P&O Shuttle bus accident

[Lunarwolf]

On our way back to the port in Tenerife on our recent Canaries and Portugal cruise, the back end of our shuttle bus collided with a wall. My 10 yr old daughter was sat near the window in the seat before the back row and the window seemed to explode and the glass shattered over her. She went into shock but thankfully sustained only a few minor cuts - it could have been very different. The driver didn't stop the bus until we were back at the ship - Ventura. We then got off the bus and reported the accident at Reception once on board ship. We missed Gran Canaria the following day as my daughter didn't want to leave the ship or our suite for that matter. Over the next few days we received various phone calls from the entertainments staff, excursions staff and head of security who also visited us in our suite. He confirmed the matter was in the process of being investigated but the shuttle bus was a local contract and not the responsibility of P&O. He also inferred it wasn't necessary to take the matter further or involve anyone else, which seemed a little sinister at the time...my daughter later received a Ventura Teddy and a bag of chocolate bars...

Since we arrived home we have heard nothing from P&O despite being told that someone would be in touch regarding the findings of the "investigation into the shuttle bus accident".

I just wondered if anyone else has experienced anything similar and would appreciate any advice on this matter. I will do a separate post/review on our first cruise.

Thank you!

[wowzz]

Perhaps you could give some indication of what action you expect P&O to take?

I hope your daughter is recovering from the shock.

 

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[Jules.]

How awful for her and you :( it should never have happened.

I don’t think that P&O are taking this seriously. Did you take any photographs of the bus? Have you contacted your travel insurance company?

 

I would have screamed blue murder on the bus if that had happened to one of my boys.

[Selbourne]

On our way back to the port in Tenerife on our recent Canaries and Portugal cruise, the back end of our shuttle bus collided with a wall. My 10 yr old daughter was sat near the window in the seat before the back row and the window seemed to explode and the glass shattered over her. She went into shock but thankfully sustained only a few minor cuts - it could have been very different. The driver didn't stop the bus until we were back at the ship - Ventura. We then got off the bus and reported the accident at Reception once on board ship. We missed Gran Canaria the following day as my daughter didn't want to leave the ship or our suite for that matter. Over the next few days we received various phone calls from the entertainments staff, excursions staff and head of security who also visited us in our suite. He confirmed the matter was in the process of being investigated but the shuttle bus was a local contract and not the responsibility of P&O. He also inferred it wasn't necessary to take the matter further or involve anyone else, which seemed a little sinister at the time...my daughter later received a Ventura Teddy and a bag of chocolate bars...

Since we arrived home we have heard nothing from P&O despite being told that someone would be in touch regarding the findings of the "investigation into the shuttle bus accident".

I just wondered if anyone else has experienced anything similar and would appreciate any advice on this matter. I will do a separate post/review on our first cruise.

Thank you!

 

This reminded me of a similar situation my wife and I had in Tunisia many years ago when on a tour coach (not related to a cruise). The windscreen started cracking and breaking (and wasn’t laminated) and the driver refused to stop. We ended up crouching behind the seats in front of us for fear that we were about to be showered in large shards of glass and potentially seriously injured or worse. We complained afterwards and received a full refund for both of us for the tour.

 

In regards to P&O, their complaints procedure allows the matter to be resolved on board and I am surprised that this didn’t happen in your case. They will usually investigate the complaint and depending on the seriousness of the incident, how it has impacted on the customer, the likelihood (and potential outcome) if the customer complains to P&O (or takes legal action) back on shore, they will make a settlement offer of additional on board credit or future cruise credit. In the last year or two, P&O has upgraded the seniority of the Customer Service Manager and they are empowered to award quite significant sums for the bigger complaints - in fact up to around £1,000. You would be asked to sign a settlement agreement confirming that you accept the financial offer as full and final settlement of the matter and will not disclose this afterwards, which is a pretty standard process with organisations making settlements. As a point of interest, the P&O settlement agreements are not legally enforceable as they are incorrectly worded and actually put the onus on confidentiality on P&O rather than the customer!

