Final payment date delaying?

[Jay23]

Cariad....... Our final payment to our TA  for 9th August  cruise is 11th May.  You should press your TA to extend your date for a month.   Three months is quite long enough to pay the final amount.    However, I don't think we will be going on that cruise.  We are just gong to sit tight for the time being.   J

[RJB]

59 minutes ago, Jay23 said:

Cariad....... Our final payment to our TA  for 9th August  cruise is 11th May.  You should press your TA to extend your date for a month.   Three months is quite long enough to pay the final amount.    However, I don't think we will be going on that cruise.  We are just gong to sit tight for the time being.   J

We will not final pay our T/A  until we know this Corona thing is over.  Don't want a FCC  where O holds our money for possibly a year or so.  we may very well need it depending how long this virus lasts. Want to be in control, not O. 

[Jay23]

1 minute ago, RJB said:

We will not final pay our T/A  until we know this Corona thing is over.  Don't want a FCC  where O holds our money for possibly a year or so.  we may very well need it depending how long this virus lasts. Want to be in control, not O. 

Indeed

[Medeba]

2 hours ago, Pet said:

We are in the same boat as you (!!). Relatively happy to cancel and pay £200pp under 7a of their T&C rather than chance a FCC for our cruise in August for £6k unless we can use that FCC to pay for another Marina cruise we have booked through a difference TA in November. What I don't want to a FCC I may not be able to use - especially if restrictions on 70+ cruisers remains in force the whole of this year. The way things are going Marina may not even get over to Europe by August.

I am contemplating cancelling a cruise later on in the year.  Would you lose your deposit as well as paying £200pp to cancel?  US customers seem to be able to cancel and get their deposit returned minus the admin fee.  I'm not sure this applies in the UK.

[Pet]

As far as I can ascertain this depends on which country you book in  - there are different T&Cs for USA and UK - and which cruise line you are booked with. The other factor to consider is the need to balance how much you paid as the deposit against the final cost. We may cancel our June cruise on P&O Iona (or P&O may cancel it anyway, although they are all waiting to the latest possible moment for obvious reasons) as we only paid a few hundred pounds up front and under their T&C it looks like you can cancel and receive a FCC instead, with Oceania Cruises we had to paid 20% deposit which is a lot to forfeit .  Hope that helps.

[Jay23]

48 minutes ago, Medeba said:

I am contemplating cancelling a cruise later on in the year.  Would you lose your deposit as well as paying £200pp to cancel?  US customers seem to be able to cancel and get their deposit returned minus the admin fee.  I'm not sure this applies in the UK.

In the UK we would not normally get the deposit back but this is not "normally" so who knows ...........................

[schmerl]

1 hour ago, Medeba said:

I am contemplating cancelling a cruise later on in the year.  Would you lose your deposit as well as paying £200pp to cancel?  US customers seem to be able to cancel and get their deposit returned minus the admin fee.  I'm not sure this applies in the UK.

 

Look at the cancellation policy toward the bottom of your invoice.

 

We cancelled our July 6 cruise. Our final payment was due April 7 and we did not want to give them all that money for something that might not take place. We got our deposit back minus the $250 administrative fee which can be used for a future cruise. 

[Medeba]

Thanks to both Jay23 and schmerl for your responses.

[susiesan]

4 hours ago, schmerl said:

 

 

We cancelled our July 6 cruise. Our final payment was due April 7 and we did not want to give them all that money for something that might not take place. We got our deposit back minus the $250 administrative fee which can be used for a future cruise. 

The admin fee for 2 people was $250 not $500? I thought it was $250 pp. People who were on the roll call for June 26 sailing and just canceled the past week were charged $500 admin fee. There is no consistency with Oceania. My TA is advising I hold off for a week to cancel and see what happens in the next 7 days. She said to wait until April 1.

[schmerl]

1 hour ago, susiesan said:

The admin fee for 2 people was $250 not $500? I thought it was $250 pp. People who were on the roll call for June 26 sailing and just canceled the past week were charged $500 admin fee. There is no consistency with Oceania. My TA is advising I hold off for a week to cancel and see what happens in the next 7 days. She said to wait until April 1.

 

It is $250 per person. We were going to wait but wanted to stop having to think about it with everything else that is going on. Now we have peace of mind. 

[Mura]

On 3/20/2020 at 2:52 PM, Hawaiidan said:

Years ago I quit buying anything but chewing gum with cash.......  It surprises me to see people still writing checks and paying cash at stores.......   With every purchase ,airfare, cruise, expense insured....why would you ever NOT use a credit

I can see a reason if you are someone who carries a balance on the credit card.  For those of us who pay in full each month, it's a no-brainer who charge whatever we can -- and get whatever benefit accrues from doing so.  But if you owe a lot of money for past purchases that continue to accrue interest ... you might not feel that way.

