NCL Mastercard FAQ

[defreeze]

I'm not sure if you are speculating on what happened w/BoA or you are repeating info gained elsewhere.

 

Based on the different types of problems people encountered, it sure looks like multiple computer problems occurred.

 

My explanation was just an educated guess as a former computer geek.

[logan1_2000]

And then there are those of us who still haven't received anything. If all certs were mailed by January 31st as originally promised, where do we fall in the scheme of things? I'm giving them until February 20th, but I'm tired of the date constantly changing and not hearing anything and won't wait any longer than that to take action.

 

I have gotten nothing. Absolutely nothing. I had 1000 points, my max for the year, by September 2008, so I paid the monthly balance as I always do and put the card in a drawer for the rest of the year.

 

Looks like I ought to wait until the end of next week before I start rattling their cage if I still have not gotten anything?

 

Can anyone who has used one of these certificates (I'll be getting 2 for $500 discount each), can I apply them to an already existing reservation (I booked Christmas on the Sky this morning)? And if so, will the discount be applied so that my deposit would be refunded (I booked 3 of us in an interior for $992, seemed the best use of a $1,000 credit). Had hoped to have the certificates already in hand when I booked, but I did not want the fare to increase or lose a preferred cabin location while I wait for B of A, so I booked.

 

Thanks in advance for any helpful responses/info, this will be our first time on NCL. Assuming I get the certificates, that is.

[Stillfloatin']

Thanks everyone for the credit card info, but of course, the decision to cancel a card and its subsequent impact on your score is dependent on many factors. In my case, the BOA card was opened when they purchase MBNA, so it's a relatively new card. Second, we never carry any balances; we always pay every card off each month. Third, we have several 20+ years cards that are more than adequate for establishing a credit payment history. And finally, there is no point in continuing to keep a card open that will never be used again considering all of the previous points. In our case, closing the account is in our best interests and will not have any negative impact on our credit score. For younger people with less credit, and or folks who carry balances on their other cards, it would not be a good option. There is no one right answer. Each of us must take the action that is most beneficial to us at this time dependent on our particular financial circumstances.

[sottovoce]

B of A called today to say they've corrected my Compass Rewards (mailed my letter to Charlotte last Saturday) and will send the $500 certificate we earned with points through 12/31.

Edited February 12, 2009 by sottovoce

[MagnoliaBlossom]

I have been away from this board for quite a while but have a bit of input.

I have 6 NCL BoA cards. Each had between 502 and 523 points on my Dec. statements.

 

Last week I received 4 envelopes, each with a cover letter and attached certificate. Unfortunately there was no way to tell which certificate was linked to which account. I should have received 6 $500 certs but received two that had a 500 and a 100 on the same sheet and two that were for 100.

 

I spoke to several people at BoA who said there was a huge problem and a special team was working to correct the problem and would call me back.

Fast forward to today. No calls, of course, so I tried again and got themosst wonderful customer service rep I've ever dealt with. Short story, long, we were on the phone almost two hours at which time he plodded through everything, tried to find the elusive special team dealing with the problem and eventurally got a supervisor who seemed to fully understand the problem. On a three way connection she said all corrected certificates were to go out by 2/13 (Friday the 13th - is that on omen?). She gave me her name and phone number. Wow.

 

So I am guardedly optimistic that my situation will be reconciled. I'll report back.

 

The one thing I did notice (sorry if this is repetative) is that none of my accts should have had more than $500 but they added the 100 pt upgrade certificate to it. Don't know if that was a p.r. move or a screw up but it was nice to think they were willing to give you a scrap of something for those few pts. I had over 500.

 

Happy Valentines Day to all

Magnolia

[Browezilla]

Can anyone who has used one of these certificates (I'll be getting 2 for $500 discount each), can I apply them to an already existing reservation (I booked Christmas on the Sky this morning)?

This is based on my experience. Yes. They can be applied to an existing reservation. The information on the certificate/programs may say otherwise, but they've changed the policy.

And if so, will the discount be applied so that my deposit would be refunded (I booked 3 of us in an interior for $992, seemed the best use of a $1,000 credit). Had hoped to have the certificates already in hand when I booked, but I did not want the fare to increase or lose a preferred cabin location while I wait for B of A, so I booked.

Yes, they will refund the difference. At least they did for me. If the fare drops below your $1000, they will not refund the difference as certificates (i.e. they will only refund money you have paid).

 

Thanks in advance for any helpful responses/info, this will be our first time on NCL. Assuming I get the certificates, that is.

You're welcome. This was a great program. I'm sorry to see it go.

