When COVID-19 canceled many families’ vacation plans, NBC 5 responses from consumers reporting cruise refund policies were ubiquitous. Some consumers were given refunds and others were given credits for future trips.
Now the federal government is considering new rules for cruise refunds.
Vacation canceled during the pandemic
Scott Hatfield and his wife had a Caribbean cruise on the itinerary in 2020, but COVID-19 has canceled their trip. Hatfield said he used cruise credit to rebook. The next two cruises he was planning did not go to sea either.
“The continuation of the downtime and the rebooking and the cancellation of the rebooking is going to be very daunting,” said Hatfield.
Hatfield said when he was unable to get his deposit back with the cruise line, he initiated a chargeback with his credit card and filed a claim with his travel insurance company. Both are still pending.
Hatfield also wrote to the Federal Maritime Commission, which oversees cruise lines, and other agencies about his attempts to get his travel money back.
“There needs to be an umbrella over how the traveling public is treated and what rights they have to either go to port or to the airport,” Hatfield said.
Feds watch out
The Federal Maritime Commission said it spent the past year reviewing cruise company refund rules.
“That was difficult for us to find out,” said Federal Shipping Commissioner Louis Sola.
“Even if lines belong to the same group, there are completely different refund policies within that group,” continued Sola.
Now the commission is proposing new cruise reimbursement rules modeled on the rules of federal airlines. The proposal provides for “uniform procedures” for “how and when passengers can claim reimbursement”.
If a cruise is canceled or delayed by 24 hours or more, the proposal is for full refunds to be paid to passengers within 60 days of the passenger’s refund request.
If a cruise is canceled or delayed for 24 hours or more due to government orders to cease sailing, cruise lines would have 180 days to return passengers’ money.
NBC 5 Responds asked the Cruise Line International Association for their opinion on the proposed rules.
It didn’t come back with us. In an email to our colleagues at NBC Bay Area Responds, the association said it would post comments directly to the Federal Maritime Commission’s records.
NBC 5 Responds also reached out to Royal Caribbean regarding Scott Hatfield’s refund request.
We haven’t heard anything until our broadcast date.
On its website, Royal Caribbean announced new summer cruises in August, stating that guests can request refunds, including non-refundable deposits, on canceled trips.
According to its website, travelers who already have credit can request a refund for certain trips. We didn’t list Hatfield.
Although Hatfield said he would prefer a refund, his travel deposit remains a credit.
“You canceled the trip,” said Hatfield. “The make-right is on your side, not mine.”
How to weigh the proposed rules
The Federal Maritime Commission is expected to vote on this proposal later this year and will take comments from the public before the vote.
You can add your vote by email until October 25th: secretary@fmc.gov
In the subject line, write: “File No. 20-15, Comments on the PVO regulation on financial responsibility”.
The Commission asks you to attach comments to the email as a Microsoft Word document or as a searchable PDF.
NBC 5 Responds is committed to investigating your concerns and getting your money back. Our goal is to give you answers and, if possible, solutions and a solution. Call us at 844-5RESPND (844-573-7763) or fill out our customer complaint form.
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