Beware fred olsen

[torty]

This is a copy of a post sent to the “disabled” forum which I thought non-disabled readers may also be interested to read just to give an insight into Fred Olsen’s treatment of one wheelchair passenger. No one knows what the future holds and anybody could one day find themselves in my situation although having read this they will be forewarned.

We’d booked as part of a group booking for Fred Olsen’s mini-cruise to Rouen. through an excellent travel company we’ve used several times. I use a wheelchair (I have MS) and having already given the necessary wheelchair information at time of booking we were surprised to find a section in the booklet received from Fred Olsen a few weeks before departure requesting this information again so my husband rang Fred Olsen just to make sure they didn’t need this again and was horrified to learn that although it had been noted that I’d be taking a wheelchair, this wheelchair would be taken away at time of boarding and only returned for shore excursions (which is laughable anyway as none of the excursions were listed as suitable for wheelchairs). We couldn’t believe what we were hearing. Why would someone take their own wheelchair on board if they couldn’t use it? We then spoke to someone supposedly more senior who told us it was a matter of insurance and health & safety and that there was nothing he could do. We were absolutely astounded and were left feeling that there would be no option but to cancel as although I have some limited mobility there is no way I could get around the ship without my wheelchair. My husband then phoned our travel company where the girl mentioned that she thought Fred Olsen only allowed 4 wheelchairs on board but assured us that everything was in order as they’d booked mine but she would contact Fred Olsen for a confirmation e-mail to put our minds at rest. We had to wait until the next day before Fred Olsen responded saying they were looking into the matter and eventually our travel company forwarded an e-mail received from Fred Olsen “Wheelchair space is now booked for ship & tour use for your client” The word “now” in this sentence implies that an error had been made at Fred Olsen when the original booking was made.

So, but for the fact that we’d been asked again in the Fred Olsen booklet for wheelchair details causing us to telephone them, we would have arrived for our cruise totally unaware that I couldn’t use my wheelchair on board and going by our conversations with Fred Olsen staff we would have just had to pack up and go home. Thankfully we were able to contact our travel company in time who probably had more power to persuade them to relax the rules than we did. But we are very unimpressed with Fred Olsen. This is our 12th cruise (our first and LAST with Fred Olsen) and the first time ever we’ve encountered such a problem. I’m at a total loss to understand Fred Olsen. It only takes a grain of commonsense to realise that someone with mobility difficulties in possession of their own wheelchair would need to use it on board to cover the long distances involved in getting around the ship; why else would they be taking it. They certainly don’t make it plain in their literature that unless you’re one of the 4 allocated wheelchairs, they’ll accept your booking as a wheelchair user but you won’t be able to use it. BE WARNED

 

 

[History addict]

Fred Olsen advice regarding disabled access and wheelchairs is clear in their terms and conditions (see below). They seem pretty well organised in this respect - are you sure it wasn't your travel agent who let you down? You obviously have to pre-book a wheelchair for use on the ship and otherwise they will store it for you for use ashore - obviously some people will only need it for part of the time. Don't get me wrong, I'm not unsympathetic but it pays to check out terms and conditions and get everything in writing for something as important as this, though I feel that if you book a wheelchair cabin then this should automatically imply toFO that a wheelchair will be used onboard.

______________________________________

 

 

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines warmly welcomes any passengers, dependent on the use of wheelchairs for mobility, to all of our vessels. We do however request that they are always accompanied by an able-bodied companion. A limited number of cabins on each ship have been modified to facilitate more comfortable occupation for such passengers. We respectfully require wheelchair users to bring their own wheelchair.

 

The number of wheelchairs we can permit on each ship is limited by our Safety Classification Society, as individual crew members are assigned to each cabin occupied by a wheelchair user, who would be called upon to provide the required assistance in the unlikely event of an emergency at sea.

 

These are set as follows:

 

 

• MS Braemar Permits 5 wheelchairs and has 4 cabins modified for wheelchair use.
  

• MS Black Prince Permits 4 wheelchairs and has 2 cabins modified for wheelchair use.
  

• MS Black Watch Permits 6 wheelchairs and has 4 cabins modified for wheelchair use.
  

• MS Boudicca Permits 6 wheelchairs and has 4 cabins modified for wheelchair use.
  

• MS Balmoral Permits 12 wheelchairs and has 9 cabins modified for wheelchair use.
  

Other passengers who prefer to use a wheelchair to assist them in covering significant distances ashore will therefore be restricted from using their wheelchair when the vessel is at sea. Additionally, the number of wheelchairs we can accept for use ashore only, is also capacity controlled.

 

Motorised wheelchairs/scooters will only be accepted on Black Watch, Boudicca, Braemar and Balmoral when occupying an adapted cabin. On health and safety grounds, chairs weighing in excess of 25kg cannot be carried ashore at any ports of call, other than the start/end point of the cruise. We regret we cannot accept motorised wheelchairs/scooters for use on board Black Prince.

 

Regrettably, we cannot guarantee that assistance by qualified persons will be available at other ports of call and unless able to board a vehicle unassisted it will not be possible for wheelchair users to participate in organised shore tours. Owing to the nature of ship to shore tender services, which are utilised at certain ports when at anchor, we regret that it will not be possible to convey any passengers ashore who require more than minimal assistance to board the tender. Safety of our passengers is always of tantamount importance.

[merecat]

I have travelled on Balmoral with a lady who was completely wheelchair bound with MS,she was treated with the utmost care and love by all the crew,in fact I would think Olsens crew are exceptional at helping ALL people with difficulties.

 

Wheelchair numbers are inforced by other cruise companies as well.:)

[tigger3]

we booked on the balmoral and notified them that we would be bringing a wheelchair for use on shore.although it states that the wheelchair will be stored,in fact it was delivered to our cabin along with our luggage and we could probably have used it on board occasionally.This also happened on two thomsons cruises.

[welshred]

We recently returned from a very enjoyable cruise on the Balmoral and we could not help notice wheelchair users were treated very well indeed.

 

There were special tables and seats reserved for them in the Neptune Lounge and one evening, when queueing for a show, wheelchair users were given priority treatment and placed at the front.

[gaelsail]

It does not matter how good an organisation is (or which organisation is actually responsible for an error)- they are staffed by humans- and ''to err is human''.

 

What matters is whether they fix the error, whether they have taken note of how the error occured, whether they have taken precautions to prevent it happening again.

 

Thankfully we were able to contact our travel company in time who probably had more power to persuade them to relax the rules than we did

so did you enjoy the cruise?

[audrey b]

Sorry that you had problems with your cruise booking but hope,despite what you have said, that you give Fred another chance. Having worked with disabled people professionally for many years, I can only say that from my observations, of all the cruise companies we have used, Olsen ships are the most disabled friendly and the staff have always been helpful and supportive to anyone with mobility/special needs.