VIFP Problem - Carnival Deleated my past account (AND my past sailings)

[RecoveryDude]

Hi!

 

Having a problem with my VIFP account - Recently I ended up with TWO VIFP numbers - So a Carnival Service Rep graciously offered to "merge" the two accounts - However, I have now discovered that all my past Carnival cruises are GONE, and no longer part of my record because the VIFP number that was "kept" was the "new" one.

 

The only cruise I actually remember the ship date is the one I was on the day the 9/11 attacks happened ... Obviously I remember that cruise, but other that that one .... there are 4 other cruises that I have no idea the dates or ships, and this is going back 10+ years, and many moves ago, and it's before facebook or socail media so I have no way of figuring out the info.

 

Carnival was able to locate the 2001 cruise I provided the date for, but they keep telling me they "can't locate my other cruises" (I doubt they even looked) and that I need to tell them the exact dates I cruised, which I obviously don't have.

 

It seems to me that Carnival is NOT taking ANY accountability for the fact that it was THEM that deleated my old account with those cruises, and if they hadn't have done that, I wouldnt be having this problem.

 

HELP! Can anyone tell me how I can escalate this? It's 22 cruising days that have disappeared. Im ready to email the CEO of Carnival if I need to. This is just not fair. Any advice you can give me would be appreciated!!!

 

Thanks!

 

Jeff aka Recovery Dude

[evandbob]

Did you sail solo or with friends and/or family? Did you meet anyone on any of these missing cruises? Perhaps what job you were at and how you took vacations might jog your memory? Excursions you took? Cabins you were booked in? Credit card payments?

 

If you know the # of days missing, maybe the length of each cruise could lead you to the port you cruised from, which could then give you the ship you were on and when?

 

Good luck......

[RecoveryDude]

Did you sail solo or with friends and/or family? Did you meet anyone on any of these missing cruises? Perhaps what job you were at and how you took vacations might jog your memory? Excursions you took? Cabins you were booked in? Credit card payments?

 

If you know the # of days missing, maybe the length of each cruise could lead you to the port you cruised from, which could then give you the ship you were on and when?

 

Good luck......

 

 

Quite frankly, I should not have to spend my time "jogging my memory" when it's carnivals screw up that caused this - and i already knew the ports i sailed from (Tampa for 3 and either MIA or FLL for the other) but they say the need more info and that's all I remember.

 

 

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[WindyFreedom]

I really hope this gets resolved!! I agree you shouldn't have to jog your memory but it sounds like Carnival is willing to try to resolve this issue. I can see where they're coming from but also where your frustration lies. I wish I had something useful to say. Just really wanted to express how much I hope it gets resolved! I felt so bad reading your post bc that would crush me.

 

Good luck and again I really do hope it gets fixed!! :)

[RiotAct]

My thinking is, they wouldn't be asking you for the cruise details if they could look you up in their database. So, why not just tell them four random cruises from the past?

 

It sounds like they can't cross-check what you tell them against their records, and like you said, it's their fault for losing that info in the first place.

[oncruisecontrol]

I have kept every sail & sign card from every cruise I have taken. This has come in handy when I needed Carnival to straighten out my VFIP record. This may help you if you have the S&S cards. And if you don't have the cards, maybe your friends/family you sailed with have theirs and you can at least get the dates of the sailings.

[ATL_Miami_Cruiser]

All this info is kept in Carnival's database, both online and offline (archived backup). It's not hard for a DBA or Sys admin to recover your entire VFIP number and past cruises. The request just needs to make it to the right internal support team and the quicker you act the easier it will be to fix.

 

Call Carnival and ask to speak with a supervisor. Tell them to engage their IT team to recover your sailing history. If they give you some BS excuse then e-mail the Carnival exec team, they'll get your issue resolved.

 

Good luck!

[alreadypacked]

OP, sorry this has happened to you. I sympathize because much the same has happened to me numerous times with Carnival. Their system would confuse me not only with my sister, but sometimes with another Carnival customer (who I don't even know), but we all live in FL and have similar names and I'd end up deleted. Each time this happened the only way it got truly fixed (well, until the next time it happened anyway) was by contacting Mischelle Beattie at Carnival. Her email (hopefully it's still the same) is mbeattie@carnival.com.

 

Mischelle was always able to fix my past guest record, but really the thing that finally stopped it from happening was simply that I got married and changed my last name.

