Luggage update

[emptynest1]

:( I had a thread on the old board about my luggage being mutilated on the Horizon May 29. This was a nice piece, very well made, and able to stand up to most things that baggage handlers could do to it. Along with the luggage a pair of my sons dress shoes, which we bought for the cruise and he had never worn, were damaged leaving him with tennis shoes or flip flops for formal attire or wearing the damaged shoes.

I was a good girl and got estimates(totally unrepairable)for the luggage, I boxed the brand new shoes that were damaged and pictures of the whole thing and sent it off to Risk Management in Miami. Insured.

 

I just received a check from RCL for half of the damage total with no explanation as to how this figure was arrived at, no comment about my inconvience and loss of personal items. Nothing but the check which was stamped on the back with a disclaimer that if cashed RCL was totally off the hook.

 

I have called RCL to ask for an explaination of the payment and to appeal to them to pay for the total damage cost. Of course, I had to leave a voice mail since it is very hard to actually speak to someone. I also emailed a member of their loyalty marketing staff(6days ago) about the situation and have not received a reply.

I am not asking for anything but the damage to be compensated. Why is RCL customer service so frustrating????????

[sgrissom]

hey empty nest, I didn't read the former thread so don't know if you've already addressed this, but if you had travel insurance it might pick up the difference. I'd keep calling and complaining.

[emptynest1]

sgrissom, I do have insurance and my luggage has a guarentee from the manufacturer against damage.

 

The insurance company did not damage the bag nor did the makers of the luggage. I can tell you that no luggage could withstand what happened. I do not want to stick them with the damage costs when I think RCL should pay for what they did. It is a matter of principle.

 

Another point to consider is that RCL did not give me an explanation of what they paid for and the insurance needs to know that before they will pay anything. RCL has the damaged shoes and I don't know if they paid for those or not.

 

Very lax in their handling of this and not what I consider professional. I am very disappointed with this company.

[sgrissom]

emptynest,

don't blame you a bit. I'd feel the same way. But I guess it's nice to know that you've got the other avenues for reimbursement if you can't get satisfaction.

[tuggers]

I had a piece of luggage damaged coming off Century, but I just called the mfg. They told me to email pictures of the damage and they will replace the bag.

 

Out of curiosity, what did they do to your bag? All I know is that mine (with a lifetime guarantee) came off with the entire pull handle assembly broken out of the suitcase.

[emptynest1]

Tuggers, the manufacturer will also replace this, it isn't the money that I am so peeved about. Tumi should not have to absorb the cost of this since they did not contribute to the damage. It was not a defect, and this was a well built piece that should be able to withstand most normal handling, it was negligence on the part of Celebrity, and they should take care of the problem instead of the never ending runaround I am getting from them.

 

This was a large rolling piece, the rigid back with handle and wheels was demolished, the side was ripped out, the front had tar and some kind of marks on it, along with a hole in the front panel, the zipper was flattened.

The best part was that it was left outside my cabin wrapped in tape as if nothing was wrong. No note, no explaination, no indication that anything was amiss. I hadn't been on the ship more than 3 hours, and we hadn't left the pier yet, when I returned to the cabin to unpack and found it. This was not how I wanted to start a cruise.

 

Celebrity customer service has been a royal pain in the a$$. All I am asking for is that they take care of the damage they created. I have some very bad feelings about their customer service department and I am now at the point of canceling my Nov cruise.

[tuggers]

Send copies of your pictures, check, all correspondence, a list of the times and dates that you've called with no response in a nice letter, in a big Priority Mail Envelope with delivery confirmation, marked 'personal' to Jack Williams? I've found that the big 8 x 10 envelopes get a little more attention.

Just explane how you feel. That they are losing all the good will they have worked so hard to build with repeat pax by just failing to communicate! I think this will work better than what you are doing now. Be sure to mention your cruise history with them and how much you've enjoyed everthing up til this incident. I'm thinking you think your suitcase was driven over, right? Which would be extremely careless of someone.

Try this and let me know, ok?

 

Gail

[sgrissom]

I agree with Gail. Be a really squeaky wheel.

