Megabear2

More tales of woe all round here! On Monday I had a quick shower before getting ready for the doctors. Got out to puddles of water and thought crikey you've been a bit messy girl. Mopped it up and started to leave the room then realised more water is appearing at a rapid rate. Investigation and the water is hot, very hot! I then realised I could hear water still running. I'm now paddling in it, no sign of stopping it. Go to the stopcock which is also in the bathroom total panic when it fails to turn in any direction. There I stand dripping wet wrapped in a towel and alone in the house thinking the end is nigh. I tried the bath taps - the shower is over the bath - and realised this stopped the flow out from underneath significantly not completely but enough to buy me time to get out our emergency plumbing policy with Ovo and send for help. Guy listens to the problem says I'll put out an emergency call and plumber will be witn you in an hour. Great ... call the doctor to say can't make 10.10 and they rearranged for 15.10 there's me thinking it will all be over. No plumber appears in the hour, I've now used every towel and sheet in the house holding back the tide and am frantically trying every local plumber's number for help, of course none available as out on jobs. Two hours pass, I'm now trying to use a wrench to turn off the stopcock but nothing turns. I ring my OH who's out at a clients office some hour and a half away in desperation and ask him to come home. He arrives back at 1.20pm tries the stopcock and agrees its solid. The bathroom, our only one is tiny so having taken the bath panel off he tries to lie flat (actually impossible) to find a screw to disconnect the taps under the bath. Reaching in he bangs his head very hard and we then have him laying there stunned with blood gushing out from his head but he tells me he has found the screw and to get him a flatheaded screwdriver from the kitchen which thankfully I find instantly and he is able to turn the water off. Now we have to get him out and up - I've mentioned before he has chronic fibromyalgia and a major heart condition so manouevre ability is not good at the best of times - which on this occasion turns out to be no mean feat with a slippery flooded floor, very limited space and blood running down under his glasses so he cannot see. Thankfully I get him out after 10 minutes of trying and am able to tend to the wound at least. Back to the telephone and Ovo for the missing plumber. 2.20pm ahh yes we have your "claim", I will put the call out. What? The call out was for an urgent stopcock and major leak. Errr yes I'm afraid it's a training issue the adviser didn't put it as urgent. Cue light blue touchpaper, Megabear in full best furious argument mode! Whilst demanding urgent action Mr Megabear receives a text, Ovo plumber will arrive between 4.00pm and 8.00pm. Lots more furious discussion ensues. I let Mr Megabear take over the conversation and leave for the doctors. Arrive home an hour later to find Mr Megabear still discussing the merits or not of an Ovo emergency insurance policy - apparently they'd called him back three times but no plumber in sight. Plumber eventually makes contact 5.20pm. He's in Somerset and at least an hour and thirty minutes away. I ask about the stopcock as he mentions he has to isolate a leak nothing more. Absolutely adamant he isn't doing anything except stopping the leak which of course was already done. Turns up at 6.45pm, looks under the bath, not covered under the policy, photograph it, gone. Total times 4 minutes, not looked at the stopcock, zilch. More irate calls to Ovo, an acceptance they've done it all wrong new plumber will be there between 9.00am and 1.00pm Tuesday, text received to confirm. Will confirm 1 hour window Tuesday ... yeh right, ha ha. 1.00pm Tuesday new text received: we have booked your plumber for Wednesday pm between 1.00pm and 6.00pm .... Meantime Mr Megabear goes to the doctor Tuesday morning to be told he's got a mild concussion, all of his vital signs are raised and he's actually now quite unwell with urgent change of medication etc required. Customer service calls 5.00pm on Tuesday, sorry we know we've cocked up ...

I'm certainly not taking issue with your opinions and apologise if you believe that to be the case. I think we both broadly agree if you book you should turn up or cancel. The difference of opinion you expressed was actually with someone else not me and my reply to you was because I thought you believed those who cancelled to free up reservations lost their money which they don't.