 

Not sure if there is anyone here who does that, but I can see why someone in that position would want to pay a large sum up front.  Deposits generally aren't so large (unless you're in a top suite and/or on a long cruise), however.

 

When Renaissance bellied up we were glad we'd paid our deposit with a credit card.  We weren't due to make final payment until a couple of weeks later, so for us it was only $500.  If we'd already paid in full, that would have been a heck of a lot more!  But we got every penny back.

 

Mura

[cariad1000]

15 hours ago, Jay23 said:

In the UK we would not normally get the deposit back but this is not "normally" so who knows ...........................

My travel agent says normal terms and conditions apply so that would mean that we'll lose our deposit of £2,200!!!  An awful lot to lose.  I will certainly contact them again and press for a later payment date.  

 

Thank you all for your advice.

[Medeba]

1 hour ago, cariad1000 said:

My travel agent says normal terms and conditions apply so that would mean that we'll lose our deposit of £2,200!!!  An awful lot to lose.  I will certainly contact them again and press for a later payment date.  

 

Thank you all for your advice.

We are in the same position.  Our deposit is £1500 with full payment to be paid mid-June.  I know that's a way off and things can change but our cruise visits parts of the world that are way behind us with coronavirus cases and the thought of being stuck with quarantine issues fills me with dread.  I'm really reluctant to tie up a serious amount of money on that basis and think we may just bite the bullet and suffer the loss of deposit.  Still, I won't decide yet, there's plenty of time.  If Oceania offers an FCC for the deposit amount (unlikely) we would obviously take that and cruise again when things have settled.  

Edited March 22, 2020 by Medeba
Additional information

[susiesan]

Medeba: are the consumer laws in the UK so bad that  you would lose your whole deposit? Who gets to keep it, your TA or Oceania? Why would Oceania not give UK customers a FCC  when they give it to everyone else. It is right on their web site. Why not find a cruise in 2021 that comes close to the one you have booked now, have your deposit transferred to that cruise. Oceania will still have your deposit money for a year but not as much if you make the final payment. That is what I am doing. I found that the same itinerary next August, 10 Baltic on Marina, that will give me way more perks than my current booking. You may find the same applies to you.

 

[Medeba]

1 hour ago, susiesan said:

Medeba: are the consumer laws in the UK so bad that  you would lose your whole deposit? Who gets to keep it, your TA or Oceania? Why would Oceania not give UK customers a FCC  when they give it to everyone else. It is right on their web site. Why not find a cruise in 2021 that comes close to the one you have booked now, have your deposit transferred to that cruise. Oceania will still have your deposit money for a year but not as much if you make the final payment. That is what I am doing. I found that the same itinerary next August, 10 Baltic on Marina, that will give me way more perks than my current booking. You may find the same applies to you.

 

susiesan: yes, we do lose our deposit and certainly with Oceania it's a lot to lose!  Oceania gets to keep the deposit not the TA. That's why I'm hoping they will relax the rules to allow us Brits to have an FCC because at the end of the day Oceania will get more money if we book another cruise rather than not rebooking because we lost our deposit.  We had to cancel an Azamara cruise about 5 years ago (not for an insurable reason) and we lost the deposit on that but it was much less than our Oceania deposit.  I will try the option of transferring the deposit when the time comes but I'm not hopeful.  I will ask my TA when the current flurry of activity has calmed down.

[Medeba]

On 3/21/2020 at 3:59 PM, Pet said:

As far as I can ascertain this depends on which country you book in  - there are different T&Cs for USA and UK - and which cruise line you are booked with. The other factor to consider is the need to balance how much you paid as the deposit against the final cost. We may cancel our June cruise on P&O Iona (or P&O may cancel it anyway, although they are all waiting to the latest possible moment for obvious reasons) as we only paid a few hundred pounds up front and under their T&C it looks like you can cancel and receive a FCC instead, with Oceania Cruises we had to paid 20% deposit which is a lot to forfeit .  Hope that helps.

Pet.  I'm sorry I forgot to thank you as well in post 58.

