FYI Pre-Pay Gratuities

[C Cruise Dude]

I recently sailed on the Sky and called NCL 3 days before sailing. I told the rep that I wanted to pre-pay my gratuities and she said that everything was paid. You could imagine my shock when on the last night of sailing I receive a bill with a $19.99 per person per day charge on my print out. I explained to the Guest services person the situation and he said that there was nothing he could. To be fair, I have not taken this up with customer service yet or reviewed my contract. I suggest paying the gratuities in advance and settle with NCL if there is a problem onboard. Make sure that they give you something showing them paid.

[esm54687]

I recently sailed on the Sky and called NCL 3 days before sailing. I told the rep that I wanted to pre-pay my gratuities and she said that everything was paid. You could imagine my shock when on the last night of sailing I receive a bill with a $19.99 per person per day charge on my print out. I explained to the Guest services person the situation and he said that there was nothing he could. To be fair, I have not taken this up with customer service yet or reviewed my contract. I suggest paying the gratuities in advance and settle with NCL if there is a problem onboard. Make sure that they give you something showing them paid.

When you said you wanted to pre-pay gratuities to the rep....... the rep correctly answered you because you did pre-pay those as part of your fare. The rep should've followed up by asking you if you meant "Daily Service Charge". Shame they didn't take the time to ask that simple clarification but it's a legit charge you incurred.

[sanger727]

When you said you wanted to pre-pay gratuities to the rep....... the rep correctly answered you because you did pre-pay those as part of your fare. The rep should've followed up by asking you if you meant "Daily Service Charge". Shame they didn't take the time to ask that simple clarification but it's a legit charge you incurred.

 

 

 

Huh? What gratuities are ‘part of the fare’? Any customer service agent should have understood what the OP was trying to do since pre-paying those charges are offered at booking and in the cruise planner, regardless of what terminology they use.

 

That being said, the OP seemed aware of this additional charge and not sure why they are upset that it was added to the bill when they were prepared to pre-pay it anyways.

 

 

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[BirdTravels]

I recently sailed on the Sky and called NCL 3 days before sailing. I told the rep that I wanted to pre-pay my gratuities and she said that everything was paid. You could imagine my shock when on the last night of sailing I receive a bill with a $19.99 per person per day charge on my print out. I explained to the Guest services person the situation and he said that there was nothing he could. To be fair, I have not taken this up with customer service yet or reviewed my contract. I suggest paying the gratuities in advance and settle with NCL if there is a problem onboard. Make sure that they give you something showing them paid.

Do you have a receipt for the payment of the DSC?

[herdingdogmom]

If the DSC/gratuities/$19.99 per day charge was added to your original reservation, it would show up on your confirmation reservation as a separate line item and would have been part of your final payment amount. We have "prepaid" this way for 10+ cruises over the years and never been charged on board.

[barbatkins]

If the DSC/gratuities/$19.99 per day charge was added to your original reservation, it would show up on your confirmation reservation as a separate line item and would have been part of your final payment amount. We have "prepaid" this way for 10+ cruises over the years and never been charged on board.

When did the DSC go up to $20 per person per day?

[herdingdogmom]

When did the DSC go up to $20 per person per day?

OP was on the Sky which has higher DSC since drinks are all inclusive.

[valleyvillage]

To better address the demands of the enormously successful and the industry's only all-inclusive cruise experience offered on Norwegian Sky and Norwegian Sun, those ships' daily service charges will be:

· $19.99 per person per day for inside, oceanview and balcony staterooms

· $22.99 per person per day for suites

[esm54687]

Huh? What gratuities are ‘part of the fare’? Any customer service agent should have understood what the OP was trying to do since pre-paying those charges are offered at booking and in the cruise planner, regardless of what terminology they use.

 

That being said, the OP seemed aware of this additional charge and not sure why they are upset that it was added to the bill when they were prepared to pre-pay it anyways.

 

 

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- Huh!!?? Being that the Sky is all-inclusive, the "gratuities" would be "part of the fare" (20% that is normally added to an UBP on another ship).

- Perhaps the OP isn't the one who booked the cruise and the "booker" declined the option to pre-pay the DSC.... and the OP is now calling to pre pay

- That being said..... If it was me and knowing that there was an additional charge and if I called to pre-pay and I was told it was already included...... I'd be a little confused and upset to be handed a bill at the end as well especially since I called to take care of the additional charge. I'm ultimately responsible for that charge but based on the terminology confusion..... it was a suprise charge because I was told differently.

