Marco Polo cruise cash returns from muddied waters
Probes a world of scams and scandals
R. G. writes: As a birthday treat, my wife booked a short cruise on the Marco Polo, operated by Cruise & Maritime. The booking was made by phone with travel agent World Travel Lounge and she paid a £200 deposit. When the paperwork arrived a few days later it became clear I needed a doctor’s certificate saying I was fit to travel, as I have Parkinson’s Disease. The need for this was not mentioned when the booking was made so we cancelled, but have been refused a refund. The travel agent said there was a recording of the phone booking and that we agreed verbally to provide a medical certificate. YOU were in a tricky position, not just because you had not expected to need a medical certificate, but because of the timing of events.
You were due to pay the balance of £418 in June, but you were expected to produce the doctor’s certificate in July, while the cruise did not start until late September.
This meant you could have handed over £418 in June, only to find in July your doctor refused to say you were fit to travel. That made paying the balance a gamble, so understandably you cancelled.
World Travel Lounge is an established travel agent based in Blackpool, Lancashire, but of course the terms and conditions for booking on the Marco Polo were laid down by the ship’s operator, Cruise & Maritime. Nonetheless, your point of contact was with the travel agent, not the cruise company, so I asked its boss David McDonald to comment.
He told me the cruise company’s terms and conditions mean deposits are not refundable. He said you could have delayed paying the £418 until after obtaining the doctor’s certificate – though this would have had no impact on reclaiming the deposit.
This left one big question unanswered. The letter you received requesting proof of fitness to travel was dated on the same day your wife made the phone booking.
But of course this does not prove the subject was mentioned when the booking was made. So, was the telephone booking recorded?
If so, it would be easy to clear up the whole complaint. At this point, World Travel Lounge introduced a new ingredient into the mix. Your wife had not simply picked up the phone and made a booking, I was told.
McDonald explained: ‘The customer had various phone calls and visits to our shops about the holiday.’
Muddying the waters even further, he added: ‘The customer had friends calling Cruise & Maritime direct on their behalf, enquiring about the holiday.’
Notes made by the travel agency staff say the health requirements were explained. But there is no recording as calls are only recorded at random.
Diplomatically, McDonald decided: ‘Although the customer is unable to prove she was not given the information, neither ourselves nor Cruise & Maritime are able to provide evidence that she was.’
As a gesture of goodwill, your £200 deposit has been refunded in full.