P&O cancellation / Medical questionnaire

[zap99]

15 hours ago, binman2 said:

You could answer N/A 

They require yes or no answers.

[jeanlyon]

Just seen this on social media

 

[jeanlyon]

I wonder what brought that about?  !!!

[kalos]

What is classed as Cat A & B ? 

[jeanlyon]

12 minutes ago, kalos said:

What is classed as Cat A & B ? 

I would guess that Cat B is States and Caribbean, World Cruises and over 16 days. 

[Windsurfboy]

Just so sad for the poor people who lost their cruise and money 

[watsonbeau]

I wonder if other Carnival brands eg Cunard will do same ?

 

hopefully those who have been victims of the health declaration form will have been recompensed - silence may just mean NDAs I hope. 

Edited December 2, 2022 by watsonbeau

[bobstheboy]

I was chatting to TA this evening and she informed that there will be changes in a couple of weeks to the way the Health Questionnaire is completed. The requirement to complete prior to the cruise will cease and it will be at the terminal building prior to boarding. She is mindful of the number who have been denied boarding unnecessarily by innocently answering Yes. She is waiting for the full text of the change but it sounds as if P&O are being sensible or forced to make this change.

[Gettingwarmer]

51 minutes ago, bobstheboy said:

I was chatting to TA this evening and she informed that there will be changes in a couple of weeks to the way the Health Questionnaire is completed. The requirement to complete prior to the cruise will cease and it will be at the terminal building prior to boarding. She is mindful of the number who have been denied boarding unnecessarily by innocently answering Yes. She is waiting for the full text of the change but it sounds as if P&O are being sensible or forced to make this change.

See the top thread

[9265359]

So for Cat A holidays there will be two signs - 

 

- If there is nothing wrong with you, and don’t worry, we won’t check, then this way to the ship and welcome to your holiday 

- If there is anything wrong with you then turn around and the bus home is behind you, and please don’t let the door bang as you leave

 

I wonder how many will choose the second option.

 

Ah well, another reason to avoid the buffet.

[jeanlyon]

We always use the buffet.  Never had a problem in 12 years.

[bobstheboy]

16 minutes ago, Gettingwarmer said:

See the top thread

Thanks.

[Gettingwarmer]

1 minute ago, jeanlyon said:

We always use the buffet.  Never had a problem in 12 years.

Yes but you should explain that you  have not been on a ship since covid. 

[9265359]

7 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

We always use the buffet.  Never had a problem in 12 years.

Well the odds of that being a good idea have got worse with this change.

[terrierjohn]

1 minute ago, Gettingwarmer said:

Yes but you should explain that you  have not been on a ship since covid. 

I have been on 2 post covid and used the buffet every day, without any sign of any illness. I think the secret is to mix as much as possible, which ensures you come into contact with lots of germs, which keeps your immune system in top class working order.  Mask wearing, and hiding away on tables for two for fear of encountering a bug or two, and keeping your immune system in the dark, is more likely to leave you susceptible to lots of illnesses.

[jeanlyon]

27 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

I have been on 2 post covid and used the buffet every day, without any sign of any illness. I think the secret is to mix as much as possible, which ensures you come into contact with lots of germs, which keeps your immune system in top class working order.  Mask wearing, and hiding away on tables for two for fear of encountering a bug or two, and keeping your immune system in the dark, is more likely to leave you susceptible to lots of illnesses.

Agree!  In 12 years, none of our group have ever had norovirus either.

Edited December 2, 2022 by jeanlyon

[molecrochip]

I'm so pleased this is finally happened. There has been rumours for a couple of weeks but nothing anywhere near definite hence not mentioning it.

 

I do believe that this has come because pressure has been exerted on the Company, by insurance companies, ABTA and people like, and most certainly including, @Megabear2 - who quite rightly didn't let it go.

 

Defending the indefensible is never nice and some contact centre staff have taken some real flak dealing with good honest genuine people having their holidays cancelled by the Company.

[molecrochip]

Cat A holidays are every cruise which is not Cat B.

 

Cat B holidays are determined on a case by case basis. Cat B doesn't have a specific definition but could be because:

• Its a long cruise, or has a high number of consecutive sea days;
• It has a high proportion of more vulnerable guests;
• It calls at a country which has stricter requirements; or
• Any other reason which leads the Company to suggest a serious outbreak of Covid is a possibility.

Edited December 3, 2022 by molecrochip

[terrierjohn]

1 hour ago, molecrochip said:

I'm so pleased this is finally happened. There has been rumours for a couple of weeks but nothing anywhere near definite hence not mentioning it.

