Royal Caribbean Card issues threatened with arrest

[sanger727]

For everyone making entitlement and scam comments... the bill was paid promptly as soon as I reached port. There was no sense of entitlement there was a mistake that I tried to correct. I did not dodge hotel services or not pay my bill. I immediately went to guest services to resolve the situation. My only point in all this it was. difficult process and the threat of arrest is completely unnecessary especially when you have a customer who is doing everything in their power to remedy the situation. Long story short RC customer service needs some improvement and I learned a valuable lesson.

 

 

 

No one accused you of scamming. The issue you brought forth as your primary complaint was the 'threat of arrest'. If you are in LE u know perfectly well that as long as you ultimately pay the bill there's no arrest issue so it's just odd that that was so offensive. If person A racks up a huge bill at any business and is unable to pay it then person A can be arrested for that. What exactly is unreasonable about that? It appears you are not especially thick skinned if you are so easily offended - which is surprising with your background and then the bit about a photo of a credit card being the same thing as a credit card is a bit naive. Which is why people are assuming you are young-ish.

 

Credit cards get shut off for fraud all the time. Not a big deal. They let you call the bank, you assure them the card is in your possession and the charges are good, they turn the card back on and you settle your bill. The prob here is your bank opted to cancel your card completely and not give you an option to settle your bill. That's where my anger would be directed.

 

And yes, from the business side of it, when they are looking at a large unpaid bill (because even if the cc company initially covered the first $5,000 they could have done a charge back if the merchant wasn't following their policies) and the cc company refuses to allow the customer access to the card. That is highly suspicious of fraud. You weren't committing fraud, but how on earth would they know that? I've seen millionaires turned homeless with Heroin use. Just saying you've taken cruises before with them has limited value when they are looking at a situation like that.

 

 

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[Nebr.cruiser]

My credit card issuer does not want to be informed of travel:

 

"With the added security of your Capital One chip card, you don’t have to tell us when and where you’re traveling, inside or outside the United States."

 

Same here. The last time I called in to notify our card of travel (Mastercard), they said it was no longer necessary. But i probably still will, just to be safe!

 

We always take at least one other credit card as well.

Edited June 21, 2017 by Nebr.cruiser

[Crusingdiva62]

No, it's not their responsibility to call and get it resolved--that's your responsibility. The employee was not wrong. I wouldn't take a photo of a cc either.

 

 

 

I was on a cruise and this happened. I went to guest services and they let me use the phone to call my bank. It was activated in 5 mins. Some employees just aren't creative thinkers. I was also polite and apologized for the inconvenience.

 

 

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[lax18stx]

No one accused you of scamming. The issue you brought forth as your primary complaint was the 'threat of arrest'. If you are in LE u know perfectly well that as long as you ultimately pay the bill there's no arrest issue so it's just odd that that was so offensive. If person A racks up a huge bill at any business and is unable to pay it then person A can be arrested for that. What exactly is unreasonable about that? It appears you are not especially thick skinned if you are so easily offended - which is surprising with your background and then the bit about a photo of a credit card being the same thing as a credit card is a bit naive. Which is why people are assuming you are young-ish.

 

Credit cards get shut off for fraud all the time. Not a big deal. They let you call the bank, you assure them the card is in your possession and the charges are good, they turn the card back on and you settle your bill. The prob here is your bank opted to cancel your card completely and not give you an option to settle your bill. That's where my anger would be directed.

 

And yes, from the business side of it, when they are looking at a large unpaid bill (because even if the cc company initially covered the first $5,000 they could have done a charge back if the merchant wasn't following their policies) and the cc company refuses to allow the customer access to the card. That is highly suspicious of fraud. You weren't committing fraud, but how on earth would they know that? I've seen millionaires turned homeless with Heroin use. Just saying you've taken cruises before with them has limited value when they are looking at a situation like that.

