Back to the "old" OBC leftover policy

[PescadoAmarillo]

Is your Military OBC showing non-refundable too? Just checked our statement for our next cruise and the Military OBC has no asterisk but our others do.

Not that it matters much, I'm sure we won't have anything left over even though we took advantage of the Pre-Paid Gratuities with the latest 'sale' :-)

 

Military is the only one we get that is still refundable. I don't know what Captains Circle will be, but I suspect it's nonrefundable.

[Ethel5]

Princess (to my knowledge) never announced a policy of having all OBC refundable.

 

It only became "common knowledge" when some passengers posted it on Cruise Critic.

 

As there never was an announced policy of refunding all unused OBC, it is hard to complain that what never was announced as policy is being changed.

 

I often wonder how much of a headache CC causes Princess! ;)

[pablo222]

Princess (to my knowledge) never announced a policy of having all OBC refundable.

 

True ... but if I have a booking that has four credits listed,

and one has an asterisk that it's not refundable, what does

that mean the others are?

[pablo222]

I agree with this. People were up in arms about not being notified about a $10 charge for Alfredo's. One day, we had well over $5000 in OBCs on our future Princess bookings all marked (right or wrong, but Princess determined this) as refundable. The next day they were non-refundable. That's a huge change, and kind of makes a $10 Alfredo's charge pale in comparison.

 

I'm afraid what will happen in this case -- there was be some cruises for

a month or so, where the retroactive change is enforced. Customers

will complain. Princess will change the policy to only bookings going

forward.

 

...and, I will cruise within the window, and take one for the team.

 

BTW, I went to the mall -- walked right into the apple store -- no line.

Of course, they were completely sold out of iPhone 6

 

So, good thing you waited!

[Avalon35]

I often wonder how much of a headache CC causes Princess! ;)

 

 

Actually, Princess is probably very happy you point out all the loopholes so they can close them.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Ethel5]

Actually, Princess is probably very happy you point out all the loopholes so they can close them.

 

Actually, it's people bragging about how to cheat the system with cashing out OBC, using coffee cards with one punch to get the brewed coffee forever, how to smuggle booze and bypass the table, how to walk off before your group has been called, how to whine and complain to get compensated etc that alerts Princess. :rolleyes:

[pablo222]

Actually, it's people bragging about how to cheat the system with cashing out OBC

 

There wasn't any cheating, that was the way it worked.

 

I once tried to disembark from Grand, and the Apass alerted

when I dinged out.

 

I had to return the the passenger service desk, and resolve my account

-- which had a CREDIT of less than a dollar remaining.

 

It took like 10 minutes, they filled out some form that I had to sign,

and they gave me the change.

 

I would have been far happier to have been on my way 10 minutes sooner.

 

So, where was the cheating?

 

(after that, I was very careful to never have a credit balance at

the end of the cruise)

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

It seems odd that no on addresses the casino usage. If you have OBC left over, go to a slot machine withdraw against your account, then cash out your players bank.

 

Though I have never had left over credit. At most I have only received $200 which is easily covered by the gratuity.

 

We always withdraw all dollars & let them charge my credit card to get double points.

 

If you don't want to or can't use your OBC....then don't. But to expect that it is DUE you in the form of cash is ludicrous.

 

As long as the system works as it did last week we'll continue to withdraw what ever they let us & charge the rest, which was all of our OB credit. For years my TA's credit was tagged as being non-refundable & that was never true. It was a statement posted in hopes to of making people spend the money on board without questioning it.

In the future I'll have to find out for myself what they allow & don't allow and proceed from there. ;)

[billco]

Actually, it's people bragging about how to cheat the system with cashing out OBC, using coffee cards with one punch to get the brewed coffee forever, how to smuggle booze and bypass the table, how to walk off before your group has been called, how to whine and complain to get compensated etc that alerts Princess. :rolleyes:

I've learned a lot reading these forums.

[bhopal21]

I've learned a lot reading these forums.

 

Likewise.

 

It was just a few weeks ago that posters were boasting about disembarking a $300-$400 cruise with more than than cashed out at disembarkation and POOF now that's history.;)

 

Mike:)

[PescadoAmarillo]

Princess (to my knowledge) never announced a policy of having all OBC refundable.

