Help! Question: Risk-Free Guarantee - Temporary Cancellation Policy

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, Topflitemolitor2 said:

Hi all,

I just spoke with 2 different Viking agents and a TripMate agent as well. We were issued vouchers from Viking when they canceled our Ocean cruise over a year ago.. We rebooked for this September and are excited that it will be here soon!!!!

. However, in talking to both Viking and TripMate, if we canceled within 14 days before our cruise, we lose EVERYTHING. No reissue of vouchers.  It is in the RFG for Viking. And...Tripmate doesn't honor vouchers, so according to them, we are out of luck!!! No monetary reimbursement, not even our original monies paid for the cruise.....and the TripMate agent said that goes for trip interruption, etc. No coverage because Viking issued vouchers.  We feel we have no recourse at all. TripMate is now worthless for coverage within that 14 days of our cruise if we have to cancel. What a mess and Viking pockets the money if we have a serious reason to cancel that is beyond our control within that 14 days.

Granted, you will get vouchers to use in the next 2 years if you cancel BEFORE that 14 days.......

So much for trip insurance.....I pray no one ever ends up in that situation.

And yes, it was in the fine print but during all that mess with the pandemic, canceling us, and rebooking, it was a big oversight on our part. Sigh....

Good luck and I pray you get to take your cruise!!!!!

 

As you mentioned, all that information was readily available to you when Viking cancelled the original cruise and when you booked the new cruise. It is most unfortunate that you didn't read the information Viking provided. I also note that if you used a Travel Agent, they should have thoroughly explained your options and the associated risks.

 

When Viking cancelled your original cruise, you should have received the cancellation notice that most likely included the FCV at 110% or 125% of everything you paid Viking. The cancellation notice should also advise that you were entitled to request a 100% cash refund. Once you accepted the FCV, you no longer had the option of getting cash, so as with all financial decisions it was critical to read everything and make an informed decision.

 

Although the FCV's state that once used they are not re-issued, in practice, Viking have been re-issuing vouchers if you cancel withing the terms of the Risk-Free Guarantee. Today, we cancelled a cruise that was entirely booked with a FCV, and Viking have graciously advised they will re-issue the FCV's.

 

With respect to the Trip Mate insurance - when you booked the new cruise, you should not have paid Trip Mate insurance on the FCV value, only the cash paid. The trip mate insurance for the new cruise should have been lower than that paid for the original cruise. Therefore, you did not pay any insurance on the value of the FCV's, which is why they are not covered by the insurance. BTW - I researched this thoroughly for the cruise we just cancelled today, as I questioned why the insurance premium was much lower.

 

Had you wanted to insure the value of the FCV's, you had to purchase 3rd party trip interruption/cancellation insurance. Again, this information was readily available when you booked the 2nd cruise.

 

With respect to the cash from the initial cruise that Viking cancelled. By accepting Viking's offer of FCV's you relinquished all future claims to getting the cash back. Viking sweetened the offer by offering 110/125%, and you accepted the risk.

 

If you are concerned about the 14-day cancellation, you should cancel now under the RFG. You will receive FCV's for everything paid to Viking and the value of the original vouchers. When you re-book another cruise, you should purchase 3rd party insurance, which will cover the value of the vouchers.

[SailorPaulH]

Update on my own situation. We cancelled today, however everything went to satisfaction. Our 125% value voucher we used towards Viking Homeland cruise (Sept 10, 2022 on Jupiter: Stockholm -> Bergen) and we have some voucher left over for excursions. Our 100% voucher we used against Iceland's Majestic Landscapes for July 2024 (They extended payment in full on this to Jan 2024 - not sure why, but I will take it. Very happy camper (cruiser!?) right now!

 

Interestingly, the Viking TA said that if for some reason I have to cancel the VH cruise and cannot use the voucher I could still get refund of monies paid by requesting after 12/31/22 if I could not use the vouchers ..... as the vouchers originated from a cruise that Viking canceled. Nevertheless, I will do the VH 🤞 and not tempt fate.

 

I want to thank everyone who helped out on my questions in this thread - I appreciate it a lot.

[CurlerRob]

8 hours ago, Topflitemolitor2 said:

... it was a big oversight on our part. 

Many people who post here seem to believe that they bear no responsibility for the choices they make regarding bookings, flights, vouchers, etc. Kudos to you for acknowledging your error - while it may not make you feel much better, it's frankly very refreshing!

 

Heidi13 has provided a clear overview in an earlier post - I hope one of those avenues works out for you. 🍺🥌

[Peregrina651]

42 minutes ago, SailorPaulH said:

(They extended payment in full on this to Jan 2024 - not sure why, but I will take it. Very happy camper (cruiser!?) right now!

 

 

Because you already have a cruise on the books, the one for Sep 10 -- and a good agent who booked the two cruises in the right order so that you could get the later Final payment date.

 

The perk is that if you already have a future cruise booked, then you can ask for and receive a final payment date of 6 months prior to the cruise. 

 

When you book a second cruise, make sure that the offer that Viking sends clearly states when the final payment is due and if it isn't correct, don't pay the deposit until it is (and you see a corrected copy of the offer). Once your deposit is made, Viking will not budge on any change in terms of the contract.

 

 

[SailorPaulH]

1 minute ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

 

Because you already have a cruise on the books, the one for Sep 10 -- and a good agent who booked the two cruises in the right order so that you could get the later Final payment date.

 

The perk is that if you already have a future cruise booked, then you can ask for and receive a final payment date of 6 months prior to the cruise. 

 

When you book a second cruise, make sure that the offer that Viking sends clearly states when the final payment is due and if it isn't correct, don't pay the deposit until it is (and you see a corrected copy of the offer). Once your deposit is made, Viking will not budge on any change in terms of the contract.

 

 

All done just the way you described, and she actually said I should book the first cruise first as it would be advantageous to extend payment (I didn't think to ask by how much ... duhhh). But all OK, and I like the VH itinerary .... so here we go ... let's try again to get my feet wet!

[SailorPaulH]

One more question, sorry. I have seen some posters saying they sometimes had to finish up purchases with credits or vouchers(?) while onboard. I can't find the posts now.

 

So if I am unable to consume all my voucher balance after booking my replacement cruise (+ excursions, gratuities ...), does any balance carry over to be used on board?

 

If so, I can find a way to put it to use 🍺🍺

[Peregrina651]

55 minutes ago, SailorPaulH said:

One more question, sorry. I have seen some posters saying they sometimes had to finish up purchases with credits or vouchers(?) while onboard. I can't find the posts now.

 

So if I am unable to consume all my voucher balance after booking my replacement cruise (+ excursions, gratuities ...), does any balance carry over to be used on board?

 

If so, I can find a way to put it to use 🍺🍺

 

Voucher balance doesn't carry over to shipboard account.  Must be spent before boarding --upgrade cabin, shorex, pre-paid gratuities, drinks package, etc.