Carnival says that I am a fraudster, and refuses to let me pay for my cruise????

[A&Jfamily]

not an option, I do not keep high credit limits on my cards. Also, I do not feel comfortable emailing my credit card information.

 

 

 

Are you saying that you don't even have a $2000 limit on a credit card? Yet you are taking a cruise???

 

What if you are in a foreign port, get ill, and they require that sum upfront to render treatment? What if you needed emergency plane tickets home?

 

I feel much safer using a credit card than my bank card...

 

 

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[winddawn]

Wow. Sorry this happened to you. I hope you get it worked out. There is so much information online about fraud related to the websites that sell discounted gift cards. It's important to distinguish those websites that sell discounted gift cards from those that have legitimate programs that allow you to purchase discounted gift cards in exchange for points from some kind of rewards program. They truly are 2 different types of transactions. It's so important to be an informed consumer.

 

Best wishes for a favorable outcome.

[dacsmom]

Glad to hear it all worked out for you even though it was a hassle. Enjoy your cruise.

[lizardhowson]

You and a bunch of others got so excited to save 10% you failed to do any research before purchasing your compromised cards.

 

That website is rampant with gift card fraud. Carnival is having literally hundreds of worthless cards submitted. Personally, I think Carnival is well with reason to lock up the accounts of all those who submitted bad gift cards.

 

As with everything in life, buyer beware ! If it seems too good to be true, it probably isn't. All these scams work due to people's greed, plain and simple. Stick with the 3 verified vendors of discounted Carnival gift cards and you will never have this issue again.

[lazydayz]

Stick with the 3 verified vendors of discounted Carnival gift cards and you will never have this issue again.

 

I got mine at Publix. Is that one of the verified vendors? By the way, I had no issues applying to my remaining balance.

[martinchem]

OP-Well, the easiest way is to make one payment, but you've said that isn't a preference for you due to card limit choices.

 

Only other ways I know of are to make payment by check (personal, cashier), money order, Western Union or bank wire. All of those are more inconvenient IMO, but it is up to you whether using the credit authorization form or a making single charge are more or less onerous. But those are your options.

 

I was thinking just mail a personal check, bank check or money order myself.

[Fla Mike]

I got mine at Publix. Is that one of the verified vendors? By the way, I had no issues applying to my remaining balance.

 

Maybe you need to go back and read your original post.

 

You said you bought them online...now it's Publix...

 

Ok, hmmm.

[firemanbobswife]

Maybe you need to go back and read your original post.

 

You said you bought them online...now it's Publix...

 

Ok, hmmm.

 

I think you have your posters mixed up. Hmmmmm.

[spookyfudge]

not an option, I do not keep high credit limits on my cards. Also, I do not feel comfortable emailing my credit card information.

 

Well it looks like you are not going to cruise with Canrnival again, I think most cruisers pay via one credit card, so good luck in the future. Also werent you a little suspicious on the internet site you bought them from based on customers comments buying from that site? Wow you will buy anything!

[perditax]

I work in an industry with a high rate of credit card fraud, and requiring this kind of verification after an incident is standard for us.

[emdia43]

What is so risky in giving Carnival your credit card info by email? Isn't it the same thing as your making payments online?

[The4Cruisers]

What is so risky in giving Carnival your credit card info by email? Isn't it the same thing as your making payments online?

 

I find email to be more secure than a fax any day of the week! But I respect OP's opinion.

 

Hope it all works out.

[CheapieD]

You and a bunch of others got so excited to save 10% you failed to do any research before purchasing your compromised cards.

 

 

 

That website is rampant with gift card fraud. Carnival is having literally hundreds of worthless cards submitted. Personally, I think Carnival is well with reason to lock up the accounts of all those who submitted bad gift cards.

 

 

 

As with everything in life, buyer beware ! If it seems too good to be true, it probably isn't. All these scams work due to people's greed, plain and simple. Stick with the 3 verified vendors of discounted Carnival gift cards and you will never have this issue again.

 

 

 

The OP did nothing wrong. She purchased a gift card at discount. Card cash is a legitimate website and completes thousands of transactions without issues. The fact that she is worried about Keeping her credit card information is a good thing. If more people kept their information and passwords secure fraudsters wouldn't be able obtain and use stolen credit Card numbers to buy gift cards. There are also more than 3 vendors that sell gift cards at a discount and the 3 you are implying aren't even gift card merchants but rewards programs.

 

 

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[Geargoesdown]

I bought a (last minute) international airline ticket through an online TA because the price was about half of what others were charging. Anyways, I bought two tickets and the other person had a different last name than me. They made me fax in photo ID and one of those credit authorization form or the were going to cancel my reservation. I guess I raised a red flag or something. So it's something companies do (not just Carnival) if something seems off.

[poz222]

Thanks for the heads up and reminding others to be wary of such discount sites and the issues they can cause... I am happy the website at least refunded your money, I have heard of others who do not!

[sanger727]

After being laughed at by a manager, named "Candy" due to my hesitation of sending my credit card information via email (and to all those who think this is safe, I assure you, its not).

 

 

 

So, you've already given your credit card number to this shady company that sells bogus gift cards. And you'd be ok with paying your bill via credit card will it will be stored in an online database where it can be hacked. But sending it via email vs fax is where you draw the line?

 

This is was credit cards r for. An account number funded by visa's money. If there are fraudulent charges you don't pay them and just get a new card issued.

