last year:

 

Effective March 24, 2014, when Azamara Club Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, and Royal Caribbean International advertise a cruise fare price, we will also showcase the associated government taxes and fees and non-governmental port expenses,” said Royal Caribbean in an email to travel agents.

 

“Our new practice will represent a change from our existing practices and was initiated in response to an arrangement with the State of Florida as it relates to disclosure obligations on cruise lines taxes, fees, and port expenses,” the statement continued.

 

In addition, Royal Caribbean brands are eliminating the wording we see in advertising, catalogs and other media to impose the wildly unpopular fuel surcharge, should the price of oil rise above a certain sustained level. Also a good move, cruise lines would have avoided imposing that charge anyway; now it is off the table.

 

Becky

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I don't know of any cruise line that has been charging a fuel surcharge . Most put the notice on in case the cost of fuel skyrockets. Even when crude was over $70 a barrel they still didn't charge a fuel surcharge.

 

It was who is going to be first and thankfully nobody was.

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With fuel prices so low I was wondering if anyone has received a credit once onboard for the fuel surcharge they've been charging

 

If I remember correctly we had a fuel charge in 2009 but it was refunded. That was the last and only time.

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If I remember correctly we had a fuel charge in 2009 but it was refunded. That was the last and only time.

 

Yes, that was after several cruise lines were sued and settled with the Florida courts which is the reason the wording was on the web site for all reservations.

Edited by dkjretired
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We had two cruises in 2009 that oil was above the ceiling they set. We were NOT charged the additional fees. I don't think anyone ever was...from reading the CC boards.

 

We were charged on one cruise we took a few years ago. It was $10.00 per day. We were charged $70.00 each for a seven day cruise. :)

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We were charged on one cruise we took a few years ago. It was $10.00 per day. We were charged $70.00 each for a seven day cruise. :)

 

Ed isn't waffling around, he truly did pay a surcharge, I paid a fuel surcharge on an NCL cruise that was given to me for free. I'll explain a bit of the history.

 

Around 2008 or so, cruise lines instituted fuel surcharges and consumers filed law suits primarily because they took money from people after they had already booked. There really wasn't a problem with people who booked and were then told there was a surcharge, the lawsuit revolved around retroactively charging people who already booked and paid.

 

I believe the lawsuits were filed against Royal Caribbean and Carnival which covers most cruise lines. They entered into an agreement with the Florida courts where they had to make compensation to those who were charged retroactively. Additionally, they established the little disclaimer that we have seen on our bookings since that time. It basically says if the price of oil reaches a certain level they could charge a surcharge even if you have paid for your cruise as long as you got the disclaimer.

 

As mentioned earlier, none of the cruise lines ever charged the surcharge after that even though the priced at times was almost double the threashold in the disclaimer.

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I don't know of any cruise line that has been charging a fuel surcharge . Most put the notice on in case the cost of fuel skyrockets. Even when crude was over $70 a barrel they still didn't charge a fuel surcharge.

 

I laughed when I saw this post as I thought it was tongue in cheek....but realized the OP might have been serious.

I was charged a fuel surcharge on Carnival way back when ... got it back later in the form of a credit but never did end up sailing on them again so I guess I paid it. The only reason they sent us a voucher was because they implemented the charge before we booked or before there was an official announcement. It just came due at the same time as final payment. Seems to me that another line did charge us for it and I think maybe it was Princess...and that was after the verbiage existed on their site. I may be wrong on the line but know we have paid for it at least once, maybe up to 3 times. ??

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I know RCCL disappointed Wall Street and their stock dropped. I find it unreal that these ships and airlines aren't cleaning up because fuel is a major cost for them. Perhaps they hedged their fuel purchases at the wrong time.

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