- Funniest part of your post when talking about NCL PCCs "any service agent should have" ..... have you read this forum and some of the PCCs responses \ answers to people? "Should have" is a consistent theme and it wouldn't suprise me the PCC answered based on the question asked about gratuity.

[Love my butler]

To better address the demands of the enormously successful and the industry's only all-inclusive cruise experience offered on Norwegian Sky and Norwegian Sun, those ships' daily service charges will be:

· $19.99 per person per day for inside, oceanview and balcony staterooms

· $22.99 per person per day for suites

 

For your convenience of course.......

[Two Wheels Only]

What probably happened was....

 

 

The phone rep has spent countless hours explaining to people that the UBP/UOB promo on other ships has a service charge of 20% added to the promo based on the retail price. When the OP mentioned the "gratuities", the phone rep thought "...everything is included.." as there is no added 20% since Sky doesn't have a UBP/UOB promo.

 

 

 

The OP wanted to pre-pay the DSC but the phone rep thought that the OP wanted to pay the UBP/UOB service charge.

[pe4all]

If the DSC/gratuities/$19.99 per day charge was added to your original reservation, it would show up on your confirmation reservation as a separate line item and would have been part of your final payment amount. We have "prepaid" this way for 10+ cruises over the years and never been charged on board.

Same here.

What probably happened was....

 

 

The phone rep has spent countless hours explaining to people that the UBP/UOB promo on other ships has a service charge of 20% added to the promo based on the retail price. When the OP mentioned the "gratuities", the phone rep thought "...everything is included.." as there is no added 20% since Sky doesn't have a UBP/UOB promo.

The OP wanted to pre-pay the DSC but the phone rep thought that the OP wanted to pay the UBP/UOB service charge.

Correct. The op probably did not distinguish between DSC and UBP/UDP grats, and the rep didn't fully explain the difference.

[zqvol]

OP should have just gone on line and paid it instead of calling.

[ray98]

If you thought you pre-paid the gratuities how did you not notice there was not a corresponding charge to your method of payment?

[esm54687]

If you thought you pre-paid the gratuities how did you not notice there was not a corresponding charge to your method of payment?

The OP did NOT think they pre-paid which is why they called to pre-pay and it was the PCC who told them it was already paid...... no reason to look for a corresponding charge if OP was told it was already pre-paid..... easy to think it was built into the fare already paid

 

BUT...... you are also calling it "gratuities" and the OP was actually calling about DSC (which are not pre-paid)..... 2 different things when talking to NCL that the PCC did not take a minute to clarify.

[sanger727]

- Huh!!?? Being that the Sky is all-inclusive, the "gratuities" would be "part of the fare" (20% that is normally added to an UBP on another ship).

- Perhaps the OP isn't the one who booked the cruise and the "booker" declined the option to pre-pay the DSC.... and the OP is now calling to pre pay

- That being said..... If it was me and knowing that there was an additional charge and if I called to pre-pay and I was told it was already included...... I'd be a little confused and upset to be handed a bill at the end as well especially since I called to take care of the additional charge. I'm ultimately responsible for that charge but based on the terminology confusion..... it was a suprise charge because I was told differently.

- Funniest part of your post when talking about NCL PCCs "any service agent should have" ..... have you read this forum and some of the PCCs responses \ answers to people? "Should have" is a consistent theme and it wouldn't suprise me the PCC answered based on the question asked about gratuity.

 

 

This is nonsense;

 

There is no UBP service charge on the sky;

 

 

Why do you think that the sky charges higher daily gratuities than the other ships?

 

There’s no reasons for why the customer service rep would think they meant the UBP gratuities when they don’t get charged on any sky sailings.

 

 

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[NLH Arizona]

C Cruise Dude, please come back and let us know what the outcome is, when you find out.

[PTC DAWG]

C Cruise Dude, please come back and let us know what the outcome is, when you find out.

 

I think we already know what happened....he had no grats to pay, he did owe the DSC on this cruise...

[Expat Cruise]

Or you could have removed the charge as the DSC is discretionary under the terms of the agreement. So since the charges are removable they are not required. From NCL:

https://www.ncl.com/in/en/faq#service-charge

 

 

"If there is a service issue can the service charges be adjusted on board?

