Cancelled Cruises Refund Tracker/Discussion (merged topics)

[NHDOC]

on another note of the same topic, I'm not sure that their forced FCC in lieu of refund policy doesn't violate their agreement with the credit card companies, either.  In principle, I am entitled to a refund anytime I charge something on my credit card and the vendor fails to provide the good or service I bought.  I don't have to accept "store credit" if they can't provide the item.  Essentially, if they cancelled the cruise they cannot dispute the chargeback, which is why, I believe, I got those funds back from Visa without a problem.  I only am out my deposits, which were made in September of 2019 and are too old to dispute per the terms and conditions of my credit card agreement.  I have written to Visa asking them to make an exception to the dispute timeframe policy but do not have much hope that will happen.  We also have automatic travel insurance with our Visa card that I could contact but haven't done so because I haven't exhausted all avenues of getting my refund yet.

[Vagabond Knight]

1 hour ago, NHDOC said:

If they canceled on you and you requested a refund then that's the way it should have been handled.  My issue with Celebrity is they put pressure on us to cancel, literally right before they canceled and then denied us the option of a refund.  It seems like they are splitting hairs but to me if you cancel a cruise you have a moral obligation to offer those passengers who had paid for that cruise a refund and should recognize the extenuating circumstances that caused us to be in that position.  It's just bad business to generate so much "badwill" when all they needed to do was to say "we'll make it right and you can have your money back".  Instead it will cost them 5X as much now to defend their defenseless behavior.

 

I will be interested to see how this plays out.  I'm just trying to step back and look at it without emotion, which is hard for most of us right now.  I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but I would think the decision will weigh more heavily on the contract that you made with the cruise line and their published policy at the time that this occurred.  I would think that the court will likely decide this based on contract law rather than what will make a customer happy or what the cruise line's policy changed to the next day, as it is not the court's business to enforce goodwill.  I am not a Celebrity apologist... I am still awaiting some of the funds I was promised for a cancelled March cruise, I think the turnaround time and confusing refund methods with the unexplained weird chunks of money that can't be matched to anything are ridiculous, and I think their lack of and quality of communications have been abysmal, etc... it's been confusing and stressful.  However, although it's in Celebrity's best interest to try to keep people happy and customers coming back (which in many, many cases is not happening), the court may rule that the recommendation was appropriate and the best option for you at the time, based upon the policy in place at the time and the legal terms that you and the cruise line agreed to when you booked your cruise.  

[NHDOC]

12 minutes ago, SunsetPoint said:

 

I will be interested to see how this plays out.  I'm just trying to step back and look at it without emotion, which is hard for most of us right now.  I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but I would think the decision will weigh more heavily on the contract that you made with the cruise line and their published policy at the time that this occurred.  I would think that the court will likely decide this based on contract law rather than what will make a customer happy or what the cruise line's policy changed to the next day, as it is not the court's business to enforce goodwill.  I am not a Celebrity apologist... I am still awaiting some of the funds I was promised for a cancelled March cruise, I think the turnaround time and confusing refund methods with the unexplained weird chunks of money that can't be matched to anything are ridiculous, and I think their lack of and quality of communications have been abysmal, etc... it's been confusing and stressful.  However, although it's in Celebrity's best interest to try to keep people happy and customers coming back (which in many, many cases is not happening), the court may rule that the recommendation was appropriate and the best option for you at the time, based upon the policy in place at the time and the legal terms that you and the cruise line agreed to when you booked your cruise.  

I do not dispute there may be some way for them to legally defend their position, however, whether they will make it worth their time to employ expensive attorney to fight this, and even if they win they will still have to give me FCC, leads me to believe they will settle by offering me my refund.

 

I also just read online that Visa allows a chargeback on any purchase for a good or service not received within 120 days of the date it was expected to be received, which, tells me I can dispute the charges for the deposits made last fall if I do so in writing so am pursuing that now.  I urge anyone else who is fighting with the cruise lines to keep that proviso in mind. 

[PTC DAWG]

Port Fees, taxes etc showing up as a credit pending on CC....cruise was scheduled for March 29th on the Edge...I am ASSuming the other will show up sooner than later.  

 

Hopefully I can sail this Sept on Equinox again for the ABC 10 day cruise on Sept 25th..I only have $50 deposit at risk on that one so far. 🙂

 

I'm not going if I have to wear a mask....

[PTC DAWG]

14 minutes ago, NHDOC said:

  🙂

Edited May 6, 2020 by PTC DAWG
off topic.

[Quo Vadis?]

