Denied Boarding

[rosh7674]

My family and I were denied getting on a Disney Cruise because they (Nurse on the ship who is not even a doctor) felt my daughter was contagious, without checking her temperature, or performing any other test. They gave us a letter that we can use as a future cruise voucher (which we didn’t want at the first place) or we could void that vouched and utilize travel insurance.

My daughter had vomited on Sunday Apr 19, 2009 due to a common cold. At the time of boarding, which was Apr 22, 2009 I was asked if any one in your family had vomited in past three days, I answered yes to it.

We explained to the medical rep on board that our daughter is fine. She hasn’t vomited in last 48 hours. She does not have stomach flu or any other disease that is contagious.

We are really upset how Disney has treated us. We asked for a full refund which, for the cruise but Disney denied refunding our money. Instead they offered us the following which we denied.

• Stay at Disney resort, tickets for all 4 Disney Theme parks, and $150 food voucher. (Food voucher was useless for us, as we only eat Kosher meat).
  
• A letter that we can use as a future cruise, which does not cover the air fair, from Edmonton, Canada to Orlando, Florida.
  

Please give me your opinion, on what should I do. I am thinking of doing the following.

• Try to file an insurance claim for Disney Cruise only.
  
• Ask Disney to refund me the air fair.
  
• Also the money that I spend over their, after we were denied boarding. (Rental Car, staying at Hotel, food cost, Disney Magic Kingdom One day pass and Sea World day pass
  

Or

Sue Disney for

• Not refunding the Cruise line fare (including, extra insurance & money we spend for Transportation) 1,373.44 USD
  
• Air fair $2000 CND
  
• Lodging charges, included in the money spent on Food while are stay at in Disney)
  
  • Hotel = 200
    
  • Rental car = 204
    
  • Food = 240
    

  [*]Missing work for 5 days ( I work as contract no money for time off) = 1840 CAN

  [*]Lawyer’s expenses and filing a claim.

  [*]Apology from Disney Cruise line, for ruining our vacation. (Because this was a surprise for our daughter. She didn’t know about it till we were about board).

Please give me your opinion what route should I take, in order to get my money back from Disney Cruise line.

[rsinj]

My opinion is that you blew it. You should have graciously accepted their offer to stay at the Disney resort and everything else. You were getting a free vacation and you could still take your Disney cruise another time.

 

DCL can deny boarding for any valid reason they have. You have absolutely no chance of winning a lawsuit.

 

Instead of being such a hot head why don't you think for a moment about having your daughter (possibly contagious with something) in close proximity with 2000 other cruisers. Seems a little selfish of you. You complain the nurse who made the decision wasn't even a doctor - are you a doctor, or even a nurse?

 

You have no valid claim in this situation. You should have taken the deal.

 

Oh, and you could very easily have gotten kosher meals with the voucher.

 

Howard

[lucyddr]

I would have taken their offer happily! While I certainly understand your frustration and would NOT like a nurse declaring that my child was "unfit," I probably would have demanded a physician to see her understanding that if allowed on the ship, she might be quarentined for 1-2 days. (I AM a physician, so the whole nurse thing would push my buttons...)

 

If the cruiseline demonstrated clearly to me though that their policy was to not allow anyone who vomitted in the past 3 days to get on the ship, then I would have accepted their offer. (I would have demanded to SEE the policy!)

 

Yes, I would have cried like a baby, but then I would have enjoyed their offer for a "free" vacation. Technically, they don't have to give you anything if you carefully read the contract... (If the "free" vacation wasn't a possibility, I would have filed my travel insurance. If you didn't have insurance, then you kind of hurt yourself...)

 

Just my opinion, since you asked...

[inlovewithnolan]

Yes I would have been very upset. But I think if you look at it through their eyes, it could have been 2000 other people upset if they found out that Disney let a sick child on the ship and risk everyone getting sick. I am sorry to hear your vacation was a ruined.

[rosh7674]

I agree, if my daughter had a contegeous disease than, I should have not been allowed to board. But my daughter did not had any contegeous dissease. Same day we took our daughter to walk-in clinic at the Orlando Airport, according to the Doctor she was recovering from the ear infection, but did not had any contegeous disease.