[Gtex]

My husband and I have been waiting for $500 certificate and $100 upgrade. We have called NCL a couple of times and have been told they will send them in a few more days. The problem is that we are waiting to book a cruise for March 1, 2009. We are planning on driving to New Orleans for the Spirit. It is our anniversary week, so we really want to go then rather than wait for a couple of months. Hopefully our certificates will be here next week.

 

Our travel agent said we would probably still be able to book even a couple of days before. We have taken 6 NCL cruises before, but always booked far in advance. Has anyone ever booked a cruise on the last minute? We are probably going to ask for "oceanview." Thanks.

[TVLady3]

My experience is directly opposite of defreeze's! I too got the wrong amount--I was only credited for the points earned between my December closing date and the 31st! Hope they are fixing that program error, too!

 

And my problem was different also. I spent $1700 on 12/4th and only received 17 points for it! I should have had 503 total points, but they only sent me 5 upgrade certificates!:mad:

[molunkusmol]

I mailed a certified letter to NCL on Monday, February 9th, telling them that I received only an upgrade certificate and did not receive the cruise discount certificates that I earned. Today I received this email from them:

 

While transitioning from NCL Compass Rewards to NCL WorldPoints, a system error caused a miscalculation in final Compass Reward balance for a population of cardholders. The year-end file has been reprocessed indicating your final Compass Rewards point balance is 1117. Your new certificates will be mailed this week and you should receive them in 7-10 business days.

 

We appreciate your business and apologize for any inconvenience this error has caused.

Robin C. Siczek

Bank of America Card Services

980.386.9008

Edited February 12, 2009 by molunkusmol
remove email address

[eagle1troy]

This is based on my experience. Yes. They can be applied to an existing reservation. The information on the certificate/programs may say otherwise, but they've changed the policy.

Yes, they will refund the difference. At least they did for me. If the fare drops below your $1000, they will not refund the difference as certificates (i.e. they will only refund money you have paid).

 

You're welcome. This was a great program. I'm sorry to see it go.

I booked a cruise last october with ncl using my points,( 2000 in points and 259 money) when the price dropped I called in and got a refund,( about 150.00 back) then the price dropped again, so I called in and they ended up giving me room credit since the cruise was paid in full ( with the previous credit it now totals about 400) , so in a sence they are paying me 170.00 to take a cruise.

[lumofny]

Just an FYI for those of you looking for a new 'cash-back' reward card. The Motley Fool credit card, which up until now gave 2% back on all purchases, now is only offering 1% back, credited yearly. And guess what? This card is administered by BoA. Taking over a great cruise program then destroying it, wasting away billions of taxpayer dollars, and now this; just another reason why everyone should hate BoA...

Edited February 12, 2009 by lumofny

[jcc&lnc]

Today I received my 3 $500. certificates and 3 of the 100 point upgrade certificates. The cover letter said that I had 1,739 points as of 12-31-2008. The letter was postmarked yesterday with a return address of: PO Box 32624, Charlotte, NC 28232-2634

 

So I am clear now.

 

But the best part is this sentance taken from the cover letter:

 

"This new rewards program will enable you to redeem your points for even better NCL rewards than ever before."

 

Wonder how they arrived at that conclusion?

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Glad to hear that some of you are beginning to receive corrected certificates.

 

As for BoA's spin on their program - what would you expect them to

say - "come to BoA for a fantastically screwed up program" ?

 

It would be interesting to know what percentage of prior card holders will stay with the World Points program. If this forum is any judge, they will be losing quite a few customers.

[Gtex]

Today I received my 3 $500. certificates and 3 of the 100 point upgrade certificates. The cover letter said that I had 1,739 points as of 12-31-2008. The letter was postmarked yesterday with a return address of: PO Box 32624, Charlotte, NC 28232-2634

 

So I am clear now.

 

But the best part is this sentance taken from the cover letter:

 

"This new rewards program will enable you to redeem your points for even better NCL rewards than ever before."

 

Wonder how they arrived at that conclusion?

Had you sent a letter to BoA?

 

My husband and I have been waiting for $500 certificate and $100 upgrade. We have called NCL a couple of times and have been told they will send them in a few more days. The problem is that we are waiting to book a cruise for March 1, 2009. We are planning on driving to New Orleans for the Spirit. It is our anniversary week, so we really want to go then rather than wait for a couple of months. Hopefully our certificates will be here next week.

[jcc&lnc]

No! I had not contacted them...just patiently waited.

[Gtex]

No! I had not contacted them...just patiently waited.