 

Like another poster, I also had all previous sail and sign cards except one, so that did help but I still think Mischelle could help you. She's helped many others here with various problems.

 

Best of luck to you!

[Gardeneroflove]

did you take any pictures?

do you have s&s cards?

can you search bank or cc statements?

search your email?

 

We had to search dh's email for the dates of ours, easier than searching pictures, once I had the dates, then there was no issue. If you can get close-year and month, that will also help, along with ship name/port.

Edited September 22, 2015 by Gardeneroflove

[RecoveryDude]

did you take any pictures?

 

do you have s&s cards?

 

can you search bank or cc statements?

 

search your email?

 

 

These were before digital pics and I've moved many times since then - these were mostly "party" trips - no S&S cards either and I have changed banks several times with all the moves and there was no email back then..... Hence my challenge to find the information....

 

 

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[LuckyZ]

I realize we live in an electronic age, but I keep paper copies of everything.

 

As for my VIFP account, I printed a hard copy of my cruise history directly from the website and keep it in a file just in case they lose my history.

 

Hope they can go into their archives and find your file

Edited September 22, 2015 by LuckyZ

[Glock19]

I realize we live in an electronic age, but I keep paper copies of everything.

 

As for my VIFP account, I printed a hard copy of my cruise history directly from the website and keep it in a file just in case they lose my history.

 

Hope they can go into their archives and find your file

That's a great idea. Thank you

Edited September 22, 2015 by Glock19

[jandb6266]

Sorry to hear about carnivals screw up. I read a post like yours about a

year ago. I immediately went into carnivals VIFP site and printed out all my past cruises. I printed out dates, cabins and cabin categories. If they

happen to lose mine I have all the information to give them. Just

remember to add a cruise after you get back to keep all records updated.

GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY SAILING.

[cruising maniac]

I had to dig through years of crap to find receipts, pictures, or some kind of proof to reach platinum. There were several cruises that I could not get exact dates or proof of sailing. You may be in the same situation. I would suggest calling until you reach a helpful person. They should be able to research your old number and merge the two. I have been on too many cruises to keep all of that stuff so now I make sure that I have been credited on the cruise line website. I was able to get credit for both DH and I on some missing cruises because we always cruise together and they had only credited one of us. I think I will printout all of my info as suggested by another poster. Good luck.

[Jana60]

Quite frankly, I should not have to spend my time "jogging my memory" when it's carnivals screw up that caused this - and i already knew the ports i sailed from (Tampa for 3 and either MIA or FLL for the other) but they say the need more info and that's all I remember.

 

 

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I understand that this upset you but realistically Carnival has to have some type of information if they are to enter cruise dates that they have no record of. I don't think it's necessarily them being difficult, I think it's them being responsible. After all, regardless of who caused the error, if they just go in and arbitrarily add days to your record without even entering a sail date, then what's to keep everyone from expected them to just add days to their total.

I have my credit card statements back at least 7 years since these are often support for my income tax business expenses so I sort of assumed most people have at least seven years of records. So while you might have difficulty finding records prior to that you should at least have the records of your cruises during the past 7 years.

Edited September 22, 2015 by Jana60

[RiotAct]

I understand that this upset you but realistically Carnival has to have some type of information if they are to enter cruise dates that they have no record of. I don't think it's necessarily them being difficult, I think it's them being responsible. After all, regardless of who caused the error, if they just go in and arbitrarily add days to your record without even entering a sail date, then what's to keep everyone from expected them to just add days to their total.

 

I would think Carnival runs database backups every so often... if they don't, that's on them. The onus shouldn't be on the cruiser to keep meticulous hardcopy records of their transactions with Carnival, IMO.

[Retired_to_Cruise]

You said that they were supposed to merge two VIFP numbers to get all of your cruises together. Somewhere in their systems there have to be the individual cruise records for each of the bookings that the VIFP numbers were used on. They need to be reminded of those two VIFP numbers and told to go back into their history files and search for those records and bring them to your VIFP account record. This has to be done by a systems guy. They have no excuse for not being able to do this.

[fuddrules]

I would think Carnival runs database backups every so often... if they don't, that's on them. The onus shouldn't be on the cruiser to keep meticulous hardcopy records of their transactions with Carnival, IMO.

 

Agreed, but....

 

If you don't and Carnival insists they can not locate any records, what are your options?