 

Yes, I do have travel insurance, which only covers the cruise. As far free vacation. Disney said we can take either

 

• Stay at Disney resort, tickets for all 4 Disney Theme parks, and $150 food voucher. (Food voucher was useless for us, as we only eat Kosher meat).
  

or

• A letter that we can use as a future cruise, which does not cover the air fair, from Edmonton, Canada to Orlando, Florida.
  

I was not being a hard head. I was being reasonable, if I didn't take the cruise than give me money back. And again I think you can't dignose the cause of the disease without performing any tests.

[slowly]

Yes I would have been very upset. But I think if you look at it through their eyes, it could have been 2000 other people upset if they found out that Disney let a sick child on the ship and risk everyone getting sick. I am sorry to hear your vacation was a ruined.

 

I totally agree with inlovewithnolan's statement. You need to understand that this Swine Flu is very serious right now. People are canceling trips and Disney ahs to do it's best to calm the cruisers the best they can. Again if you saw a sick person on the ship I think you might think otherwise.

 

On the flipside, I agree that you should be upset. Afterall you probably planned this for awhile. I would talk to upper management rather than asking people for their opinion. Make sure you have all your ducks in a row before you even speak with them. Ask yourself this, if you sue them are you not going to any Disney related vacations again? Think about your child(ren).

[JsMom2]

Wow, that really is heartbreaking. I can see that you are more upset about disappointing your child than anything else.

 

Unfortunately the cruise line has to protect themselves from lawsuits from other passengers who could sue them for letting a child "exhibiting" signs of illness onboard. And the current swine flu pandemic has made us all more aware of how important it is to prevent the spread of disease.

 

If you have travel insurance, call the company and see what you can get reimbursed for.

 

As far as DCL, I'd suggest writing a letter and asking them to do a better job of communicating their policy prior to boarding, so that this doesn't happen again. If you'd known 3 days prior that this might happen then you could've taken your daughter to a Dr at home, and then gotten either a medical clearance for her to travel or cancelled at that point.

 

But at the end of the day, I really think that you as a parent need to take some responsibility. Even without a heads up about DCL's policy, you as a parent should've taken your daughter to the Dr before traveling with her, as you knew there was "something" wrong with her. (First you mentioned that it was a cold, then you said it was an ear infection.)

 

I know this may be hard to hear right now. But I hope you can reconcile this to your satisfaction and take a Disney cruise in the future.

[rsinj]

Yes, I do have travel insurance, which only covers the cruise. As far free vacation. Disney said we can take either

 

• Stay at Disney resort, tickets for all 4 Disney Theme parks, and $150 food voucher. (Food voucher was useless for us, as we only eat Kosher meat).
  

or

• A letter that we can use as a future cruise, which does not cover the air fair, from Edmonton, Canada to Orlando, Florida.
  

 

Your original post did not make clear it was one or the other - I read it to be they offered both. That does change things a little. However, I really think that suing Disney is not going to get you anywhere. People's first response is always "I'll sue them" - in your mind, that may be a reasonable response, but it isn't. Not from a time, money, or what result you can expect from it. It is what I call a hot-head reaction.

 

If you had travel insurance, recovering the cost of the cruise should be a non-issue. Not being able to take the cruise due to sickness is a valid claim and you'll get reimbursed quickly.

 

Neither the insurance nor Disney is going to cover all the other expenses you incurred, because you used them - you took a vacation. Whether it went as planned or not - expecting reimbursement for your wages is unreasonable - period. Instead of justifying why Disney should pay for every aspect of your trip because your couldn't take the cruise, take a step back and think as an unbiased mind would. You don't go to a restaurant famous for desserts, eat your entire meal, and then when told they have no more desserts rant that you want them to pay for the entire rest of the meal you've already consumed, your gas/mileage costs, the value of the hourly cost of your time, the cost of going somewhere else for dessert, etc. It is unreasonable and again, a hot-head response.

 

I was not being a hard head. I was being reasonable, if I didn't take the cruise than give me money back. And again I think you can't dignose the cause of the disease without performing any tests.

