250 Cruisers protest -on Horizon - 1000 cruisers sign petition- broken engine, lost 2 ports, only $100 paltry refund

[rww789]

Angry guests get together on Horizon ship today- mad about very small refund, only $100, plus only 25% off a future cruise. Some people were saying that the cruise line knew about the engine problem- one broke down part way there. And, the cruise line sent them anyway. The cruisers lost two ports of 4, and were only given $100  for a refund. The other cruisers for the future cruises were given much more. Everything has gone wrong, bad internet, bad service, and many very unhappy people. 

[BlerkOne]

So at least 250 people didn't read the ticket contract.

[matymil]

1 hour ago, BlerkOne said:

So at least 250 people didn't read the ticket contract.

Yeah....good luck with that. We've missed ports before. It happens, your taxes and port fees are refunded that day same with all the excursions on top of that $100 and 25% plus youre still on a cruise ship so it cant be that bad. Shame on Carnival for not checking their crystal ball.

[BlerkOne]

26 minutes ago, matymil said:

Yeah....good luck with that. We've missed ports before. It happens, your taxes and port fees are refunded that day same with all the excursions on top of that $100 and 25% plus youre still on a cruise ship so it cant be that bad. Shame on Carnival for not checking their crystal ball.

And no telling how many of the cruisers were on cheap cruise fares. Carnival has been known to ban troublemakers 

[bigrednole]

If you were on the cruise, compensation is much lower. You already agreed to the contract. Those that are completely canceled have been given great compensation and opportunities. The ones that paid $25 are the ones that get kind of screwed. But for normal people like me, 100% refund and free future cruise would have been great. There are/were tons of cruises to hope over to for normal paying passengers.

[RWolver672]

Years ago  on the Glory, going into our first port, the ship was moving real slow.  When it was time to leave, the ship just sat there.  After about an hour, they finally made the announcement that the ship was having propulsion problems and we would be going to Nassau and Key West instead of our scheduled ports.  We would each get $50 OBC.

 

Same as above, there was a mob scene with everybody complaining.  We went on an excursion and had to take a van ride to get there.  All the way there, the people were saying how they were going to sue Carnival for everything they were worth.  It went on and on until I finally was fed up with it and said that if anybody had read their FAQs, they'd know that Carnival has the right to adjust the cruise as needed.  I added that if anybody tried to sue Carnival, the only ones that would make any money is their lawyers.  You could have heard a pin drop the rest of the way to the excursion.  Apparently not that many people read the FAQs before they go.

[bigrednole]

Exactly @RWolver672. In a lot of cases, taking them to court has to be in their country of registry which has extremely favorable laws to the cruise lines.

Edited December 5, 2021 by bigrednole

[tidecat]

2 hours ago, bigrednole said:

Exactly @RWolver672. In a lot of cases, taking them to court has to be in their country of registry which has extremely favorable laws to the cruise lines.

Actually, if you read the contract, any suit against Carnival would have to be filed in Miami-Dade County:

 

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/ticket-contract

[shipgeeks]

If I were aboard, I'd be much more upset about being surrounded by cranky passengers and negative vibe, than by missing ports and compensation.

[cruisingguy007]

3 hours ago, tidecat said:

Actually, if you read the contract, any suit against Carnival would have to be filed in Miami-Dade County:

 

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/ticket-contract

 

A contract can say anything it wants with ten signatures. It means squat. There are so many illegal contracts and/or what I like to call "hopeful contracts" that are essentially documents spelling out what they hope to happen/prescribe. Enforcing a contract in court is another matter entirely.   

[firefly333]

12 hours ago, rww789 said:

Angry guests get together on Horizon ship today- mad about very small refund, only $100, plus only 25% off a future cruise. Some people were saying that the cruise line knew about the engine problem- one broke down part way there. And, the cruise line sent them anyway. The cruisers lost two ports of 4, and were only given $100  for a refund. The other cruisers for the future cruises were given much more. Everything has gone wrong, bad internet, bad service, and many very unhappy people. 

I was on carnival when we missed 2 ports and only got port fees back. Guests met and protested and marched around. Some called radio stations. Was due to hurricane ..but we only did one port. Mostly was new cruisers I noticed with red and blue cards.

 

Did them not much good but they gave us a 1 hour of free drinks...so busy I only got 1 drink out of it. So didnt help me much. Carnival gave me 1 free drink. 

 

Just saying this isnt the first time. 

[xDisconnections]

While not favorable, it doesn’t sound as bad as the mutiny on the swine flu cruise which prompted the prepaid gratuities being removed list to be posted. Carnival’s offer in the Horizon’s situation was fair and most passengers are likely sailing on deeply discounted fares.

[BlerkOne]

1 hour ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

A contract can say anything it wants with ten signatures. It means squat. There are so many illegal contracts and/or what I like to call "hopeful contracts" that are essentially documents spelling out what they hope to happen/prescribe. Enforcing a contract in court is another matter entirely.   