Sounds like your bag got run over by a truck! The no note and no explanation would really get to me too. What happened when you reported it while still on the ship?

Sally

[emptynest1]

Sally, the guest relations on board were in shock, I don't think they had seen anything as damaged. I took it down to them and it was literally in pieces hanging by the busted zipper. They were wonderful, I had a blouse that had tar on it and they took it the cleaners and then suggested I go shopping in Bermuda for a new bag to get home with. When I said I was going to Bermuda to snorkle not shop they found me a cheap, but servicable bag so that I did not have to carry my clothes home in my arms.

 

My son did have to wear the shoes and they looked awful, but better than flip flops with his jacket and tie.

 

I have no problem with guest relations, it is the land based RCL customer service that is driving me nuts.

 

I will prepare a large envelope for Mr Williams today, I was hoping to get taken care of by the underlings and not have to go the big guy, but as you can see, communication is not thier strength.

[tuggers]

Tar on your blouse? Geez! Don't forget, the Priority Mail envelopes are free at the post office (save where you can) and they look official! Did the blouse clean up? I'd ask for something for everything that was ruined. It must have taken a semi to do that to a tumi! Good Luck! I'll be very interested to know how this plays out. Just remember he travels a lot so it may take a little time!

 

Gail

[new_cruiser]

Emptynest,

 

I've had experience with Tumi warranty repairs. They don't cover damage due to abuse. When I sent my bag in for repair of various defects acquired over years of use, they initially rejected many of the repairs as being due to abuse. They took weeks to get around to doing even that.

 

When I called them to discuss it, the clerk said the warranty was for defects in materials and workmanship, not damage due to abuse or wear. She then said that such defects almost always show up in the first 6 months and damage after that was from abuse/wear. Apparently when they said lifetime, they meant 6 months. I argued enough to get them to do most of the repairs. I paid for one repair and they did a poor job of it. I was pretty disillusioned about the value of their "lifetime" warranty.

 

Unless Tumi have changed their warranty, you are get anything from them.

[tuggers]

Boy that's disappointing for the bucks you pay for those things!

[newtocc]

Good Luck EN!

[emptynest1]

Thanks Newt.

 

I figured Tumi wouldn't touch this one, but the luggage store I bought it from said they have a "No questions asked quarentee" When I went to them for an estimate, they were amused that Celebrity wanted a repair estimate(there is no fixing this one) and hopeful we would not take them up on the No questions guarentee.

[NitaBcruising]

EN, I really wish you better luck!!! But, from reading many of the boards, none of the cruiselines' strengths are with customer service, at home! It seems every line has problems with this, for any reason! It's really too bad, as can spoil an otherwise good cruise, and cruiseline!

 

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. I agree, the cruiseline should be responsible, rather than the maker or insurance! (nice to fall back on, however!)

[LoneStar72]

:( I had a thread on the old board about my luggage being mutilated on the Horizon May 29.

Thanks to you and that thread, my experience with baggage damage went very smoothly. We sailed Summit southbound from Seward last month. We had the Celebrity transfer from downtown Anchorage -- they collect the baggage and truck it to the ship, while you either take a scenic train or bus ride to Seward. Our baggage was undamaged when we checked it in with X in downtown Anchorage. When we got to our cabin, one of the large roll-around cases had the large front pocket ripped almost totally off. Like your experience, the bag was just sitting outside our cabin door with no note or anything. I immediately called Guest Relations and said that my luggage had been damaged, and I wanted someone to arrange for repairs. About an hour later, a person arrived and took the case. I mentioned to the cabin steward that one of my suitcases was now in the custody of the ship, and to keep an eye out for its return. A couple of days later, the bag was returned, and the front pocket had been hand-stitched back on. It wasn't pretty, but it was functional. Again, no note, no other contact.

 

But, thanks to you, I knew that something like that could happen, and knew to ask Celebrity to put it right ASAP. The good news is that I didn't have to deal with RCI customer service...

[L11]

EN, I couldn't agree with you more. Sounds like RCL Customer No-Service is useless. Keep at it and thanks from the rest of us who hope this will be a wake up call to someone. (not that i think it is likely, but one can hope. I love Celebrity, but live in dread of having to contact their corporate offices. Ever. For any reason.).

