Royal Caribbean & Fraud

[jstockard]

I booked a cruise in 2022 with Royal Caribbean, then was diagnosed with cancer and began a very difficult struggle with my health.  When I was finally able to manage my affairs I contacted Royal Caribbean, advised them of my situation and asked them for a refund. While confirming the dates of my initial deposit I noticed an additional charge on my bank statement that appeared three days after my deposit in the amount of $1,345.20.  I asked Royal Caribbean about that charge and they advised me that they never made that charge to my bank account and that I was mistaken.  Now Royal Caribbean did refund my deposit and I am very grateful for that, however they would not take action on that other charge.   For months I have went back and forth with the executive office, guest relations, customer resolutions and have been given the run around. Finally in December Royal Caribbean advised me that a travel company by the name of Vacations to Go must of made those charges to my account.  Royal Caribbean even provided me with a Statement, on Royal Caribbean Letter Head with my name and Vacations to Go printed on it.  After reviewing that statement I contacted Vacations to GO.  After exchanging correspondence with the Vacations to Go Chief Executive I was advised that they had not made the charges and upon further inspection of the invoice sent to me by Royal Caribbean, the invoice was for a booking offer by Vacation to Go, the offer was from two months prior to the charges made to my account by Royal Caribbean and the charges on the invoice were not the same as the charges to my account. This matter has now come to a climax.  Royal Caribbean is still continuing to say that they did not make the $1,345.20 charge to my account and they are now telling me that this matter is settled and will not be addressed again.

I am not wondering what I can or should do.  For the record, I have now made a complaint to the Missouri Attorney Generals Office (I live in Missouri) regarding this and I have filed a complaint with the Florida Attorney Generals Offices as well as with the Better Business Bureau.  Does anyone have any additional suggestions, courses of action and/or points of contact for me to help me with my quest for successful resolution of this matter.  

I have given Royal Caribbean every chance to rectify this as a mistake.  I am now considering this an act of fraud.

Thank you to all for your assistance.

 

 

[Seaawgs]

I suspect most of us will struggle with how any company received access to your bank account. It would also be a stretch to believe your bank has no idea whom they paid on your behalf. If you used a debit card backed by Master Card or Visa, there will be a trail for them to follow as well as your bank. Since there are transaction numbers a digital identifiers, it seems your bank could clear this up quickly. 

[3Sisters]

@jstockard This is very interesting. I would be very surprised with Royal Caribbean is denying the charge unjustly. RCL has great record keeping and is not known for fraudulent charges. Accidental charges are always possible from any entity, but clearly that isn't the case. The fact that the charge amount is so high is what is concerning. On your bank statement, the $1,345.20 charge is showing up from RCL, is that correct? It would be more likely that this "fraudulent" charge from Vacations to Go or another fraudulent entity.  

I agree with @Seaawgs. That the bank should be able to take care of this pretty quickly. I would additionally advise you to always pay deposits and so forth with credit cards. It is much easier to dispute charges and receive a refund. The credit card company will work on your behalf. It is much more difficult and unlikely to receive a refund and such protection is you pay with a debit card. 

[kardut]

Just saw this post — I had a charge for over $700 payable to Royal Caribbean. My last sailing with them was September 2023, and I have nothing booked with them. Even checked my account history to see if somehow I booked and just forgot!

Called RCCI and they weren’t of any help, so I disputed with my bank. They returned money to my account pending resolution, but it’s been nearly a month and the dispute is still pending (which tells me RCCI hasn’t proven the charge yet).

I’m assuming someone fraudulently used my card to pay off their cruise (and card was canceled right away), but I can’t believe someone would be that stupid since it would be easily traced!

[Cruising Caribbean]

@jstockard Did you get to the bottom of this charge? It seems pretty strange. 

@kardut That sounds so scam-like! It's almost hard to believe the charge came from RCL. You really never know, and you can't trust anyone nowadays. Even if the company is safe, there can always be a bad seed that doesn't follow protocol. Eventually, if this happens, the company eventually finds out. The only way this could all work itself out is through customers calling out the "cruise line" for fraudulent charges. I'm glad your card company was able to help you dispute it. That possibly could be true! Let's just hope these "mistakes" are taken care of and don't occur again. RCL is known to be a reputable company that wouldn't let things like this slide.