Refundable OBC

[davekathy]

I saw a couple of people do it on the Anthem in Feb while I was at guest services. Before that I was not aware that it could be done.

Guilty as charged. I was always told no as long as I had a CC on file.

Edited May 19, 2018 by davekathy

[davekathy]

Yes, on Celebrity. On the Constellation this March I received a message on the last evening to go to Guest Services. When I got there they wanted to give me my $638 unused OBC in cash since for some reason they didn’t have a credit card linked to my account. It was a B2B and the credit card info didn’t get input. I asked if they wanted a credit card and the gentleman said it didn’t matter, if I wanted the refund in cash it was no problem.

Guilty as charged. Good to know. On our last B2B Caribbean cruise on the Equinox (March 2018) the TA OBC was credited back to my CC for both legs. This time I will be asking on our upcoming Infinity cruise if we don't spend the TA OBC. Never hurts to ask. But I'm happy no matter how it is refunded to me.

Edited May 19, 2018 by davekathy

[davekathy]

I have been getting OBC cash back at Guest Services on RCi for many years on many different ships. Hope to do so on Equinox in July. We should have about $200 back on each leg of back2 back. I see no reason to spend money on things I don't want and would much rather have the cash back. I always book cruises while on board to get that OBC, then we have a generous TA. Sometimes I use my Visa points for OBC and that is always refundable. If it is a small amount, I just let it go back to my cc.

I stand corrected when I said "NO" on Celebrity giving back cash vs receiving a credit to the CC for the TA OBC. Sorry for the incorrect info. We did a B2B Caribbean cruise on the Equinox (March 2018) and the unused TA OBC was automatically credited back to my CC for both legs. But I was guilty of not asking for cash. I will be on our upcoming Infinity cruise if we don't spend it. Also we are doing a B2B cruise on the Freedom (March 2019) and have a RC OBC and TA OBC. If we don't spend the TA OBC I will ask for cash back. But I'm happy no matter how it is refunded to me.

Edited May 19, 2018 by davekathy

[varoo]

......... Either way, I'm happy. I always thought I had to spend it all so used to waste what was left on nonsense.

That policy still applies to non-refundable onboard credit, which is use it or lose it.

So lots of us end up wasting it buying things that we don't really want and would never buy otherwise, just to use up whatever non-refundable OBC we have left.

But for any refundable OBC that is left, it is easiest to do nothing at all and just let it go back to our credit card automatically.

That beats wasting time on the last night of the cruise standing in line at Guest Relations waiting to cash it out.

 

Besides, if it is a large amount, just letting it go directly to our credit card account is much safer than cashing it out and then needing to carry around all that extra cash.

[miched]

Good point. Someone posted a while back (to lazy to search) that some TA OBCs are non-refundable.

 

That happened to us on our last cruise. We had some from our TA and since we had so much OBC overall we were planning and assumed on getting the TA’s refunded. We made sure by requesting a statement from the desk and then asking them if it would be refunded. They said that it wasn’t refundable because it came from a promotion and was coded non refundable. Glad that we checked or it would have been lost. Found that OBC from a TA isn’t always refundable unless coded that it is.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[helen haywood]

If you check your account balance on the TV onboard, it will show your OBC on Day 2 or so of the cruise. If there is an "N" in the coding it is non-refundable.

[bob278]

I have some thoughts on this to share.

 

First, as mentioned, some OBC that comes from your TA may be non-refundable. One example is if they are an American Express-affiliated agency. AX is a partner with the cruiseline and that would make at least part of the TA's OBC non-refundable. If it is really important to you, ask.

 

Second, if you earn miles/points on your card, keep in mind that any refund to your CC will affect the miles you earn. Taking the refund in cash is like getting the money AND the miles/points for free. If you have enough refund coming, it might be worth a few minutes at Guest Relations on the last night.

