Final Payment Notification and Consequences of Missing the Date?

[LEMJMcC]

I recently made the final payment on an upcoming cruise the day before it was due.  I found it interesting that I never received any prompt or reminder from RCI about it.  Did I miss something or do they not send out any kind of reminders?  Just curious.  Also, what would have happened if I had missed that final date?  Would I lose my deposit and my booking?

 

Thanks.

[Ourusualbeach]

11 minutes ago, LEMJMcC said:

I recently made the final payment on an upcoming cruise the day before it was due.  I found it interesting that I never received any prompt or reminder from RCI about it.  Did I miss something or do they not send out any kind of reminders?  Just curious.  Also, what would have happened if I had missed that final date?  Would I lose my deposit and my booking?

 

Thanks.

If you miss the final payment date your booking is automatically cancelled, you would lose your deposit as you are now in the penalty phase.

 

Reminder notifications are hit or miss but at the end of the day it is your responsibility to make sure you keep track of the date.

Edited April 5 by Ourusualbeach

[LEMJMcC]

1 minute ago, Ourusualbeach said:

If you miss the final payment date your booking is automatically cancelled, you would lose your deposit as you are now in the penalty phase.

 

Reminder notifications are hit or miss but at the end of the day it is your responsibility to make sure you keep track of the date.

Oh, I do.  I have multiple reminders on my Outlook calendar with plenty of advance notice.  I had heard from one of my friends going on the same cruise that he had received an email reminder from Royal, I was curious as to why I hadn't.  

Thanks.

[Ourusualbeach]

Just now, LEMJMcC said:

Oh, I do.  I have multiple reminders on my Outlook calendar with plenty of advance notice.  I had heard from one of my friends going on the same cruise that he had received an email reminder from Royal, I was curious as to why I hadn't.  

Thanks.

There are so many inconsistencies with Royals e mails and how they are generated it really is hit or miss.  If you booked through a TA they will get the notice and not you.

[gumshoe958]

1 hour ago, LEMJMcC said:

I recently made the final payment on an upcoming cruise the day before it was due.  I found it interesting that I never received any prompt or reminder from RCI about it.  Did I miss something or do they not send out any kind of reminders?  Just curious.  Also, what would have happened if I had missed that final date?  Would I lose my deposit and my booking?

 

Thanks.

Having recently (deliberately) missed a final payment and not calling up to cancel as I was prepared to sacrifice the small NRD, I received:

 

- a reminder email two weeks before final payment date;

- a reminder email one week before final payment date;

- a reminder email on final payment date;

- a reminder email a week after final payment date;

- three missed calls within an hour that same day a week after final payment date;

- my cancellation invoice by email within 30 minutes of the final missed call.

 

So in my case I could have been a week late with final payment. Whether that’s a standard grace period I have no idea but the cancellation was clearly done manually rather than automatically, and Royal made numerous attempts to contact me first.

 

 

Edited April 5 by gumshoe958

[shipgeeks]

I don't think I've ever received a final payment reminder for any cruise on any line.  

[SRF]

My TA reminds me and normally sets up to make the payment 10 days early.

[sharpasice]

6 hours ago, shipgeeks said:

I don't think I've ever received a final payment reminder for any cruise on any line.  

Me either BUT I always mark the date a month prior to final pymt due on my calendar. 

[loman]

I typically pay one week in advance , just in case something goes wrong so i have time to

correct it. ( nothing ever went wrong 🙂 )

[Ourusualbeach]

7 minutes ago, loman said:

I typically pay one week in advance , just in case something goes wrong so i have time to

correct it. ( nothing ever went wrong 🙂 )

Great advice.  Things can definitely go wrong, I've seen it first hand.  I shudder when I have a client ask me to run their payment on the day that it is due. 

[S.A.M.J.R.]

My recent horror story...

 

Final payment due 4/14.  I'm going to be on the road for business, and decide to pay (to my TA) last Sunday (3/31).  I use their online form and submit the payment (not expecting it to go through until Monday, but that's fine).  

 

Three reservations, so three payments.  No big deal.  Sunday night, I get a notification from my CC that one charge went through (but not for the full amount of any of the rooms), two were declined (more in a moment), and another charge was questioned. 

 

The two that were declined were because of "wrong virtual card" numbers.  I use virtual card numbers for any orders online.  They're locked in to just that vendor.  The one charge that went through was to Royal, the declined charges were to the TA.  

 

OK, create a virtual card for the TA, fill out the forms again.  Now charges go through for the TA, not for Royal.  

 

I ended up having to do partial payments and make sure I put the TA amount on it's card, and Royal's amount on it's card.  Took me until Wednesday(?).  I will NEVER wait until the day before, much less the day of final payment.  You just never know.

 

Now, I know people are screaming "why is the TA charging you extra!  I'd never use them again!".  All I can tell you, is even with their "extra charges", they saved us over $1K on the trip (may have been more, I'm not sure when I was price shopping if Royal was including gratuities in their total).  I don't care who gets my money, I'm trying to find the most cost effective deal. 

