Flawed On Board Credit Authorization Process

[thomasale]

I had a credit card problem years ago on Celebrity. We were new to cruising and did not notify the CC company we were going to be travelling. The ship notified us in our room and we were able to straigten it out with a call(a very expensive ship call).

 

I am sure that there is an explanation here but we will never get it from the OP. Good luck on their future cruises.

[tess2cruz]

I had a credit card problem years ago on Celebrity. We were new to cruising and did not notify the CC company we were going to be travelling. The ship notified us in our room and we were able to straigten it out with a call(a very expensive ship call).

 

I am sure that there is an explanation here but we will never get it from the OP. Good luck on their future cruises.

 

At least Carnival called my CC company for me, and didn't charge me for the call at all. We were at sea then too.

[Crusin6]

We had a similar experience. It was with the same Carnival credit card that they were pushing all week. They said it denied a $29 charge. Unusual, since it was a Carnival credit card, and we had called before the trip to let them know we would be using it on vacation in the Caribbean on Carnival. Hubby went to the pursers desk and paid $29 cash, no big deal. Hubby asked if he needed to do anthing else. The purser said it was all taken care of. Thats the end of that.

Until

We were debarking, a loud buzzer went off and some security guy would not let us off the ship. He said we still owed money and could not leave. He needed to see the receipt, which was packed well away with the rest of the recipts and capers and stuff we planned to reminisce over when we got home. Talk about being embarassed! Hubby on his hands and knees in front of literally hundreds of passengers lined up and trudging through the lobby, digging through luggage to try and find this receipt he was never told would be necessary to debark. We always make sure we have the forms, the passports, all the stuff to get off the ship, and would have had this if the purser told him to keep it handy. Instead, the security guy made a huge issue over $29, and lost far more good will. We've been on 9 cruises with Carnival. That may very well be the last, not because of the credit glitch, which was obviously a Carnival issue since we had plenty of room on the card and not really a big deal, but because of the total lack of customer consideration shown by the security guy and the purser's office who required him to act as he did. It's sad. I like Carnival, but my vacation dollars will probably be going elsewhere this year.

At least they didn't taser you!

[tess2cruz]

We had a similar experience. It was with the same Carnival credit card that they were pushing all week. They said it denied a $29 charge. Unusual, since it was a Carnival credit card, and we had called before the trip to let them know we would be using it on vacation in the Caribbean on Carnival. Hubby went to the pursers desk and paid $29 cash, no big deal. Hubby asked if he needed to do anthing else. The purser said it was all taken care of. Thats the end of that.

Until

We were debarking, a loud buzzer went off and some security guy would not let us off the ship. He said we still owed money and could not leave. He needed to see the receipt, which was packed well away with the rest of the recipts and capers and stuff we planned to reminisce over when we got home. Talk about being embarassed! Hubby on his hands and knees in front of literally hundreds of passengers lined up and trudging through the lobby, digging through luggage to try and find this receipt he was never told would be necessary to debark. We always make sure we have the forms, the passports, all the stuff to get off the ship, and would have had this if the purser told him to keep it handy. Instead, the security guy made a huge issue over $29, and lost far more good will. We've been on 9 cruises with Carnival. That may very well be the last, not because of the credit glitch, which was obviously a Carnival issue since we had plenty of room on the card and not really a big deal, but because of the total lack of customer consideration shown by the security guy and the purser's office who required him to act as he did. It's sad. I like Carnival, but my vacation dollars will probably be going elsewhere this year.

 

A friend of mine got buzzed exiting the ship, got held up until the pursers desks cleared them. It took a few minutes, never knew the problem. A couple of months later Carnival sent him a check for the winnings he forgot to collect from the casino. We were wondering if he got buzzed because Carnival OWED HIM money??:D

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

At least Carnival called my CC company for me, and didn't charge me for the call at all. We were at sea then too.

 

Celebrity put the call though for me (on their dime), as I was dealing with the problem at the Guest Relations desk. Given the option, I would rather call (from my cell phone) and deal with my bank privately - rather than having to do it with spectators. I have nothing to hide, but personal finances should not be public knowledge IMHO. Granted - sometimes a "party" call is the only way to clear things up...

 

Tom

[Kurbanfan]

I had a credit card problem years ago on Celebrity. We were new to cruising and did not notify the CC company we were going to be travelling. The ship notified us in our room and we were able to straigten it out with a call(a very expensive ship call).

