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Cruise Ship tour scams
Travel Tips by Donald Burleson |
Note: This web page is an internet
literature review and opinion editorial written by a non-lawyer and it should
not be construed as legal advice. Consult a qualified attorney for any
legal questions, not this web page.
A review of cruise ship excursions and tours
Many cruise ship ports have
dozens of tour operators and they compete fiercely for inclusion and endorsement
by the cruise ship lines. The revenue can amount to millions of dollars
per year and there are lots of scams.
The cruise ship lines
carefully certify all of their endorsed shore excursions and tours for safety,
value and professionalism and they charge you a fee for warranting all shore
tours.
The cruise ship lines want to
ensure that you have a good time and they charge you add-on fees for their
endorsement and warranty. If you are unsatisfied with your cruise ship
shore excursion you have many rights, and the cruise ship lines will offer you a
full refund and many perks if you are treated poorly on a shore tour or
excursion.
Tips for booking shore excursions
Many shore excursions may
book-up quickly and most cruise lines have a toll-free telephone line whereby
you can guarantee your reservations for any shore excursions.
Once guaranteed with your
credit card, the cruise ship line is obligated to provide the tickets and you
are entitled to substantial compensation for any failure to honor your
reservations.
Just like the airlines, some
cruise ship lines over-book their shore excursions, and should you have an
"involuntary bump" you are entitled to a full refund and a certificate towards a
future shore excursions (of an equal or lesser value), just like airline
overbooking.
Your rights on cruise ship tours
If you have a complaint about
your shore excursion, remember that the cruise line has certified all tours and
excursion operators for safety and good value. The cruise line adds a
markup fee to the actual costs of the tours in return for certifying that you
will receive a high-quality tour experience.
See the web site
Cruise Bruise for details on your
remedies for shore excursions and tours gone bad.
If a cruise ship excursion
operator has provided you with sub-standard service, you may be entitled to
obtain compensation for lost time, pain and suffering, emotional distress and
lost port time. In most cases, documented excursion complaints entitle you
to a full-refund plus coupons for free future cruise excursions.
Documenting your cruise ship tour complaint
Justice suggests that the
amount of your compensation is directly proportional your degree of emotional
distress, physical discomfort and physical injury. The cruise operators
are very grateful for properly presented and documented complaints and they may
immediately issue you a full refund and free vouchers for future cruises and
tours. If you present a clear and convincing case to the shore excursion
desk, they are authorized to reverse the charge and compensate you for lost
time, emotional distress and physical injury.
The top-shelf cruise lines
want you to complain and they will reward you for your feedback because it gives
them an opportunity to re-evaluate the tour operator and prevent potentially
devastating future claims.
Once the cruise line has
received a complaint about a tour or excursion they should fully investigate and
resolve the complaint. Remember, the cruise ship lines rely heavily on
word of mouth for future sales, and this is reflected in their records with the
Better Business Bureau, a reputation that they are very anxious to protect.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease
The cruise lines are all
about maximizing profits and many of the cruise ship lines count-on the timidity
of their passengers to minimize compensation to unsatisfied tour customers.
The cruise lines are very
aware that a shore excursion is a once in a lifetime experience for many
passengers and they have reserved significant funds for passenger compensation.
Some cruise lines require that you file a formal complaint in-order to receive
compensation for a bad experience, while others simply require an in-person
visit to the shore excursion desk.
Tips for problems in compensation claims
Some of the less scrupulous
cruise lines will balk at a refund request, hoping that you will not have the
Moxie to demand your rights. If you meet resistance at the shore excursion
desk, remember that their goal is to move you aside, where you may simply be
ignored until you depart in frustration. Here are my tips for maximizing
complaint outcome:
- Negotiate
- DO NOT threaten legal action. This will shut them down and end any
informal compensation.
- Explain
- Explain the exact nature of your complaint
and the amount of emotional or physical distress that you experienced.
- Assert
- Do not relinquish your place at the front of the line. They want you to
step-aside, where you may be ignored.
- Escalate
- Demand to speak with a supervisor immediately, and DO NOT relinquish your
place in line until you have received satisfactory resolution.
- Negotiate
- DO NOT threaten legal action. This will shut them down and end any
informal compensation.
- Explain
- Explain the exact nature of your complaint
and the amount of emotional or physical distress that you experienced.
- Share
- Don't be afraid to share your bad
experiences with other passengers waiting in the line. You may save them a
miserable experience. Make it clear that you have the legal right to stand
near the shore excursion desk and share your experiences with fellow
passengers.
If you are unfortunate enough
to be riding with a failing cruise line that fails to satisfy your complaint,
keep-in-mind that they may be in collusion with the tout operator to rip-off the
customers. Here us how you can assert your rights to fair treatment.
Ignore the unenforceable gibberish
Some of the more unscrupulous
cruise lines will have legalese buried in their shore tour literature that is
blatantly contradictory and non-enforceable. For example, some state that
they are not an agent of the shore excursions, even though they act as an agent.
