Just receive obc refund- check is VOID

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

And lest we forget...these refunds are not handled directly by Princess.  (I forget the name that has been bandied about...)  Let's play "I'm cynical"! (I'm really good at this game, BTW!)  That firm could very well have processed the refund, cut a check, stuffed it into an envelope and run it through their "in house" postage meter...which is very common for businesses of any size to have/use.  Then...they "conveniently" let these checks just sit on a shelf for x number of days.  Who knows what type of contractual agreement they have with Princess if a check just "mysteriously" is not cashed within the allotted time?  HHmmmmm....

Now that is really cynical.

[JimmyVWine]

The level of risk that you are willing to take is up to you.  But the "Expires in 90 Days" language is there as an incentive to get people to act quickly and has no real legal binding effect.  Sort of like the Dress Code on Princess.  That said, I don't know how Canadian rules differ, if at all, from the Uniform Commercial Code in the U.S.

 

https://blog.remitly.com/finance/do-checks-expire/

 

https://www.huntington.com/learn/checking-basics/how-long-is-a-check-good-for#:~:text=Personal%2C business%2C and payroll checks,a check sooner than later.

[Mike45LC]

I admit that I am terrible at depositing small dividend checks.  It is a hassle to endorse, fill out deposit slip, do my register entry.  So they might sit in a pile on my desk.  

 

I have successfully deposited old checks, up to one year old.  I don't call the staleness to anyone's attention, I just hand the checks to the teller, and almost always, they are honored.  This is old school, brick and  mortar, in person with a teller who greets me by name.

[Ombud]

@Mike45LC you don't mobile deposit?? Snap a pic of front & back and I'm done

[VibeGuy]

Bottomline is a leader in this space and their ethics and competency should be seen as unquestionable.  They handle check disbursements for companies much more august than Carnival Corporation. 

[LidoLiz]

I just opened our mail (we are also in Canada) and found the same thing. I was able to get through to the Princess credit department almost immediately 😮 just now and the very nice gal told me this is the second report she’s had today of this.

She provided the number to call Bottomline Technologies, and told me to give them the check number to re-issue.

The phone # is 1-877-443-6944. I will be calling first thing tomorrow!

Good Luck!

Edited March 29, 2023 by LidoLiz

[LouCoop]

2 hours ago, LidoLiz said:

I just opened our mail (we are also in Canada) and found the same thing. I was able to get through to the Princess credit department almost immediately 😮 just now and the very nice gal told me this is the second report she’s had today of this.

She provided the number to call Bottomline Technologies, and told me to give them the check number to re-issue.

The phone # is 1-877-443-6944. I will be calling first thing tomorrow!

Good Luck!

Thank you so much, will be calling first thing tomorrow also.

[Happiest when cruising]

7 hours ago, LouCoop said:

I can't do that as the cheque is in US funds and I am Canadian. Will have to go in person. As @2 cruises a year has mentioned I might have to pay a penalty if the cheque is returned.

I wrote to customer service asking if they could re issue the cheque, waiting for answer.

I worked for a bank for 25 years.
Do not even bother taking it in to your bank. It would just cause more problems if they accepted it in error, then it was returned, you would also be subject to the buy and sell rates, and high service fees. 
 

Your best option is to see if they will reissue it, or wire it straight to your bank account. 
 

 

[Happiest when cruising]

6 hours ago, Mike45LC said:

I admit that I am terrible at depositing small dividend checks.  It is a hassle to endorse, fill out deposit slip, do my register entry.  So they might sit in a pile on my desk.  

 

I have successfully deposited old checks, up to one year old.  I don't call the staleness to anyone's attention, I just hand the checks to the teller, and almost always, they are honored.  This is old school, brick and  mortar, in person with a teller who greets me by name.

Just because the bank originally takes your deposit does not mean it can’t come back to you, many months later with your account being debited with possible fees, as well. 