 

Linda

[katiel53]

I have seen your post on the old board. I do feel sorry that you didn't get your luggage replaced. I had good luggage also and Celebrity fixed the handle on board and I complained that I had on handle of one style and of another, and they graciously took it and replaced the other one too. I will probably be flamed for this, but I think you are making a bigger issue out of this than you need to. I am NOT saying, you are wrong in complaining etc, but to bring this up again on a new board when you have other recourses is redundant. Sorry, but that's my opinion.

[onabona]

Hi EmptyNest

I would keep trying to get somewhere with Celebrity. I had an incident onboard the Summit. It takes a long time to get answers from them, but in the end patience won out. I had chewed food that apparently had crushed glass in it & it cut the inside of my upper lip. After much writing to Risk Management Dept. they finally got back to me & sent me a future cruise certificate to be used on my next cruise. (not enough for a cruise but enough for me as an apology) The Summit cruise was Mar.3/03 & I finally got the certificate on July/03. It took 4 months to settle this & much mail in between. I don't know if it helps but the name on the letter to me was David Banciella, Adjuster, Guest Claims.

Hope this helps

onabona

[emptynest1]

Onabona, thanks for the new name to contact.

 

Katie, I bring this up again because it has not been resolved to my satisfaction. You may not feel it is neccessary to keep plugging away for a few dollars, but there is a principle here. This company destroyed my personal property and has dropped the ball in fixing the problem. All I ever asked for was to be compensated for the damage. They sent me a check for half of the worth with no explanation of what was covered or why. I work in a professional setting and think that a large corporation could do a better, more professional job with it's communications, and dealing with problems. I have not been irate, I have presented them with proper documentation, photos, a 2 page letter and the actual shoes that were damaged. I get a check back with nothing but a disclaimer on the back releasing them from responsibility. I will follow this up to the end, and I will repost to let everyone know what I had to do and who I had to speak to.

 

L11, I am a bulldog, and maybe I will get the higher ups to take a look at their customer service.

[tuggers]

I'm waiting to see how they handle this! :)

[lucyjohnz]

We once had our luggage lost by American and it didn't get back to us until we had already purchased replacement items. When we sent in a clain for the replacement items, they sent us a check for 1/2 the amount since they said we'd have future use of the items.

 

This may not be the same thing as your case, but it may be how they somehow came up with a check for half the cost of the items.

[ejhall]

emptynest1 - I want to thank you for this thread. I'm still fairly new to the boards and I didn't see the post from the old boards. Therefore, I'm glad for your posting. Our luggage was lost on the way home from our last cruise (not the cruise line's fault), but it was delivered to us the next day in good condition. I never really thought about having a piece of luggage (and the contents) damaged, but now if it happens, I'll be a bit more informed about what I should do!

 

Best of luck with the process!

[ocngypz]

EN:

 

What you received from Celebrity is all you are going to receive. If you check your "Passage Contract" there is a limit to their liability. Either $300 or $400 (I can't remember now.. but other lines have lower limits).

 

For the balance, you should submit your claim to your travel insurance provider. That's the whole point of travel insurance.......to make up the difference. And you should submit as soon as possible because of time limits with many policy writers.

[nealberk]

EN- This is definitely becoming a pain (if it wasn't already!). I know you have tried to contact the powers that be with varying degrees of success (usually little to non-existent) but you might want to finally get some big guns trained on this one.

 

Do you have an attorney that can draft a letter to RCL? Just the threat of a lawsuit might be enough to get someone's attention.

 

If you do not have a lawyer, I might suggest small claims court. For less than $100 you can get their attention with a small claims filing. Check on the rules for where you live.

 

I have had to deal with several $%$^ insurance companies in the past. They have all totally ignored me UNTIL I fliled. Yes, it is a sorry state we are now in.

 

Good luck.

 

Oh yes, the disclaimer that if you cash the check, you will be forgoing any other rights is more boilerplate than anything else. You can always cross out the disclaimer and still cash it. Don;t know all the legal ramifications and I am not a lawyer so I can't give you any legal advise, but it is a thought.