I'm told that the legal term for this type of contradictory clause is "LSIYAAI"
(let's see if you are an idiot):
"Crumbum cruise lines are NOT and agent of the shore excursion operators,
notwithstanding that we advertise, promote, represent, accept funds and allow
them to place the Crumbum logo on their signage"
Obviously, this is nonsense,
and not enforceable in any court of law anywhere on the planet. If you are
given the excuse "we are not an agent of the tour operator", make sure to
mention hat the cruise line promotes, advertises, accepts money on their behalf
and allow their logo to be placed on their signage.
This attorney
notes that these disclaimers are not always enforced and that injured cruise
ship passengers can receive awards from the cruise line for injuries on shore
excursions:
"You may be entitled to
recover even if you are injured while off the cruise ship on a shore
excursion.
Typically the fine print on the back of the ticket contains statutes of
limitations (time deadlines to file a lawsuit) as well as venue
locations (cities where the lawsuit must be filed).
If you are injured aboard
a cruise ship and wish to make a claim, you must act quickly so that the
statute of limitations does not expire. "
This site
notes that the promotion of shore excursions may shift liability to the cruise
lines:
"Some courts have held
that a disclaimer for an on-shore excursion may not be enforceable if the
passenger relied upon representations or warranties regarding the safety,
competence, and reliability of on-shore suppliers of travel services"
Suing for an excursion rip-off
If you don not receive
satisfaction for your losses on a cruise ship tour, your cruise ship contract
requires that you sue within a specific jurisdiction (e.g. Miami). To
understand the extent of cruise ship complaints we need only look at the reports
and recommendations of the Better Business Bureau. As we see, the ratings
vary widely:
- Carnival Cruise Line
- The
better business bureau in Miami notes: "Based on BBB files this company
has an unsatisfactory record. Specifically our files show a pattern of no
response to customer complaints, a failure to eliminate the basic cause of
complaints and misrepresentation of marketing practices brought to their
attention by the Better Business Bureau."
- Costa Cruise Line
- The
Miami BBB notes "Based on Better Business Bureaus files this company has
responded to any complaints brought to their attention by the Better
Business Bureau, however one complaint remains unresolved."
- Freestyle Cruises
- The
Miami BBB notes "Based on BBB files, this company has a satisfactory
record with the Bureau. The Bureau has processed no customer complaints on
this company in its three-year reporting period."
- Norwegian Cruise Line
- The
Miami BBB notes: "Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory
record with the Bureau due to a failure to respond to complaints. The Better
Business Bureau met with the company on November 18th, 2004 due to the
recent increase in complaint activity concerning customer service issues.
The company informed the Bureau that they have taken action to correct the
underlying cause of the complaints. When evaluating complaint information,
please consider the company's size and volume of business. The number of
complaints filed against the company may not be as important as the
type of complaints and how the company handled them. The Bureau processed a
total of 353 complaints about this company in the last 36 months, our
standard reporting period. Of the total 353 complaints in the last 36
months, 96 of those were closed in the last 12 months."
- Radisson Seven Seas
Cruises - The
Miami BBB notes "Any complaints processed by the Bureau in its
three-year reporting period have been resolved."
- Windjammer Barefoot
Cruises - The
Miami BBB has a SATISFACTORY rating: "Based
on BBB files, this company has a satisfactory record with the Bureau. Any
complaints processed by the Bureau in its three-year reporting period have
been resolved."
References on cruise ship
tour excursion liability
These are unverified web
references relating to compensation for poor cruise ship shore excursions and
tours.
"Lipcon's lawsuits,
which are similarly worded, also says many passengers are overpaying for
the services provided. "At no time... did the defendants inform the
class that [they] may be able to obtain the same and/or similar shore
excursions at lower prices than the defendants were charging and
collecting for the shore excursion," each lawsuit says.
Lipcon's lawsuits cover the last three years. During that time, he said,
roughly 19 million passengers purchased shore excursions on the Carnival
ships that are targeted by the lawsuit."
-
Rams v. Royal Caribbean
Cruises, Inc., 17 F.3d 11, 13 (1st Cir. 1994) (one-year time
limitation does not apply to accidents during shore excursions).
-
125 F. Supp. 2d 1375,
1377 (S.D. Fla. 2000) (passenger injured on catamaran trip while on
excursion from cruise; notwithstanding Carnival logo on catamaran and crew
member shirts, cruise ship disclaimer of ownership or control of catamaran
company enforced);
-
Mashburn v. Royal
Caribbean Cruises, Ltd., 55 F. Supp. 2d 1367, 1370 (S.D. Fla. 1999) (day
trip to Coco Cay Island owned by cruise line; passengers rented Sea-Doo,
signed waiver and were injured in accident; no negligence found);
-
Dubret v. Holland Am.
Line Westours, Inc., 25 F. Supp. 2d 1151, 1153 (W.D. Wash. 1998) (bus
accident during shore excursion; disclaimer of liability enforced).
-
Long v. Holland Am. Line
Westours, Inc., 26 P.3d 430 (Alaska 2001) (passenger fell during land tour
of museum; maritime law does not govern land tour; choice of law clause in
tour contract stating that "except when maritime law applied, the contract
would be construed according to Washington state law" was rejected and the
law of Alaska applied.