The small print on the FCC:

"We would like to make you aware of some important information regarding your FCCs:
Any booking made using the Cruise with Confidence FCC must be used for a sailing that commences on or before December 31, 2021. 
If the Cruise with Confidence FCC is not redeemed and sailed on or before December 31, 2021, the certificate will automatically expire and have no value.
Future Cruise Credits are per person, per booking, and valid only for the person noted above. FCCs are redeemable towards cruise fare only and are not valid on Complimentary cruises, Incentive bookings, and Charter sailings.
All guests are responsible for taxes and fees where applicable.
Celebrity Cruises reserves the right to void the FCC Savings amount if the guest named above receives other reimbursement.
FCCs are only valid for the cruises on Celebrity Cruises ships, are not transferable, and may not be redeemed for cash.
The Cruise with Confidence FCC cannot be redeemed to repurchase the same sailing where the original booking cancelled.
Additional terms and conditions apply.

We’re glad Cruise with Confidence has given you the flexibility to find the perfect cruise that fits your needs. We look forward to welcoming you on board in the near future.

Sincerely,

Celebrity Cruises

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

4 hours ago, Alabaster Cruiser said:

I guess we were lucky.  Didn't call at all.  Yesterday we got our full correct refund to our credit card. Ours was for an April 11.  Thank you Celebrity.

 

After what I have been through for an ortho appointment about my shoulder today (made it weeks ago on ZocDoc, got a call the next day that the doctor was going to be at another location that day and rescheduled for today - to be in person; got to the place and security said "He's not in this office today. I think they are just doing tele-appointments." I went outside and called and got a very nice girl who apologized profusely and could not figure out why I had not been notified and scheduled me for a tele-appointment for 2pm...then found the 15th still in the system; got home, did the paperwork and got everything ready, then got a notice that THIS one had been cancelled; called back and fortunately got the same girl who got in contact with his secretary/coordiator and got me rescheduled for 2:30 and said she was personally cancelling the 15th - we'll see...) I'm wondering if everyone calling repeatedly is ultimately what is screwing things up. More fingers in the pot mean more opportunities for miscommunication. Seems that leaving well enough alone and trusting the process is the better way to go.

[george35]

It has been over 30 days since my cruise got cancelled, no refund. Call my TA & she said another 3 to 4 weeks. I am beginning to have doubts if I will ever get a refund.

 

george35

[Big_G]

23 minutes ago, george35 said:

It has been over 30 days since my cruise got cancelled, no refund. Call my TA & she said another 3 to 4 weeks. I am beginning to have doubts if I will ever get a refund.

 

george35

 

It took 48 days for me George but we got it all back.

[davekathy]

40 minutes ago, george35 said:

It has been over 30 days since my cruise got cancelled, no refund. Call my TA & she said another 3 to 4 weeks. I am beginning to have doubts if I will ever get a refund.

 

george35

Here's my experience so far. 13 March Celebrity cancelled our B2B cruise on the Summit (28 March and 4 April 2020 sail dates). At that time (13 March) I requested (electronic form) cash refund for both sail dates thru the the TA I used. I didn't here anything from the TA or Celebrity. So I called the TA on 30 March. Out of office. So I called the after sales dept. for the TA. They advised me the agent did not forward my request to their office. Great!!  While on the phone the after sales dept. had me fill out the requests (electronic form) again. Then in real time the after sales dept. received my request and immediately forwarded  my request for cash refunds to Celebrity. Thank you. About two hours later I called Celebrity and they confirmed that both my requests for cash refunds were received. On 28 April I received a partial credit back to my credit card. Monday (4 May) I received another partial credit back to my credit card. Celebrity still owes me more. Maybe next week.!? 

Edited May 6, 2020 by davekathy

[george35]

I had a B/B cruise on the Equinox from 28-March to April 11 & still waiting. They gave me a dead-line to pay in full for the cruise do you think I should give them a dead-line to pay me??

 

george35

[davekathy]

Just now, george35 said:

I had a B/B cruise on the Equinox from 28-March to April 11 & still waiting. They gave me a dead-line to pay in full for the cruise do you think I should give them a dead-line to pay me??

 

george35

I feel your pain so to speak, but wishful thinking. 

[MAXII]

58 days and still nothing received for me😱

[Big_G]

2 minutes ago, george35 said:

I had a B/B cruise on the Equinox from 28-March to April 11 & still waiting. They gave me a dead-line to pay in full for the cruise do you think I should give them a dead-line to pay me??

 

george35

 

According to some CC posters they have filed credit card disputes but I'm not sure how helpful it was. We chose to wait it out. Our cruise was scheduled for March 22nd but we were cancelled on March 13th and received the refund on April 29th.

[Fouremco]

3 hours ago, Argo. said:

The small print on the FCC:

"We would like to make you aware of some important information regarding your FCCs:
Any booking made using the Cruise with Confidence FCC must be used for a sailing that commences on or before December 31, 2021. 
If the Cruise with Confidence FCC is not redeemed and sailed on or before December 31, 2021, the certificate will automatically expire and have no value.
 