 

I do hope the OP gets his days back but find his user name kind of ironic.

 

Also, if it doesn't work out, at least at the rate the VIFP thing is going, you're not out much. I think current gold status is worth about....$15-20 dollars per cruise and I'm likely being generous. The VIFP thing is more about "Status" than value.

Edited September 22, 2015 by fuddrules

[CCLMischelle]

Hi!

 

Having a problem with my VIFP account - Recently I ended up with TWO VIFP numbers - So a Carnival Service Rep graciously offered to "merge" the two accounts - However, I have now discovered that all my past Carnival cruises are GONE, and no longer part of my record because the VIFP number that was "kept" was the "new" one.

 

The only cruise I actually remember the ship date is the one I was on the day the 9/11 attacks happened ... Obviously I remember that cruise, but other that that one .... there are 4 other cruises that I have no idea the dates or ships, and this is going back 10+ years, and many moves ago, and it's before facebook or socail media so I have no way of figuring out the info.

 

Carnival was able to locate the 2001 cruise I provided the date for, but they keep telling me they "can't locate my other cruises" (I doubt they even looked) and that I need to tell them the exact dates I cruised, which I obviously don't have.

 

It seems to me that Carnival is NOT taking ANY accountability for the fact that it was THEM that deleated my old account with those cruises, and if they hadn't have done that, I wouldnt be having this problem.

 

HELP! Can anyone tell me how I can escalate this? It's 22 cruising days that have disappeared. Im ready to email the CEO of Carnival if I need to. This is just not fair. Any advice you can give me would be appreciated!!!

 

Thanks!

 

Jeff aka Recovery Dude

 

Hi Jeff,

 

I'm sorry to see you're having trouble with your VIFP profile. Please send me all of your details (full name, date of birth and address) to cclsupport@carnival.com and I'll be happy to assist.

[evandbob]

Let's hope that CCL MIschelle can help recover Recovery Dude's sailing history. I am in no way faulting him, I was in the same position once with 2 VIP #'s (before they became VIFP).

I had read similar threads on CC and had already established a practice of using double stick tape to affix my S&S cards from all my cruises to the side of my refrigerator. (The front is reserved for souvenier magnets). I update my signature on CC as I cruise, and I maintain a backup copy of my cruising history on my computer.

 

So what I learned here on CC from others struggling with merging VIFP #'s or lost histories helped make my own situation different from Recovery Dude's. As I said, I hope his issue gets resolved and even better, others take preventative measures to thwart this same thing from happening to themselves.

 

One might say I can't be bothered or it won't matter because I don't sail enough. Well I said those same things too, and now I have 153 sea days with Carnival with another 46 booked bringing me to 199 - 1 short of diamond.

[Nic6318]

Quite frankly, I should not have to spend my time "jogging my memory" when it's carnivals screw up that caused this - and i already knew the ports i sailed from (Tampa for 3 and either MIA or FLL for the other) but they say the need more info and that's all I remember.

 

 

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I realize this is Carnival's screw up and it is inconvenient for you, but unless someone at Carnival can just " fix it ", I think you are going to have to figure your best option.

 

As Evanbob asked...Did you travel with friends or family?

If so the cruises and dates would be listed in their cruise history.

It's only 4 cruises you should be able to track down the information.

 

Good luck in resolving this

[Nic6318]

I see Mischelle will be able to help you.:)

 

once again this is a great site

[lovebears]

Mischelle is wonderful! :-)

[mkam2821]

Because cruise lines, airlines, etc. change their programs, merge and/or are bought out and their loyalty programs can and do change, I keep a saved file on my computer of all o my different loyalty #s (though not of all of my trips). Can you search an old email from Carnival which might have your older loyalty # or trip confirmation # which could assist CCL in tracking down your previous sailing info? (I have a really unusual last name so it's easy to find old history which CCL did for me a few years back)

[maldenmusic]

This exact thing happened to me last May; 2 different VIFP numbers and after several calls a rep said she would merge them. Well, they deleted by Gold number and somehow I became a blue, 1st time cruiser. It took several phone calls and emails and they finally said they would fix again. Now I have 2 new VIFP numbers-one gold, with the correct number of cruises and one blue that says I have never cruised. I also have saved all my S&S cards and that's how I was able to provide all the dates to recover past cruises. CCL could make this much simpler but the truth is, they probably don't want to. Keep after them.