 

 

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the problem with the initial card is they sent out a new card that had to be activated once I recieved it (kinda hard when I'm at sea) and they said they could not activate this card since a new card had already been issued

[Cruzaholic41]

there was no escalation... the threat of arrest was made over the phone when I first saw the message on my tv.... I am prior military and LE and kept my composure.I realize the person I was talking to directly had no control over the situation ... I just want to make it clear at no point did I become "belligerent" or caused a scene at any point. All I wanted was to clear the situation.

 

Since you're prior LE, did you inform them at the desk that this is a civil matter? They can call LE all they want, but they wouldn't be able to do anything. Having a credit card put on hold due to a fraud alert is not criminal.

[broberts]

"perceived" is the key word I have multiple cruises with RC and was planning another ... sorry for sharing an experience and end up being crucified for it

 

Sadly there are those for which RCI can do absolutely no wrong, regardless of circumstance. Any suggestion that an employee of the company might have done something less than stellar is met, as you have seen, with belligerence.

[kmdreamcatcher]

Sadly there are those for which RCI can do absolutely no wrong, regardless of circumstance. Any suggestion that an employee of the company might have done something less than stellar is met, as you have seen, with belligerence.

 

 

 

I don't think that is true! I would not care what cruise line it was...it's the fact she did not call the bank to let them know she was going on vacation. And secondly as someone else pointed out you are hearing only her side you don't know if she provoked them or what have. So to make that assumption, you are wrong also!

 

 

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[sfaaa]

Since you're prior LE, did you inform them at the desk that this is a civil matter? They can call LE all they want, but they wouldn't be able to do anything. .

 

Try skipping out on a $200 steak dinner bill next time you are in a restaurant and let's see what will happen to you.

[Mcdonaldbam]

Sounds like the OP is directing his frustration at the wrong institution. I think he should be directing his issues to the CC issuer for shutting off the account completely instead just suspending it. The discussion on manual entry of the account number is moot as he didn't have a physical card in his possession. Just out of curiosity, Lax18str, did you receive a refund to the shutoff cc for the drink and dining packages that were prepaid and not received?

[Aquahound]

Try skipping out on a $200 steak dinner bill next time you are in a restaurant and let's see what will happen to you.

 

Cruzaholic41 is correct.

 

Boarding the ship with a legitimate credit card on file and having the account frozen later by the bank is not a crime. This is a contract issue. Therefore, absent of intent, its a civil matter.

 

Your example of skipping out on a steak is intended theft. Big difference.

[zqvol]

I'm beginning t think that we are not getting the real story. Did the OP go over his credit limit causing the freeze. That can't be fixed with a phone call.

[sfaaa]

Cruzaholic41 is correct.

 

Boarding the ship with a legitimate credit card on file and having the account frozen later by the bank is not a crime. This is a contract issue. Therefore, absent of intent, its a civil matter.

 

Your example of skipping out on a steak is intended theft. Big difference.

 

Cool. Thanks for the clarification. My apology to Cruzaholic41.

[broberts]

I don't think that is true! I would not care what cruise line it was...it's the fact she did not call the bank to let them know she was going on vacation. And secondly as someone else pointed out you are hearing only her side you don't know if she provoked them or what have. So to make that assumption, you are wrong also!

 

 

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I'm sorry you felt my comment was directed at you. It was a general observation. I think you will find at least one post in this thread which demonstrates my point. But I by no means meant every post.

[Crusin6]

the card was frozen and I had to reactivate it when the new one arrived in the mail. It was ruined because my pre paid dining and beverage packages were frozen and I could make no on board purchases. All they had to do was type in the CC # but would not do so because it was against policy... this policy was never made clear beforehand... the way you are defending them sounds like you work for RC.... I have been on many cruises before and never had a problem like this or was treated this way

 

 

Prepaid? Doesn't make sense to say you couldn't use it

 

 

What am I missing?

 

 

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[Crusin6]

Am I the only one that thinks the threat of arrest is extreme and uncalled for?

 

 

Was the threat because they thought you were using a stolen card? That clearly had your name on it? And clearly matched the ID you had? And clearly matched the name on your cruise docs?