[davekathy]

That happened to us on our last cruise. We had some from our TA and since we had so much OBC overall we were planning and assumed on getting the TA’s refunded. We made sure by requesting a statement from the desk and then asking them if it would be refunded. They said that it wasn’t refundable because it came from a promotion and was coded non refundable. Glad that we checked or it would have been lost. Found that OBC from a TA isn’t always refundable unless coded that it is.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

Yes that's what the stipulation was. Thanks for confirming.

[BratDet]

I'm getting 1,150$ OBC on our next cruise. I made sure to ask the TA if their 500$ was refundable, I have it in e-mail- it is. Since we have all 4 perks, and are not in need of any ship excursions....it is much better knowing we do not have to try to spend it all. We also can fill out a form to give extra $$ from OBC to room steward or waiters....normally we just let OBC go to drinks or daily gratuities...but those are covered by the perks....

 

Bernadette

[cruisestitch]

Bratdet, don't forget these ways to spend OBC

Acupuncture

Airport transfers

Alcove rental (some ships)

Apple products and Ilounge classes

Art Auctions

Beverages -- Alcoholic, soft drinks, specialty coffees and teas, bottled water

Bingo

Bottles of wine

Casino

Duty free liquor and cigarettes

Fitness classes

Flowers

Gelato

Gift shop

Gratuities and extra gratuities

Hair and nail salon

Internet

Laundry/pressing/drycleaning

Luggage Valet

Martini flights

Medical Center

Mini bar

Shore Excursions

Pay-per-view movies

Persian Gardens passes

Photos & cameras

Room service up charge items & late night deliveries

Shore Excursions

Shuttle to town (some ports)

Spa -- massages and treatments

Specialty restaurants

Teeth Whitening

Voyage in Review DVD

Wine and liquor tastings

Zumba

[BratDet]

This time I got a save the ocean wildlife tee, husband did a bourbon tasting, the casino got some, we did Tuscan Grille and did an excursion. We drove to port. We have all the Apple we need, would never waste a penny on art auction scam, we have free internet, premium Bev package so all drink goodies included..and included gratuities. We don’t want liquor or cigarettes. We got our gelato for free. Get my hair cut in NYC, would never trust a ship.. no luggage valet needed, no laundry needed cause it was just a week cruise..we never do room service..we tried to look at photos- but we didn’t like and were given one for free. We tried to go to 10 am Caroloha sale on deck 3- but it was not there as advertised... was going to buy Clinique- but added a citizen watch to finish out the OBC spending..we’ve been on Summit 3 times- so no DVD needed..we usually use OBC on gratuities...but having the suite perks limits big usage of OBC...bernadette LAST YEAR we were able to cash out the refundable OBC, this year it is placed on the cc on file. So annoyed by that change because we wanted to use the $$ for extra tips... we did not take tons of cash as we expected to be able to cash in at end of cruise. We did switch the CC on file to our Princess ( no foreign transaction fees) , instead of Celebrity since we used Princess in port for purchases...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[lizinindy]

Just talked to a friend who had onboard credit for their cruise. They did some things that required payment and just expected their onboard credit would be applied. When they got home, they realized Celebrity had charged $204 to their credit card instead of using their $200 onboard credit. When they called Celebrity, they were told you have to tell Celebrity that you want to use your onboard credit. If not, they put it on your card. They finally talked to a supervisor who said, “we’re not supposed to do this but we’ll refund your $200.” Have you ever heard of having to go to the purser’s desk and having to tell someone to apply your onboard credit whenever needed?

[wrk2cruise]

34 minutes ago, lizinindy said:

Just talked to a friend who had onboard credit for their cruise. They did some things that required payment and just expected their onboard credit would be applied. When they got home, they realized Celebrity had charged $204 to their credit card instead of using their $200 onboard credit. When they called Celebrity, they were told you have to tell Celebrity that you want to use your onboard credit. If not, they put it on your card. They finally talked to a supervisor who said, “we’re not supposed to do this but we’ll refund your $200.” Have you ever heard of having to go to the purser’s desk and having to tell someone to apply your onboard credit whenever needed?

