Guest Denied boarding due to being oversold - NCL Breakaway

[graphicguy]

5 hours ago, julig22 said:

You mean clear out a broom closet, put the passenger in a room that has issues, ask a couple of solo travelers if they'd be willing to bunk together?

From what I've gathered, this was a sold-out cruise but suddenly an inside room was available for booking 6 days in advance, at a bargain rate. So no extra rooms - and if they discover at the end of the previous cruise that there are issues with one or more cabins that can't be remedied prior to sailing, what do you suggest?

Not sure what a/he is saying…quit following after they took down the reddit posts.

 

My guess?  S/he booked a GTY rate and got mad about the cabin assigned?  Missed final payment and lost the cabin?

 

Who knows?  

 

But posting on reddit?  Then deleting?  Cutting and pasting a weird letter?

 

Edited May 29 by graphicguy

[zqvol]

4 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Not sure what a/he is saying…quit following after they took down the reddit posts.

 

My guess?  S/he booked a GTY rate and got mad about the cabin assigned?  Missed final payment and lost the cabin?

 

Who knows?  

 

But posting on reddit?  Then deleting?  Cutting and pasting a weird letter?

 

The person in question booked 6 days prior to sailing. Had to pay in full at the time. At least this is what the poster said. Also said called NCL the day before sailing and was told cabin would be assigned at the pier.

 

Big Red Flags to me. 

[The Traveling Man]

3 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

When would NCL call for volunteers? 

The compensation was a full-refund and an equivalent FCC.

How would NCL match those volunteers with the rates paid by the passenger denied boarding?

As soon as they realized there would be an overbooking condition.

Yes, but it likely did not cover their other travel expenses.

Pay the two dollars. 

[erisajd]

34 minutes ago, julig22 said:

You are assuming that it really happened - I have my doubts. But, yes, his Reddit and his original post on the book site have been removed.  But he's still making comments about it on other posts.

its been rported in several other travel locations - its $1040 - I imagine NCL will have to cover some of those indirect expenses . . . 

[julig22]

On 5/27/2024 at 4:22 PM, julig22 said:

 

Just for those of you (like me) that think this is a cut and paste job, here is what the correspondence I've always gotten from NCL looks like.

Note the placement of the logo, the inclusion of an address, the consistent left margin (it's hard to not line up margins when typing a letter LOL). And my letter from Guest Experience was from a comment I sent after my cruise - not the department that I'd expect to be handling an issue such as this.

 

Edited May 29 by julig22

[julig22]

6 minutes ago, erisajd said:

its been rported in several other travel locations - its $1040 - I imagine NCL will have to cover some of those indirect expenses . . . 

You mean other travel locations that are just repeating what he posted on Reddit and other sites before they were removed?  If you find an additional original source please post a link for all us.

[CAKEisgood]

19 minutes ago, julig22 said:

Just for those of you (like me) that think this is a cut and paste job, here is what the correspondence I've always gotten from NCL looks like.

Note the placement of the logo

Agree. That’s what my letters look like. Thanks for posting the image! 

[graphicguy]

1 hour ago, zqvol said:

The person in question booked 6 days prior to sailing. Had to pay in full at the time. At least this is what the poster said. Also said called NCL the day before sailing and was told cabin would be assigned at the pier.

 

Big Red Flags to me. 

Yeah….BIG red flags.  

 

Not doubting having to pay in full.  A bit of a question about finding ANY cabin available 6 days out from sailing (doable, though).

 

Called for cabin # the day before sailing and not getting one?  Not buying that.  Cabin assigned at the pier check in?  Not buying that, either!

[graphicguy]

1 hour ago, julig22 said:

Just for those of you (like me) that think this is a cut and paste job, here is what the correspondence I've always gotten from NCL looks like.

Note the placement of the logo, the inclusion of an address, the consistent left margin (it's hard to not line up margins when typing a letter LOL). And my letter from Guest Experience was from a comment I sent after my cruise - not the department that I'd expect to be handling an issue such as this.

 

Me, too!  That’s how my NCL correspondence looks.  The one posted on Reddit looked fake!

 

 

[RocketMan275]

10 hours ago, roddy good boy said:

Since the error was on NCL, they could offer it to passengers with the same category of cabin, or even a few categories up. And, the solicitation would be shortly before boarding. As passengers are checking in, seek volunteers. Not unlike how it’s done by airlines.