[not-enough-cruising]

I just pay full balance at booking and forget about it until it is time to head to the ship

[molly361]

12 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Great advice.  Things can definitely go wrong, I've seen it first hand.  I shudder when I have a client ask me to run their payment on the day that it is due. 

I normally have my TA make my final payments months in advance. ( Waiting for the people to come and tell me how much money I could save by keeping it in the bank😇)

Edited April 6 by molly361

[OCSC Mike]

Just now, molly361 said:

I normally have my TA make my final payments months in advance.  Waiting for the people to come and tell me how much money I could save by keeping it in the bank😇

 

If you kept it in the bank... 😁

 

I usually pay mine off a couple weeks early. Like most things in life, everyone should do whatever makes them feel comfortable.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

39 minutes ago, molly361 said:

I normally have my TA make my final payments months in advance. ( Waiting for the people to come and tell me how much money I could save by keeping it in the bank😇)

90 days (normal PiF date, isn't it?) *IS* "months in advance".  Three to be more precise.  

[Ourusualbeach]

4 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

90 days (normal PiF date, isn't it?) *IS* "months in advance".  Three to be more precise.  

Ellen actually means months before the final payment date.

 

 

Its 90 days not 3 months as 3 months can be something other than 90 days.

 

75 days for 3-5 night sailings

120 days for 15 plus nights

 

Edited April 6 by Ourusualbeach

[S.A.M.J.R.]

57 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Ellen actually means months before the final payment date.

And I'm supposed to know that how? 😉

57 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Its 90 days not 3 months as 3 months can be something other than 90 days.

That's why I said "more precise", not "precise".  If someone tells me to do something in "90 days", I'm going to think "3 months".  Obviously it can be off by a couple of days, but it's a quick (and fairly accurate) guess. 

57 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

75 days for 3-5 night sailings

120 days for 15 plus nights

And of course those are "months in advance also".  😉  

[Merion_Mom]

11 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Ellen actually means months before the final payment date.

 

 

Its 90 days not 3 months as 3 months can be something other than 90 days.

 

75 days for 3-5 night sailings

120 days for 15 plus nights

 

 

When did the "120 days" begin?

[Ourusualbeach]

3 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

When did the "120 days" begin?

Maybe 6 months ago. It was the same rime they went to the $1000 deposits on the 15 night or longer sailings. 

Edited April 7 by Ourusualbeach

[Ourusualbeach]

Found my old thread.  Oct 11th, 2023

4 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

When did the "120 days" begin?

 

27 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Maybe 6 months ago. It was the same rime they went to the $1000 deposits on the 15 night or longer sailings. 

 

[Tin can]

On 4/5/2024 at 12:34 PM, Ourusualbeach said:

If you miss the final payment date your booking is automatically cancelled, you would lose your deposit as you are now in the penalty phase.

 

Reminder notifications are hit or miss but at the end of the day it is your responsibility to make sure you keep track of the date.

 

Our only experience when we didn't make final payment and let a booking expire (UK cruisers so you can't transfer) resulted in a call from Miami HQ.

 

We are just D+ so nothing special and he couldn't have been more helpful asking if we had forgotten to pay and was there anything he could do to assist. This was over two weeks past payment date

 

All very strange, perhaps they got us mixed up with a high rolling Pinnacle 😀

[Ourusualbeach]

53 minutes ago, Tin can said:

 

Our only experience when we didn't make final payment and let a booking expire (UK cruisers so you can't transfer) resulted in a call from Miami HQ.

 

We are just D+ so nothing special and he couldn't have been more helpful asking if we had forgotten to pay and was there anything he could do to assist. This was over two weeks past payment date

 

All very strange, perhaps they got us mixed up with a high rolling Pinnacle 😀

Wow, you were very lucky.

[Jetdriver787]

I let one booking expire but it took about 2 weeks and numerous email reminders for confirmation of cancellation to occur. Recently had a similar situation where I thought we would have to let it go, but circumstances changed and I paid the balance around 10 days after “final payment date.”  It all went through fine, but I most definitely wouldn’t rely on it as a strategy. 

[SRF]

On 4/6/2024 at 8:42 AM, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Now, I know people are screaming "why is the TA charging you extra!  I'd never use them again!".  All I can tell you, is even with their "extra charges", they saved us over $1K on the trip (may have been more, I'm not sure when I was price shopping if Royal was including gratuities in their total).  I don't care who gets my money, I'm trying to find the most cost effective deal. 

 

My TA plays ME.  No extra fees, and rebate part of her commission as OBC.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

9 hours ago, SRF said:

 

My TA plays ME.  No extra fees, and rebate part of her commission as OBC.

Good for you?  Bottom line is what I judge on.  I don't care about OBC if I can save money on the Cruise.  Without knowing what your TA would have offered for our particular cruise, we dont know if they get you a better deal.