 

 

Based upon our personal experience, we have found that it is possible to get a perfectly amicable solution whilst on board if you are assertive and highlight the issue, concerns and impact in a calm but purposeful manner. Unfortunately, we have found their shore based customer services department to be absolutely hopeless. Letters addressed to the CEO are always passed back to this department (in spite of what they make you think) and, unlike on the ship, any resolution will be a prolonged battle with a less satisfactory outcome. I realise that this doesn’t really help you, but that is the process.

[Lunarwolf]

Thanks Wowzz. My daughter is ok now she's back home. As to what action did I expect P&O to take? Well I expected them to investigate the shuttle bus accident and report back their findings for a start. And yes an offer to compensate for the emotional and psychological trauma experienced by my daughter would have been an appropriate response. My daughter broke down following the accident, in the relative safety and privacy of our suite. She told me that when the shuttle bus collided with the wall how she was terrified and thought she was going to die...This incident pretty much ruined the rest of our cruise, and my daughter has said she will never go on another cruise.

[Lunarwolf]

Thanks Jules. My daughter has ASD, and at the time of the shuttle bus accident, she needed me to be calm, loving and protective, not angry and losing it in front of her...That kind of emotional display would not have helped her through the shock, and allow her to process the accident, and aid her recovery.

I did not take photographs at the time, although I realised that would have been useful, but as always my daughter's welfare was my priority! I used to work in the criminal justice system so I do understand the importance of photographic evidence in this situation. Also the glass fell out in stages and I needed to shield and comfort my daughter not leave her exposed to potential injury.

I have not yet contacted our travel insurance company as we have been full of a cold since our return, and I wanted to appeal to fellow cruisers for advice on the matter before taking further action.

[Lunarwolf]

Thank you Selbourne, for your wise words!

After I reported the shuttle bus accident, I was told that the matter would be investigated, and naturally I would be kept informed. The head of security wasn't interested in what happened other than the usual (P&O) damage limitation...I guess I chose not to 'waste' any further energy or time pursuing this matter during our remaining days on the cruise. We had an excursion booked for Lanzarote two days after it happened, which was the highlight of our cruise - a trip to Mount Timanfaya and a camel ride. I wasn't certain this was going to happen, as my daughter had said she would not go on another shuttle bus - a sensible response given what happened to her. In fact she did not want to leave the ship at all. The excursion involved a coach journey, which she very bravely undertook, sitting near to the front of the coach on the opposite side in an aisle seat. The driver, a local guy , was an excellent driver and we had a really great time in Lanzarote - our favourite port.

I was preoccupied with salvaging our holiday as we had really enjoyed being on Ventura and found her a lovely ship and we were saddened that what happened in Tenerife could spoil that experience.

Thank you for your advice and information regarding compensation. I will contact P&O, and see what happens...

[Josy1953]

What an awful experience for your daughter. I would definitely write to P&O customers services in Southampton. I know that some posters on here have had poor experiences with them but earlier this year we had a bad experience on Ventura and got absolutely no satisfaction in board but within 2 hours of sending an email to P&O after we got home I was called and the situation was resolved to my satisfaction.

[Lunarwolf]

Thanks Josy1953!. I will definitely email P&O customer services and see how they respond.

[Cosmic Rays]

If you call, my experience tells me to speak to a supervisor within the customer service department for a more speedy resolution rather than one of the 'agents', who, I feel may well have not experienced a cruise. I found that some of the staff in the department have no empathy and as a result fail to understand the experiences encountered by fare paying passengers, and as clearly shown in this sad instance.

[dgs1956]

Thanks Wowzz. My daughter is ok now she's back home. As to what action did I expect P&O to take? Well I expected them to investigate the shuttle bus accident and report back their findings for a start. And yes an offer to compensate for the emotional and psychological trauma experienced by my daughter would have been an appropriate response. My daughter broke down following the accident, in the relative safety and privacy of our suite. She told me that when the shuttle bus collided with the wall how she was terrified and thought she was going to die...This incident pretty much ruined the rest of our cruise, and my daughter has said she will never go on another cruise.