 

Were their purchases on cruise planner before the cruise.  When making purchases there you have to specify the form of payment.   Onboard if you have OBC on your seapass account that is used first automatically.  They use non-refundable first, then refundable.   I suspect it was their pre-cruise purchases.

 

You have to slide the button right to use OBC.

 

[lizinindy]

Nope—all their purchases were onboard items. I think it was just a huge boo boo that the phone answering person didn’t handle correctly. I told my friend she should have just kept calling the Celebrity phone number until she got a person who would be helpful. You can get a different answer to a query with every call..very frustrating. I’m absolutely sure it isn’t a rule that you have to “tell Celebrity” to have your onboard credit applied appropriately....but I’m going to check my account on my upcoming cruise!

[Denny01]

I’m no expert, but not sure how any onboard charge isn’t covered by whatever OBC you have, either refundable or non-refundable. The On Board account shows all the OBC and all the charges and the resulting total. And there is not a place to mark that OBC should be used for some charge made on board or not. It just shows up as a running total. 

 

From what the Celebrity people said to your friend and how it was handled by the On Board account it just sounds as if that charge was done prior to boarding, or somehow the system identified it as a charge prior to boarding. Either your friends made an error forgetting they charged an excursion on line or made a reservation on line and so on and forgot, or the on board charge was misidentified by the computer as a charge prior to boarding.

 

There is no requirement (or way) of saying on the On Board Account some on board charge should or shouldn’t be covered by On Board Credit. Personally, I wouldn’t worry about it and start checking, this sounds like a very one-time error either by the passenger or somehow with the computer and it should have shown up on their On board account in some way. 

 

Den

 

 

Edited January 31, 2020 by Denny01

[SteveinPhilly]

I just wanted to share I surprise I got yesterday. I always use the compete site to get quotes. As we all (should) know the price for a particular category on a particular ship on a particular sailing is always the same no matter the agency. And on X there perks are offered by X. But the difference is the OBC the TA gives you OVER what the cruise line does. EVERY agency I've used has always BOUGHT the credit from the cruise line and so it has been "refundable" if unused. (sometimes you need to request but always refundable). Since we often choose perks like PPD gratuities and Classic Drink Pkg - and never use ships shore excursions - we net the extra OBC to figure our cruise cost. Yesterday I got a quote from a MAJOR TA (can't give name) and learned the $650 OBC was not refundable. I then asked another of the 6 TAs who quoted me and they said they had same policy. It was an AGENCY policy. They are the only ones. So, even if they were giving me a higher OBC the fact that it was NON refundable lost them the booking.

 

So advice when getting quotes. ALWAYS ask up front if it its a non-refundable or "refundable: OBC. Oh yeah. The BIG agency has fine print saying the non refundable OBC "cannot be use for gratuities or in the Casino".

 

 

[SteveinPhilly]

3 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

I’m no expert, but not sure how any onboard charge isn’t covered by whatever OBC you have, either refundable or non-refundable. The On Board account shows all the OBC and all the charges and the resulting total. And there is not a place to mark that OBC should be used for some charge made on board or not. It just shows up as a running total. 

 

From what the Celebrity people said to your friend and how it was handled by the On Board account it just sounds as if that charge was done prior to boarding, or somehow the system identified it as a charge prior to boarding. Either your friends made an error forgetting they charged an excursion on line or made a reservation on line and so on and forgot, or the on board charge was misidentified by the computer as a charge prior to boarding.

 

There is no requirement (or way) of saying on the On Board Account some on board charge should or shouldn’t be covered by On Board Credit. 

 

Den

 

 

On our last X cruiose the accounts on the TV screen showed the refundable and non refundable OBCs separate and any charges (like dinner) were charged FIRST to the non-refundableOBC.