That is what my FCC said when issued back in March, and that was the wording used on the website at the time. Celebrity subsequently confirmed that the FCCs could also be used for existing booking, not just new ones. They have also extended the "sail by" date:

 

Future Cruise Credits are valid through 2021, but do they have to be used on a sailing in 2021?

No. Bookings made using an FCC received from a canceled sailing due to our suspension of operations may be used on a sailing that commences on or before April 30, 2022.

[harz99]

Hearing on an FB group that Travel Agents have been advised of an updated CwC type policy for RCCL group companies, sorry no link I can give. Any TAs on here now? 

[hammo]

This from our large USA TA this morning regarding our April 1 Solstice Cruise that was cancelled mid March -

Looks like June sometime for our refund at best . Apparently patience is a virtue. 

 

Good Morning,

 

I hope you are well. I was able to confirm the refund is requested, it is just taking  up to 60 days from when the request was made for it to be issued out.

 

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.

[sunlover33]

 

1 hour ago, harz99 said:

.

Edited May 6, 2020 by sunlover33

[sunlover33]

1 hour ago, harz99 said:

Hearing on an FB group that Travel Agents have been advised of an updated CwC type policy for RCCL group companies, sorry no link I can give. Any TAs on here now? 

https://www.rclinvestor.com/press-releases/release/?id=1469

 

[harz99]

11 minutes ago, sunlover33 said:

 

Yes, that's the one i'd heard about thank you.

 

[NHDOC]

Cruise with CONfidence, I love it.  The CON is that the FCC can't be used for reservation deposits.  So, if you give them more money before this August you might be able to cruise again with them if they don't go bankrupt before April 2022, otherwise they will have conned you out of more $$$.  No thanks, just gimme my money back please.

[TommyD3]

6 hours ago, george35 said:

I had a B/B cruise on the Equinox from 28-March to April 11 & still waiting. They gave me a dead-line to pay in full for the cruise do you think I should give them a dead-line to pay me??

 

george35

I had the same B2B. Received the 125% FCC almost 4 weeks ago.

Finally today received the refund for the taxes & port charges for the first one ONLY.

The refund was made on Sunday and posted today.

Maybe the second one will post next week.

[JFontaine]

I applied for a refund through Celebrity's site on March 27 for a cancelled Alaska cruise.  Hearing nothing, today I called credit card company - American Express Platinum card - and immediately received almost a full refund, including a $25.00 deposit made in January 2019 "on them".  They are investigating a payment of $500 charged by the TA, and not by Celebrity, but I am confident it will come through. 

 

Yesterday I received a full credit card refund for a nonrefundable Air Canada $4000 ticket.  I explained that Air Canada cancelled three of my four flights. That dispute has been marked "closed".  Air Canada has stated they are not giving refunds when they cancel, despite regulations requiring it. 

 

[omeinv]

I was scheduled for the Eclipse March 15 sailing from Chile to San Diego. The cruise was cancelled on March 14, and Celebrity very graciously offered $300.00 toward airfare.   I sent them the receipt on March 16.  I got a call from Celebrity on April 2 asking what card I wanted the credit applied to.  This evening (May 6) I received the $300.00 credit. 

 

I had received the refund for the cruise itself on April 24, it had been processed to my card the previous Sunday, April 19. 

 

Harris

Denver, CO

[tinky41]

I have been reading this thread every day whilst also waiting for my refund. We were booked on the Celebrity Silhouette to sail on 27.3.20. We received the email from Celebrity cancelling this cruise on 14.3.20 and I completed the on-line form for a full refund on 17.3.20. I am in the UK and the website stated we would receive a refund in 14 business days so I emailed Celebrity on 17.4.20 , an agent I had been dealing with earlier in the UK who had been extremely helpful.She passed my concerns on to her manager who rang me on 18.4.20 and advised he would personally liaise with the Miami office who were dealing with the refunds.He rang me a couple of times and on 24.4.20 confirmed I would receive my refund on 10.5.20. I am pleased to say I received it today in 3 amounts -the original deposit £300 and 2 amounts which add up to the total £4743.37 which means we have been refunded flights,hotel,cars from airport to hotel and back from ship to airport and the cruise fare in full. So it's taken 51 days in total but I honestly wasn't sure if this day would come so am extremely pleased. Although the worry was there the agents who helped me were very professional and understanding and it certainly hasn't put me off booking again but at the moment it is unclear as to when we in the UK will be able to travel again so for now we stay at home. Good luck to everyone who hasn't received theirs yet but be patient I honestly believe they are working through a mammoth task as quickly as they can. I hope this post is helpful