Change to P&O cancellation policy - beware!

[No pager thank you]

Amongst the blurb there was an important and unfriendly update around the cancellation policy....

 

If you are on a cruise travelling after 12th November 2020 which has not (yet) been cancelled and you do not want to go, then you now have to transfer your booking at least 90 days in advance, otherwise cancellation penalties would apply to any part refunded balance.

 

This will make it a difficult decision for people who do not (really) want to go but don't want to lose their deposits either. 

 

You now have to pay up at least 90 days in advance and take the risk that your cruise will go, also being prepared to accept whatever conditions are considered acceptable by the company with regards to maintaining safety which could arise within this window.

 

Some customers will now be placed in to effectively a Mexican standoff where they pay a full balance in good faith, something happens (i.e. local lockdown, cruise ship outbreak) but it's up to P&O (only) to decide if it's safe enough to travel.

 

Can't believe that they have actually made it worse for customers (and outside of kilter with other brands).😡

[grapau27]

16 minutes ago, No pager thank you said:

Amongst the blurb there was an important and unfriendly update around the cancellation policy....

 

If you are on a cruise travelling after 12th November 2020 which has not (yet) been cancelled and you do not want to go, then you now have to transfer your booking at least 90 days in advance, otherwise cancellation penalties would apply to any part refunded balance.

 

This will make it a difficult decision for people who do not (really) want to go but don't want to lose their deposits either. 

 

You now have to pay up at least 90 days in advance and take the risk that your cruise will go, also being prepared to accept whatever conditions are considered acceptable by the company with regards to maintaining safety which could arise within this window.

 

Some customers will now be placed in to effectively a Mexican standoff where they pay a full balance in good faith, something happens (i.e. local lockdown, cruise ship outbreak) but it's up to P&O (only) to decide if it's safe enough to travel.

 

Can't believe that they have actually made it worse for customers (and outside of kilter with other brands).😡

Thanks for the information.

Graham

[Cruising Nomads]

P&O took this action when they moved the date to the 16th October. They have just extended the date.

[Josy1953]

Are they just trying to prove how little they care about their customers, not really the way to foster loyalty.

[No pager thank you]

I know Josy!

 

The previous policy was to allow flexibility up to 48 hours beforehand and also, I believe, allowed 110% FCC to be claimed, also gone.

 

The other point is that for those customers who have had their cruises cancelled today, their deadline for "claiming" their right to a refund, which should be automatic, remains 30th November, I believe.

 

This will catch some people out - they may want to see if there is a second wave or not, or the prospect of a vaccine, before choosing if they would like to rebook. 

 

However, delay too long and a FCC is what you are getting regardless, with no guarantee that it can be used without penalty towards any cruise in the to be released brochure.  Oh and just in case you want a refund instead, the 60 day special claim has gone too.

[Adawn47]

I was very lucky then. I cancelled my November 6th cruise and moved the deposit 2 days before the balance was due. Not a problem. 

Avril 

[Chrisdriving]

Those conditions were already in place since June/July.

Pay at 90 days or lose deposit.

Thats why we cancelled our Nov cruise early August to avoid losing deposit and rebooked.

After payment normal cancellation charges applied they stopped the super flexible cancel ages ago.

 

 

 

 

Edited August 11, 2020 by Chrisdriving

[Chrisdriving]

Here you go, the customer can cancel up to 48hrs prior stopped after last round of cancellations.Since then standard policy applied,hence why we pulled out.It did not apply after Sept 1st.

 

 

Passengers booked on a P&O Cruises sailing before September 1, 2020, may also cancel up to 48 hours prior to departure. Canceled bookings within balance due will receive a future cruise credits equivalent to 110 percent of the full balance. The Future Cruise Credit can be used up to December 31, 2021, and can be redeemed against any P&O Cruises sailing until the end of March 2022.