[Jay23]

We have contacted our TA who has promised to contact Oceania to try to establish what their policy will be for cancellation and FCC for us in the UK,  bearing mind our cruise is not until August.      He will come back to us next week..   J

Edited March 22, 2020 by Jay23

[susiesan]

1 hour ago, Medeba said:

susiesan: yes, we do lose our deposit and certainly with Oceania it's a lot to lose!  Oceania gets to keep the deposit not the TA. That's why I'm hoping they will relax the rules to allow us Brits to have an FCC because at the end of the day Oceania will get more money if we book another cruise rather than not rebooking because we lost our deposit.  We had to cancel an Azamara cruise about 5 years ago (not for an insurable reason) and we lost the deposit on that but it was much less than our Oceania deposit.  I will try the option of transferring the deposit when the time comes but I'm not hopeful.  I will ask my TA when the current flurry of activity has calmed down.

Wow, that is awful of Oceania. With policies like that why would anyone in the UK book a cruise with Oceania? Especially since their deposit rate is extremely steep to begin with. If you do lose the entire deposit why would you do business with a company that treats their customers like that? There are plenty of other cruise lines out there at the same level as Oceania that would do better by you. Shame on Oceania.

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, Medeba said:

yes, we do lose our deposit and certainly with Oceania it's a lot to lose!  Oceania gets to keep the deposit not the TA.

Do other cruise lines  not refund your deposit ?

 I have read that some holiday bookers (TA) also keep the deposit in the UK  is that true?

[pingpong1]

17 minutes ago, susiesan said:

Wow, that is awful of Oceania. With policies like that why would anyone in the UK book a cruise with Oceania? Especially since their deposit rate is extremely steep to begin with. If you do lose the entire deposit why would you do business with a company that treats their customers like that? There are plenty of other cruise lines out there at the same level as Oceania that would do better by you. Shame on Oceania.

Susie - I would guess that it's not an Oceania policy, but rather, the way contract law "works" in the UK.  I suspect all deposits for all travel and cruise companies, etc. are charged a higher percentage there than in the U.S.  And I also believe that normally, those deposits are non-refundable, as well.  That's the price you pay for ostensibly "better consumer protection".  😵

[Medeba]

Like Jay 23, I have now contacted my TA but, as pingpong1, said I'm sure the loss of deposit is to do with our consumer protection laws in the UK.  It is not limited to Oceania as we lost a deposit with Azamara.  There may be slight differences in policies such as that outlined by Pet in post 55 but I believe, in general, if you book a cruise in the UK , the deposit is forfeited if you cancel and your only redress for a refund is your travel insurance.  A disinclination to travel is not a justifiable reason to travel insurers nor are epidemics/pandemics.  

[ORV]

19 hours ago, Mura said:

I can see a reason if you are someone who carries a balance on the credit card.  For those of us who pay in full each month, it's a no-brainer who charge whatever we can -- and get whatever benefit accrues from doing so.  But if you owe a lot of money for past purchases that continue to accrue interest ... you might not feel that way.

 

Not sure if there is anyone here who does that, but I can see why someone in that position would want to pay a large sum up front.  Deposits generally aren't so large (unless you're in a top suite and/or on a long cruise), however.

 

When Renaissance bellied up we were glad we'd paid our deposit with a credit card.  We weren't due to make final payment until a couple of weeks later, so for us it was only $500.  If we'd already paid in full, that would have been a heck of a lot more!  But we got every penny back.

 

Mura

I'm thinking if a person is carrying an interest bearing balance then they really have no business booking Oceania, or any other cruise line for that matter. That would be really poor money management. 

 

But even if they are they might as well take advantage of the benefits, although depending on the balance it would offset the benefits with interest charges. I do think most of the Rewards programs have fairly high interest rates, but we never worry about the interest rate as we do pay in full each month. 

[Medeba]

57 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

Do other cruise lines  not refund your deposit ?

 I have read that some holiday bookers (TA) also keep the deposit in the UK  is that true?

I have just read the Oceania T&Cs for UK bookings and it does say that TAs hold on to the deposits on behalf of Oceania.  I didn't know that.  If that is the case, I'm hoping there may be a glimmer of hope for a refund but I think it's unlikely.

[Mura]

Orv, I agree that it's hard to believe that someone running a high credit card at outrageous interest rates would be in a position to sail on Oceania.  But it's not impossible ... Definitely highly unlikely.

 

That's the main reason I could see NOT to pay by credit card is all I meant ...

[oskidunker]

I am here to see what other cruise lines are doing. Am Booked in A Princess suite sailing with Cunard  at a good price. Was considering Oceana but not after reading this. 
 

i can cancel my Sept 11 cruise before May 14 and get the deposit back. They wont budge on the final pay date even though Princess has gone to 30 days. Will notmake the final payment in May asI have no insurance and don't want fcc if they cancel. Seems like they would want to keep the deposits and give people a later pay date. 
 

Princess seems to be taking care of their clients. No one else is. Both owned by Carnival Cruise Corp but no uniform policies and of course worse-in the UK. 
 

What a mess.