 

Likely not....

 

 

However....could it have been that the guest services were doing what a lot of hotel front desk people are doing these days...pulling out the "you scare me or you offended me card" and I'm going to protect myself from you when they think you are being too aggressive toward them when in fact you are just stating your case?

 

Or could it have been that you were loud? Angry?

 

 

It's amazing how thin skinned some people can be and how often the "I'm afraid of you card" is pulled out these days

 

 

My thinking is guest services was just not going to deal with this issue

 

Why?

 

They just didn't want to

 

Or

 

They just wanted to make a stupid point

 

Or

 

You may have in fact been too forceful

 

 

I've heard workers threaten to call cops on customers who complain before when in fact the customer is not really a threat but use stating his or her case in a firm non threatening manner at all

 

 

Of course the media finds the obscure customer rage story and portrays it so that you think its happening every minute of the day

 

 

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[Crusin6]

RCCL was doing was they should have done. You could have been using a stolen card and they have to protect themselves against that. Otherwise they would be in all kinds of legal trouble.

 

How hard is that to understand? You need to take a step back and look at it from there point.

 

 

Ftlog the card had his name on it....wouldn't the cruise have his name and Id too?

 

 

 

 

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[Crusin6]

As they should! I worked for a bank and Credit Card fraud is a very serious issue, which you would think the OP would understand.

 

I for one am glad that RCCL is so careful.

 

 

And what name was on the reservation on the Id the cruise accepted at embark?

 

 

Oh come on folks.....

 

 

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[Crusin6]

its paid done and over I was just pointing out the horrible customer service and lack of willingness to deal with a. customer trying to pay and continue to make purchases ... I dropped over 7 grand in the first couple days you would think they would want me to continue to spend money

 

 

Ok a new wrinkle here....may I ask how?

 

 

And how did they charge you for this if the card was declined?

 

 

 

 

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[Crusin6]

My credit card issuer does not want to be informed of travel:

 

 

 

"With the added security of your Capital One chip card, you don’t have to tell us when and where you’re traveling, inside or outside the United States."

 

 

Lots of luck with this one....they rejected my purchase of Louvre tix when I bought them from home after they had seen many charges in euro in the previous weeks and didn't reject

 

 

Made a quick call and cleared it up but you can bet I'm calling and reconfirming for a 3rd time that they will not reject my hotel charges abroad

 

 

I travel with 3 cards from different banks with great credit limits....and use these cards for TRAVEL only.

 

 

Plus an ATM from a travel only checking account that will not have excessive cash in it.

 

 

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[EmpressofPurple]

I learned the hard way rci only accepts a physical card on the ship. I wanted to move the billing for onboard charges to my rci visa, (which I had also used to pay for the cruise) for obvious reasons, but didn't have it with me, and I was equally confused why they could charge it on the phone but not in person. When staff tried to say it was like going to a store in person without your card, I gently pointed out that I had been in Macy's and Victoria's secret earlier that same week, also did not have their cards in my possession, and they kindly looked up my account and allowed me to charge it, based on my driver's license ID (and of course the cruise line knows perfectly well who you are, they have your passport, payment history, future cruise bookings, etc -- and I wanted to use their branded credit card).

 

I'm as horrified by the negative responses in this forum as I am by the threat of arrest on board. There's a reason I almost never post here anymore. Given the story from the debt-avoiding young couple who described how they had problems with their cards being frozen only when they DID notify their bank that they were traveling, I'm surprised that many posters continued to "blame" OP for not doing this, since it doesn't seem to remove the danger of having your account frozen.

 

I had a similar event where my card was replaced due to suspected fraud, I was at the grocery with only that card, and the replacement card was in the mail... As I found out when I called the cc company from the store! Fortunately I live a block away so I could leave my purchases, go home, get another card (in fact, the new card which had just arrived and I could activate it), go back to the store and pay for my groceries. Obviously NOT something I could've done while at sea...

