Poor Customer Service

[moo4391]

I recently booked another cruise on NCL, scheduled to depart 4/30/05. I tried to use a cabin upgrade coupon that we received after our cruise last July. Unfortunately, the coupon expired at the end of January and we were not able to book until April. I figured it was at least worth a call to NCL to find out if there was any way the coupon could still be applied, especially since we convinced two other couples to join us on the next cruise. I left two messages for Ms. Karen Sinclair, VP of Marketing(her name was on the coupon), who has never bothered to even return my calls. I find it rather amazing and appalling that a senior level management person cannot even bother to return the call or at least have one of her staff notify me. I understand if there is nothing that can be done, but to just not return the calls at all it unacceptable. It is even more amazing to me given that we are Lattitudes members. We have always had great success with NCL, so I would have to say this issue is an anomoly. Regardless, I am very dissappointed in their level of service on this issue. Has anyone else had a similar experience?

[Guest]

Given that this is another one of those "my 1st post is a complaint", I'll be blunt:

Maybe she's on vacation. The coupon already expired, get over it!! Geezzzz...... [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

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Serenade of the Seas

[Jeconk]

Yes, I have had very poor experiences in several dealings with NCL Customer Service. They really don't care about the customer, especially when it involves their bottom line. They are also notorious for ignoring customer complaints and ignoring customers who call or write with complaints. Their ships, crews and cruises, I have found, have been great, their customer service is the absolute worst.

[Host CMLA]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by moo4391:
Regardless, I am very dissappointed in their level of service on this issue.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>I guess I don't really understand. You can't use the coupon. You know you can't use the coupon. But you are upset that you haven't gotten a return phone call to tell you you can't use the coupon? Can you tell us what you expected from the phone call or what your expectation is? If you state what it is that you want to happen then maybe we can better understand why this is bothering you so much. Thanks.

Cecilia
[email]ladyndnver@aol.com[/email]

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My Wedding!

[gardencat]

I think moo4391 is upset because she, a customer of NCL, left a message for NCL's VP of marketing and did not receive any response.
I would like to know how long moo has been waiting for a response.
I can understand it taking a day or two for someone to get back to her, but surely it should not take much longer than that for someone there to respond, at least with an acknowledgement of having received the message.

Yes, moo4391, I too have had terrible customer service from NCL.

Now let's just sit back and see how many people blast you for daring to criticize NCL.

[Host CMLA]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by gardencat:
Now let's just sit back and see how many people blast you for daring to criticize NCL.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>That would be a shame because that would cause this thread to be removed. Critisism of NCL is allowed; just as questioning someone for more information is allowed. There's no need to antagonize the situation.

Cecilia
[email]ladyndnver@aol.com[/email]

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My Wedding!

[TheDivineMsM]

Over the years, I have dealt with NCL C.S. on numerous occasions and have received only politeness and respect.


[I]Dream[/I] on 9/22/04
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[cliffd64]

Generally speaking, any VP of Marketing at any corporation the size of NCL is not usually subject to answering calls from customers. You may have had a quicker answer had you gone through the normal customer relations channels and called customer service first rather than starting at the top of the company. VP's of marketing are probably very busy and not on the phone with customers all day.

Most of us who travel frequently on NCL have received these coupons: The expiration date is clearly stated, so there really shouldn't be any issue here, but if you feel entitled, by all means ask NCL to honor it. All that they can say is "No"... no harm in asking I suppose, unless the answer would disappoint you further.

One point about these "coupons": Be sure to read them closely. Most of the time they state in the fine print that they are valid only on full-fare prices, and are not to be combined with any other discounts. That means you would not be able to apply them on any of NCL's other offers, or on any other travel agent's special prices as well. Personally, I have never paid a full fare, and probably never will. The discount offered by the coupon simply is not enough compared to the deals available even trhough NCL themselves!

Enjoy your upcoming cruise!