 

 

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[IrritatedEllipses]

Just a quick point of fact from a nerd:

 

A fax machine has no protocol for encryption and are absolutely not secure. Remember that annoying sound you heard when your dialup was handshaking or you picked up the phone when someone was online? All you'd have to do is capture that sound from a fax and you'd have the fax for yourself.

 

Emails can (and should) be automatically encrypted and are far, far more secure.

[bUU]

The OP did nothing wrong.

Similarly, Carnival is doing nothing wrong. Each made decisions that they felt would benefit or protect themselves, respectively.

 

So, you've already given your credit card number to this shady company that sells bogus gift cards. And you'd be ok with paying your bill via credit card will it will be stored in an online database where it can be hacked. But sending it via email vs fax is where you draw the line?

I posted this in another thread about this:

You may want to see if your credit card company offers something like this:

 

https://www.bankofamerica.com/privacy/accounts-cards/shopsafe.go

[LaCal]

Sorry this happened but my question is.....Once the place you stated the place you bought the gift cards from totally refunded your money

 

Why didnt you then use the $1,350 or $1,500 to pay on the cruises instead of trying to make payments?

[IndyDenise]

I'd like to know why you are annoyed at Carnival for protecting themselves from your actions?

 

They didn't tell you to buy fraudulent cards and to use them.

 

Be annoyed.. yes.. but at yourself.. this is not Carnival's fault.

 

 

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[TrinaLC]

You and a bunch of others got so excited to save 10% you failed to do any research before purchasing your compromised cards.

 

That website is rampant with gift card fraud. Carnival is having literally hundreds of worthless cards submitted. Personally, I think Carnival is well with reason to lock up the accounts of all those who submitted bad gift cards.

 

As with everything in life, buyer beware ! If it seems too good to be true, it probably isn't. All these scams work due to people's greed, plain and simple. Stick with the 3 verified vendors of discounted Carnival gift cards and you will never have this issue again.

 

Yikes, that's a little harsh, isn't it? Basically calling the OP greedy for trying to save 10%? WHere I come from that is thrifty and admirable.

[lizardhowson]

Card cash is a legitimate website and completes thousands of transactions without issues.

 

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but the website is a major site of gift card fraud. If one takes just a moment to research the website, that is apparent. I believe the operators of the website are trying to run a legitimate business but dishonest gift card sellers are ruining the concept.

[Purvis1231]

So annoyed, never had anything like this happen. I booked a cruise back in July (12/10) on the Dream, paid my deposit for a spa balcony room, and went on my way. I decided to shop around online for carnival gift cards, as I know sometimes you can get them at a discounted rate, I found a website (reputable it seemed called card cash) where you could purchase gift cards at 10% off face value. I purchased enough to cover the entire balance of the cruise, added them to my account, cruise was paid for, before the end of July.

 

Just so happens, I checked online to see how many days until the cruise, and my cruise manager stated i owe over $1500, WHAT!? of course I call Carnival, in a panic to find out what happened (it was late night) the nice lady said I will need to call back during the day and speak to accounting to find out what happened, because all she can see is that the cards were "reversed". I call accounting the next morning, and speak to them, they state there is a scam going where basically someone uses compromised credit card information to buy gift cards, sells them to gift card brokers, the card holder sees charges, disputes charges, then the company removes the funds from the gift card, leaving the person who purchased the gift card out of luck.

 

Ok, fine, dandy, the website I purchased the cards from acknowledged the issue, promptly refunded me to my credit card I used to purchase the cards, all was fine and well, and I started making payments directly with my AMEX to Carnival (was making payments every few days as final payment is due on 9/26). Well, today I login to make a payment and I get an error stating that the company refuses my payment, so I called into Carnival, speak to a lady who states, no problem, she can take my payment, however she gets the same error. I was placed on hold for over 20 minutes as she called someone else, who advised that I am a fraudulent customer, because I used fraudulent gift cards, and the only way I can now make payments is if I send a "credit authorization form" via email EVERY time I make any type of payment.

 

I do not feel comfortable sending my credit card info via email, especially when I am splitting up payments, I had made a few payments after the gift card fiasco was resolved, has this ever happened to anyone else?? Customer service states there is nothing they can do, I am honestly tempted to request to have the booking cancelled due to Carnival refusing to let me pay for it (dare they say I will be penalized) and rebooking it (as the lady said this freeze was tied to my booking number) I asked if I could get a new booking number, I was advised no.

 

Any suggestions on where to go from here? As stated I do not feel like having my credit card number going over email multiple times.

 

Mail a check.

[dsykes2]

wow, flamed for trying to save 10%, I am sure none of you folks who posted your hateful comments have never purchased anything at a discount or percentage off have you?

 

CardCash IS a legitimate site, BBB accredited, and has plenty of good reviews

 

My actions? I bought the gift cards legally, used my money, redeemed them legally, I did NOTHING wrong. Did Carnival do anything wrong NO. However, I could see them not accepting any further gift cards on the booking, but this had NOTHING to do with my credit card.

 

I will be doing the credit authorization form today, and paying the cruise off.

[Hawaii697]

Are you saying that you don't even have a $2000 limit on a credit card? Yet you are taking a cruise???

 

What if you are in a foreign port, get ill, and they require that sum upfront to render treatment? What if you needed emergency plane tickets home?

 

I feel much safer using a credit card than my bank card...

 

 

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Where did she state she doesn't have a $2000 limit on her credit card? I believe she stated she does not want a high balance on her card. :rolleyes: