My Issue with Princess

[Bruin Steve]

I previously started another thread regarding Princess' Customer Service...

But I did not want this post to get lost in that now lengthy thread.

 

I finally spoke today with someone at Princess who merits some respect for honesty and candor.

 

But first, let me say this to those posters who seemed to have a problem with what I had to say on that thread:

I know that we are lucky to live in a country where we have certain freedoms and security and do not have to worry about bombs and armies...

And I am thankful to have a certain amount of wealth and a financial position that allows me to do frivolous things like cruise...

BUT, NOTHING in my transactions with Princess or any other cruise line has ANYTHING to do with world peace or hunger or political situations around the world.

 

It ONLY has to do with a simple business transaction between Princess and me regarding a simple cruise from Los Angeles to Vancouver next month.  And, as a party to such a contract, I have certain rights and obligations and the cruise line has certain rights and obligations.  I have timely made my reservation...and paid their asking price in full ahead of the due date...those are MY obligations.  It is Princess' job to provide to me all of the items in our agreement...and, if any of those items have any limitations or qualifications, those need to be spelled out in precise terms in their contract.  Princess has certain PUBLISHED rules, most that are contained in the cruise contract, others that are reasonably expanded upon on the website or in the App...including changing necessary rules on Covid, forms to fill out, etc.  There IS a process noted to obtain a specialty restaurant reservation--must be made via the Medallion App.  Unfortunately, this work for some people, not for others.

 

I have spent almost two months and dozens of hours trying to get Princess to take care of this.  Not because it is a worthwhile use of my time and effort, but because it is the RIGHT thing to do.  I enjoy cruising.  I pay a great deal of money on a regular basis to do that.  I want a relaxing experience not only onboard the chip, but also in the booking and planning process leading up to the cruise.  And I believe my fellow cruisers desire and deserve the same.  I know that things go wrong.  I spent a 40 year career, including a fair amount of time in the hospitality industry.  My job was, often, to solve problems.  My attitude was never "Who do we blame?" or "How do we brush this problem aside?"  My attitude was always "We've got a problem, HOW DO WE FIX IT LOOKING FORWARD?"  I fully believe that should be every business' attitude.

 

Princess needs to understand, as a business matter if not just a customer relations matter, that it benefits them to fix these problems.  When you lie to customers...or misdirect them...or stonewall them, you MAY get a lot of customers to just give up...to say "We'll it's just a small amount of money, we'll deal with it on the ship, I guess"...but it WILL leave a bad taste in their mouths.  It WILL lose you some business.  But, in the meanwhile, dealing with these issues over and over again WILL COST YOU a lot of money.  It will jam up your telephone lines, costing you the hourly wages you are paying all of those employees trying to deal with it...and it will cost you sales from all of those potential customers unable to get through on those jammed up phone lines.

 

So, if I am running Princess, I want to prioritize fixing those problems.

 

On this one, I would have made it a two-pronged attack:  1) Get my best people to examine the system and see where it's going wrong...and 2)  Develop a "Plan B"--a workaround to get people to the proper end result while you fix the underlying problem.

 

But, after two months of trying...and having spoken with a fairly large number of representatives and supervisors along the way...and reading the comments of others who have related their similar experiences here, it appeared that Princess' answer was to allow a group of often poorly trained representatives to try to fend off angry or frustrated customers with misinformation or stonewalling:  "That's the way it works for EVERYBODY"  (not true, we know that)..."Oh, it's easy--just make a reservation, pay the $58 and get it back onboard...maybe OBC?" (No, not all that easy...but, moreover, just not right to make your customers pay twice and wait for money credited back)..."We'll open a 'ticket'" (yeah...and they'll get back to you...sure...)... If you believed ANY of the reps, it isn't a problem...it's designed that way...Everyone is in the same boat (or, no, its just YOU)...There's no problem, there will be plenty of availability onboard (Well, maybe, maybe not--they have zero idea).

 

The feeling one gets every time calling Princess is that these people are all winging it.

 

I eventually got through to someone in "Resolutions"--a department that, in over 20 years of cruising with Princess and in two months of working on the current problem, I didn't even know they had.  Problem is that this "Resolutions" person had no greater clue than the initial representatives.  Her answer:  "That's just the way it is, deal with it...but I'm going to fight for you to get something for you for all your troubles--here's $25 pp OBC".

 

Well, thanks to all my friends on the prior thread, I figured a few things out.

1)  Clearly they have a problem.  It isn't working the same for everyone. The App recognizes and applies some vouchers as credits right in the reservation page.  For others, it leaves only the option of payment by credit card. Therefore, something is different in the input for those with the problem and those without.

2)  One clear difference is that many with bookings through a TA are having ALL of their paid-for amenities marked instead as "Complimentary Gifts" from their travel agent--and only "delivered" as of the embarkation date.

 

The clearest conclusion is that the app is not recognizing many vouchers since they don't exist, in the system until the embarkation date--when the "gift" is made by the TA...not unlike when your TA sends you a bottle of wine or a fruit basket.

 

I think the problem could be solved by removing the "Complimentary Gift" and "Delivery Date" designations from all the amenities.  But, even if that wasn't the problem, I think it would really be the right thing for Princess to do to REMOVE THAT DESIGNATION from customers' bookings across the board.  It is insulting to their customers.  These are NOT "complimentary gifts".  We PAID for them...not our travel agents or anyone else.  And we paid in full three months or more before embarkation date and deserver to access them and make a reservation as much as anyone else not having this issue.

 

Well, it's too late for me to get much out of this.  I've paid my $58 and won't see it back, if at all, until someone processes a credit, likely well after the cruise.  I've had more than enough frustration.

 

But, today, I realized there was one person with which I hadn't closed the loop--the Supervisor who claimed to be "working on it" and said she'd "get back to" me...the one who is in a constant meeting now running well into its second week.  so, I decided to call once more--to tell her what I think happened so either she could keep "working on it" or not...Guess what?  She was "in a meeting"...

 

So, after talking to one of the lower level reps to explain why I called, he said "You really need to talk to someone with some real authority" and put me on a brief hold. 

 

A minute later, a guy got on the phone.  Since I am sure he would get in trouble, I won't post his name.  I told him what had gone on and what I think happened and his answer was surprising.  First, he complimented me on figuring it out.  He said they knew they had this problem and were working on it.  He said there were a couple of things I said that they hadn't considered...but that made very good sense to him...and he thinks I am on to something.  He said he would pass my comments and ideas on to the people working on it.

 

Now, I don't really know if this guy was just playing with me...BUT he really came across as being straightforward and honest...and did seem very interested in getting this problem solved. I am really happy to find there is SOMEBODY at Princess with these qualities.  And it COULD BE that none of the lower level representatives and supervisors have been let into the loop...and they are just out there making up stuff, relaying rumors and misinformation and blowing smoke...But Princess really needs to do something to stop that.

 

As for me, I give up...I'll follow up onboard and try to make sure I actually get my $58 back. And I'll try to enjoy my cruise...

  

[Ferry_Watcher]

OMG

Dog - Bone

$58 dollars

My friend, let it go.

[Princessfan20]

It obviously is a legitimate concern for this passengers and we all know that everyone has been making excuses for Princess during Covid but that is no longer a legitimate excuse IMHO.  There could be a changing corporate culture at Princess that many of us may be unaware of.  It does not even seem close to the Princess I was use to dealing with in the past by some of the CSR moments I have had recently with them.

 

I would rather hear a thoughtful post like this than someone "wore shorts in the MDR" being discussed in a 1000 posts.

[dog]

29 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

OMG

Dog - Bone

$58 dollars

My friend, let it go.

Yes!!!

 

as said- it is between OP & Princess.

 

 

Edited March 23, 2022 by dog

[Moondogy]

I see the point in why should it be $58 OBC.....that means they still get to keep your money because you're just spending it on the ship anyway. I worked hard all my life for what I have and I know almost everyone else has also. So why should we be happy about just giving money away. $58 here, $100 there all adds up.

[Lady Arwen]

19 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

It obviously is a legitimate concern for this passengers and we all know that everyone has been making excuses for Princess during Covid but that is no longer a legitimate excuse IMHO.  There could be a changing corporate culture at Princess that many of us may be unaware of.  It does not even seem close to the Princess I was use to dealing with in the past by some of the CSR moments I have had recently with them.

 

I would rather hear a thoughtful post like this than someone "wore shorts in the MDR" being discussed in a 1000 posts.

Or, someone who criticizes what other people wear in the MDR because of their age.  The OP’s post was certainly more thoughtful and fair and very respectful.

[dog]

8 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

Or, someone who criticizes what other people wear in the MDR because of their age.  The OP’s post was certainly more thoughtful and fair and very respectful.

But

do we really need TWO threads on the same rant?

Edited March 23, 2022 by dog

[Paula_MacFan]

The amount of time you have invested in this 'issue' is staggering.  If this was the only problem I had in my life I'd be happy.  

[Ferry_Watcher]

It wasn't that he would lose the $58 dollars in OBC.  If he wanted to secure his desired 7 PM dinner reservations on a particular evening he had to put the $58 charge on his credit card, then when on board ask guest services to credit him for the $58 dollars.  

This is what the Princess folks told him, they could not secure the reservation using the OBC.  The system would not allow the customer service folks or the OP use the OBC.  They suggested using the credit card, then requesting the folks on the ship to issue him a credit.

 

It was a reasonable solution.  But not to the OP.

 

The OP has invested so much time (hours) into this. It's kinda' obsessive.

[Bruin Steve]

My friends,

So many of you miss the point.  It is NOT the $58.  It is the way that Princess handles its Customer Relations.  It is the operation of the Medallion App.  They have some major issues.  They don't handle it well.  It could be me and $58 this time...It could be YOU and $10,000 next time.  But, really, it is tens of thousands of customers...

 

...and, unfortunately, there are a lot of you who just "let it go"...

 

Letting it go allows them to continue to have poorly trained phone representatives...It allows them to say anything in order to expediently turn away problems...It allows them to LIE.

 

So, why am I so "obsessive" over this?  Because I am trying to help EVERYONE here...even if it costs me way too much time...and there is very little I can get out of this in the end.

 

I would like Princess to be a BETTER cruise line.  I want them to solve their problems and provide better service to all of us.  Because I plan to cruise a whole lot more and I'd like to minimize these unfortunate issues in the future.  And I'd like all of YOU not to run into these issues on a regular basis.  I want to get through on phone lines that aren't jammed with people who can't get their app to work.  I want to book cruises, handle the easy details, pack and go...

 

Princess CAN do better...but only if their customers demand better.

[dog]

11 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

It wasn't that he would lose the $58 dollars in OBC.  If he wanted to secure his desired 7 PM dinner reservations on a particular evening he had to put the $58 charge on his credit card, then when on board ask guest services to credit him for the $58 dollars.  

This is what the Princess folks told him, they could not secure the reservation using the OBC.  The system would not allow the customer service folks or the OP use the OBC.  They suggested using the credit card, then requesting the folks on the ship to issue him a credit.

 

It was a reasonable solution.  But not to the OP.

 

The OP has invested so much time (hours) into this. It's kinda' obsessive.

True

 

I cannot believe very many of us have less then $58 balance on our account at the end of such a special occasion cruise. Look at the full picture- - money credited back as OBC in this instance will pay the balance on your bill at the end of the cruise, if not it will be refunded. 
if I had to agonize this type of issue I would not enjoy any of this cruise experience.

 

[dog]

4 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

My friends,

So many of you miss the point.  It is NOT the $58.  It is the way that Princess handles its Customer Relations.  It is the operation of the Medallion App.  They have some major issues.  They don't handle it well.  It could be me and $58 this time...It could be YOU and $10,000 next time.  But, really, it is tens of thousands of customers...

 

...and, unfortunately, there are a lot of you who just "let it go"...

 

Letting it go allows them to continue to have poorly trained phone representatives...It allows them to say anything in order to expediently turn away problems...It allows them to LIE.

 

So, why am I so "obsessive" over this?  Because I am trying to help EVERYONE here...even if it costs me way too much time...and there is very little I can get out of this in the end.

 

I would like Princess to be a BETTER cruise line.  I want them to solve their problems and provide better service to all of us.  Because I plan to cruise a whole lot more and I'd like to minimize these unfortunate issues in the future.  And I'd like all of YOU not to run into these issues on a regular basis.  I want to get through on phone lines that aren't jammed with people who can't get their app to work.  I want to book cruises, handle the easy details, pack and go...

 

Princess CAN do better...but only if their customers demand better.

I am not missing the point.

 

As you said, it is between you & Princess 

You are not running the show.

Apply for the job if you think you can fix it for all of us by posting duplicate threads on here.

 

really am sorry to see the stress brought on by the time spent on what is such a trivial matter.

 

[The Greater Fool]

2 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

It ONLY has to do with a simple business transaction between Princess and me regarding a simple cruise from Los Angeles to Vancouver next month.  And, as a party to such a contract, I have certain rights and obligations and the cruise line has certain rights and obligations.  I have timely made my reservation...and paid their asking price in full ahead of the due date...those are MY obligations.  It is Princess' job to provide to me all of the items in our agreement...and, if any of those items have any limitations or qualifications, those need to be spelled out in precise terms in their contract.  Princess has certain PUBLISHED rules, most that are contained in the cruise contract, others that are reasonably expanded upon on the website or in the App...including changing necessary rules on Covid, forms to fill out, etc.  There IS a process noted to obtain a specialty restaurant reservation--must be made via the Medallion App.  Unfortunately, this work for some people, not for others.

Whew...

 

I thought this was going to be another "Shorts in the MDR" thread.

 

Close one.

[CU64]

1 hour ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

OMG

Dog - Bone

$58 dollars

My friend, let it go.

Agreed

 

[Ferry_Watcher]

 

You spoke to multiple customer service reps and managers who truly tried to help you.  they offered a reasonable alternative of securing your dinner reservation for your desired date and time with a credit card, and then be credited by the guest services folks onboard.

 

Do you think they all failed you?  Didn't they try to help you?  They listened and heard you say that the most important thing was to get that particular date and time for your specialty restaurant reservation.  They gave you a pathway to achieve that (by using your credit card), plus a easy way of being reimbursed.  The PCL reps listened to you and did what they could with the tools that they had.

 

You seem to want to badger these PCL customer service folks until you get your desired outcome.  They are limited by either the computer operating system that they have, or that there is a glitch in this one area.  Regardless, many have tried to help you.  I believe you have your coveted reservations.  It's time to move on.

 

 

 

 

[CU64]

40 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

My friends,

So many of you miss the point.  It is NOT the $58.  It is the way that Princess handles its Customer Relations.  It is the operation of the Medallion App.  They have some major issues.  They don't handle it well.  It could be me and $58 this time...It could be YOU and $10,000 next time.  But, really, it is tens of thousands of customers...

 

...and, unfortunately, there are a lot of you who just "let it go"...

 

Letting it go allows them to continue to have poorly trained phone representatives...It allows them to say anything in order to expediently turn away problems...It allows them to LIE.

 

So, why am I so "obsessive" over this?  Because I am trying to help EVERYONE here...even if it costs me way too much time...and there is very little I can get out of this in the end.

 

I would like Princess to be a BETTER cruise line.  I want them to solve their problems and provide better service to all of us.  Because I plan to cruise a whole lot more and I'd like to minimize these unfortunate issues in the future.  And I'd like all of YOU not to run into these issues on a regular basis.  I want to get through on phone lines that aren't jammed with people who can't get their app to work.  I want to book cruises, handle the easy details, pack and go...

 

Princess CAN do better...but only if their customers demand better.

Suggest offering to hire on as a consultant.seriously. All your points well taken but you are driving yourself crazy trying to get someone on Princess with authority to fix the problem. 

[KLM3164]

2 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

2)  One clear difference is that many with bookings through a TA are having ALL of their paid-for amenities marked instead as "Complimentary Gifts" from their travel agent--and only "delivered" as of the embarkation date.

Thank you for this information! My cruise is booked through a TA and everything on my booking shows as gifts from my TA which isn’t the case. My TA gave me some OBC but that’s it….everything else was included in my cruise fare. At least now I understand why I can’t make a specialty dining reservation without having to pay $58 on my credit card before the cruise. I appreciate your diligence in trying to get to the bottom of this with Princess and for helping me understand why I’m being asked to pay for an included “perk” when I’ve tried to make a reservation.

 

 

[Bruin Steve]

3 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

You spoke to multiple customer service reps and managers who truly tried to help you.  they offered a reasonable alternative of securing your dinner reservation for your desired date and time with a credit card, and then be credited by the guest services folks onboard.

 

Do you think they all failed you?  Didn't they try to help you?  They listened and heard you say that the most important thing was to get that particular date and time for your specialty restaurant reservation.  They gave you a pathway to achieve that (by using your credit card), plus a easy way of being reimbursed.  The PCL reps listened to you and did what they could with the tools that they had.

 

You seem to want to badger these PCL customer service folks until you get your desired outcome.  They are limited by either the computer operating system that they have, or that there is a glitch in this one area.  Regardless, many have tried to help you.  I believe you have your coveted reservations.  It's time to move on.

Absolutelty NOT.  They did NOT try to help me or anyone else in this situation.  And, each time I spoke to one, and each time I got a DIFFERENT answer, I tried to escalate to a supervisor.  Clearly the reps are poorly informed and poorly trained.  Unfortunately so are the supervisors.  I needed to go two levels above that to finally speak with someone who actually knew what was going on--the point of THIS THREAD.

 

What they offered is NOT the "desired outcome".  The desired outcome is for Princess to get it right.

[DavidsNana]

@Bruin SteveI am one of those who had very little problems with the app and I am a very new smart phone user.  Many really nice helpful tech savvy people here were so kind as to help me.  And from what I read here, I was still one of the lucky ones.  The only problem I had was that same problem of not being able to use my Comp Specialty Dining credit to book ahead of time.  Again, I was lucky in that I just waited and booked right when getting onboard. But then I knew that my Feb 27th cruise was going to be at limited capacity.  It worked out for me, again just luck.  But I agree with you, it is a matter of providing the services contracted for in the way they were meant to be.  I just booked another cruise and wasn't so lucky with the app this time.  It wouldn't recognize my booking number and wouldn't let me sign in no matter what or where I tried.  I decided to use the Live Chat on the website.  Again, I was lucky in that I only had to wait for about 7-8 minutes to get on and then the young lady put in some info, told me to delete the app, turn off my phone, turn it back on and then wait awhile before downloading the app again.  I did just that and it worked perfectly.  Again, I consider myself very lucky.  Maybe I should buy a lotto ticket! But not all are so lucky from what I read.

 

Don't let certain posters discourage you from posting what you think is important as many of us understand where you are coming from and appreciate your feelings.  I for one remember you from the past always giving advice and helping others when they asked questions about where to stay and where to eat and any other subject of question in the LA area.  I always appreciated your input and advice.  Still do!

 

I hope that you have a great cruise and that you continue posting here and helping others.  I will probably get flamed here for this but I am a big girl (no so much anymore) and I can take it.

[Bruin Steve]

4 minutes ago, CU64 said:

Suggest offering to hire on as a consultant.seriously. All your points well taken but you are driving yourself crazy trying to get someone on Princess with authority to fix the problem. 

Seriously, you are not all that far off.  I live not all that far from Santa Clarita and have some friends who are now-former Princess executives...I spoke with Princess several years ago about a position with their Legal Department--I have a background as in-house attorney and corporate executive with major corporations including some in the hospitality industry.  I think I could have helped. 

 

Unfortunately, about that time, Princess' corporate structure was being reformatted by the overlords at Carnival in Miami.  The position I was looking at was to be shipped off to Seattle as Carnival did away with a lot of the corporate structure in Santa Clarita and combining it with HAL up in Seattle...and, in the process, moving a few of the remaining jobs up to Seattle as well.  It's the reason why my Princess Executive friends are now FORMER Princess executives.  IMHO, Carnival Corp cost cutting is as much at fault for the worsening of Princess service as anything else.

[Ferry_Watcher]

14 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

And, each time I spoke to one, and each time I got a DIFFERENT answer, I tried to escalate to a supervisor. 

My friend, maybe they all began with the same solution, but when you told them that solution didn't work they racked their brain and tried to come up with an alternative answer.  The fact that you may received a DIFFERENT answer could be evidence of the customer service reps brainstorming other possibilities.  

 

This is not a PCL conspiracy against you.  These customer service reps (I believe) were working in good faith with you to troubleshoot/solve your problem.  I know that you believe that you are on a righteous mission to improve PCL for all of us, but my friend, you need to step back, take a breath and give it up to the universe. 

 

[Bruin Steve]

2 minutes ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

My friend, maybe they all began with the same solution, but when you told them that solution didn't work they racked their brain and tried to come up with an alternative answer.  The fact that you may received a DIFFERENT answer could be evidence of the customer service reps brainstorming other possibilities.  

 

This is not a PCL conspiracy against you.  These customer service reps (I believe) were working in good faith with you to troubleshoot/solve your problem.  I know that you believe that you are on a righteous mission to improve PCL for all of us, but my friend, you need to step back, take a breath and give it up to the universe. 

 

That sounds good--but it is NOT how ANY of the conversations went.  Some reps were clearly NOT trying to find a solution.  NONE wracked their brains working on anything.  Most just spewed out some version of "I dunno"...I got just one guy to walk me through his solution...and that's the one that ended with the $58 charge.  Next level, the "Supervisors", the first one just gave me the "I'll fix it and get back to you"--and never did.  The "Resolutions" person never tried to fix it--only tried to negotiate a minimal concession with me.  It was only the second supervisor who finally listened and then admitted with great candor to everything that was really going on.

 

I DO NOT "blame" the initial representatives.  They are often newly hired, poorly trained and left on their own to appease people.  Clearly, it is the responsibility of the higher-ups at Princess who need to train and inform these reps much better...and whose job it is to prioritize and fund the fixes.

[007colocruz]

Long wait times & put on hold for the rest of us, when one cannot get what they are entitled to.  My sympathy.

[Ferry_Watcher]

35 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

-I have a background as in-house attorney and corporate executive with major corporations including some in the hospitality industry. 

Okay, so you are a retired attorney with a lot of time on your hands.  So basically, it doesn't matter what anyone says because you will do what you want.  This thread can be closed now because the outcome won't change.  No one will change your mind. I am guessing that you will keep at it with PCL.

 

I will ask that you treat the next set of unsuspecting PCL service reps with respect and dignity and don't go all lawyer on them.  Remember that they are people too, with their own problems.  Just treat them decently.

 

 

[ceilidh1]

This is not specialty dining related, but after totally giving up on the app when it first emerged (basically told by the Princess experts that if I wanted to use it I needed to upgrade my iphone...) I am now forced to use it as I just booked a last minute cruise for next month. After many frustrating hours, I got to the point where we were in the green lane but completely stalled at arrival group. I'm not going to sweat that. However, here is the weird thing that happened when I booked EZ Air through the website. I selected the flights, got the total, and was prompted to enter my credit card. No other option for payment, and I wasn't expecting any other option. The transaction processed, my credit card was charged, and my flights showed in my reservation. Then I got the email confirmation...In addition to charging the full amount to my card, the system somehow also automatically applied my FCCs I had from many previous cancelled sailings. No warning, no option, no idea it even happened. The confirmation showed a double payment, resulting in a balance due of a negative amount. I figured that the credit card charge would just drop off but, after 2 days, noticed that it was now an actual transaction on my statement as opposed to just an authorised one. I called Princess and was told that FCC applies automatically and I shouldn't have entered my credit card info. Well, that's all well and good except that was the only option to actually proceed and get the flight booked. The rep assured me that the credit card charges would be reversed and that I should see it back on my account within 10 business days. I guess we will see if that happens. Just make sure to check purchases/confirmations carefully!