Cancellation Question

[JPSnipper]

I was wondering if anyone else has had experience with this situation. I am traveling on the Oosterdam next week and my family has 3 cabins booked. One member of the party (my wife’s grandma) has been feeling sick and has decided not to go. See was sharing a cabin with my mother in law. I called my travel agent to inform them that I needed to remove one person from the cabin. I was not expecting a discount and I am fully aware that one person pays 200%. My agent put me on hold and called HAL then informed me that not only will I have to pay the full amount (original $) but will have to include another $1100 for the cancellation fee. I have already paid for two people. Why are they asking for another $1100 on top of that? We did purchase cancellation insurance for all parties but this seems a little unreasonable. Can anyone with experience with this situation please explain this policy by HAL?

[hammybee]

This sounds off base to me.

 

Contact your insurer.

[san diego sue]

I almost had the same situation. Now that cabin has one person,remaining person pays additional fare (single occupancy) plus we would have been charged additional besides losing the one fare. The new fee higher than original fee number one paid. Fortunately, our second person is feeling better and will be going on the trip. Will not need to cancel anyone and everything is worked out. It really doesn't seem fair how it is handled as HAL gets to keep original two fares no matter. (during 100% penalty phase) If one has insurance, then the party not going gets it back but HAL loses nothing.So why charge it again.

There was a previous post that this was discussed.

[JPSnipper]

TA just called back and said he spoke to a newbie at HAL. The initial info he got was wrong and it looks like its all straightened out.

[4thDAMgeneration]

just to let you know, i experienced this situation first hand. my mother and i were booked on a cruise and i ended up being unable to go due to an illness. well, our TA told my mother to not tell HAL anything and just go ahead and go and when they asked where i was at the pier, she told them that i was sick and unable to go. this avoided the fee and all they said was "oh, ok, hope she feels better." hopefully everything works out for you.:)

[jrzebird]

I don't understand why you would have to pay anything on a cancelation fee if you had trip insurance. I just had to cancel our 3/8/09 cruise because my DBF had surgery and we got everything back except the insurance premium (which makes perfect sense) and about $40.00 for some other charge. I can see where you might have to pay the single supplement, but the person who can't make it should get back their fare without a penalty. We used HAL's insurance and we are VERY happy!

[kryos]

just to let you know, i experienced this situation first hand. my mother and i were booked on a cruise and i ended up being unable to go due to an illness. well, our TA told my mother to not tell HAL anything and just go ahead and go and when they asked where i was at the pier, she told them that i was sick and unable to go. this avoided the fee and all they said was "oh, ok, hope she feels better." hopefully everything works out for you.:)

And you shouldn't even have to go through all that. If the cabin is already paid for ... by two people ... and one of them can't go ... the bottom line is that the cabin is paid for. Why should HAL care if only one of the passengers uses it? They got their money for that cabin ... in fact, more money than they would get if a single was occupying it at perhaps a 150% single supplement. So if one of the people cancels at the last minute, they're not gonna get a refund anyway ... so it shouldn't matter one way or the other to HAL that the other person sails alone in that cabin.

 

I've heard things on this board about this type of situation, and none of them make the slightest bit of sense to me. Someone said that they were told by their travel agent that if the one party didn't go, the remaining one would have to pay a single supplement. This was after the cabin was paid in full, and the cancellation period long expired. This seems very unreasonable to me. If one of the people cancels well within the cancellation period, and gets their money back, then I can well understand that if the second person booked into that cabin still wants to sail, they would have to pay the single supplement to keep the cabin. This is only fair. But if the cabin was already paid for ... cancellation period long lapsed ... then HAL is owed NOTHING if one passenger sails in that cabin instead of two.

 

If this was me, I'd be taking my complaint all the way up the management chain at HAL if they were trying to charge me a nickle more. Then I would be seeing a lawyer if I couldn't get satisfaction from HAL.