If we had purchased 12 bottles individually it would have cost £564. The 12 bottle package was £334 so an excellent saving.

Assumedly when you wanted a reservation at a select restaurant while onboard if no availability when enquiring you were asked if you wanted to join any waiting lists, either with the restaurant or reception? Certainly on cruises in recent times that has been the case in my experience. I assume when you say going from restaurant to restaurant you are saying you did this as you were hoping for a cancellation other than joining the waitlist? Leaving my own case out of this as it is rather unique those that cancel even outside of the 24 hours do get their money refunded, they don't lose it. They are then "fined" £10pp including it appears the Besch House where it exceeds the cost of their original booking. Because of the demand you rightly describe other guests on the wait list are offered the reservations in the order they went on the list. When they accept they are charged for the reservation. At this point P&O are not out of pocket for anything but have acquired an extra £20 for that seat. The "selfish" people you refer to who don't turn up or advise in advance do lose their money and get fined as well, however those trying to do the right thing and ensure those on the waiting list do get an offer or if no waiting list then the vacancy goes back to the restaurant or via the app are also punished and P&O make an extra profit for the people trying to do the right thing, ie stopping you hiking around the ship as you put it. Actually in my conversation it was mentioned to me that there are actually minimal reservations across the whole fleet which are not reallocated almost at the point of a cancellation and this is intentional to stop people being disappointed and turning up hopefully at restaurants looking for the odd last minute no show of which apparently there are now very few. Prior to 2019 there was apparently far less demand for extra pay venues - again not from me but in general conversation with P&O - and with the increase in demand they wanted to ensure a bottom on every seat available to sell.

Hmm ... so I'm under the ship's doctor, confined for 24 hours then sick for the remainder of the cruise under P&OS care and they can't use discretion? As I said I was too ill to argue the case and didn't give a damn. Whatever picture is painted if the reservation is resold regardless of the less than 24 hour cancellation P&O are not losing any money and are actually gaining from someone's misfortune by fining them. Obviously if someone just doesn't turn up or they can't resell the reservation then the "fine" is reasonable. My point is the "fine" when the reservation is resold and filled by someone else is a nice way for P&O to increase revenue. Incidentally this is a quote from an email sent to me two days ago by P&O customer care in Southampton: "I am also sorry to note the issue you had regarding your reservation at the limelight club, I understand that due to the circumstances you would not have been able to cancel within the time-frame usually given, therefore I would expect that discretion would be used on a case by case basis".

Yes it did seem steep. It is this one as quoted from the Commodore package. Villa Maria ‘Seaspray’ Sauvignon Blanc New Zealand | Crisp and Refreshing Expect lively acidity and flavours of kaffir lime, capsicum and fresh herbs, plus a distinctive briny seashell character. Our waiter actually encouraged us to choose this one as it was the dearest on the menu, others hovered around the £30 mark.

This might help. Anything with a "C" is available. There are other wines etc which do not appear on these menus, including some expensive ones at around £16-£17 for a 250ml glass. Strangely one of those was a Sauvignon blanc from New Zealand which was on our Commodore wine package yet on the MDR menu for £47 a bottle and £16.50 for a 250ml glass in the Atrium bars. My-holiday-menus.pdf