You mean only offer this to other passengers sailing in Guarantee?

Passengers arrive at different times not like at an airline departure.

Very difficult to manage this process.

Very unlikely there would be any volunteers.

Wind up with same end point.

[SomewhereGirl]

I don't understand why people are questioning whether the letter was real.  It looks like a picture of a piece of paper taken with a camera, not an email.  Probably a quick letter generated on scene.  Not a form letter for an uncommon situation. For what purpose would someone create that letter if it didn't come from NCL? 

Edited May 29 by SomewhereGirl

[G-DawgMN]

42 minutes ago, SomewhereGirl said:

 For what purpose would someone create that letter if it didn't come from NCL? 

 

 Drama and attention.

 

[graphicguy]

27 minutes ago, G-DawgMN said:

 

 Drama and attention.

 

The exact two words that came to mind with me.  LOL!

[BirdTravels]

10 hours ago, zqvol said:

The person in question booked 6 days prior to sailing. Had to pay in full at the time. At least this is what the poster said. Also said called NCL the day before sailing and was told cabin would be assigned at the pier.

 

Big Red Flags to me. 

 

9 hours ago, graphicguy said:

Yeah….BIG red flags.  

 

Not doubting having to pay in full.  A bit of a question about finding ANY cabin available 6 days out from sailing (doable, though).

 

Called for cabin # the day before sailing and not getting one?  Not buying that.  Cabin assigned at the pier check in?  Not buying that, either!

 

Our cruise on the Joy two weeks ago was booked about 3 weeks prior to departure. Final payment was due at time of booking (actually, we had the agent put it on a courtesy hold with payment due within 24 hours so we could book air and hotel). 

 

You know that "calling NCL" is pretty useless. A call center person would have zero visibility into why a room has not been assigned or how oversold the cruise is. "Duh,,, A room has not been assigned. Check when you arrive at the port". The call center's response is expected. 

 

The fact that a room had not been assigned the day before cruise is a red flag. But, if I were the OP, I would be thinking "Wow!!!! no room assigned means I will probably get bumped all the way to a suite".... until not. 

 

And yes,,, NCL was expecting more no-shows and, unfortunately, the OP got burned. 

[roddy good boy]

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

You mean only offer this to other passengers sailing in Guarantee?

If you look at my first sentence, I said same category or above.

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

Passengers arrive at different times not like at an airline departure.

Offer refund and FCC as EACH passenger checks in. Or, make an announcement as passengers are waiting to board. That is similar to how airlines do it.

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

Very difficult to manage this process.

Just because something is difficult, doesn’t mean you can’t make an attempt. Isn’t that what we tell our children? You can sit and fret and wring your hands about any number of things, or you can try to get a resolution.

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

Very unlikely there would be any volunteers.

Wind up with same end point.

And? Then give the original passenger ADEQUATE compensation. And, we can go all day discussing what adequate compensation looks like. The objective should be to make the passenger whole. Also, a bit extra for the inconvenience.

 

Of course, all of this is only relevant, if the original post is true. 😜

 

[Menocchio]

12 hours ago, roddy good boy said:

Not unlike how it’s done by airlines.

AIrlines can almost always offer you another identical flight at worse the very next day, on top money, and hotel and meal vouchers. They also can just call out for volunteers at the speaker at the gate since everyone affected is already right there. None of which really apply to cruises. 

 

Frankly, sending out an email blast to a few thousand people asking for volunteers sounds like a good way to start a panic. 

[The Traveling Man]

4 minutes ago, roddy good boy said:

Then give the original passenger ADEQUATE compensation. And, we can go all day discussing what adequate compensation looks like. The objective should be to make the passenger whole. Also, a bit extra for the inconvenience.

 

Of course, all of this is only relevant, if the original post is true. 😜

 

There really shouldn't be any confusion as to what constitutes ADEQUATE compensation.  It's whatever the offended party is willing to accept, whatever they deem to be adequate.  It's a bit like an auction.  In this case the offending party, i.e. NCL, must keep raising the offer, sweetening the deal, until the offended party says "Yes, that'll do nicely!"

[RocketMan275]

9 minutes ago, roddy good boy said:

If you look at my first sentence, I said same category or above.

Offer refund and FCC as EACH passenger checks in. Or, make an announcement as passengers are waiting to board. That is similar to how airlines do it.