 

 

Then go for it - sue Disney and see what happens. Maybe a year from now you'll get your day in court, and in my opinion you'll lose. You'll have wasted a year of time, paid legal expenses, have this unresolved, and most likely lose what compensation you've already been given or have coming to you. Before doing so, it would be best to read your cruise contract and specifically the terms of DCL's ability to deny boarding. I can pretty much guarantee you that they are covered.

 

You purchased travel insurance - if you want your cruise money back, file the claim and get the money - that's really a non-issue.

 

Good luck.

 

Howard

[MaggieAtSea]

Sorry for your frustration, I'm thinking your temper may have gotten the better of you when it came to accepting workable compensation... but I have to tell you that DCL just went up a bunch of notches in my book... I'm thrilled they are trying to keep the cruising public safe. With so many people in such close proximity, it is essential to be proactive... and if they err on the side of being too cautious, I would rather that than take a chance and infect many, many people.

 

You should also know that other cruiselines actively scan passengers through 1-way mirrors and cameras looking for signs of infection in passengers while they wait in the terminal to board... again, I have no problem with this... it may just be an illusion of safety, but it is a precaution and I'm grateful...

 

...I want to bring home souveniers and memories... not an illness... when I travel.

[JJJSM]

this same thing happened a couple of years ago to a friend of mine. His wife got some kind of virus on the way to florida. they told them about it and that was the end of their cruise. they were turned away.. and it was Carnival.. not disney

 

good luck!;)

[rosh7674]

Like I said, my problem is not that didn't let us board the ship. My problem is that they didn't refund our money. As far insurance goes, according to Access America, denied boarding is not a vaild clause. Specially when Doctor is stating that my daughter had no contigious disease.

 

So I dont know what to do in this situation.

 

Any info will be appericiated.

 

Thanks

[macd4]

Like I said, my problem is not that didn't let us board the ship. My problem is that they didn't refund our money. As far insurance goes, according to Access America, denied boarding is not a vaild clause. Specially when Doctor is stating that my daughter had no contigious disease.

 

So I dont know what to do in this situation.

 

Any info will be appericiated.

 

Thanks

According to the ship's medical staff, your daughter could not cruise due to illness. That's a covered item for travel insurance.

[JsMom2]

Like I said, my problem is not that didn't let us board the ship. My problem is that they didn't refund our money. As far insurance goes, according to Access America, denied boarding is not a vaild clause. Specially when Doctor is stating that my daughter had no contigious disease.

 

So I dont know what to do in this situation.

 

Any info will be appericiated.

 

Thanks

 

I really don't think it's fair to expect Disney to refund your money because your daughter was exhibiting signs of illness. And by insisting that she is NOT sick, you are disqualifying yourself from collecting on the insurance. So your best option at this point is to accept the free cruise at a later date.

 

According to the ship's medical staff, your daughter could not cruise due to illness. That's a covered item for travel insurance.

 

I'd be interested to hear how this plays out. Cruise lines have more stringent health policies than say a resort. Just exhibiting signs of illness is enough to deny boarding. Do insurance companies really understand this? And will they cover it??? I hope so, but it'd be good to know.

 

Also, as others have stated, suing Disney is NOT a good option. Take a look at your cruise contract, and you'll see that they have themselves covered very nicely. They pay their lawyers a lot of money to make sure of that.

[grand isle joe]

My opinion is that you blew it. You should have graciously accepted their offer to stay at the Disney resort and everything else. You were getting a free vacation and you could still take your Disney cruise another time.

 

DCL can deny boarding for any valid reason they have. You have absolutely no chance of winning a lawsuit.

 

Instead of being such a hot head why don't you think for a moment about having your daughter (possibly contagious with something) in close proximity with 2000 other cruisers. Seems a little selfish of you. You complain the nurse who made the decision wasn't even a doctor - are you a doctor, or even a nurse?

 

You have no valid claim in this situation. You should have taken the deal.

 

Oh, and you could very easily have gotten kosher meals with the voucher.