 

 

Passengers wishing to request a refund for a future cruise (minus cancellation fees), are advised to call 0344 338 8636. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Edited August 11, 2020 by Chrisdriving

[No pager thank you]

55 minutes ago, Chrisdriving said:

Here you go, the customer can cancel up to 48hrs prior stopped after last round of cancellations.Since then standard policy applied,hence why we pulled out.It did not apply after Sept 1st.

 

 

Passengers booked on a P&O Cruises sailing before September 1, 2020, may also cancel up to 48 hours prior to departure. Canceled bookings within balance due will receive a future cruise credits equivalent to 110 percent of the full balance. The Future Cruise Credit can be used up to December 31, 2021, and can be redeemed against any P&O Cruises sailing until the end of March 2022.

 

 

Passengers wishing to request a refund for a future cruise (minus cancellation fees), are advised to call 0344 338 8636. 

---

 

Thank you for this. What seems to be a negative is your deadline for requesting a refund if affected by a cancellation in say May or June was end of November.  It is still the end of November.

 

If you were booked on a cruise to go in early November then you may assume that you have plenty of time to get a refund request in (perhaps when you were due to sail), but it appears not now.  You will have to decide without seeing any new brochure.

 

I'm also conscious that with the timing of the previous but one suspension, fewer people were caught up in the scenario of being asked to pay for cruises that were not going than is the case now.  The context was that few if any lines were operating (so you were essentially assured of a route to an eventual full refund), whereas a few now are going to try, so the chances of a cruise going that you may not want to be on and therefore lose real money, is a possibility now. 

 

Everyone on the first cruises due back from 12th November will have to pay up from tomorrow onwards, so again this will continue.  Some very negative feedback on the official social media channels again.

 

One thing that P&O could do is to confirm decisively that anyone who wants to use a FCC obtained now, against a cruise due to sale after 2nd April 2022 can do so and without penalty of the FCC value.  Other lines have stretched the horizon for FCCs in to 2023 and 2024.

[wowzz]

11 minutes ago, No pager thank you said:

One thing that P&O could do is to confirm decisively that anyone who wants to use a FCC obtained now, against a cruise due to sale after 2nd April 2022 can do so and without penalty of the FCC value.  Other lines have stretched the horizon for FCCs in to 2023 and 2024.

Excellent suggestion, but, call me cynical, I don't think Carnival will agree.

I deliberately say Carnival,  because in the current environment, which is basically a fight for survival,  I don't believe the individual brands have much say in financial matters. 

[No pager thank you]

10 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Excellent suggestion, but, call me cynical, I don't think Carnival will agree.

I deliberately say Carnival,  because in the current environment, which is basically a fight for survival,  I don't believe the individual brands have much say in financial matters. 

Not cynical Wowzz, realistic...

 

I don't know how P&O have the nerve to promote their "free flexible transfers" on the front page as a special claim, when the reality is far from it.  In fairness, "Terms apply" is on there next to the happy smiling actor faces in small letters but come on...

 

I must say, apart from someone looking to book a late low season 2021 (or maybe Feb / March 2022) cruise why anyone would take a FCC right now?

 

I know that it is personal choice etc, but why, when everything is being stacked against the prospective customer?  It's not even industry standard if you look at Fred (and a number of others). 

 

It looks increasingly like they are trying to soften restart occupancy rates (whenever that is) by retaining more non-fulfilled customer deposits for cruises.  That's me being cynical!

Edited August 11, 2020 by No pager thank you
Clarification

[molecrochip]

25 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Excellent suggestion, but, call me cynical, I don't think Carnival will agree.

I deliberately say Carnival,  because in the current environment, which is basically a fight for survival,  I don't believe the individual brands have much say in financial matters. 

Any FCC must be used in a booking by 31 December 2021. That could take us right through to late 2023 or early 2024 For on sale cruises..

[wowzz]

15 minutes ago, No pager thank you said:

Not cynical Wowzz, realistic...

 

I don't know how P&O have the nerve to promote their "free flexible transfers" on the front page as a special claim, when the reality is far from it.  In fairness, "Terms apply" is on there next to the happy smiling actor faces in small letters but come on...