 

I am sure that there is an explanation here but we will never get it from the OP. Good luck on their future cruises.

 

And this is the way it should be done.......not at dinner, not while buying a drink, not while debarking.........a simple phone call or message left on your cabin phone to meet at the pursers desk........

[karenw]

Celebrity put the call though for me (on their dime), as I was dealing with the problem at the Guest Relations desk. Given the option, I would rather call (from my cell phone) and deal with my bank privately - rather than having to do it with spectators. I have nothing to hide, but personal finances should not be public knowledge IMHO. Granted - sometimes a "party" call is the only way to clear things up...

 

Tom

 

OMG I just noticed your cruise history! That's wonderful! What kind of experience is it to cruise that many days B2B?

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

OMG I just noticed your cruise history! That's wonderful! What kind of experience is it to cruise that many days B2B?

 

If you are referring to the "2X' "3X" etc... that just means that we sailed 2 - 3 times on that ship during that year. We have not yet actually sailed any B2B's, but have one planned for this October - admittedly a short version of a B2b (3+4 days).

 

We had planned on a B2B Hawaii/Alaska (19 days) on the Spirit this year, but had to cancel those plans a few months back. We could simply not be away for that long... :(

 

Tom

[karenw]

If you are referring to the "2X' "3X" etc... that just means that we sailed 2 - 3 times on that ship during that year. We have not yet actually sailed any B2B's, but have one planned for this October - admittedly a short version of a B2b (3+4 days).

 

We had planned on a B2B Hawaii/Alaska (19 days) on the Spirit this year, but had to cancel those plans a few months back. We could simply not be away for that long... :(

 

Tom

 

 

Okay I wondered how your family and friends would manage without you for 47 days straight. I visualized disembarking off one ship and walking right onboard another. LOL

[tkportersat]

I agree they could have handled things a little bit better, a letter to the room or something during the week would have been nice but still seems extreme that you would let this keep you from traveling on Carnival again - this can happen on any cruiseline.

 

I kind of liken this to when you go buy clothes and they forget to remove the security tag and you try to leave the store and the alarms go off. Sometimes people make mistakes and while it can be embarrassing at the moment it is not the end of the world. :)

We were debarking, a loud buzzer went off and some security guy would not let us off the ship. He said we still owed money and could not leave. He needed to see the receipt, which was packed well away with the rest of the recipts and capers and stuff we planned to reminisce over when we got home. Talk about being embarassed! Hubby on his hands and knees in front of literally hundreds of passengers lined up and trudging through the lobby, digging through luggage to try and find this receipt he was never told would be necessary to debark. We always make sure we have the forms, the passports, all the stuff to get off the ship, and would have had this if the purser told him to keep it handy. Instead, the security guy made a huge issue over $29, and lost far more good will. We've been on 9 cruises with Carnival. That may very well be the last, not because of the credit glitch, which was obviously a Carnival issue since we had plenty of room on the card and not really a big deal, but because of the total lack of customer consideration shown by the security guy and the purser's office who required him to act as he did. It's sad. I like Carnival, but my vacation dollars will probably be going elsewhere this year.

[zqvol]

Too bad we don't all live in a perfect world. People & computers DO make mistakes.

 

Glad they were able to get the mistake cleared up & it didn't last the rest of your cruise.

 

Computers DO NOT make mistakes. the people that program them may make mistakes but the machines themselves don't.

[nrdsb4]

And this is the way it should be done.......not at dinner, not while buying a drink, not while debarking.........a simple phone call or message left on your cabin phone to meet at the pursers desk........

 

I agree with that. I personally think the OP had a legitimate reason to be frustrated with the situation. But the histrionics on his part for a mistake on his account that was very quickly resolved are what I find ridiculous. "Completely ruined my cruise," "treated like a criminal," insinuating a lawsuit, etc. That is a total overreaction, and I can only imagine that his attitude and bearing could have contributed to how it all came down. Remember, we are only hearing his side of the story and even then he doesn't come off very well imo.

[zqvol]

8 CRUISES in the past 4 years and this is your first post? Troll Alert!

 

Why?

 

The OP reported an incident. Was not emotional, and did not make unreasonable demands.

[Kurbanfan]

I agree they could have handled things a little bit better, a letter to the room or something during the week would have been nice but still seems extreme that you would let this keep you from traveling on Carnival again - this can happen on any cruiseline.

