Refunds

[James S]

My cruise line, Silver Sea, is requiring me to forfeit 15% of the almost $10,000 I paid them if I cancel by May 20. Fifty percent after that. Their cruise sails out of Venice, one of the epicenters of COVID-19 in Italy, in late August. My girlfriend doesn’t want to risk it.
 

Silver Sea claims they are still sailing, but I don’t really believe them. I believe they are claiming they are not canceling so as to make money off our cancellation fees. Any suggestions? 

[d9704011]

If you don’t think the cruise will go ahead, and I agree it’s a very strong possibility, why not just wait them out until they cancel or it becomes clear that you will not be permitted to enter Italy from (presumably) the United States?

[Flatbush Flyer]

9 minutes ago, James S said:

My cruise line, Silver Sea, is requiring me to forfeit 15% of the almost $10,000 I paid them if I cancel by May 20. Fifty percent after that. Their cruise sails out of Venice, one of the epicenters of COVID-19 in Italy, in late August. My girlfriend doesn’t want to risk it.
 

Silver Sea claims they are still sailing, but I don’t really believe them. I believe they are claiming they are not canceling so as to make money off our cancellation fees. Any suggestions? 

Time to get a new girlfriend? 👀 JUST KIDDING!

The "smart money bet" is that the cruise will be cancelled, which is why I agree with others that you may want to wait it out for the better "they cancel it" deal and gamble on Italy not being "ready." 

Of course, the other possibility is that they do the cruise and just change the itinerary to something unrecognizable. In that case, you'd be stuck with penalties if you cancelled late OR you would need to get that new girlfriend (just kidding???👀)

[clo]

2 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Italy

Has this already been shared? That Italy has closed its borders to tourism until the end of the year?

 

https://nation.com.pk/26-Apr-2020/italy-to-remain-closed-for-tourism-until-end-of-year

[James S]

Thank you both so much! Yes, that’s what I was planning to do. I hope and assume they will cancel. I actually disputed their charge with my credit card company in an effort to get their “attention.” 

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 minute ago, James S said:

Yes, that’s what I was planning to do.

Wait them out OR new girlfriend OR both?

[ldubs]

I think the bigger question is, as things currently stand, if someone travels to Italy, where are they going to quarantine before returning to their home county.  I sincerely hope the situation changes by August.  

[clo]

2 minutes ago, ldubs said:

I think the bigger question is, as things currently stand, if someone travels to Italy, where are they going to quarantine before returning to their home county.  I sincerely hope the situation changes by August.  

With their being closed to tourism til the end of the year it seems moot.

[klfrodo]

48 minutes ago, James S said:

 

I actually disputed their charge with my credit card company in an effort to get their “attention.” 

👀

Not sure that was the smartest move I've ever heard.

[ldubs]

54 minutes ago, clo said:

With their being closed to tourism til the end of the year it seems moot.

 

I realized that shortly after I posted.  Kind of hoped no one would notice.  Lol

[DCCruiser57]

15 hours ago, James S said:

My cruise line, Silver Sea, is requiring me to forfeit 15% of the almost $10,000 I paid them if I cancel by May 20. Fifty percent after that. Their cruise sails out of Venice, one of the epicenters of COVID-19 in Italy, in late August. My girlfriend doesn’t want to risk it.
 

Silver Sea claims they are still sailing, but I don’t really believe them. I believe they are claiming they are not canceling so as to make money off our cancellation fees. Any suggestions? 

On April 23rd, SS announced that all cruises through mid June had been cancelled.  You can get a 100 percent refund or a 125 percent future cruise credit.  

 

Here are the links.

 

https://www.silversea.com/information-on-itinerary-changes.html

https://www.silversea.com/temporary-amendment-to-cancellation-policy.html

 

Edited April 28, 2020 by DCCruiser57

[alexandria]

16 hours ago, James S said:

My cruise line, Silver Sea, is requiring me to forfeit 15% of the almost $10,000 I paid them if I cancel by May 20. Fifty percent after that. Their cruise sails out of Venice, one of the epicenters of COVID-19 in Italy, in late August. My girlfriend doesn’t want to risk it.
 

Silver Sea claims they are still sailing, but I don’t really believe them. I believe they are claiming they are not canceling so as to make money off our cancellation fees. Any suggestions?

 

I actually disputed their charge with my credit card company in an effort to get their “attention.” 