 

Please don't think I am trivialising your experience.

I cannot see what they would need to investigate. It seems the to be a fairly straightforward case. That leads to how P&O should have responded. The crew look to have shown their concern by phoning you and visiting you. Personally I think it would have been a nice gesture if they had sent you a letter apologising for the incident and making it clear of their concern. Whether the incident merits financial compensation is a matter of opinion.

I have only ever had one incident on a P&O cruise and I was refunded but received no apology. I am no softie or overly sensitive but I was really upset at the time and felt humiliated. I did not want compensation but I did feel the crew member should have been reprimanded. I wrote to Customer Services and was told the matter would be investigated. I heard nothing more and so wrote again and received a curt letter saying the matter was investigated and had been dealt with internally. It was almost as if my view didn't count.

If ever such a thing happened again I would demand that it be sorted out there and then but you do risk spoiling your holiday.

So basically good luck with getting the response you want.

[wowzz]

From a legal point of view, isn't the fact that the accident was caused by a third party, an issue here. I am sure that somewhere in the small print, P&O will point out that they have no control over third parties, even though the trip was an official P&O excursion.If P&O had offered, say £1000 as a gesture of goodwill, they would in fact be admitting liability, which would open them up to further costs in the unfortunate case that your daughter required additional treatment.

In these days of trivial litigation [which is not your case at all, I hasten to add] any seemingly innocent gesture of goodwill can lead to escalating costs later on. Hence any corporate decision is based on the adage,'admit nothing, pay nothing.'

[sanger727]

And yes an offer to compensate for the emotional and psychological trauma experienced by my daughter would have been an appropriate response.

 

 

What would this be to you? I think everyone in this situation would answer the question differently. If you take the tour out of the situation, say your daughter was in the back seat of a car and someone rear ended you and the window shattered onto her; I don't see anyone paying for emotional distress. Accidents happen. It would be difficult for them to offer something satisfactory when then don't know what YOU would consider satisfactory.

 

 

 

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[kalos]

Sorry to hear about your daughters upset on your holiday due to the shattered window.

 

Have you read P&O terms and conditions ? If not here they are ...

 

https://www.pocruises.com/Global/pdf/poc-booking-conditions.pdf

 

I would look at 51,52 and part 62 . Which should help you decide if it was unforeseen or avoidable by P&O cruises or the third party which was the coach company .

 

Hope this helps you decide your next action .

[Selbourne]

From a legal point of view, isn't the fact that the accident was caused by a third party, an issue here. I am sure that somewhere in the small print, P&O will point out that they have no control over third parties, even though the trip was an official P&O excursion.If P&O had offered, say £1000 as a gesture of goodwill, they would in fact be admitting liability, which would open them up to further costs in the unfortunate case that your daughter required additional treatment.

In these days of trivial litigation [which is not your case at all, I hasten to add] any seemingly innocent gesture of goodwill can lead to escalating costs later on. Hence any corporate decision is based on the adage,'admit nothing, pay nothing.'

 

All excursions are indeed run by 3rd parties, but the passenger enters into a contract with P&O who are therefore responsible for resolving such issues. Settlement agreements are ‘full and final’ to avoid the potential for additional or subsequent claims and absolve themselves of any liability. It is for P&O to pursue any financial loss as a result of any such payment from the 3rd party, not the passenger.

[majortom10]

Sorry but if it was an official P&O shuttle bus then P&O have a responsibility to their passengers. I would put your incident in writing to Paul Ludlow Senior Vice President and mark the envelope "confidential" as soon as possible and await is reply to see what he says before taking further legal action. Cannot believe that people are saying the coach was a third party company and nothing to do with P&O, they have signed a legal contract with the coach company and would have ensured the coaches are up to standard and roadworthy and have a legal responsibility for the safety of their passengers. If it was nothing to do with them why do they charge for early saver and saver fares and keep the money.

[mercury7289]

Sorry

Went into shock! behave IMHO.