 

Howard

 

 

Very well put. We agree fully.:)

[Host Mick]

Wow, I've never heard of that happening before. One member's wife was confined to her stateroom for a couple of days recently when she got Norovirus but I've never heard of a denied boarding due to illness.

This is a lose-lose for both you and Disney. If they deny you boarding, they anger you and pretty-much wreck your vacation but if they allow you aboard and your daughter sickens others, it's much, much worse.

I'm sorry that this happened to you and I hope that you take the future cruise after you've had time to relax.

 

I noticed that this is the first time that you've posted on Cruisecritic.com. Though Disney has never admitted to it, they probably watch these boards so it's probably not a good idea to show your cards publicly here unless that was your intent.

[Cape]

You say she threw up on the 19th and you boarded on the 22nd...

 

Day one - 19th

Day two - 20th

Day three - 21st

Day four - 22nd

 

Maybe that is not how they would count it but to me - she had thrown up 4 days ago....was she exhibiting any other symptoms - I would guess she was since you had taken her to the doctor that day.

[mickeysgal]

I can see how upsetting this is for you. I can also see how Disney (and all the other cruise lines ) has an obligation to keep the ship as healthy as possible by screening passengers.

 

I also want to applaude you for speaking the truth. All too often I believe people will cover up an illness knowing that it may prevent them from boarding and then spread it to the other passengers. Thank you for doing this.

[montgomeryfamily]

While I understand Disney's rationale in denying boarding to people they believe may be contagious, I believe that if they do so, then Disney should refund the money they took from you for the cruise. Since you otherwise met all of the requirements for boarding (requisite paperwork, there on time, etc.), this was Disney's decision to deny you boarding.

 

If Disney does deny boarding to passengers who acknowledge on the health questionaire that they have exhibited symptoms within the three day time frame, the word will get around and people will lie to keep from losing the money they have spent on the cruise. Plus, it is not fair that Disney should reap monetary benefit from passengers who are honest on their health questionaires. Plus Disney should consider the money they will have to spend disinfecting their ships if people begin to lie on their forms because they know they won't get their money back.

 

Disney would also have an incentive to send a doctor to perform the examination and insure that the person is sick/contagious before denying boarding if Disney has to reimburse the monies.

 

I also find it disingenous of Disney to offer lodging at a Disney Resort and Disney tickets--claiming the daughter is contagious and can't board the ship, but yet not not concerned about exposing people at the resort and the Disney parks to this supposed sickness.

 

I do applaud you, Rosh, for being honest on the questionaire. I suggest writing a letter to Disney asking for reimbursement of the cruise and airfare and any other expense that you would have incurred for going directly to and from the ship to/from the airport. Anything else is money you spent on an alternate vacation experience and probably would just make you sound greedy. You may have a limited time to file with your travel insurance, so keep that in mind also. You may also want to file a complaint with some local/state consumer bureaus and perhaps the Conde Nas ombudsman or some similar consumer assistance resource.

[mkdreams]

While I understand Disney's rationale in denying boarding to people they believe may be contagious, I believe that if they do so, then Disney should refund the money they took from you for the cruise. Since you otherwise met all of the requirements for boarding (requisite paperwork, there on time, etc.), this was Disney's decision to deny you boarding.

 

If Disney does deny boarding to passengers who acknowledge on the health questionaire that they have exhibited symptoms within the three day time frame, the word will get around and people will lie to keep from losing the money they have spent on the cruise. Plus, it is not fair that Disney should reap monetary benefit from passengers who are honest on their health questionaires. Plus Disney should consider the money they will have to spend disinfecting their ships if people begin to lie on their forms because they know they won't get their money back.

 

Disney would also have an incentive to send a doctor to perform the examination and insure that the person is sick/contagious before denying boarding if Disney has to reimburse the monies.

 

I also find it disingenous of Disney to offer lodging at a Disney Resort and Disney tickets--claiming the daughter is contagious and can't board the ship, but yet not not concerned about exposing people at the resort and the Disney parks to this supposed sickness.

