Need Advice from Experienced Cruisers Please

[Lawahl]

Hi! I just returned from my first cruise on the Carnival Liberty yesterday. My Mom and I both had the CHEERS package. While reviewing our account summary, we counted 21 total "charges" between the 2 of us for drinks that we never ordered. I realize that we don't have to pay for any of them because we had the CHEERS program, but the "charges" seem very fishy. Let me explain. All 21 drinks were added by our Team Head Waiter from dinner between the hours of 6pm and 9:30pm on all 4 nights of the cruise. We had early dining and didn't even go to the dining room one night. At first I thought it could just be a mistake, but an employee with 15 plus years of experience doesn't... shouldn't... make this mistake 21 times! If he was accidentally using my sail and sign number for someone else, you can't tell me they never once noticed the wrong name or room number when they signed the receipt. All 21 drinks were either a can of Coke or a Coffee. The only thing I can come up with is that he was getting drinks for himself. I called Guest Services before leaving the ship and they just kept saying "Well, you don't have to pay for it." My question is this: Does that matter? The guy made a mistake 21 times. Do you think it was a mistake or he was getting drinks for himself? What else could he have been doing? Should I let someone else from Carnival know? What would you do? I feel duped. I hate walking away from my first cruise feeling disappointed. 

[PhillyFan33579]

If that happened to me, I wouldn’t worry about it for one second if it wasn’t costing me any money. 

 

The waiters in the MDR usually memorize your folio number the first time you show them your S&S card. It’s possible he made a mistake and remembered the number incorrectly. We get Cheers every cruise and we always order Pellagrino and sometimes Diet Coke in the MDR. The waiters never bring us a receipt to sign when we do this, unless we also order alcohol like wine.  So it’s a good possibility no one ever signed a receipt for these drinks. 

 

Bottom line in my opinion is you are making a big deal about something that doesn’t matter one bit. 

[cloudninecat]

Not sure what he was doing but I certainly wouldn't let it ruin an otherwise pleasant cruise. If you feel you must, then let Carnival know that there were charges on your account that you didn't make. Since you didn't have to pay for them I would just let it go and assume there was just a mistake. Just watch your account more closely next time you cruise.  I'm assuming you enjoyed yourself otherwise? 

[bury me at sea]

Carnival makes it clear that a person who purchases Cheers cannot share drinks.

 

If a crew member is sharing those drinks, I would think it is something to worry about.  I also think Carnival should be notified and should worry about it.

[ray98]

No way I would waste my time on something that trivial.

[cloudninecat]

11 minutes ago, fyree39 said:

I see.  If a waiter did this with a Cheers consumer, it's OK.  If a waiter did this with someone who didn't have Cheers, would that be OK? 

Of course not. I'd be spitting bullets if I were paying for it, but I also would have noticed right away instead of waiting until after I came home.The OP should do what s/he sees fit to do as to alerting Carnival. However, I wouldn't let it ruin my cruise under the current circumstances though. Heck I've had my suitcases taken and had the culprit try to extract payment from me to get them back and still didn't let that ruin my cruise. 

 

[RogBus101]

I always ask for a duplicate receipt, sign one keep one

[Micahs Grandad]

I would not be upset but would like to find out what is going on. So yes would contact the cruise line

[Lottacruises]

The head waiter was giving free drinks to some big tippers at the later seating.

[KelSny1011]

18 minutes ago, Lottacruises said:

The head waiter was giving free drinks to some big tippers at the later seating.

 

That was my thought exactly and I also can speak from experience on being the person who was getting drinks for free under my sister's drink package on another cruise line. The head waiter was well aware to the fact that I didn't have a package but used my sister's to give me a cocktail every night for free.  I never requested it, he just did it, and nothing was ever said about it.  Whether it was right or wrong, it happened, and I don't doubt those types of complimentary drinks happen more than we would like to know :[

[Organized Chaos]

If this were me, I'd report it and I'd ask for a supervisor. I don't care if it was Cheers and I wasn't paying for those drinks. Someone was charging drinks to your account without your permission. To me, it doesn't matter if you, personally, weren't charged, it's a matter of privacy & security concerning your S&S account. No crew member should be putting drinks (or any charge) on someone else's S&S. The 21 extra drinks you saw just happened to be Cokes and coffee. But what if it were alcohol and those extra drinks were eating into your 15/day limit? Someone would surely take notice then, and I'm guessing the "it's no big deal" opinions here would change if that were the case. Cheers or no Cheers...something was being charged to your account that you didn't purchase or ask for. There's no excuse for that and I think any crew member who does it should be reprimanded. If the MDR wait staff are allowed to comp drinks to others, as someone suggested, then there should be a system in place for them to do that outside of using a passenger's account.