Edited March 30, 2023 by Happiest when cruising

[LouCoop]

@LidoLiz I just called Bottomline. They won't re-issue must work that out with Princess. They explained that after 90 days money is sent back to Princess. So if anyone has this problem do not take the risk of going to the bank with it, it will not go through.

I will try to contact Princess again and see how it goes.

[Rick&Jeannie]

OK...here comes the cynicism in me coming out again.  Me thinks this just *might* be a way for Princess to stretch this out even further than what has been reported.  I certainly hope that this is not the case...but we've all heard the stories about trying to get refunds!

[LouCoop]

UPDATE

 

Just contacted Princess. It went really good. Had a nice conversation with a fellow named John.

He filled out a form for me for the re-issuing of the cheque. Apparently cheque should be sent in 2 or 3 days🤞. Will let you know if it comes in....or not, but I am hopeful.

[ontheweb]

13 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

OK...here comes the cynicism in me coming out again.  Me thinks this just *might* be a way for Princess to stretch this out even further than what has been reported.  I certainly hope that this is not the case...but we've all heard the stories about trying to get refunds!

DId you read the post where the OP checked the postmark and it seems it is more of a postal problem than anything Princess or the firm that is issuing the check had?

[Rick&Jeannie]

8 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

DId you read the post where the OP checked the postmark and it seems it is more of a postal problem than anything Princess or the firm that is issuing the check had?

I sure did...see post #15.  Like I said...I'm pretty cynical! 😄

[ontheweb]

8 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

I sure did...see post #15.  Like I said...I'm pretty cynical! 😄

I think I already posted in response to an earlier post by you that you sounded very cynical. I see you agree..

[LidoLiz]

Thanks, LouCoop….I also just contacted the credit department at Princess….but they said it will take 6-8 weeks for a new cheque to be issued. 
They are obviously giving out different information …I hope for your sake that you see your cheque within the week!

[Happiest when cruising]

1 hour ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

OK...here comes the cynicism in me coming out again.  Me thinks this just *might* be a way for Princess to stretch this out even further than what has been reported.  I certainly hope that this is not the case...but we've all heard the stories about trying to get refunds!

I’m sorry you feel that way. I like to give them the benefit of the doubt. 
It definitely takes speaking to the right person to get things done in a timely manner, though. 

[UpcountryTravelers]

On 3/29/2023 at 11:14 AM, david63 said:

Don't tell me that people are still using cheques - not seen a cheque in over five years!

 

I thought everything was done electronically these days.

Nope.  Not everything, or even everybody.

 

[Guest ldtr]

looks like the problem may have been in the mail during transfer from US to Canada since we have 2 similar reports, both in Canada. A batch of check might have gotten held up for some reason.

[XLVIII]

When we didn't receive our refundable OBC cheque by February for our November cruise, I called Princess and they stopped payment on the original cheque and sent us a new one within 2 weeks. The original one (postmarked Dec 1) just showed up yesterday. 

[Perky1]

On 3/30/2023 at 12:30 PM, LidoLiz said:

Thanks, LouCoop….I also just contacted the credit department at Princess….but they said it will take 6-8 weeks for a new cheque to be issued. 
They are obviously giving out different information …I hope for your sake that you see your cheque within the week!

How did you contact the credit department?

[LidoLiz]

I phoned the main Princess number, told them it was a cheque issue and asked to be transferred to the credit department. 

[Perky1]

2 minutes ago, LidoLiz said:

I phoned the main Princess number, told them it was a cheque issue and asked to be transferred to the credit department. 

Thank you!

 

[Perky1]

Don’t need to call - got off the ship March 9 - received a cheque today for my balance and the cheque was dated March 23 and I am in Canada.  I think that is pretty good.

[PaperSniper4]

On 3/29/2023 at 10:14 AM, david63 said:

Don't tell me that people are still using cheques - not seen a cheque in over five years!

 

I thought everything was done electronically these days.

Me too. On our cruise that ended 26 May 2023,  I asked the Purser's office about the refundable OBC. I was told it would be credited back to my credit card. However, as of today, about 10 days later, I have not seen a credit..... Or a check.

 

 Doug