 

[Denny01]

1 hour ago, SteveinPhilly said:

On our last X cruiose the accounts on the TV screen showed the refundable and non refundable OBCs separate and any charges (like dinner) were charged FIRST to the non-refundableOBC.

 

Yup, and then the non-refundable is used until both are all gone, then you pay what is left.

 

Den

[woody14h]

Is there any way to determine what portion of the OBC is refundable before the cruise? Ex.  Rec'd $500 told some was refundable.

[Fouremco]

8 minutes ago, woody14h said:

Is there any way to determine what portion of the OBC is refundable before the cruise? Ex.  Rec'd $500 told some was refundable.

Received from whom? And a single $500 amount or two or more totalling $500?

 

[woody14h]

Was told OBC no 2 sources were mentioned. If they would have, I would be able to determine. I guess if the TA does not give me this info, I must wait on board for the codes.  Hoping he will.  thanks.

[SteveinPhilly]

Denny: Just to clarify. The NOn-refundable one used first. THEN refundable. If any refundable still left - always for me. it will go back on the credit card X has on file.

 

As to Woody's question - you ASK the TA before booking how much is nonrefundable and how much is refundable. Anythingfrom X (like taking the $300 OBC as a perk - or an on board booking OBC is always NOn-Refundable. MOST (but not all from a TA is refundable this as I said the major TA I checked with gives you the OBC but it's NOT refundable. Simple to ask Any agent BEFORE you put deposit down. They better know or find another TA.

 

While here and discussing X - the NON-refundable  OBC from X can be used at tables in the casino but can't be cashed in. You get special chips that you use and any wins are given to you in "cashable" chips. I usually have a $100 or so left in NON-refundable OBC and use for $100 in "marked" chips at the casino. I then find a regular gambler at one of my meals and offer them to the person at a 10% discount. They are gambling anyway and are usually happy to do it. So I lose $10 but don't need to spend the $100.

 

[woody14h]

1 minute ago, SteveinPhilly said:

Denny: Just to clarify. The NOn-refundable one used first. THEN refundable. If any refundable still left - always for me. it will go back on the credit card X has on file.

 

As to Woody's question - you ASK the TA before booking how much is nonrefundable and how much is refundable. Anythingfrom X (like taking the $300 OBC as a perk - or an on board booking OBC is always NOn-Refundable. MOST (but not all from a TA is refundable this as I said the major TA I checked with gives you the OBC but it's NOT refundable. Simple to ask Any agent BEFORE you put deposit down. They better know or find another TA.

 

While here and discussing X - the NON-refundable  OBC from X can be used at tables in the casino but can't be cashed in. You get special chips that you use and any wins are given to you in "cashable" chips. I usually have a $100 or so left in NON-refundable OBC and use for $100 in "marked" chips at the casino. I then find a regular gambler at one of my meals and offer them to the person at a 10% discount. They are gambling anyway and are usually happy to do it. So I lose $10 but don't need to spend the $100.

 

Steve, a great idea on the non refundable use in Casino. Never thought of that.

Now as mentioned, i need to know from my TA which is what.  Will find out soon. 

[Fouremco]

3 hours ago, woody14h said:

Was told OBC no 2 sources were mentioned. If they would have, I would be able to determine. I guess if the TA does not give me this info, I must wait on board for the codes.  Hoping he will.  thanks.

 

2 hours ago, woody14h said:

Steve, a great idea on the non refundable use in Casino. Never thought of that.

Now as mentioned, i need to know from my TA which is what.  Will find out soon. 

Yes, definitely get on to your TA. I'm surprised that your booking documents received from the TA don't include this information, but he should certainly be able to tell you.

[woody14h]

Of course. We haven't booked yet.  OBC is high enough to be a problem if not refundable. Sounds like a problem everyone should have, Right.? Tough to use on board.  Don't want to waste it in Shops. Not with Morocco on the horizon. We'll wait and see. Love this itinerary. On TA in April, will book at that time, get extra OBC and smaller deposit..