Iglu Cruises

TerinalGranddad1

Hi, this is my first post so please forgive me if I mess it up a bit.

Last March we saw a holiday cruise with Iglu to Hawaii, the cruise line was Princess and we would be on the Grand Princess, it was a good Price and so we booked it.
When the Payment became due we decided to go and get the drinks and dinning package, this was called the Princess Plus package.
About six weeks before we were due to fly to LA I fell ill and was diagnosed with a Pleural Effusion, the doctors at Poole hospital drained of the fluid and took some biopsies and glued the chest and lung lining together, telling me no flying for the for see able. 
At this point I contacted Iglu and told them I couldn't fly and so wouldn't be able to go on the cruise, they said "so you want to cancel " and that I would forfeit 100% of the fare as I was inside of a 50 day window.
 I cancelled but when I received the receipt for the cancelation Iglu had retained all that i had paid including the cost of the drinks package etc, which was £60 pppn .
This doesn't seem right to me, because if I had only paid for the cabin the is no way they would been able to retain any more, and on top of that the extra was for a service and drinks , has anyone every had this happen to them. 

born_again

Did you not have travel insurance?

NoodleDoodleMan

First of all - I hope your health is better after such a traumatic experience.

I reckon you need to check Princess Cruise Terms and Conditions before contesting specifics with Iglu.

They may indicate that all reservations, including drink packages, are non refundable if cancelled.

https://book.princess.com/captaincircle/customerCare.page

The Common Questions area on the right is self explanatory.

Obviously if they confirm that such add ons are refundable then you can proceed accordingly.

I was surprised to note that you are paying £60pppn for Princess Plus - our "go to" cruise travel agent list this as £50.

Otherwise, as said above, this is a travel insurance matter.

Hopefully you had a policy in place effective on a date before the medical procedure was necessary ?

 

NoodleDoodleMan

I wonder if the OP has had a chance to trawl through the relevant Ts&Cs ?

Caz3121

Final payment from the passenger / travel agent is due to Princess Cruises 90 days before departure so if within that time period then Iglu no longer have your money and cancellation should be as per the Princess terms and conditions.
Has your travel insurance queried the amount you are claiming?

NoodleDoodleMan

I don't think the OP has indicated if there has been a claim to the travel agent at this stage, or even confirmed if a policy was in effect at the time of the medical procedure ?

TerinalGranddad1

First off thanks for your good wishes noodledoodleman , but condition is terminal, so I have decided to fight everything, nothing to lose . secondly there is insurance policy in place to cover the fare but i neglected to increase the policy cover when we upgraded to princess plus, I know don't say it STUPID. I have entered a claim and I think I should get 60% of the cost returned, better than nothing.
I still don't think its morally fair to keep the cabin cost + the enhanced package for drinks and service, Afterall the cabin is a loss for the cruise line but the drinks and service are not a loss.

NoodleDoodleMan

Apologies, I had no idea the condition was so serious.

Can I ask which travel insurance company provides your cover ?

Sadly issues of moral fairness don't tend to enter into claims calculations, the insurers follow the Ts&Cs.

To be honest, like youself, I don't understand why the drinks package shouldn't be treated as a non loss item for a full refund.

Princess will be able to resell your cabin, however that's standard practice and also applies to other aspects of holiday bookings such as flights and hotel rooms.

Maybe there are other forum members who can add a more knowledgeable insight ?