Billing dispute with Princess - Who's right?

[CaribbeanCruisers]

My husband and I have been disputing a charge from Princess since March 2010.

 

Here's the background information:

 

We're platnium cruisers with Princess

 

We sailed the Ruby Princess in October of 2009. We had a balcony cabin, an inside and a mini. On our mini we hosted a balcony dinner for some of our family members. We had a total of six for the dinner. Charge: $300.00 Tip:$150

 

Our onboard account was settled to our credit card like aslways before disembarking. My husband and I both check and double check ALL charges, whether they should be negative or positive.

 

March 2010 we received a letter/bill from Princess for $300.00 The charge was for the balcony dinner in 2009, a full six months later. Now we know we paid this, put we really don't have proof because after a couple of months we tossed the paperwork for the cruise. I NEVER dreamed it would be necessary to keep. My DH immediately called Princess regarding the matter to dispute the charge.

 

June 29, 2010 we receive an email and two calls from Princess. The finance person said the charge was still standing. The email also mention that my DH had disputed the bill being sent out so late after the cruise, not the charge itself.

 

BOLOGNA!

 

DH talks with said finance person today and continues to dispute the $300. Her response: We have no choice than to turn it over the collections!

 

WHAT? Seriously...

 

We're sailing on the Emerald in August for a B2B. We've already paid $8,000+ for this cruise.

 

To us, it's the principle, not the $300.

 

My questions:

 

Who's right?

 

Are we really liable for a charge 6 months after the sail date?

 

Will our cruise in August 2010 be effected by this?

 

Honestly, we're stunned that Princess is doing this.

 

Your thoughts and suggestions would be helpful. Thank you for your time.

 

CC

[robgvic]

Have them send you a copy of the ship account and you can see if it agrees with the amount you paid on your creditcard.

[DiRon]

I agree with previous posters - you need to ask them for a copy of your onboard account, match the total with your credit card charge - and if the $300 shows up on your onboard account - case closed.

[bhopal21]

Somebody needs to produce a copy of the onboard account, otherwise all you have is a "he said, she said" situation.

 

Mike:)

[BobT172]

Have them send you a copy of the ship account and you can see if it agrees with the amount you paid on your creditcard.

 

I agree...

 

You may not have saved the shipboard account records but I bet they did....

[Shogun]

Hi There,

 

Princess needs to show proof that you have not paid, before they can take it to the next level.

 

yours Shogun

[JJ2sail]

You should be disputing this with your credit card company, not directly with Princess. Your credit card company will have them produce all documents to verify the charges.

[candide333]

Contact your bank to get a statement and compare the final bill that Princess submits to you with what you charged on your credit card. Often you can view at least a year's credit card statements online, so you may be able to compare that way too.

[bhopal21]

Contact your bank to get a statement and compare the final bill that Princess submits to you with what you charged on your credit card. Often you can view at least a year's credit card statements online, so you may be able to compare that way too.

 

The only problem with that is the UBD is not billed as a separate item on your credit card but rather just part of the total onboard bill like any other charges.

 

Mike:)

[Toto2Kansas]

Since your credit card statement will only have the total charged for the 2009 cruise and not have it broken down, the only way to prove or disprove this is to get a copy of your folio from Princess for that sailing. That will tell immediately (when you compare it to the credit card statement amount), if it was charged or not. If they produce it, and you can pull up your credit card bill from that month, then you can prove to Princess if it was paid by the totals being the same. Best of luck, and please keep us posted.

[CaribbeanCruisers]

As of March 2010, Princess did not have a copy of our shipboard account for that sailing.

We used our Princess credit card for the sailing. I cannot dispute anything with my credit card because there was not an issue. Our account was settled onboard before disembarking. We paid the exact amount our bill was for.

The problem: Princess claims we were not billed the $300 for the balcony dinner and they chose to wait SIX MONTHS before sending a letter/bill!

[Shogun]

Hi There

 

Think Princess would lose in any battle, policy is to bill all charges before you leave the ship, you can prove that you paid Princess your onboard charges.

 

If they did make a mistake they can not prove you have not paid.

 

yours Shogun

[Toto2Kansas]

As of March 2010, Princess did not have a copy of our shipboard account for that sailing.

 

We used our Princess credit card for the sailing. I cannot dispute anything with my credit card because there was not an issue. Our account was settled onboard before disembarking. We paid the exact amount our bill was for.

 

The problem: Princess claims we were not billed the $300 for the balcony dinner and they chose to wait SIX MONTHS before sending a letter/bill!

 

Well, I would tell them that unless I see a copy of our onboard account from that cruise, there is no way for them to prove that you didn't pay for the dinner. I would stand my ground on this unless you think you might have not been charged. (something like this not billed would stick in your memory I would think).