As I said I didn't say anything about the charge personally, I am merely adding to the overall conversation about charging when a seat is resold. As it happens it cost us nothing as we had a very large amount of OBC which P&O were able to not pay out. All of our booked from home cancellations were refunded back to our credit card so we are not out of pocket. However it does remain that the dining cancellation charge when a reservation is resold means that P&O are making a profit above and beyond the sale price of a booking. Our upfront reservations which were refunded were replaced by a new booking charged at the on sale price that day. Therefore P&O were not in any way out of pocket by our cancellation at 8.30am when I was advised not to leave the room for 24 hours. Contrast this with excursions who immediately they were informed cancelled our trips, refunded the money and made no cancellation charge due to it being a medical situation. I am aware they too resold the trip which was sold out. Regarding those who just don't turn up, they are quite rightly automatically charged the £10pp. The P&O lady who rang to check on my well being actually stated that she was disappointed reception did not use their discretion to waive the late cancellation fee as they were aware I was unwell rather than just cancelling because I didn't want to go. She also mentioned my husband was unfortunate in telling reception when the honeymoon couple he spoke with were told he couldn't give them our reservation. She actually suggested he should have just told them to quote our cabin number on entry and arrange an under the counter financial transfer between them! I can confirm we actually left over £400 obc on our account when we left the ship as it was of little relevance to us and we chose to write it off as my health situation was more important. My insurer has been outstanding with no dramas and immediate pay out. As a result we have not lost a penny. Thank you for your good wishes on my health. I am still under my GP and apparently my cough/sore throat is now being treated as something called "the 100 day cough". I do this week thankfully finally feel better and have some appetite back.

To clarify we did receive our refund for the booking made from home. The "fine" was due to the less than 24 hours rule. My comment to the lady who called me - not someone I know or have dealt with previously - was made as it seemed like a pretty good earner for P&O as effectively the penalty charge was giving them a bonus payment as the "seats" were resold so to speak. P&O received my £20 for two people and then resold the seats at £50 to the replacement couple thereby actually receiving £35.00pp for the table instead of £25.00. Seemed a pretty good return for P&O to me. No complaint or discussion occurred on the ship save my husband saying he hoped that the lack of notification to waiting list guests would occur before 4.00pm as having been disappointed on previous cruises with being unable to book speciality dining he knew how frustrating it was to miss out. At the time I was too unwell to deal with anything myself so have no idea whether notification to the waiting list guests was done by reception or by The Limelight Club. I do know my husband was a little upset that he was told he could not just give the reservation to the couple who were enquiring at the same time he was cancelling as he told me he got the general impression reception were told to place emphasis on the fact we would be charged.

Yes, exactly what we thought which is why I asked about the policy when they called me. At the time I was just hopeful someone else would be able to go as it was sold out the whole trip. The "fine" was applied to our OBC so i didn't query it as at that point i was too unwell to worry about such trvia. Strangely the excursion team were well within their right to charge for cancellation and yet they did not.

Non alcoholic beers are made using identical brewing process and then the alcohol is removed. This actually makes them considerably more expensive to make with the result publican (and assumedly cruise companies) can actually make very high profits on them. Diageo said the following in August 2023: "The alcohol-free and low-alcohol category was worth £255m in 2022, according to Mintel1 and it is now estimated around 40% of GB adults are trying to moderate their alcohol consumption, with the behaviour more prevalent among 18-24 year olds". I'd guess that's a pretty lucrative market P&O should be catering for.

I can confirm this happened on my recent Britannia cruise where I became unwell on day 5 and ended up having to have an unexpected stay in Barbados after being refused boarding of the aircraft. In a subsequent follow up with P&O who kindly enquired after my health upon my return the subject of the cancellation fees - in our case for The Limelight Club - was discussed and I was informed that it was expected that discretion would be used regarding the cancellation charge in the event of illness and resale. In our case the notification was made to Reception at 8.30am for a 7.00pm reservation as The Limelight Club reception was not manned until 4.00pm. Whilst making the cancellation my husband heard two people enquiring about making a booking for that evening and refused as the waiting list of 10 was full. He was told he could not just pass our reservation to these guests as there were others in front of them. I assume therefore that someone at least got our table, or at least I hope so. I can confirm we were stil charged £20.00.

Great news. Gatwick Maleth flight also appears to be on time. Not such good news from TUI Gatwick second flight as it's currently showing delayed from 11.20 to 13.10.

Actually they do have a special section on their website and this is where P&O sent people in the letters they handed out. It is a personal choice whether to claim anything but as some of these problems were pretty horrendous it's perfectly understandable why people have chosen to pursue their legal right to claim. This or any other claim against any airline is a bit different from the pandemic as it is a legal right and as a result people are entitled to a response in reasonable time even if it's to say b..... off. It seems from ICF's post that Maleth are now responding to claimants.