Cliff


Carnival Holiday November 2001
Norwegian Sky 11/4/2002
Norwegian Sky 11/11/2002
Norwegian Wind 10/11/2003
Norwegian Dawn 12/14/2003
Norwegian Sun 02/08/2004

[djmpj]

After I booked my cruise I got the "Dawn brochure" directly from NCL. On the front was a coupon for a free cabin upgrade. I called my TA and was told we could not use the coupon because of the price we already got on the room (I personally don't know if it was that great of a price, but regardless, it was not the dollar amount NCL has on the website and was therefore considered discounted). That is fine and I understand that. Since I have booked the cruise (about 4 months ago now) I have gotten a similar coupon from NCL almost monthly. Obviously, I cannot use the coupons. However, I would think that someone from Ms. Sinclair's office could get back to Moo and tell her of these coupons. Even if she is on vacation, someone should be fielding her calls. In addition, I disagree with Cliff. I have been in Customer Service for 15 years for a Fortune 100 Brokerage Firm and the Bigger the VP, the faster the call gets responded to. Maybe not by the VP him/herself but certainly by staff.

Customer Service is very near and dear to my heart. It is the first line of defense and (usually) is very easy to please the customer. Imagine what a 2 minute call would have done? "I'm sorry, Mrs. Moo, but your coupon has expired. I will however be very happy to send you out one that has not expired. You have a wonderful day!"

DJ

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This is our FIRST Cruise

[newmexicoNita]

It never ceases to amaze me that people want something they are not entitled to. We could have gotten a credit for our cancelled Norway cruise if we booked by Sept of last year, we knew it, we didn't get our credit cause we didn't book. As for the VP of any dept, can you imagine how many emails and phone calls these people get each day. Sending a letter might get a response in a few weeks or a bit longer after the letter is rerouted, a phone call, give me a break. I have always had great response from CS at NCL but I do believe others have had problems as is the case with any major company. CS isn't what it should be for certain. That being said you couldn't use you coupon how many of us would you like to have whine with you? Sorry to be so snotty about this, but crying over spilled milk drives me up the wall. NMNita

Commodore 1984, Costa 1985, RCL 1987, Chandris 1989, NCL 1989, Commodore, 1991, NCL 1997, Carnival 1997, Carnival 1998,NCL 1998, NCL 1999, RCL 2000, RCL 2000, NCL 2002,NCL 2003, Celebrity 2003, NCL 2004

[Host CMLA]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by djmpj:
Customer Service is very near and dear to my heart. It is the first line of defense and (usually) is very easy to please the customer. Imagine what a 2 minute call would have done? "I'm sorry, Mrs. Moo, but your coupon has expired. I will however be very happy to send you out one that has not expired. You have a wonderful day!" <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>I do agree that customer service is the face of any organization. But this member didn't call customer service. He/she called the marketing department. Marketing issues the coupons. I'm not sure what position that person would be in to honor coupons or magically make expired coupons not be expired anymore. In any event, I'm still looking forward to hearing from Moo about what his/her expectations are.

Cecilia
[email]ladyndnver@aol.com[/email]

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My Wedding!

[zimmerjulie]

I have found it to be a problem with all cruise lines I have worked with...more often than not, they do not return phone calls. Perhaps Karen is on vacation and in this particular instance, my generalization is not valid. Also, in a lot of cases, calls ARE returned. I, however, have come to expect the worst and usually do not even bother to leave messages any more, with any cruise line. I simply get someone on the phone, take down names, and get to someone who can answer my question. I have found with dealing with NCL lately, that the CS agents are eager to help and very friendly. I, personally, have had good luck in working out "issues" and getting the help I needed.

This approach may not be the best for everyone, but it is a lot less frustrating for me than waiting for a return call.

I agree that calls should be returned, or they shouldn't bother to have a message system. It only sets up unfulfilled expectations. Simply "Karen is not in at the moment, please call back at a later time or push "whatever number" to be connected to another representative" would be better for me, if they are not going to return the messages anyway.