 

I do applaud you, Rosh, for being honest on the questionaire. I suggest writing a letter to Disney asking for reimbursement of the cruise and airfare and any other expense that you would have incurred for going directly to and from the ship to/from the airport. Anything else is money you spent on an alternate vacation experience and probably would just make you sound greedy. You may have a limited time to file with your travel insurance, so keep that in mind also. You may also want to file a complaint with some local/state consumer bureaus and perhaps the Conde Nas ombudsman or some similar consumer assistance resource.

 

Very well said.

[Love2cruisemom]

My comment would be to all the ones discrediting a Nurse for giving their opinion in denying this family in sailing. My husband is an RN and is 6 mths shy of getting his masters. Nurses are qualified health care professionals as well as a doctor. Enough on that rant.

 

I have sailed several times with Disney and know for a fact they have denied boarding to several families in the past, yours is not the first.

 

As to all who have questioned why they would send the family to a resort and the parks - it is a wider and more open environment - not self contained like a ship.

 

Very sorry for your missed cruise, but it is a very tough call on putting all the blame on Disney. I would contact the insurance company for the lost money.

[Love2cruisemom]

There was an earlier post about your dates. They don't add up. Disney didn't have any sailing on April 22, but did on the 23rd. So if your daughter vomitted on Sunday the 19th you would have been ok to sail. That would have been past the 72 hrs of any vomitting. Again good luck with the insurance.

[Host Mick]

I also find it disingenous of Disney to offer lodging at a Disney Resort and Disney tickets--claiming the daughter is contagious and can't board the ship, but yet not not concerned about exposing people at the resort and the Disney parks to this supposed sickness.

LOL, I didn't think of that.

 

 

As to all who have questioned why they would send the family to a resort and the parks - it is a wider and more open environment - not self contained like a ship.

 

Not by much.

Think of all of the indoor theaters at WDW. Think of the indoor restaurants. Think of all of the indoor attractions and attraction vehicles that have handrails or seats. Think about the miles of handrails and the people standing close together in the attraction ques. There's LOTS of opportunity for a transfer of germs.

[JsMom2]

I also find it disingenous of Disney to offer lodging at a Disney Resort and Disney tickets--claiming the daughter is contagious and can't board the ship, but yet not not concerned about exposing people at the resort and the Disney parks to this supposed sickness.

.

 

There is a HUGE difference between the enclosed atmosphere of a ship at sea, and a land based resort. When was the last time you heard of a resort having a case of norovirus? However, it is very easily passed on ships. This is why ships have a much more stringent policy on boarding. Since the resorts don't have that policy, there was no legal/ethical reason not to offer them the room and tickets. In fact what they were trying to do was salvage this family's vacation.

 

Also, the ship has a limited medical center onboard and may not be able to effectively treat an illness. The same parents who complain that their child can't board when they are only a little bit sick, will be the same ones who insist that the Captain alter the ship's course to get their child to a land based hospital when they take a turn for the worse! I'm definitely not trying to accuse the OP of anything here, just making a general statement about the environment the cruise lines are working with.

[Rudi610]

Maybe the countries that the ship will visit has limitations on persons with contagious diseases. If you are sick, the country may not want you going ashore and spreading germs. And promising to stay onboard may not be sufficient enough to satisfy the requirements of the countries visited. Some countries have vary strict rules on this. This could also explain why a Disney resort vacation was given as an alternative. Just a thought.

[cool2mom]

Sorry you guys got denied, but I can tell you that when families travel with young kids, they are totally in support of that policy. We just got back today from the Wonder and when we drove over to the port last Thursday, we had a serious car discussion about germs, a contained environment, and the swine flu potential. Much to our surprise as we were going onboard, the family ahead of us had Mexican passports. I told Disney I was concerned about cruising with families that had potentially been exposed to swine flu. They said they were questioning everyone and denying boarding to some because it's a very serious virus....they are taking it very seriously and people of concern must meet with the nurse. So, you're totally bummed, I can get that. I would be so mad to be psyched and then denied, but take them up on their free vacation, if you were in our shoes, you too would get it. I don't think if there was this crazy risk of swine flu, it would have been an issue. Good luck for the future, there's no cruise like a Disney cruise......everything was terrific!