They didn't have to announce it. My TA would provide us a listing of our OBCs right from the Princess booking engine to take with us onboard in the event there was an issue. They were all marked refundable (under the column that said: Refundable there was the word Yes next to each with the exception of $90 Goodwill credit we got when three cruises we had booked were cancelled ($15pp per cruise)). I kept all of these print outs. Then yesterday she sent us the new ones and they had all changed to No except for military.

 

Again, I understand that the intent of OBC is that it is spent on board. I have never had any issue doing that. But to accuse people of cheating who were given refunds of clearly refundable OBC (so much so that they weren't allowed to leave the ship until they were) is wrong. And to change a policy with such monetary impact after a booking is finalized is equally wrong. They grandfathered Internet for suites, for Pete's sake.

[bhopal21]

They grandfathered Internet for suites, for Pete's sake.

 

With all due respect, I can't see the correlation there.

 

Mike:)

[Astro Flyer]

To me Princess never notified us that "complimentary onboard" credit would be refundable & those who ended a cruise with cash in their pockets received a cash gift. Thus I don't think it's necessary to notify or to grandfather returning to the purpose of "complimentary onboard" credit...use it or lose it.

 

To me the only mistake Princess has made was ever refunding any "complimentary onboard" credit. They probably thought it would be a nice gesture to refund a few dollars at an end of a cruise. It turned into a big cash drain when too many used it to subsidize the cost of their cruise by leaving the ship with hundreds of dollars.

 

If this is such a major issue to some passengers then it's your prerogative to take your business elsewhere. Losing some passengers would probably be less of a cash drain for Princess than having passengers end a cruise with cash in their pockets from "complementary onboard" credit.

[Sandy R]

Not sure if this has been covered... is "Loyalty" credit non-refundable?

 

If Military Benefits "are" refundable, can I use that amount when playing the slots in the casino?

 

Also, are non-refundable credits used for daily gratuities?

 

We've sailed 46 cruises with Princess and have a lot of OBC. Sometimes we use it all, sometimes not. I liked Princess returning our unused OBC. I wouldn't mind if the unused credit carried over to a future cruise I booked. I'm not happy with the change. That OBC kept me sailing Princess. In the future, I will probably compare other cruise line itineraries.

Edited October 9, 2014 by Sandy R

[shredie]

And to change a policy with such monetary impact after a booking is finalized is equally wrong. They grandfathered Internet for suites, for Pete's sake.

 

This change reminds me of the Regal's room service/Alfredo's surprise charges of recent memory. I did not agree then that springing a charge on passengers after they had booked (indeed, boarded) was a fair move, but as I recall, you thought it was useful and necessary and had no issue with the policy change:

 

May 27, 2014 (from a closed thread) "Princess was entirely within its right to implement these fees. It perturbs me, and I imagine that it has given some at Princess pause, too, that some of its loyal passengers would so quickly turn on them when it tries to implement new usage-based fees. We cruise Princess often enough and for long enough periods to know that policies change, and prices change, from one cruise to the next. We have never, and would never make a complaint about it."

 

I have no dog in this fight, as they say, since it is beyond unlikely I will ever have excess OBC, but I do think Princess is wrong again in springing a monetary policy change on people with no prior warning. If you choose to complain about it in this instance, I support your complaint.

Edited October 9, 2014 by shredie

[PescadoAmarillo]

With all due respect, I can't see the correlation there.

 

Mike:)

 

Princess changed the financial terms of bookings after final payment. I don't see why it is any different than saying Alfredo's is free and then starting to charge for it, or promising free internet for suites and then taking it away (the former was reversed and the latter was grandfathered).

 

It is really no different than if Princess had said, after final booking of the free cruises last year, that passengers had to spend the full amount of their cruise fare on board that cruise and that there would be no future cruise credit. That would have been a change in financial terms. Passengers wouldn't have lost anything; they simply would have had a different financial agreement than what they agreed to when they made final payment.