[Shaded Lady]

39 minutes ago, cloudninecat said:

Of course not. I'd be spitting bullets if I were paying for it, but I also would have noticed right away instead of waiting until after I came home.

 

OP did say they went to Guest Services onboard and were told 'you're not paying for it so what's the big deal?'

 

lawahl- if it's truly bothering you, I'd let Carnival know- if for no other reason than what was hopefully just a simple mistake isn't perpetuated on someone else who might not have noticed and maybe ended up having to pay for it. Just don't expect a lot of feedback from them other than 'thanks for reporting this'...

[JaniceB]

Personally, I dont't like the response from guest services.  The best answer is thank you for letting us know about this and we will look into it.  I think that response needs to be reported more than the drinks.

[cloudninecat]

2 minutes ago, Shaded Lady said:

 

OP did say they went to Guest Services onboard and were told 'you're not paying for it so what's the big deal?'

 

Yep I missed where they said "before leaving the ship." I still personally wouldn't pursue it further but that's just my opinion. You are entitled to differ with it, as is the op. I was more concerned with the statement, "I hate walking away from my first cruise feeling disappointed. " As far as I'm concerned they reported it, they've done their duty, now they can relax and think about what a wonderful time they had and when they can do it again. 🙂 

[Shaded Lady]

2 minutes ago, cloudninecat said:

Yep I missed where they said "before leaving the ship." I still personally wouldn't pursue it further but that's just my opinion. You are entitled to differ with it, as is the op. I was more concerned with the statement, "I hate walking away from my first cruise feeling disappointed. " As far as I'm concerned they reported it, they've done their duty, now they can relax and think about what a wonderful time they had and when they can do it again. 🙂 

 

I  agree with you 100% that it's a mistake to let this spoil what was otherwise a nice cruise... however, as you pointed out, we all are entitled to our own opinion and I'd still report it, so it doesn't happen to someone else. Guest Services didn't do anything so I'd send an email to Carnival, but at that point, I'd take your advice and not worry about it further...

[TNcruising02]

I would notify somebody at Carnival.  This shouldn't happen.  People do make mistakes, but mistakes need to be corrected so they don't continue to happen.  Either an employee was giving out free drinks on those nights or the employee carelessly used the wrong number. In both of those circumstances, management should be made aware of the issue.  If I owned a company, I would want to know.

[bingomamma19]

1 hour ago, Lawahl said:

Hi! I just returned from my first cruise on the Carnival Liberty yesterday. My Mom and I both had the CHEERS package. While reviewing our account summary, we counted 21 total "charges" between the 2 of us for drinks that we never ordered. I realize that we don't have to pay for any of them because we had the CHEERS program, but the "charges" seem very fishy. Let me explain. All 21 drinks were added by our Team Head Waiter from dinner between the hours of 6pm and 9:30pm on all 4 nights of the cruise. We had early dining and didn't even go to the dining room one night. At first I thought it could just be a mistake, but an employee with 15 plus years of experience doesn't... shouldn't... make this mistake 21 times! If he was accidentally using my sail and sign number for someone else, you can't tell me they never once noticed the wrong name or room number when they signed the receipt. All 21 drinks were either a can of Coke or a Coffee. The only thing I can come up with is that he was getting drinks for himself. I called Guest Services before leaving the ship and they just kept saying "Well, you don't have to pay for it." My question is this: Does that matter? The guy made a mistake 21 times. Do you think it was a mistake or he was getting drinks for himself? What else could he have been doing? Should I let someone else from Carnival know? What would you do? I feel duped. I hate walking away from my first cruise feeling disappointed. 

I would not think they were getting drinks for themselves at all.  I am sure they do get their own sodas or coffee for free or on some account they have.

 

I would assume it was some kind of clerical error, you reported it.   That's where I would end.   Unless you want to spend hours and hours trying to get a response that makes you happy.   In the end you weren't charged.    If this was some ongoing issue, others would report it also and it would be discovered.

 

I would not let this ruin my vacation at all or feel disappointed.

[FTLCruiseGal]

47 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

If this were me, I'd report it and I'd ask for a supervisor. I don't care if it was Cheers and I wasn't paying for those drinks. Someone was charging drinks to your account without your permission. To me, it doesn't matter if you, personally, weren't charged, it's a matter of privacy & security concerning your S&S account. No crew member should be putting drinks (or any charge) on someone else's S&S. The 21 extra drinks you saw just happened to be Cokes and coffee. But what if it were alcohol and those extra drinks were eating into your 15/day limit? Someone would surely take notice then, and I'm guessing the "it's no big deal" opinions here would change if that were the case. Cheers or no Cheers...something was being charged to your account that you didn't purchase or ask for. There's no excuse for that and I think any crew member who does it should be reprimanded. If the MDR wait staff are allowed to comp drinks to others, as someone suggested, then there should be a system in place for them to do that outside of using a passenger's account.

Exactly!  It doesn't matter if she "paid" for these drinks or not.  This person's S&S account was used to charge drinks for someone else.  If it was an honest mistake (charged to the wrong folio), it should be brought to Carnival's (and his) attention so that he is more careful in the future.  If it wasn't a mistake, who knows how long he has been doing this. 

[Organized Chaos]

Let's not forget that it happened for 21 different drinks over the span of the entire cruise. Including on a night the OP wasn't even in the MDR. That's no simple mistake. Someone knew what they were doing and should have to answer for it, regardless of whether the OP was monetarily charged or not. That's what irks me about Guest Service's response. It's not about walking away without having to pay anything out of pocket. Someone accessed a passenger's S&S account without permission. And was doing it to benefit other people, not a person in the OP's party. At the very least, it's a violation of trust between a passenger and the people entrusted to securely handle their accounts.

[naxer]

IMHO I think it was a mistake of some sort.  If you think calling or writing would make you feel better, then call or write.  If it happened to me, I would frustrate myself by pursuing it.  You're not out.  You told Guest Services.  I'd chalk it up to it being a mystery.  It certainly reconfirms that checking the account every day is a good thing to do.  

[Nic6318]

Hi

 

I would think that since what was being charged was pop, or a coffee, which don't affect the OP's account at all, it is something that likely goes on very often. The motivation is possibly just to impress and make other customers feel that this wait staff  deserves a great review. Maybe they are doing it hoping it will garner better tips. Who knows. Yes, it's considered stealing from an employer. I doubt they feel it is significant. I doubt it's isolated. Do you feel they should be fired? Look at the response from guest services...should they be fired too? I am sure there are many "fishy" things that happen in any business. 

 

To the OP. It's up to you if you would like to try to raise a big stink, but I don't personally think it's worth the effort (and I am a shareholder). If anything will be done, it should come from within the company. This isn't a secret, and you can be sure it is not likely an isolated incident.

[HappyJack33]

2 hours ago, Lottacruises said:

The head waiter was giving free drinks to some big tippers at the later seating.

 

Bingo

[coevan]

I hope your joking. Guys going to lose his valuable job for some tips?

[PhillyFan33579]

2 hours ago, TNcruising02 said:

I would notify somebody at Carnival.  This shouldn't happen.  People do make mistakes, but mistakes need to be corrected so they don't continue to happen.  Either an employee was giving out free drinks on those nights or the employee carelessly used the wrong number. In both of those circumstances, management should be made aware of the issue.  If I owned a company, I would want to know.

 

The OP did notify Carnival. They notified Guest Services and were basically told not to worry about it. If Carnival doesn’t care about it, and the people who work at Guest Services receive a lot of training on how to handle different situations, than as a passenger I wouldn’t worry about it. This didn’t cost the OP any money and the S&S card/folio number is worthless once the cruise is over.  I get the feeling the OP and some people in this thread like to stir the pot when there isn’t an issue worth worrying about. 

Edited April 6, 2019 by PhillyFan33579

[PhillyFan33579]

29 minutes ago, coevan said:

I hope your joking. Guys going to lose his valuable job for some tips?

 

I agree with you 100%.