Carnival has a herd of attorneys on staff and the contract has existed as a living document for decades. They know what they are doing.

 

For any lawsuit to succeed, you first have to get the contact tossed,. Good luck. Some ex-cruise line lawyer will gladly take your money and you will be extremely lucky to get pennies returned on your dollars as a settlement. The contract, meanwhile, will remain intact. If anything, you will get Carnival to tighten the contract a little more.

[firefly333]

The contract states if a port is missed all they give you back are the port fees for that port. Anything else is gravy. 

 

At least it's not a covid outbreak onboard. Things could be worse than a missed port. Ports are never guaranteed.  

[BlerkOne]

Not only are the ports not guaranteed, the ship isn't guaranteed. Or the weather. Or anything else.

[icft]

I find it hilarious that people are talking about lawsuits over this. What are your damages? They can’t be more than you paid for the cruise plus perhaps “pain and suffering.” Do you really see a judge or jury awarding “pain and suffering” to someone having to ride “Jungle Cruise” rather than “Kali River Rapids?” That is not pain and suffering; that is disappointment. But courts don’t award damages for disappointment. If they did a lot of women would be headed to the courthouse the morning after they lost their virginity.

 

Next, what is the cost of litigation? You’re probably talking $5,000 minimum to even get in the courthouse door unless you are an attorney representing yourself in which case you still have court fees.

[MrMarc]

The cruise contracts have been tested in Court many times.  They stand up.  Even if you do not get it so you can never read it and your travel agent does, the Courts consider them your agent, not the cruise line's even though they are paid by the cruise line, so you are considered to have notice of everything in it.  This was decided when they were still many sheets of paper with very small writing all folded up.  So now, with a clear copy available to every passenger, it is going to be assumed you read and understood all of it.  So suing them would most likely fail.  However, there are plenty of attorneys in Florida that will at least look at, if not take the cases.  And as in any lawsuit, anything can happen.

 

While I can understand why they did it, I think it was a PR mistake to offer more OBC to the future passengers than was offered to those onboard.  The protest was inappropriate and very dangerous.  How many initially peaceful protests on land have turned violent?  Now imagine what could happen on a confined area like as ship.  I think all the organizer and speaker of this protest is going to get is banned from Carnival cruises.

[Bgcruising]

Lol, that's a fun bunch.

[canes20]

[BlerkOne]

52 minutes ago, MrMarc said:

The cruise contracts have been tested in Court many times.  They stand up.

 

You can't get on the ship without agreeing to be bound by the contract  - it is part of checking in.

[MrMarc]

1 hour ago, BlerkOne said:

You can't get on the ship without agreeing to be bound by the contract  - it is part of checking in.

Absolutely.  I had a case where my client never even received a copy, no one disputed that.  But because her travel agent had a copy, it was the same as her having it.  It was quite a few years ago, but I doubt things have changed that much.  And this was a much more important issue than missing a port.

[sailingships]

LOL Years ago when a propeller fell off the Sensation the 2nd day people protested loudly every day. Carnival broke out the free booze but shut off any chance the US could be contacted. People jumped up on the tables in the Lido Buffet and yelled Norma Rae Norma Rae It was hilarious but awful We arrived in San Juan at 9am instead of 6PM the night before so that was good but we didnt get to go to St Maarten and they took us to the Bahamas instead. We were told we would have 25% off a future cruise but when I called to book I was informed it had not been in writing. 

[LarryCruiser]

7 hours ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

A contract can say anything it wants with ten signatures. It means squat. There are so many illegal contracts and/or what I like to call "hopeful contracts" that are essentially documents spelling out what they hope to happen/prescribe. Enforcing a contract in court is another matter entirely.   

It’s called a “choice of venue” clause and it would certainly be enforced. First, you generally have to sue a company in the state they do business and/or are headquartered in. Second, it makes no sense for Carnival to defend multiple cases in courts all over the county depending on where cruisers for that particular week’s cruise came from. And judges won’t want those cases either, multiple cases  with the same allegations  should all be heard together. That’s why “choice of venue” clauses are almost always upheld, and why those causes may become class actions as well. All of which cost $$ for a case which you would first need to prove a breach of contract and secondly prove damages - which can not consist of “I was really looking forward to Aruba but we went to St. Maartin instead.”

[natefish95]

Has someone called the whaaaaambulance to meet the ship because all I'm hearing is a bunch of whining. 

[Shakatime]

Was on the cruise. I personally enjoyed the extra $275 on our account and loved the 5 sea days, missing DR, no biggie… Matter of fact just booked another cruise today when I got home - Mardi Gras 9/17/22! I’ll file for the fcc tomorrow. We just laughed when people said to come sign the petition and protest.