 

... And I STILL don't understand why one office can take a card by phone (with NO proof that it's real, no physical card to look at, nor a photo of a card, nor a chip) while another cannot. Just weird.

 

 

 

 

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[Elaine5715]

It is a fine line...splitting hair so to speak...I work at a hotel in a resort town and we would not take it this way either. And as someone stated before you can get real-time authorization over the phone when you call into the place.

 

 

 

 

This don't mean anything...unless it is something like applepay and the company is able to take applepay! Most business's want the card to swipe because you could get mad and call and dispute the charge on your card and because it was not swiped the company (Discover in this case) could say that it was stolen and will not pay it. Where I work, even though the card is on file, if you do not have the physical card then we can not and will not charge that card.

Sorry they threatened you with arrest...however thinking they should give you more then 300.00 and that they ruined your vacation is going overboard!!! Because in all reality YOU were the one that ruined your vacation because you did not call your credit card company to let them know that you were traveling with your card and where you would be traveling too. And I understand that you did not want the Discover card stolen, but there is a safe in the cabins on the ship that you could have left it in. You are blaming RC are you demanding compensation from your bank also for freezing your card, because by your accounts it is everyone else's fault so they ruined your vacation also????

They don't take Applepay .

[Elaine5715]

I place the blame on this entire thing on the OP. Clearly a mellinial who chooses to use the latest gadgets instead of traditional methods of payment. RCCL was correct and fully within its rights to suggest that Op would be detained if he did not pay the bill. It is the OP's fault that he failed to notify his CC company that he was traveling and would be using the card on a cruise ship. It is the OP's fault that he neglected to physically carry more than one CC. RCCL has chosen not to implement ApplePay, as have a vast majority of merchants around the world. Op was foolish to rely on new technology. Shame on OP.

 

I may be in the minority but I applaud RCCL, actions like theirs make the banking system safer for all of us.

Yep, Offering a form of payment that is not accepted is worthless. Wanna bet that the Apple Pay was offered as a "take it or leave it cause that's all I got?"

[Elaine5715]

My CC company told me the last time I called about going on vacation that it was no longer necessary to do this. So, apparently, this is changing.

 

Credit card issues are never pleasant. I have to deal with it every day at my hotel. Indeed, each vendor deals with declining cards in different ways. I've never worked at a hotel that accepted a card from an eWallet, though. Either have the hard card in-hand or have submitted a 3rd party CC authorization form in advance is what I've seen as the practice where I've been. There are scams out there where one card is put down as the initial card and it has just enough money to pay for what is the needed pre-payment when the reservation is made. Then, at check-in, a second card is given to be used to pay at check-out. The "guest" doesn't come to the desk to check-out (not an uncommon occurrence). When we clear all the departures at the end of the day, surprise!, the CC is declined... I had one of those Sunday - a bill of $400 went unpaid.

Some credit cards companies are already aware you are traveling since you made the arrangements with their card so that is why customers don't need to notify again. That is different from not wanting to know.

[Crusingdiva62]

Some credit cards companies are already aware you are traveling since you made the arrangements with their card so that is why customers don't need to notify again. That is different from not wanting to know.

 

 

 

Not always true. I was in the US and my CC was frozen and I did not call prior because I was assured that with the chip it's not needed by capital one. I flew from San Diego to Houston to Mississippi using my card in an airport at those stops. When I got to the hotel in MS and attempted to pay for dinner they had frozen my card. Which I can see because it was used in 3 states in one day. I purchased the flight on that card as well. I normally call when leaving the country but not in the US because I fly monthly for work and it's not a change in spending patterns .

 

 

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[slidergirl]

Some credit cards companies are already aware you are traveling since you made the arrangements with their card so that is why customers don't need to notify again. That is different from not wanting to know.

 

Hmmm. How did they know I was traveling to Italy when I paid for the flights with FF miles, and had employee rates at hotels which I did not pay with a CC???

 

I had called my one Visa issuer before going - the agent told me card holders no longer had to call... YMMV for your issuer. It's not "my way or the highway" anymore in the CC field.