 

I'd suggest, as others have, that you be patient and allow Silversea to cancel your cruise from their end and you will receive a full refund.  Silversea has said several times that they are evaluating the situation and cancelling cruises as appropriate on a rolling basis.  If your cruise is late August, they may not cancel until July.

 

As far as your credit card dispute, you may want to consider withdrawing that dispute as soon as possible.  The fact that your girlfriend doesn't want to cruise and that you don't agree with your options for refund if YOU cancel at this point does not form a legitimate basis for a credit card dispute.  Yes, it may get "their attention" but not in a good way.

 

It may delay your refund if you become due one as a merchant is unlikely to process a refund to your credit card with a pending dispute and take the risk that the issuer credits your money back (essentially, a double refund), which is then charged to the merchant.  It will cost Silversea money (chargeback fees are charged to the merchant) and time, which means instead of processing a refund for a passenger whose cruise is already cancelled they will be responding to the dispute according to the timelines required.  So your dispute may result in delaying refunds to others as an already overwhelmed staff has to pause what they are already doing to respond to the credit card issuer.

 

If you ultimately lose the dispute (which you certainly will), you generally are not permitted to file a second dispute involving that same transaction.  That could be important if, for example, Silversea became insolvent and did not refund your money.  At that point you may simply be without recourse.

 

Your unwarranted dispute may also result in your inability to book in the future with Silversea or any RCCL line (including Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara).  Finally, it is also possible that your credit card issuer could cancel your card if they find that your dispute was unjustified and/or that you have abused the credit card chargeback process.

 

So you may want to reconsider the credit card dispute and simply wait patiently for Silversea to make a decision closer to the cruise date.  And if you are unwilling to wait to see if Silversea cancels, are unwilling to accept FCC if the cruise sails and you cancel too late for a partial cash refund, and if you insist on cancelling now for a cash refund, the terms and conditions are clear and you owe the applicable cancellation penalty.

Edited April 28, 2020 by alexandria
Typos...

[jollyjones]

It's a game of chicken really.

 

I cancelled my March cruise a few days before SS did so I had to settle for 100% FCC

I waited (anxiously) for SS to cancel my May cruise which they finally did and I should get 100% cash refund

I cancelled my Sep cruise before the 120 days to ensure the cash refund, but will get the $200 cancel fee deducted.

(I have been refunded all my airfares for these cruises because the flights were cancelled by the airlines so I couldn't have got there anyway. Perils of living on a tiny rock in the ocean)

I think I may wait awhile to cancel my Nov Moon cruise, not sure what's going to happen with her since she isn't even built yet. Haven't got an excuse to get the Nov airfare refunded yet either.

 

I'll be a bit surprised if cruising in general begins again this year, too early to tell.

Edited April 28, 2020 by jollyjones

[DCCruiser57]

51 minutes ago, jollyjones said:

It's a game of chicken really.

 

I cancelled my March cruise a few days before SS did so I had to settle for 100% FCC

I waited (anxiously) for SS to cancel my May cruise which they finally did and I should get 100% cash refund

I cancelled my Sep cruise before the 120 days to ensure the cash refund, but will get the $200 cancel fee deducted.

(I have been refunded all my airfares for these cruises because the flights were cancelled by the airlines so I couldn't have got there anyway. Perils of living on a tiny rock in the ocean)

I think I may wait awhile to cancel my Nov Moon cruise, not sure what's going to happen with her since she isn't even built yet. Haven't got an excuse to get the Nov airfare refunded yet either.

 

I'll be a bit surprised if cruising in general begins again this year, too early to tell.

 

The Moon has been built and I believe that sea trials have been completed.  It's in the Ancona, Italy, one of Fincantieri's shipyard being completed.  I believe someone from SS reported on Facebook that it was ahead of schedule.

[James S]

Thanks so much, Jolly Jones. Now my agent is offering me 125% FCC, but I still kind of want my refund. Not sure what to do. I wonder how long they’ll wait. The agent is telling me they could move the cruise from Venice to a new cruise embarkation port, but that would defeat part of the purpose of the cruise, as we wanted to spend a little time in Venice. I really don’t want to play chicken with them. I want them to be honorable and cancel the cruise and give me my refund. 

[James S]

Thanks, Alexandria. I am trying to cancel my dispute now. Thanks so much for your suggestion. 