[Johanna7]

I will now keep a copy of our on board charges for a year and then shred them. This way we should have the proof. I did not realize this was necessary as you cannot leave the ship if you have an unpaid account.

 

Again, thank you for bringing it to our attention. I am sure many will keep those bills for quite a while.

[CaribbeanCruisers]

Well, I would tell them that unless I see a copy of our onboard account from that cruise, there is no way for them to prove that you didn't pay for the dinner. I would stand my ground on this unless you think you might have not been charged. (something like this not billed would stick in your memory I would think).

 

We know we were charged. We both go over that bill with a fine tooth comb. I know some people might say they paid it, when in fact they didn't... But, we honestly did. It's $300, we're certainly not out to cheat them but it's starting to feel like they're cheating us. Like I said earlier, it's really the principle, not the money. We love Princess and this issue won't cause us to stop sailing, but it does put a bad taste in our mouth... My biggest concern is the finance department turning this into collections, as they mentioned today they would be doing so. This is starting to feel like a threat in a way...

I thought I'd send a couple of emails to some higher ups. I'll keep you posted. Thank you for the responses so far.

[Toto2Kansas]

Just another thought here. Do they have the signed bill for the dinner you supposedly didn't pay for? If they can come up with that, they can come up with the folio for your cruise, as it is the only way their accounting department would have any idea that it wasn't charged to your account. With everything on computer now, you bet cha they keep track of those onboard accounts.

 

There is just no way I would pay a bill 6 months after the fact without some type of proof that it wasn't paid. I mean, if they have no record of the account, how do they know you didn't pay the bill?

[Fore on the Floor]

Something doesn't smell right, I am sure Princess has every thing ever bought on every ship and by whom on file. I ran purchasing for a "mid" size company and we could pull up everything ever purchase by anyone of are customers no matter what time frame. If they have the the information about an unpaid purchase they would have to have the information from the account to say that it wasn't paid.

[Belease]

How strange - and worrying! I hope you can get this sorted out soon. :(

[CaribbeanCruisers]

Something doesn't smell right, I am sure Princess has every thing ever bought on every ship and by whom on file. I ran purchasing for a "mid" size company and we could pull up everything ever purchase by anyone of are customers no matter what time frame. If they have the the information about an unpaid purchase they would have to have the information from the account to say that it wasn't paid.

 

 

My thoughts too.

[cruzkitty]

I do hope you can get this straightened out. It puts a bad taste in my mouth with Princess, and I LOVE Princess! Please let us know the outcome. And Good Luck!

[Hunwolf]

We only have one side of the story here...BUT it's hard not to side with the cruiser in this situation. When has a cruise company (ANY ONE OF THEM) let you leave the ship without you settling the onboard account in total. That is absurd first off.

 

Secondly...here you have a couple that are very seasoned cruisers. They aren't just going to dispute a small (relatively speaking) charge compared to how much in total they are paying for cruises unless it's legitimate. For Princess to even push this one (especially with these loyal customers) seems...well...ludicrous. What better way to run off a good/loyal/"high end" customer.

[Loonbeam]

I find it questionable that they can't produce a copy of the onboard account statement, yet somehow know the $300 was not paid (and the tip was? or was that paid in cash)

 

I requested a copy of an itemized bill from Marriott from 4 years ago and they produced it in 3 days.

 

Since you can pull up to at least a year of statements from your Princess Visa online, getting that charge amount is easy, so your response is, and should continue to be, show me where it was not on the amount I paid to settle and I will pay it!

[Pia1913]

Did you really give them a 50% tip, or is this a major typo?

[CALMOM]

I think they are just threatening you into paying the $300. They cannot send you to collections without proof, so if they cannot furnish you with the proof, then I doubt they could furnish the collection agency.

 

However, I would be a little concern about your upcoming cruise, especially with it paid. Would Princess try to place that $300 charge on your account?

 

I would advise you to keep copies of all of your correspondences with Princess. I would also send them a certified letter requesting that they provide proof of this disputed charge within 10 business days from receipt of this letter. I would inform them that if they do not provide proof within this time period, you will assume that this is a mistake on Princess behalf and no further charges are owed and this matter is resolved.

 

It does concern me that Princess would treat an Elite Passenger in this manner. Hum, bad PR, if the OP, is accurate.

[BruceMuzz]

My husband and I have been disputing a charge from Princess since March 2010.

 

 

To us, it's the principle, not the $300.

 

 

Honestly, we're stunned that Princess is doing this.

 

Your thoughts and suggestions would be helpful. Thank you for your time.

 

CC

 

I learned a very long time ago that whenever somebody tells me "It's the principle, not the money", what they are REALLY saying is "It's the money".