See my post #1174. Barbados is aware of the problem with their airport and are taking steps. Unfortunately the proposed special sea passengers terminal plans were halted by the pandemic but are now back and being worked on. I hope you have a good Maleth experience. The last couple of weeks' flights have been okay so hopefully no problems. In fairness to all concerned - Maleth and the passengers - it looks as if the bulk of the problems have been on a number of fairly tightly connected flights particularly after the unfortunate CAT incident which stranded the aircraft and put it out of service. The problem now appears to be the complete lack of communication on Maleth's behalf regarding the compensation issue. Maleth have clearly not taken their responsibilities of at least replying to claimants and this is adding to the building unrest. I look forward to hearing your views on the flight. Meantime wishing you a fabulous holiday.

Best wishes for a swift recovery and I hope you start to feel better soon.

There are a lot of this things at present. My viral throat and chest infection is also apparently one of those "mystery ilnesses" according to the Barbados doctors. I first fell I'll on day 5 of my holiday - 18th January - and only on Friday just passed been taken off antibiotics. The sore throat and choking thankfully now ceased but I still get totally unexpected coughing fits which leave me gasping for air. I currently have a follow appointment next Monday. My GP tells me they are seeing very large numbers of gastro and chest/throat viruses this year, many from people returning from holidays in areas which are in their summer season which of course South Africa and the Caribbean are. Guess we were just unlucky this time round.

Quite a large number of ships are currently experiencing these viruses, including all three Cunard Queens and Celebrity Constellation. Queen Victoria and Celebrity Constellation are under report by the CDC and Queen Victoria's outbreak is being regularly reported on both sides of the Atlantic as a "mystery illness" rather than noro. https://www.travelpulse.com/news/cruise/outbreak-aboard-queen-victoria-cruise-ship-leaves-154-passengers-sick Over the past year the increase of gastro illnesses across all lines has been very large in comparison with previous years.

There are two projects at Grantley Adam's which should improve things. It was confirmed to me in January that the first of these is now very much happening after the pandemic stopped it. https://nvestestates.com/2023/11/20/barbados-introduces-unique-concorde-terminal-for-air-to-sea-passengers/#:~:text=Not only does this innovative,provide exceptional service and facilities. The second is a newer project only discussed in 2023 but certainly of very much interest, particularly with Virgin Atlantic now using Barbados as a hub. https://nearshoreamericas.com/barbados-will-upgrade-grantley-adams-airport-with-147-million-investment/#:~:text=A major gateway to the,new terminal and runway expansion.&text=The government of Barbados intends,to land at the airport.

Sorry, the baby discussion crossed over from your post #1164 and another poster. Thanks for letting us know about your claim. There are others posting who are asking the same question unfortunately so it's up in the air. Do please keep us informed, hopefully you may have news soon.

The babies or the planes? I believe you are one of the people seeking flight compensation from Maleth. May I ask how that's going and what problems led to your claim? Thanks.

Yes, same with all ABC islands although Bonaire is slightly different being actually run directly from The Hague. As a result it faired far better during the pandemic. Aruba, in particular, suffered as all its eggs are currently in the tourism basket and hence the "Miami" hotel vibe many comment on.

You might have a bit of competition this time ...

This has been the situation since the introduction in 2016 of the "new" dental contract. NHS dentistry simply doesn't pay the dentists well and as a result huge numbers no longer do NHS dentistry. They didn’t so much dump patients as simply close down completely and restart as private practices. A large number of dentists have also left the UK for various reasons including emigration for better livelihoods and return to home countries after the pandemic and Brexit. A few dentists, my own included, offer a sort of halfway house where they do checkups, fillings etc but not things like root canals or complex work. My friend is currently paying £3,000 to have all her teeth removed and dentures fitted due to an illness having caused serious issues.

Sending best wishes for a speedy recovery Snow Jill.