 

Personally, I think the TA is misinformed about the HAL policy in this regard ... because this whole thing just doesn't seem to make any sense whatsoever.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[wander]

I HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS!!! Yes, my cabinmate had a medical emergency two days before we were to sail. After much checking, I DID HAVE TO PAY the single supplement even though they had her full fare to keep and mine as well. PANIC.

 

Well, I went to my trip insurance policy and in found that in such a case they would EITHER cover my full fare (refund) if I cancelled as well OR pay the single supplement if I sailed.

 

That day I must have called the insurance claims folks at least 6 times, each time getting a different representative AND the same answer. I did have to pay the cruise line the single supplement and then be reimbursed. The insurance folks did not even blink at the additional fee, they said that was normal.

 

When I got home I submitted the paperwork which had to include information on my cabin mate's medical emergency and information from her physician. Within two weeks I had a check for the single supplement fee AND my friend had her full fare back. So, the cruise line made-out well, my full fare, her full fare AND my single supplement.

 

While this never has seemed right to me, when the insurance company so willingly went along with this I quit fussing about it. NOW, if I did not have insurance - that would have been another story.

 

Because we were young, we only got the insurance because of our aging parents with health problems. We NEVER imagined one of us would need it. She recovered from her emergency and I had a great cruise.

[RuthC]

I HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS!!! Yes, my cabinmate had a medical emergency two days before we were to sail. After much checking, I DID HAVE TO PAY the single supplement even though they had her full fare to keep and mine as well.

That's my understanding of the way it works---at least the way it works if one person officially cancels.

HAL gets both fares, and they also get the single supplement. It may not sound right; it may not be fair. But it does sound like the rule the insurance companies have quoted before.

It also sounds like a government-kind-of-rule. They don't have to make sense---they just "are".

[Pam in CA]

That's my understanding of the way it works---at least the way it works if one person officially cancels.

 

HAL gets both fares, and they also get the single supplement. It may not sound right; it may not be fair. But it does sound like the rule the insurance companies have quoted before.

It also sounds like a government-kind-of-rule. They don't have to make sense---they just "are".

I agree. That's why the best advice I've seen is to just check in and if asked where the other passenger is, tell them you're not sure. You shouldn't have to front the single supplement but the only way to avoid that is to play "dumb." After all, you're not the one cancelling and the other person has the insurance. Let them go through their insurance company and recoup their money.

[jrzebird]

I must be lucky. I didn't have to fill out any forms, nor submit any proof. I just told them my DBF had to have by-pass surgery and we got our full refund. Maybe it's because we both cancelled? But, as I said before, the airline is a different story. I have to practically submit my first born child to get back that fare!

[wander]

Pam, One problem with your comment, the insurance company for the still sailing passenger pays for the supplement, NOT the insurance company of the one who cancels.

 

The canceler (word?) is covered by their own insurance but it does NOTHING for the one still sailing. The sailer must have his/her insurance to be covered. Thus, I had to do the paperwork as well, using copies of my intended cabinmate's medical paperwork.

 

Since I could not have such medical paperwork until I got home, I had to cover it in the interim. ALSO, in both our cases we had to have proof of the date she was told she could not sail and the date of cancellation for the insurance to cover us. Playing games might work, but I personally would not want to risk it.

[kryos]

While this never has seemed right to me, when the insurance company so willingly went along with this I quit fussing about it. NOW, if I did not have insurance - that would have been another story.

I would guess then that the key here is whether the parties have insurance. If there is going to be a claim filed ... and the cancelling party is going to be getting reimbursed ... then HAL wants the single supplement paid on the remaining passenger still sailing. But then ... what if that passenger doesn't have insurance? I guess then it is up to her to seek reimbursement of that supplement from the cancelling party?

 

This sounds like a real mess and the non-cancelling passenger has the potential of really getting shafted if her cabin mate has to cancel. If the non-cancelling passenger doesn't have insurance, and she can't afford the single supplement, then she loses her cruise fare as well ... without an insurance company to get it back from.

 

I guess the morale of the story here is always get insurance, or always make sure you can afford to fork over the single supplement if your cabin mate has to cancel at the last minute.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita