KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 #1 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Just a warning to all booking Celebrity. In October 2020 I booked a cruise for August 2021with a deposit that was "No-Risk" refundable until 09 April 2020. Due to work commitments I wanted to cancel the cruise and get a refund of the "Refundable" deposit a few days prior to the expiry of the refundable period. Long story short, Celebrity Cruises are refusing to refund the deposit claiming it was not refundable (the first lie). They say the "No-risk" deposit scheme only started being offered in March 2021, so I must have been mistaken. (Second lie). The "No-risk" deposit is mentioned on the forums way back. They have been dishonest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare mom says Posted April 9, 2020 #2 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Are you living in a time warp, or did I do a Rip van Winkle today? 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 Author #3 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Oh yeah...good pickup. Booked October 2019 for August 2020. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronin23 Posted April 9, 2020 #4 Share Posted April 9, 2020 (edited) Deposit scheme only started being offered in March 2021? Your dates are all over the place, cant understand what you are on about. You joined today just to rant? Edited April 9, 2020 by Ronin23 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 Author #5 Share Posted April 9, 2020 I mistyped. Booked October 2019 for August 2020. Not a rant; just a warning about dishonesty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twins_to_alaska Posted April 9, 2020 #6 Share Posted April 9, 2020 If you have the letters "NRD" anywhere in the Booking Charges section of your Booking Confirmation pdf from Celebrity that's actually non-refundable deposit not no-risk deposit. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo1953 Posted April 9, 2020 #7 Share Posted April 9, 2020 9 hours ago, KiwiCouple34 said: Just a warning to all booking Celebrity. In October 2020 I booked a cruise for August 2021with a deposit that was "No-Risk" refundable until 09 April 2020. Due to work commitments I wanted to cancel the cruise and get a refund of the "Refundable" deposit a few days prior to the expiry of the refundable period. Long story short, Celebrity Cruises are refusing to refund the deposit claiming it was not refundable (the first lie). They say the "No-risk" deposit scheme only started being offered in March 2021, so I must have been mistaken. (Second lie). The "No-risk" deposit is mentioned on the forums way back. They have been dishonest. Presuming you have dates incorrect (mad rush to expose X), do you have a paper trail for the "No-Risk" deposit issue? Surely you must have a confirmation which will indicate that your deposit is either refundable or non-refundable???? bon voyage 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrk2cruise Posted April 9, 2020 #8 Share Posted April 9, 2020 (edited) It's not always in the booking charges, it might be in the Promotions Applied section (the NRD reference). One way to tell for sure is if this line appears directly above the Final Payment date information Many people were unaware they selected a NRD rate. Some people who saw an attractive "price reduction" also ended up repricing their reservations to a NRD without their knowledge. Also could be a bad customer service representative. They really haven't been offering NRD for too many years. Prior to that everything was refundable deposits even if they didn't have the fancy "No Risk Deposit" advertisement on them. Edited April 9, 2020 by wrk2cruise 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Georgia_Peaches Posted April 9, 2020 #9 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Two things: 1. Check your cruise booking confirmation and carefully read the fine print. 2. If after that you still feel there is an error on Celebrity's part, call and speak to a different representative. We have a NRD on a cruise in March 2021. If we change our minds, we get the deposit applied to a future cruise minus the "restocking" (cancellation) fee. I don't think it's a matter of Celebrity being dishonest as there are laws against that in terms of false advertising. It's likely more about not fully understanding the terms and conditions at the time of your booking. You can learn a lot of good information on these boards (I know I have). Good luck! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NantahalaCruiser Posted April 9, 2020 #10 Share Posted April 9, 2020 10 hours ago, KiwiCouple34 said: I mistyped. Booked October 2019 for August 2020. Not a rant; just a warning about dishonesty. Often the type of deposit - refundable or non-refundable - is difficult to identify. Confusing - yes, obscure often - yes, but not dishonest. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d9704011 Posted April 9, 2020 #11 Share Posted April 9, 2020 1 minute ago, NantahalaCruiser said: Often the type of deposit - refundable or non-refundable - is difficult to identify. Confusing - yes, obscure often - yes, but not dishonest. I agree. When pricing and booking we have to be on the lookout for NRD and RD offerings. It will be noted on the offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare little britain Posted April 9, 2020 #12 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Where did the OP make their booking?? Different rules for different countries? In UK all deposits were NRD. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Georgia_Peaches Posted April 9, 2020 #13 Share Posted April 9, 2020 47 minutes ago, little britain said: Where did the OP make their booking?? Different rules for different countries? In UK all deposits were NRD. Good point. I assumed they were in U.S. because they didn't say otherwise...but you know what they say about assuming... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twins_to_alaska Posted April 9, 2020 #14 Share Posted April 9, 2020 I had never noticed the lines after Balance Due like: The minimum deposit for this reservation is Non-Refundable. A change fee of 100 USD per guest will apply for ship or sail date changes. vs for refundable Deposit has been posted to your reservation. Final Payment is due by ... Thanks for pointing that out as well as! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jim_Iain Posted April 9, 2020 #15 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Curious with you handle if this was a U.S. or a New Zealand booking. It makes a big difference in the T&C's. Also as others have said. Check your confirmation and see if you booked a non-refundable. All of my Non-Refundables have an indication of them being non-refundable. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fouremco Posted April 9, 2020 #16 Share Posted April 9, 2020 4 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said: Good point. I assumed they were in U.S. because they didn't say otherwise...but you know what they say about assuming... Of course, "KiwiCouple" might suggest where they live. Assuming that they aren't just big fans of the fruit. Or the bird! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Jim_Iain Posted April 9, 2020 #17 Share Posted April 9, 2020 9 minutes ago, twins_to_alaska said: I had never noticed the lines after Balance Due like: The minimum deposit for this reservation is Non-Refundable. A change fee of 100 USD per guest will apply for ship or sail date changes. vs for refundable Deposit has been posted to your reservation. Final Payment is due by ... Thanks for pointing that out as well as! Agree - This is what is on my reservation confirmation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 Author #18 Share Posted April 9, 2020 It's a New Zealand based booking. When I booked the cruise in October 2019, the payment instructions said: No risk deposit $800 NZD Refundable until April 10, 2020 Lock it In I hit the button to "Lock it in", paid via credit card, and and got an email confirming the transaction. There's nothing about RD or NRD. I did not select any promotional fares at a discount that make it un-refundable or anything like that. On 07 April, I went to cancel and they informed me the deposit was not refundable, saying I was mistaken thinking it was a "No Risk Deposit". They also informed me that No-risk deposits had only just started to be offered and they weren't around in October 2019 which I know is untrue. We have spoken to three different call centre people who are just reading off their screen. I understand they are busy and probably brand-new staff with the crisis, but I don't particularly feel like donating $800 to a multi-billion dollar corporation. If it was a small business, I would have a different attitude. We weren't 100% sure if we could do the trip, so I booked fully-refundable airline tickets, did not pre-pay hotels, and read carefully the T&Cs for the cruise deposit. So this wasn't a case of not being diligent. That's why I say the company acted dishonestly and to be wary when they make offers. Suspecting the port will remain restricted (two countries involved), I have left the booking in place. If I cancel; they keep the money; if they cancel, I get it back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrk2cruise Posted April 9, 2020 #19 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Apology. Didn't realize you weren't booking under North America T&C. From your posting it sure looks like it should be refundable. Do you have a written invoice? If not can you request one. It should certainly be indicated on there one way or another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cl.klink Posted April 9, 2020 #20 Share Posted April 9, 2020 18 hours ago, KiwiCouple34 said: Just a warning to all booking Celebrity. In October 2020 I booked a cruise for August 2021with a deposit that was "No-Risk" refundable until 09 April 2020. Due to work commitments I wanted to cancel the cruise and get a refund of the "Refundable" deposit a few days prior to the expiry of the refundable period. Long story short, Celebrity Cruises are refusing to refund the deposit claiming it was not refundable (the first lie). They say the "No-risk" deposit scheme only started being offered in March 2021, so I must have been mistaken. (Second lie). The "No-risk" deposit is mentioned on the forums way back. They have been dishonest. What's the difference between dishonest, and not correct or consistent? - Joel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickT Posted April 9, 2020 #21 Share Posted April 9, 2020 Assuming you booked directly with Celebrity, your booking confirmation (and you need to look at the promo and any breakdown) will indicate if it was a Non-refundable deposit. Feel free to post. My current booking has a non-refundable deposit and it’s identified in my booking by Sailnowsav NRD. And sorry to disagree with you, but the No Risk Bookings have only been an option since the Virus started affecting new bookings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 Author #22 Share Posted April 9, 2020 2 minutes ago, RickT said: And sorry to disagree with you, but the No Risk Bookings have only been an option since the Virus started affecting new bookings. No risk bookings are new, but no risk deposits are not. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickT Posted April 9, 2020 #23 Share Posted April 9, 2020 4 minutes ago, KiwiCouple34 said: No risk bookings are new, but no risk deposits are not. Agree... Ultimately whatever is on your booking receipt is what you booked. If it says non-refundable anywhere, that is what you booked. If the receipt does not say that then you will need to escalate this to a manager (or Captain’s Club if you’re a member) for resolution. Please keep in mind that the X employees are under extreme pressure dealing with passengers who have had their cruises cancelled. If their system says NRD that’s what they have to go with. If your paperwork does not say that then this will be resolved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiCouple34 Posted April 9, 2020 Author #24 Share Posted April 9, 2020 8 minutes ago, cl.klink said: What's the difference between dishonest, and not correct or consistent? - Joel Call it what you like. Inconsistency, misleading advertising or a website error. I call it corporate dishonesty when they refuse to investigate my experience. I won't book with them again, but I'm sharing as a warning that the statement of "No risk deposit" at the purchase stage is not necessarily true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txjim09 Posted April 9, 2020 #25 Share Posted April 9, 2020 17 hours ago, Ronin23 said: Deposit scheme only started being offered in March 2021? Your dates are all over the place, cant understand what you are on about. You joined today just to rant? You responded just to rant? Feel better now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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