[alexandria]

25 minutes ago, James S said:

Thanks so much, Jolly Jones. Now my agent is offering me 125% FCC, but I still kind of want my refund. Not sure what to do. I wonder how long they’ll wait. The agent is telling me they could move the cruise from Venice to a new cruise embarkation port, but that would defeat part of the purpose of the cruise, as we wanted to spend a little time in Venice. I really don’t want to play chicken with them. I want them to be honorable and cancel the cruise and give me my refund. 

If you want a cash refund and don't wish to pay a cancellation penalty, then your only option at this point is to wait.  If Silversea cancels (and if Italy is not permitting tourism, a cancellation is very likely), then you will get a full refund.  And you'll probably need to be patient then too since it appears to be taking 30-45 days for the credit to post back to the method of payment (Silversea says it can take up to 90 days).

 

If ultimately for some reason the cruise is NOT cancelled, you can still cancel up to 48 hours prior to departure and receive FCC under the cruise with confidence policy. 

 

FOR ALL 2020 VOYAGES STILL IN OPERATION

 

If guests cancel up to 48 hours prior to voyage departure date they can elect to receive 100% Future Cruise Credit* equivalent to the portion of the booking paid, minus any cancellation penalties from 3rd party suppliers charged to Silversea. If guests opt for a cash refund instead, standard Silversea cancelation terms will apply. 

 

Future Cruise Credits are transferable to family and friends, and can be used partially and applied on more than one new booking.  The Future Cruise Credit can be applied towards a booking with a promotional pricing.

 

Just realize that if, by some miracle, Silversea is able to continue with your scheduled cruise and you decide to cancel for the FCC on their Cruise with Confidence Policy, they might not give you the same 125% FCC offer since the terms of the policy if you cancel provides only a 100% FCC.  That may not be important and they may offer the 125% FCC again, but it is something to be aware of.

 

Good luck, hope it works out.

[Stumblefoot]

3 hours ago, jollyjones said:

I think I may wait awhile to cancel my Nov Moon cruise, not sure what's going to happen with her since she isn't even built yet.

 

Good to hear!

[zqtchas]

42 minutes ago, Stumblefoot said:

 

Good to hear!

I'm with y'all.

[Stumblefoot]

13 minutes ago, zqtchas said:

I'm with y'all.

Fantastic!

 

I got a "Thumbs Up" from Colonel Wes today too.

 

Our fingers are crossed.

[etual324]

2 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

Fantastic!

 

I got a "Thumbs Up" from Colonel Wes today too.

 

Our fingers are crossed.

  On the MOON  TA in lieu of chocolate  on your pillow at night you will find coveralls and a paint roller  🤩🤣

[Stumblefoot]

10 minutes ago, etual324 said:

  On the MOON  TA in lieu of chocolate  on your pillow at night you will find coveralls and a paint roller  🤩🤣

Good one, ET.  I’m out!

[NJ Cruiserman]

On 4/27/2020 at 3:19 PM, clo said:

Has this already been shared? That Italy has closed its borders to tourism until the end of the year?

 

https://nation.com.pk/26-Apr-2020/italy-to-remain-closed-for-tourism-until-end-of-year

You are quoting a Pakistani website which published a "Sputnik" article (=Russian propaganda) about something the Italian Tourism Minister said to an Italian newspaper. The only other English language article that I found is also from a Russian website that denies that he said that, and did say that the situation will be looked at carefully and opened when, where and how appropriate.

Edited April 28, 2020 by NJ Cruiserman
Stupid typos.

[jollyjones]

I may not have much choice about when I am able to travel again, it depends when the Gummint of my little rock allows air travellers in without 28 day quarantine. I couldn’t tolerate that so can’t travel till it’s lifted. And, of course, there can’t be quarantine requirements for any country I’d need to pass through, it’s just not practical. 

Hope I don’t have to cancel the Moon trip, definitely hope I don’t have to cancel the subsequent December trip to London for my Father’s 99th birthday, but I’m rather pessimistic about when or even if unrestricted international air travel might resume. 

[NJ Cruiserman]

On 4/27/2020 at 3:19 PM, clo said:

Has this already been shared? That Italy has closed its borders to tourism until the end of the year?

 

https://nation.com.pk/26-Apr-2020/italy-to-remain-closed-for-tourism-until-end-of-year

And here is another Sputnik article, from an Indian website, debunking the first article.

https://www.urdupoint.com/en/world/italian-embassy-claims-tourism-minister-did-n-904954.html