 

I agree, Princess created a monster when they started refunding OBC in the very beginning, but that is irrelevant to how they now proceed. Right or wrong, their own systems stated one thing one day and something different the next. I guess I'm having trouble understanding why people were so up in arms about Alfredo's and Suite Internet and not about this. I hope it's not because one affected them and the other did not.

[bhopal21]

I hope it's not because one affected them and the other did not.

 

Not in my case.

 

I was upset at the elimination of internet for suites as I felt (still feel) that it was a benefit that we had paid for; whereas in the case of Onboard Credit I view it as a gift from Princess for loyalty et al and have never expected to "carry it home".

 

Just my opinion, of course.

 

Mike:)

[I Love NC]

I Read most of the comments. IF you decide to spend all of your OBC vs loose it,,,,,,,and you decide to spend it on spa, flowers, photos, liquor, jewelry, perfume....you are spending it at the outside vendors on the ship!

 

The money gets transferred out of your pocket/account and into the pockets/accounts of the various vendors! I don't need another shirt, more perfume, more jewelry, I don't drink, need another tour, etc...get the point.

 

We all have an opinion, I prefer the OBC go to ME...so I can taken another Princess cruise...and pay Princess...you see Princess will be making more money, not the various vendors.

 

The bottom line....does Princess want the big businness profiting or do they want to make their customers happy...let those who spend all their OBC do so, and those who do not, get their cash credited to their account on the final day!!

[pablo222]

So, good thing you waited!

 

Sorry, that was supposed to be "good thing you didn't wait!"

[PescadoAmarillo]

Sorry, that was supposed to be "good thing you didn't wait!"

I knew what you meant. ;) And it is a good thing. We've downloaded hours and hours of movies and TV shows on our new iPhones in preparation for cruising, and it takes time to do that. I didn't think I'd have an issue getting a 6 (though, as you say, maybe I would have), but knew DH would still be waiting for his 6 plus 128G. Plus, he's had to shop for several pairs of cargo shorts and pants to hold the darn thing. :rolleyes:

 

Aside from the fact that, for a day or so, we both felt like we'd been rode hard and put away wet from getting up in the middle of the night and waiting in line for hours (further proof we are no longer young), it was a very good thing.

[Astro Flyer]

If Military Benefits "are" refundable, can I use that amount when playing the slots in the casino?

 

Also, are non-refundable credits used for daily gratuities?

Both shareholder & military OBCs state they're not usable for casino credit or gratuities. Currently Princess does not enforce the tips restricted but some have posted it's now being enforced for casino credits. To me if Princess were to no longer allow these OBCs to be used for tips that could result in them no longer being our most cost-effective cruise option.

[canadarocks]

I'm not sure how reliable the following information is, as we've seen how things can change significantly without notice. We don't have military or shareholder credits, but we do have a fair amount of OBC for our cruise next year. I had my TA call and ask specifically about using our OBC for the auto-tips. She was told by Princess that although there has been some "confusion" with OBCs, they can certainly still be used to pay the daily gratuity charge. And they assured her that would not be changing.

 

Whether Princess holds true to that remains to be seen, I suppose.

[Thorpe]

I would never have thought they wouldn't be able to.

[Astro Flyer]

I'm not sure how reliable the following information is, as we've seen how things can change significantly without notice. We don't have military or shareholder credits, but we do have a fair amount of OBC for our cruise next year. I had my TA call and ask specifically about using our OBC for the auto-tips. She was told by Princess that although there has been some "confusion" with OBCs, they can certainly still be used to pay the daily gratuity charge. And they assured her that would not be changing.

 

Whether Princess holds true to that remains to be seen, I suppose.

 

I was told the same thing by a Customer Service rep who called in response to my email...OBCs (including my shareholder and military) are usable for gratuities & sailing in about 2 weeks will discover if it's true.

Edited October 9, 2014 by Astro Flyer

[bigenna]

If they still allow gratuities to be deducted from non refundable OBC that will be okay with me. Due to various sources, even after tips are deducted we will have close to $500 to spend or lose. We don't drink or gamble so it will be an UBD for sure and then we will have to see.

Sure would be nice if some of the money could be used for a cabin category upgrade. One can only dream........