Guest satisfaction is the highest priority at Norwegian Cruise Line. We have structured a guest satisfaction programme designed to handle any concerns about service or on-board product quickly and efficiently. However, in the event a service issue should arise during your cruise please let our on-board guest services desk staff know right away, so that we can address these in a timely manner. It is our goal to reach a satisfactory solution to any issue when it happens and make sure our guests can focus on enjoying their cruise. Should your concerns not be met with satisfaction you can adjust the charges."

The last line is the most important "Should your concerns not be met with satisfaction you can adjust the charges." Therefore if your issue is you do not want to pay they must remove the DSC. Not because NCL wants to be nice, it is because the way they account for these DSC they must be optional. If the DSC was not removable they would not have a pre printed form to remove these fees.

[esm54687]

This is nonsense;

 

There is no UBP service charge on the sky;

 

 

Why do you think that the sky charges higher daily gratuities than the other ships?

 

There’s no reasons for why the customer service rep would think they meant the UBP gratuities when they don’t get charged on any sky sailings.

 

 

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I think what you're missing is what happened to the OP:

 

Gratuity and DSC are two different things

 

There is no "UBP gratuity" charged for the non existant UBP line item (because the UBP plus gratuity is part of the fare)

 

There is definitely a charge on the Sky that is an additional expense called the Daily "Service Charge"

 

I think we are on the same page but you're hung up on gratuity and service charge being the same thus you're not hearing what I'm saying.

[sanger727]

I think what you're missing is what happened to the OP:

 

Gratuity and DSC are two different things

 

There is no "UBP gratuity" charged for the non existant UBP line item (because the UBP plus gratuity is part of the fare)

 

There is definitely a charge on the Sky that is an additional expense called the Daily "Service Charge"

 

I think we are on the same page but you're hung up on gratuity and service charge being the same thus you're not hearing what I'm saying.

 

 

 

This conversation is just turning into a circle.

 

 

By NCLs website gratuities are 1. Either charged on the UBP or 2. Not included or required; OPs booking did not include a UBP so if you are hung up on the exact wording, no ‘gratuities’ were required.

 

But a service charge is, which is offered as a pre pay option at booking and on the website after booking.

 

When OP called to pre-pay, as was certainly offered to them multiple times between booking, logging onto the cruise planner, and email ads; anyone with a lick of common sense who works answering phone calls for NCL day in and day out SHOULD have recognized what the OP wanted. And if they hadn’t, saying that they had been paid is an odd response since gratuities simply don’t apply to this booking at all.

 

 

 

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[April42749]

The OP has a long history of cruising....he isn't a novice here.

 

 

Most likely....miscommunications. The terms and conditions are spelled out and when he "reviews" the contract he'll see this. As he said....he should have gotten it in writing. I believe that if you do pay in advance it's on your cruise documents.

 

 

 

Being "not a novice" he should have known better.

[dcruiser50]

I just wish that NCL would just add $15.00 a day to the cruise fare and eliminate the DSC sure would eliminate all the confusion.

[Expat Cruise]

I just wish that NCL would just add $15.00 a day to the cruise fare and eliminate the DSC sure would eliminate all the confusion.

 

They will not do this because it would then be counted and recorded as ordinary income. They say it is money collected for the cruise it is not considered to be ordinary income. NCL is not collecting and charging for the benefit of the crew it is for the benefit of the company.

[C Cruise Dude]

I'm not new to cruising nor have I ever had to study the contract before cruises, it's usually very simple. When I have always referred to gratuities (with all the cruise lines) I was only referring to the daily service charges and up until this situation it has always been understood by the sales staff that I have dealt with.

 

I can no way enter the sales persons mind and know exactly what she was thinking. I found her very helpful with my call and she corrected other matters with the sailing. I originally booked the cruise a year and a half before sailing. I didn't think that I had paid the service charges and wanted to have that done before the cruise to avoid the large bill.

 

I had forgotten that you can change the charges because I have never considered doing that on any cruise. The crew works hard and they deserve the gratuities but the charge is ridiculously high and I suspect that they are not going to receive the extra charges.

 

I will call NCL on Monday and let you know what they say. I was looking at transatlantics for NCL and the include free open bar so it's not just Sky.

 

I just wish that NCL would just add $15.00 a day to the cruise fare and eliminate the DSC sure would eliminate all the confusion.

Agreed!

 

They will not do this because it would then be counted and recorded as ordinary income. They say it is money collected for the cruise it is not considered to be ordinary income. NCL is not collecting and charging for the benefit of the crew it is for the benefit of the company.

I suspect that your thought is true.