JMHO

The separate issue, for me, is feeling entitled to use an expired coupon, even if you have brought two other couples in on cruise plans, or are Latitudes members, or whatever.

I say, in the nicest way, that it is HARD enough to use a valid coupon. Don't set yourself up for the disappointment, frustration, and struggle to try to get this small benefit. I want to write, "It is not worth it!", but I have no way of knowing if it would be so for you. I know it wouldn't be worth it for me.

Good luck [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[cliffd64]

Since when is calling the wrong individual (not to mention the wrong department) and expecting results a measure of customer service, good or bad?

Do you frequently call the CEO of your local Electric Company when you have a high bill complaint? Probably not.

Do you call the director of marketing for your telephone company to report a problem on your line or even to sign up for new service? Again, not likely.

I don't believe it's a reflection on customer service when you don't call Customer Service in the first place.

Next time on a cruise, try calling the head chef when you want more towels in your cabin... I'm certain you'll get similar results.

There are plenty of reasons why NCL's customer service reps could use some work, but frankly there really isn't anything to complain about when you call the wrong person.

Cliff


Carnival Holiday November 2001
Norwegian Sky 11/4/2002
Norwegian Sky 11/11/2002
Norwegian Wind 10/11/2003
Norwegian Dawn 12/14/2003
Norwegian Sun 02/08/2004

[mommiemudd]

We had a coupon that expired in January as well. We just took a chance and used it anyway and NCL accepted it without any problems and gave us our upgrade. They did this for my sister-in-law also. We mailed it to our travel agent and they in turn sent it to NCL. Granted it took about 6 weeks to find out if it was accepted but we received a call 2 weeks ago that we received a 2 category upgrade on our Alaskan cruise in August. We wanted adjoining rooms and when we upgraded they made sure that we still had adjoining rooms. So before contacting upper management-just see if they will accept the coupon.

Norwegian Spirit Aug '04
Norwegian Sun April '03

[Tomct]

I just booked my 4th cruise, all on NCL, but still consider myself a rookie at booking. I'm learning, and getting better. From what I've seen of the NCL coupons, they aren't all that valuable. In the case of the original poster, here, I think the best call would have been to NCL sales, and see what kind of a deal they would offer, vs. the one on the table. As most of us have learned, there are plenty of deals to be had out there. I also had a gut feeling that NCL may honor such expired coupons, as they might be happy to take the sale at $100 off, except maybe on a high demand cruise. Mommiemudd seems to have confirmed that they CAN do this, at least under some circumstances.

As for customer service, I've only had a few easy questions for them to answer for me, and and they have always been very cooperative, and seemingly very interested in keeping me happy. I too, question why you would go so hihg in a large company to get an answer to a question that could be gotten much lower in the chain. It is at that time you may want to reach higher if you feel justified.

Tom/Connecticut

[98Charlie]

Moo

Did you book the future cruise through a TA or with NCL directly? Most reports on these boards from all cruise lines is that you will have little or no success as an individual in dealing with the Customer Service Department. A TA can carry more weight when contacting the cruise lines.

I have to agree that the chances of your getting a return phone call from any VP are slim to none. More than 20,000 people cruise on NCL during any given week. If 1% have a problem that they feel deserves a phone call to the VP and the call takes 5 minutes, the VP would be on the phone about 17 hours a week or nearly 900 hours a year.

The bottom line is to have your TA go to bat for you. If that fails and you feel strongly about the situation, vote with your feet. The cruise is far enough off that you can cancel the whole thing and go with another cruise line.

Good Luck!

[johnql]

I may have missed it, but has the OP been back to this thread since the original post? Or is it a "hit and run" complaint by a first-time poster?

[98Charlie]

Nope. OP hasn't returned. But, it's been less than 2 days since the original post. It's interesting that OP has been registered for almost a year before the first post.