 

I must say, apart from someone looking to book a late low season 2021 (or maybe Feb / March 2022) cruise why anyone would take a FCC right now?

 

I know that it is personal choice etc, but why, when everything is being stacked against the prospective customer?  It's not even industry standard if you look at Fred (and a number of others). 

 

It looks increasingly like they are trying to soften restart occupancy rates (whenever that is) by retaining more non-fulfilled customer deposits for cruises.  That's me being cynical!

Yes, none of the cruise lines fill me with confidence at the monent, and P&O appear to be deliberately disingenuous. 

I loved your last paragraph,  although I am still trying to understand it!

[wowzz]

1 minute ago, molecrochip said:

Any FCC must be used in a booking by 31 December 2021. That could take us right through to late 2023 or early 2024 For on sale cruises..

If that is the case, that is good news, but, iirc has not been officially stated, or have I just missed the announcement?

Is it still possible to move deposits as many times as you like, without financial penalty? I have a cruise booked in early 2022, which I would want to  move to late 2023, but there is little information about this (understandably) from P&O. 

[Chrisdriving]

The other thing is it says you can move FCC unlimited times FOC but when last week i moved my deposit from my Nov 6th cruise to Dec 21 i was told normal booking conditions now applied ie £100 fee to cancel/rebook so another con.

 

i was told the unlimited number of times meant if you had several cruises booked you could do it with all of them and alas buried down in the new Ts and Cs since July it says this...

 

 

 

All new bookings using FCCs will be subject to P&O Cruises Booking Conditions, including our standard cancellation terms

Edited August 12, 2020 by Chrisdriving

[pete14]

8 hours ago, wowzz said:

If that is the case, that is good news, but, iirc has not been officially stated, or have I just missed the announcement?

Is it still possible to move deposits as many times as you like, without financial penalty? I have a cruise booked in early 2022, which I would want to  move to late 2023, but there is little information about this (understandably) from P&O. 

The email I received yesterday about my cancelled cruise that was due to depart on October 31 stated that the fcc has to be used by a December 31 2021 and can be used for any cruise on sale during that time. This is explained further on the P&O website in the faqs section of the fcc page from the link provided in the email. 
I will be waiting for the 2022/3 cruises to use this fcc as I currently have 3 cruises booked for 2021, one of them an ‘extra’ using fcc from the cancelled Iona maiden.

[wowzz]

7 minutes ago, pete14 said:

The email I received yesterday about my cancelled cruise that was due to depart on October 31 stated that the fcc has to be used by a December 31 2021 and can be used for any cruise on sale during that time. This is explained further on the P&O website in the faqs section of the fcc page from the link provided in the email. 
I will be waiting for the 2022/3 cruises to use this fcc as I currently have 3 cruises booked for 2021, one of them an ‘extra’ using fcc from the cancelled Iona maiden.

So deposits can still be moved as often as you like, but not FCCs. 

[Dermotsgirl]

I’ve got a fairly low priced cruise with a low deposit booked for March next year. If I decided to move to a later cruise, does the deposit that I’ve already paid secure the cruise - or do I need to pay more cash if this is a higher priced cruise with a larger deposit ?
 

I haven’t paid much attention to the P&O cancellation terms as it hasn’t affected me yet. It’d be  one thing to just shift an already paid deposit.... but I’m not sure I would want to be paying them even more money at the present time. 

[wowzz]

9 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

I’ve got a fairly low priced cruise with a low deposit booked for March next year. If I decided to move to a later cruise, does the deposit that I’ve already paid secure the cruise - or do I need to pay more cash if this is a higher priced cruise with a larger deposit ?
 

I haven’t paid much attention to the P&O cancellation terms as it hasn’t affected me yet. It’d be  one thing to just shift an already paid deposit.... but I’m not sure I would want to be paying them even more money at the present time. 

In a word "yes". You will need to pay the extra to bring the deposit up to the required level for the new cruise.