Just because something is difficult, doesn’t mean you can’t make an attempt. Isn’t that what we tell our children? You can sit and fret and wring your hands about any number of things, or you can try to get a resolution.

And? Then give the original passenger ADEQUATE compensation. And, we can go all day discussing what adequate compensation looks like. The objective should be to make the passenger whole. Also, a bit extra for the inconvenience.

 

Of course, all of this is only relevant, if the original post is true. 😜

 

But individuals often have paid different amounts for their fare.  So do  you offer compensation for what the individual denied boarding paid or what the volunteer paid?

 

There was 'resolution' and the original passenger was made whole.  Full refund plus a free cruise.  

 

BTW, those doing the check-in are not employees of the cruise line and cannot offer anything other than a boarding pass and badge.

[roddy good boy]

4 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

But individuals often have paid different amounts for their fare.  So do  you offer compensation for what the individual denied boarding paid or what the volunteer paid?

 

There was 'resolution' and the original passenger was made whole.  Full refund plus a free cruise.  

 

BTW, those doing the check-in are not employees of the cruise line and cannot offer anything other than a boarding pass and badge.

Why would they offer compensation for less than a volunteer paid? 

Someone with agency to make the offer would have to be present. 

[schmoopie17]

In quickly reading the title of this thread, my old eyes originally thought it said:

 

"Guest denied boarding due to being overserved".

 

But then I realized he would only be overserved AFTER boarding.

 

Okay...back to the discussion of fake letters and appropriate compensation.

 

Edited May 29 by schmoopie17

[RocketMan275]

9 minutes ago, roddy good boy said:

Why would they offer compensation for less than a volunteer paid? 

Someone with agency to make the offer would have to be present. 

Because the original offer to the denied passenger was a full refund which might be less than what other passengers paid.  And the FCC was linked to the denied passenger. 

Last time I checked in, there were ten or more checkin positions.  You want to place someone with agency at each position?  They would have to be NCL employees with other duties.

BTW, we don't know when the denied passenger checkedin.  How would you deal with that?

 

Edited May 29 by RocketMan275

[roddy good boy]

22 minutes ago, Menocchio said:

AIrlines can almost always offer you another identical flight at worse the very next day, on top money, and hotel and meal vouchers. They also can just call out for volunteers at the speaker at the gate since everyone affected is already right there. None of which really apply to cruises. 

 

Frankly, sending out an email blast to a few thousand people asking for volunteers sounds like a good way to start a panic. 

Frankly, sending out an email blast to a few thousand people asking for volunteers sounds like a good way to start a panic. 
 

Yeah, probably better to quietly make the offers. 🤣

 

But, do you think the original passenger just quietly slunk away, after he was denied boarding? He more than likely made quite a scene. I’m pretty sure that everyone in the boarding area was talking about it. Which is curious that more people didn’t report on it. 

[RocketMan275]

1 minute ago, roddy good boy said:

Frankly, sending out an email blast to a few thousand people asking for volunteers sounds like a good way to start a panic. 
 

Yeah, probably better to quietly make the offers. 🤣

 

But, do you think the original passenger just quietly slunk away, after he was denied boarding? He more than likely made quite a scene. I’m pretty sure that everyone in the boarding area was talking about it. Which is curious that more people didn’t report on it. 

Make a scene at an airport checkin and you'll get to meet some very nice people from TSA and local police.  Same could happen at a cruise terminal.

It's possible the terminal escorted the passenger to a non-public area where he was told about the boarding issue. I'm sure they have procedures to deal with unruly passengers.

[roddy good boy]

6 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Because the original offer to the denied passenger was a full refund which might be less than what other passengers paid.  And the FCC was linked to the denied passenger.

Last time I checked in, there were ten or more checkin positions.  You want to place someone with agency at each position?  They would have to be NCL employees with other duties.

BTW, we don't know when the denied passenger checkin.  How would you deal with that?

Why does compensation have to be limited to the amount the original passenger paid?

 

NCL created the problem. They can work out the logistics! You’re setting up improbable issues and roadblocks. I’m sure they have a communication system.  

[roddy good boy]

5 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Make a scene at an airport checkin and you'll get to meet some very nice people from TSA and local police.  Same could happen at a cruise terminal.

It's possible the terminal escorted the passenger to a non-public area where he was told about the boarding issue. I'm sure they have procedures to deal with unruly passengers.

There are ways of elevating your tone and speech without becoming unruly. It would be counter productive to be hauled away by security!