 

I do believe that this has come because pressure has been exerted on the Company, by insurance companies, ABTA and people like, and most certainly including, @Megabear2 - who quite rightly didn't let it go.

 

Defending the indefensible is never nice and some contact centre staff have taken some real flak dealing with good honest genuine people having their holidays cancelled by the Company.

Moly, do you know what P&O are going to do about passengers who had their cruise cancelled because of this health questionnaire, but have been unable to claim compensation from their travel insurance?

[bobstheboy]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

Moly, do you know what P&O are going to do about passengers who had their cruise cancelled because of this health questionnaire, but have been unable to claim compensation from their travel insurance?

I hope they do the the right thing and at the very least offer a FCC. A refund would obviously be preferable.

[molecrochip]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

Moly, do you know what P&O are going to do about passengers who had their cruise cancelled because of this health questionnaire, but have been unable to claim compensation from their travel insurance?

I don't - but I would suggest that these people continue to badger and complain to P&O.

 

I think the penny has dropped that the questionnaire was unworkable/unreliable and the 'moving back to normal' message is purely window dressing - as nothing has changed as far as Covid is concerned from 4 weeks ago.

 

Again, I don't know but suspect that the likely chess games goes: P&O say no, Insurance says no, complain via ABTA not dealt with in 4 weeks, seek to take to small claims court (if less than £10k) = settled out of court with FCC offered to value of cruise lost, and probably a NDA for good measure. 

 

Its worth noting that restrictions are now only applying to those Covid positive within 7 days and also a loosening of restrictions for certain types of dialysis and oxygen concentrators. These people have not been able to cruise since February 2020.

[molecrochip]

1 minute ago, bobstheboy said:

I hope they do the the right thing and at the very least offer a FCC. A refund would obviously be preferable.

A refund would be preferable however I think FCC/like-for-like cruise would be appropriate.

 

That way P&O get to keep the money, the passengers still probably end up with a on board spend bill at the end of their replacement cruise, yet the passenger is not out of pocket too much (noting incidentals).

 

I'm hoping that this is the start of some better PR. P&O know that the magic has gone out of cruising and are currently focused on the next 12 months to restore that magic.

[watsonbeau]

Surely p&o have to refund if they cancel

yiur holiday ? After all if you fill in the questionnaire and put Yes somewhere- it’s not you that’s cancelling of your own choice  - it’s P&O cancelling your cruise. Perhaps academic now but their website does state - 

 

“In the unlikely event that P&O Cruises needs to cancel your cruise, we guarantee you an enhanced Future Cruise Credit (FCC). This can be used on any new booking on sale in that period or you can use it to upgrade an existing booking. If you’d like to upgrade, please contact your travel agent or our Customer Contact Centre if you booked direct. Please note, this FCC is not covered by ABTA's scheme of financial protection, although any booking made using this FCC will be protected up to the amount of the refund due on the original booking. If the enhanced Future Cruise Credit offer does not meet your needs, you can request a full refund instead.”

 

 

[molecrochip]

5 minutes ago, watsonbeau said:

Surely p&o have to refund if they cancel

yiur holiday ? After all if you fill in the questionnaire and put Yes somewhere- it’s not you that’s cancelling of your own choice  - it’s P&O cancelling your cruise. Perhaps academic now but their website does state - 

 

“In the unlikely event that P&O Cruises needs to cancel your cruise, we guarantee you an enhanced Future Cruise Credit (FCC). This can be used on any new booking on sale in that period or you can use it to upgrade an existing booking. If you’d like to upgrade, please contact your travel agent or our Customer Contact Centre if you booked direct. Please note, this FCC is not covered by ABTA's scheme of financial protection, although any booking made using this FCC will be protected up to the amount of the refund due on the original booking. If the enhanced Future Cruise Credit offer does not meet your needs, you can request a full refund instead.”

 

 

@watsonbeau The 'terms' for the questionnaire state, that if you answer 'yes' then P&O will treat that as you cancelling your cruise in line with the terms for cancellation at 3 days out (i.e. full forfeit of funds).

 

It has been this that has caused the controversy. If P&O denied you boarding / they cancelled then either P&O would have been liable or insurance companies would likely pay out but that was not the way it was worded.

 

This was why many thought that it had been an unfair contract term.

Edited December 3, 2022 by molecrochip

[watsonbeau]

Thank you.  Anyway hopefully it will be soon dead and buried for good ! Hope anyone affected manages to recoup any loss.