[Adawn47]

19 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

I’ve got a fairly low priced cruise with a low deposit booked for March next year. If I decided to move to a later cruise, does the deposit that I’ve already paid secure the cruise - or do I need to pay more cash if this is a higher priced cruise with a larger deposit ?
 

Yes, wowzz is correct. When I moved our  November 6th deposit to June next year I had to pay extra as that cruise deposit was higher.

Avril 

[terrierjohn]

9 hours ago, molecrochip said:

Any FCC must be used in a booking by 31 December 2021. That could take us right through to late 2023 or early 2024 For on sale cruises..

That is assuming there will be a summer 2022 launch sometime this Autumn, and before the cut off date for requesting a refund instead.

Edited August 12, 2020 by terrierjohn

[No pager thank you]

42 minutes ago, pete14 said:

The email I received yesterday about my cancelled cruise that was due to depart on October 31 stated that the fcc has to be used by a December 31 2021 and can be used for any cruise on sale during that time. This is explained further on the P&O website in the faqs section of the fcc page from the link provided in the email. 
I will be waiting for the 2022/3 cruises to use this fcc as I currently have 3 cruises booked for 2021, one of them an ‘extra’ using fcc from the cancelled Iona maiden.

Hi Pete,

 

It is, but if you see Chrisdriving's post, of you need (or want to) change or move any of the cruise/s that you book with the FCC then standard cancellation and amendment fees apply.  This includes the scenario where P&O thinks that it is safe at the point of paying the final balance, but something happens thereafter, which causes you to wish to transfer.  Real cash or FCC value is lost.

 

The other unknown is how much will the cruises be (starting prices) in the new brochure.  If they are 25% or more expensive than what they were, hopefully not, then a different "penalty" is incurred; plus by then P&O will have had your money for two or more years by then.

 

If the new brochure was out next month, or there was some sort of price guarantee, then you could see if there was an itinerary that you wanted, or value for money to be had, before choosing how to proceed.  Without this, and by the time the new brochure releases, your entitlement/choice of a refund will have expired, irrespective of the above.

 

Some people will be happy in any event, and will give allowances etc, but these are the possibilities where a holder of a FCC/FCCs loses out (i.e. you are no longer guaranteed to get at least what you should initially have had, albeit delayed).

 

Meanwhile, more passengers will be placed in that position from today, with cruises that "should" depart from November 12th onwards and may well be affected by subsequent cancellations.

[molecrochip]

By the end of 2021 John.

 

P&O have confirmed that Winter 2022/23 will go on sale in the Spring of 2021, meanwhile, we await Summer 2022 to go on sale. That has needed reworking given it has at least one (Gala2) and possibly two (Oceana) ships less than originally planned. It was originally due to be launched in June 2020 but Covid got in the way.

 

I would be suprised if P&O launch a new season before they reconfirm sailing although Princess have done that. 

[No pager thank you]

4 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

That is assuming there will be a summer 2022 launch sometime this Autumn, and before the cut off date for requesting a refund instead.

Correct - it has already been made publicly clear that Gala 2 sailings will go on sail next year. 

 

With her handover due in December 2022, which should be in the next booking cycle, it can be assumed that no new 2022/23 cruises will be bookable prior to the end of November this year - unless they do multiple brochure launches which would be unusual.

[terrierjohn]

2 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

By the end of 2021 John.

 

P&O have confirmed that Winter 2022/23 will go on sale in the Spring of 2021, meanwhile, we await Summer 2022 to go on sale. That has needed reworking given it has at least one (Gala2) and possibly two (Oceana) ships less than originally planned. It was originally due to be launched in June 2020 but Covid got in the way.

 

I would be suprised if P&O launch a new season before they reconfirm sailing although Princess have done that. 

Moley, my option to request a refund instead of a FCC for my cancelled Sept 2020 cruise has to be exercised by 30th Nov.  Since I have 3 cruises booked for next year, and one for Feb 2022, it will only be useful for a summer 2022 cruise.  So if the new brochure is not going to be out before 30th November, then I may as well request a refund.