 

I kind of liken this to when you go buy clothes and they forget to remove the security tag and you try to leave the store and the alarms go off. Sometimes people make mistakes and while it can be embarrassing at the moment it is not the end of the world. :)

 

Leaving a tag on a piece of clothing is a mistake.......how one is notified regarding credit issues is not a mistake......this is something cruiselines know ahead of time. When you are coming close to the end of your approved amount, the cruislines put in another credit approval.......this is not a spur of the moment thing......

 

I agree with that. I personally think the OP had a legitimate reason to be frustrated with the situation. But the histrionics on his part for a mistake on his account that was very quickly resolved are what I find ridiculous. "Completely ruined my cruise," "treated like a criminal," insinuating a lawsuit, etc. That is a total overreaction, and I can only imagine that his attitude and bearing could have contributed to how it all came down. Remember, we are only hearing his side of the story and even then he doesn't come off very well imo.

 

I do think he might have over reacted too. I know I did when they cut off my credit too:p........

But I also know this can happen on any line.........not just Carnival......

[gtalum]

A couple of lessons here:

 

First, if you're "humiliated" by a computer error, you have some serious emotional issues to deal with.

 

Second, never, ever use a debit card to secure your sail and sign account.

 

Third, carry an alternate form of payment just in case.

 

Fourth, go ahead and switch cruise line,s but please don't assume they don't have computer issues from time to time too.

[gaylensgigi]

Off topic but an observation from this(and many other frequent)thread.

Why are some people obcessed with the amount of posts some people have? Whether over or under 500,why is that such a big deal?

And, trolls dont always have low post counts,some of our most frequent posters seem to show up just to stir.

Now,I return you to your regularly scheduled thread:D

[bobsfamily]

Why?

 

The OP reported an incident. Was not emotional, and did not make unreasonable demands.

 

I guess I read a different start to this thread... He was quite riled up... talking about lawsuits/being treated like a criminal/etc.

 

I was also (am I admit not very clearly) referring to his obvious lack of understanding credit and cruising/that he may have posted here before under a different name/may have made up this name just to post once/could be someone who has never cruised and just wanted to aggravate us all... and it shows he has been a member for a couple of years without a single post.

 

Hope that clears it up.... muddy waters an all. lol

[gtalum]

The OP reported an incident. Was not emotional

 

I dunno, alleged "humiliation" seems pretty emotional.

[BullDogChief]

Computers DO NOT make mistakes. the people that program them may make mistakes but the machines themselves don't.

 

correct for the most part but computers do indeed make mistakes from time to time...granted those mistakes are much rarer than human errors...;)

[Crusin6]

Off topic but an observation from this(and many other frequent)thread.

Why are some people obcessed with the amount of posts some people have? Whether over or under 500,why is that such a big deal?

And, trolls dont always have low post counts,some of our most frequent posters seem to show up just to stir.

Now,I return you to your regularly scheduled thread:D

I agree, I have been here for a couple of years now and the reason I show up as new and with a low post count is due to a computer glitch.

[tess2cruz]

I agree, I have been here for a couple of years now and the reason I show up as new and with a low post count is due to a computer glitch.

 

LMAO, that's good.:D

[Crusin6]

LMAO, that's good.:D

Thank you...Thank you very much:)

[Kurbanfan]

Thank you...Thank you very much:)

 

Soooo what is your previous name:confused: I can't place you from you past cruises:D

[bobsfamily]

Thank you...Thank you very much:)

 

Hey your count is going up as we speak!

[tkportersat]

Well, if you see at the top of my response I stated that it could have been handled better. :p Still, the throwing in of I will NEVER cruise Carnival (or any cruiseline for that matter) is overused on these boards. But, they are entitled to their opinion....just adding my two cents. Thing is this could happen anywhere (land/at sea), oversights/mistakes happen. No, I would not like/appreciate it either but I wouldn't let it ruin my whole week.

 

Leaving a tag on a piece of clothing is a mistake.......how one is notified regarding credit issues is not a mistake......this is something cruiselines know ahead of time. When you are coming close to the end of your approved amount, the cruislines put in another credit approval.......this is not a spur of the moment thing......

 

 

 

I do think he might have over reacted too. I know I did when they cut off my credit too:p........

But I also know this can happen on any line.........not just Carnival......