Thanks. Guess we will wait another week, and then probably wind up paying full price for this cruise. If we get the certificates too late, then we might just be forced to take two cruises this year! :o)

[TheNightDawg]

As I posted several pages back, I am wondering why so many people were expecting their certificates now? All I can assume is that BofA is doing this is cycles? My Bank of America/NCL letter, dated 1/5/09, says "You will receive your final Compass Reward certificates by mail in 6-8 weeks."

By my calc, that means I shouldn't expect them until early March.....so why are so many people on here expecting them earlier than that?

[judyf]

As I posted several pages back, I am wondering why so many people were expecting their certificates now? All I can assume is that BofA is doing this is cycles? My Bank of America/NCL letter, dated 1/5/09, says "You will receive your final Compass Reward certificates by mail in 6-8 weeks."

By my calc, that means I shouldn't expect them until early March.....so why are so many people on here expecting them earlier than that?

 

I was not expecting them till end of Feb. early March and I never called prior to recieveing the wrong cert. That's my case.

[Lyman713]

Some good news ---

 

I received my rewards yesterday (correctly) for one card. On this card, I hadn't heard from BOA at all in the past (with this card, I didn't receive incorrect certificates).

 

With the other card (I received incorrect certificates with this one), I haven't heard any news yet. I'm waiting to see if they get resent by today and if they might arrive next week.

 

To reply to a post one or two above, I never received the 1/5 letter that says 6-8 weeks. The last letter I had from BOA said that I would receive my certificates by Jan 31.

 

Good luck to everyone!!

[c breeze]

As I posted several pages back, I am wondering why so many people were expecting their certificates now? All I can assume is that BofA is doing this is cycles? My Bank of America/NCL letter, dated 1/5/09, says "You will receive your final Compass Reward certificates by mail in 6-8 weeks."

By my calc, that means I shouldn't expect them until early March.....so why are so many people on here expecting them earlier than that?

 

I too received this letter. I think many people (myself included), became concerned when they received a letter that said that their FINAL Compass Reward certificates were enclosed, only to find that they did not have the correct amount. As it turns out, many of us had our final amounts miscalculated due to some sort of computer programing error, and so it is a good thing this was followed up on. i was told by NCl that if the correct amount had not arrived by Feb 20, I should write a letter and send all info to the reconciliation desk.

[packercruising]

I haven't received a letter at all, though DW has, but checking online, my Feb statement will have a $156 credit. :)

[mpk218]

Anyone still looking for a new rewards card , here is an infomative site..

http://www.creditcards.com/reward.php?aid=ff3b74cd

 

mpk

[Browezilla]

I received a call from BofA yesterday. They acknowledged the error, told me what my Compass Rewards total was (sounds like it was my Dec Statement balance plus additional purchases through the end of the year), and that the certificates were being mailed. So I think if we hold tight for a couple of weeks we all will have a resolution. The message didn't say what happens to the certificate I already received. My guess is that what I receive next will be the "delta" amount of certificates needed to satisfy the total rewards I had as of 12/31/2008.

Edited February 13, 2009 by browe

[cruisinlibrarian]

I too received this letter. I think many people (myself included), became concerned when they received a letter that said that their FINAL Compass Reward certificates were enclosed, only to find that they did not have the correct amount. As it turns out, many of us had our final amounts miscalculated due to some sort of computer programing error, and so it is a good thing this was followed up on. i was told by NCl that if the correct amount had not arrived by Feb 20, I should write a letter and send all info to the reconciliation desk.

 

After mailing a letter and documentation to BoA earlier this week, we received an email stating: "while transitioning from NCL Compass Rewards to NCL World Points, a system error caused a miscalculation in final Compass Reward balance for a population of cardholders. The year-end file has been reprocessed...Your new certificates will be mailed this week and you should receive them in 7-10 business days." So it appears that BoA is now on the right track, thanks to the many folks who contacted them about the error. Hopefully everyone will receive the correct certificate in the near future.:)

 

It remains to be seen how we will use the new NCL World Points for booking future cruises. It was nice getting $500 or $1000 off the cruise price.

[Lyman713]

The message didn't say what happens to the certificate I already received. My guess is that what I receive next will be the "delta" amount of certificates needed to satisfy the total rewards I had as of 12/31/2008.

 

This is what I'm afraid of... if they (BOA) figure that they already paid us for Dec <closing date> - Dec 31, they will just give us certificates for the Dec statement balance. The problem is that many of us relied on the end of the year to put us over the 500 point threshold.

 

I guess we all will know in the next week or so!