 

Claim building IMHO

 

In the end we all pay!

[Big Foot]

Sorry but if it was an official P&O shuttle bus then P&O have a responsibility to their passengers. I would put your incident in writing to Paul Ludlow Senior Vice President and mark the envelope "confidential" as soon as possible and await is reply to see what he says before taking further legal action. Cannot believe that people are saying the coach was a third party company and nothing to do with P&O, they have signed a legal contract with the coach company and would have ensured the coaches are up to standard and roadworthy and have a legal responsibility for the safety of their passengers. If it was nothing to do with them why do they charge for early saver and saver fares and keep the money.

 

We had an issue with our excursion coach last year in Rome.

 

Upon return to the ship we made a complaint & P&O were very quick to quote their T&C's etc in fact they knew exactly the paragraph in the book to turn to!! They then went on to inform us that whilst we may have Health & Safety Laws in the UK they're not responsible for the upkeep / roadworthiness of vehicles in other countries. In fact the day before our tour, we were advised that our coach was undergoing 'restoration'. Due to the fact that there were 6 ships in port, I believe every coach company got out every vehicle going!

[majortom10]

We had an issue with our excursion coach last year in Rome.

 

Upon return to the ship we made a complaint & P&O were very quick to quote their T&C's etc in fact they knew exactly the paragraph in the book to turn to!! They then went on to inform us that whilst we may have Health & Safety Laws in the UK they're not responsible for the upkeep / roadworthiness of vehicles in other countries. In fact the day before our tour, we were advised that our coach was undergoing 'restoration'. Due to the fact that there were 6 ships in port, I believe every coach company got out every vehicle going!

 

Well very sorry but P&O were fobbing you off with legal bull**** of which they are experts at. Without knowing the full story I cannot comment but if you book an excursion with P&O they have to abide by UK law whatever they say. If the person writes as I previously said to Paul Ludlow and state the facts and say "I await your response before taking legal advice" they will respond have a legal obligation.

P&O hid behind legal bull**** with me some time ago when they changed a cruise I was booked on from 16nts to 15nts and was giving me the one night refund in OBC, they also stated that one port of call had been cancelled and every other port of call on the rest of the cruise had changed so we called at the same ports but everyone on a different day. I responded by saying my legal contract was booking a 16nt cruise and paid as per T&Cs in cash and therefore as a right should be paid the one night cancelled in cash. I also stated that as it was now only 15nts and every port of call had changed to a different day and one was cancelled then it was classified as a major change. They denied this and I said OK see you in Small Claims Court and after speaking to their legal department they contacted me and said I could have the 1nt cancelled reimbursed in full in cash/cheque and If I wanted I could cancel the cruise with all monies refunded. They try and always play the nothing to do with us govnur card but are just trying it on which they always do.

[Cosmic Rays]

Having read with great interest the comments posted here - I agree with therm - we need to bear in mind from the original post that it was not a ship tour but the shuttle which runs to and from the ship, and all other cruise ships too of course, from the entrance to the port and which we have used several times on calls we have made in the past to Tenerife.

However, I still feel P&O should 'come clean' about this fact and therefore them to take the appropriate action.......not you having to fight them.

[Lunarwolf]

Mercury 7289

 

IMHO I found your post to be insensitive, offensive and totally unnecessary...

[Lunarwolf]

I would like to end this thread as I feel there is nothing more to add. It's rather depressing to read posts which question the authenticity of my daughter's experience and only seek to belittle and upset...A big thank you to those of you whose posts offered advice and information and kind words.

[mercury7289]

Fully accepted but IMHO still true.

[majortom10]

There seems to be some confusion that the shuttle bus was provided by the port or whether it was an official one provided by P&O which is provided free of charge for Select and chargeable for Early Saver/Saver fares. If it was the latter then P&O are legally responsible and have a duty of care for their passengers even if the accident was not an employee of theirs and it was an employee of a company that P&O have taken a contract out with.

[BrianI]

The shuttle bus in Tenerife is operated by the port and is free for any ticket type.

Brian