I love credit cards so much! v3.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[Hoosier John]

We met DH Amex spend with payment for a Royal Carribean cruise for early May. Since the chances of this cruise happening are pretty low, what happens if I get a refund for the cruise? Will Amex take back the points? His 3 month period to earn is still open. Do I need to make sure we charge enough to cover if we get a refund?

I'm thinking if you don't add enough extra spend to cover a refund, you could ask RCL for a credit on a future cruise rather than a refund. They might be happier with this anyway (and maybe additional incentive?)

 

[*WDW*Groupie*]

We met DH Amex spend with payment for a Royal Carribean cruise for early May. Since the chances of this cruise happening are pretty low, what happens if I get a refund for the cruise? Will Amex take back the points? His 3 month period to earn is still open. Do I need to make sure we charge enough to cover if we get a refund?

I am not sure if this will work or not, but I plan on telling the company I have a cruise booked with that I cancelled the card and I need a check for the refund. Hopefully this will work. If not I will definitely lose the points as there is no way I can meet the MSR any other way.

 

[Judique]

We met DH Amex spend with payment for a Royal Carribean cruise for early May. Since the chances of this cruise happening are pretty low, what happens if I get a refund for the cruise? Will Amex take back the points? His 3 month period to earn is still open. Do I need to make sure we charge enough to cover if we get a refund?

There's a good chance Amex will take back the points.

Yes, you should charge enough to make up the difference, and include covering the amount of the annual fee as well.

 

[havaneselover]

Just back from Costco. Gas is now $1.45/gallon for regular here.

The store was unusually quiet and lines were super short. They had social distancing signs up. Still no ground beef (but I don't really have space in the freezer for it now). No paper products (I heard one of the employees tell someone to call early in the morning). I noticed they are not only allowing 1 rotisserie chicken purchase per household. They pretty much had everything I wanted.

 

[hlhlaw07]

Yup, I submit annually at the same time I do my income certification. So I sent this year's in in January and was at 57 payments then. Fed Loan has actually been pretty decent for me to work with. The only time I ran into an issue was certifying when I started my current job almost four years ago. I worked for the county government the first year out of law school, then worked for the state the second year, then went back to the county the third year and have been here ever since. Fed Loan could not understand that I somehow held two different jobs at two different times for the same county I had to have HR write a letter explaining, but once they processed that all my months have been correct.

That’s good. Part of my problem is my loans have been sold many times. Started with Sallie Mae, then Mohela, and now FedLoan. Somehow, I don’t think all the corresponding paperwork made it successfully to FedLoan. And I never printed all the stuff out to keep a copy of it since all the servicers use online mailboxes, and I can no longer access the old mailboxes. Stupid of me, but live and learn.

 

[GZanta77]

We met DH Amex spend with payment for a Royal Carribean cruise for early May. Since the chances of this cruise happening are pretty low, what happens if I get a refund for the cruise? Will Amex take back the points? His 3 month period to earn is still open. Do I need to make sure we charge enough to cover if we get a refund?

We have a similar problem - met MSR on DW CIP with $2500 final payment for Royal Caribbean cruise next month which is certain to cancelled. I am endeavoring to make up the shortfall that would be created by the refund, but only have about 2 weeks to get it done.

 

[nickle831]

I am not sure if this will work or not, but I plan on telling the company I have a cruise booked with that I cancelled the card and I need a check for the refund. Hopefully this will work. If not I will definitely lose the points as there is no way I can meet the MSR any other way.

If our's gets cancelled I hope we can request a check refund. I spread the spend for our cruise over at least 4 cards over the last year. May even have been 5 cards.

 

[havaneselover]

Ok, DD is going to help the economy. I guess two xboxes and a switch between two kids is not enough. She wants a switch lite to play animal crossing. She still has lifeguarding money from last summer and has a lot of free time, so why not?

 

[hlhlaw07]

Thanks. I'll look into it, as I think I will qualify, having at least half on an income-driven plan, and over 8 years now with same Fed Employer. Something is better than nothing (even if the benefit is taxable).

Just an FYI, any forgiveness under the public service loan forgiveness is tax free. Which is good, because I will have around $90k forgiven, and that tax bill, while better than paying the whole amount, would not be fun.

 

[GZanta77]

About a week ago I posted that we were sad that DS wasn't going to be returning for Spring Break from Uni in the UK as we were worried he might not be able to go back in April. Well a couple days ago the Uni announced that they would switch to online learning for all classes for the remainder of the school year.....and DS is on a flight right now....coming home!!

In truth it is mixed feelings - we are happy he is coming home, but at the same time sad for him that his first year at Uni is being cut short - he was loving the experience. Nonetheless, at times like this, home has to be the best place to ride out whatever is coming our way.

Batten down the hatches everyone - stay as safe as you can.

 

[Hoosier John]

Just an FYI, any forgiveness under the public service loan forgiveness is tax free. Which is good, because I will have around $90k forgiven, and that tax bill, while better than paying the whole amount, would not be fun.

Wow! That sounded too good to be true, so I looked it up, and it is true:

https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service#tax-on-forgiveness​

​

 

[Alexle2007]

I am pretty sure DS will be quite busy with online school given just this email from his history teacher:
Message: Hello 8th Grade World History Students and Parents,
I hope that all of you and yours are well during this pandemic crisis. Just wanted to provide a brief outline for your upcoming work.
**8th Monthly Reading: "Code Talkers" Read, highlight and take notes for this challenging assessment. Due April 2.
**Paper on Jesus and Muhammad. Compare and contrast according to the following criteria: Historical Life: (ID).....Teachings.....Leadership Style and Attributes....Impact: (HS). Devote one page for each of the 4 criteria and do Jesus in the first paragraph and Muhammad in the second. Due March 31.
**Do ID's on the following after you have completed the above. Roger Bacon.....Galileo.....Newton.....Ben Franklin.....Charles Darwin.....more to follow.
Please call with any questions or concerns. 7 days a week 8am - 8pm.

His teacher is scary to DS but awesome! He is really preparing the students for high school and college and making them think. Oh, and he really does mean for the kids to call him.

 

[kandb]

303,000+ worldwide cases now. 23,000+ in the US. The numbers are jumping like crazy.

It is bull_**** that American healthcare workers have such a PPE shortage they are being told to wipe down and reuse masks. Absolutely infuriating and a massive fail of the federal government.

We're watching the economy disintegrate in real time. 1 in 5 Americans already out of work. The numbers for Europe have to be just as bad. While there are no stores open to really shop at and you can't go to movies or whatever, my spending hasn't exactly fallen off a cliff. I spent a significant amount on preps when I saw this coming at the end of last month. I was ahead of the demand shock and able to get a lot of what we'd need longterm. But that was $500 worth of stuff. Then $500ish for tax prep on the heels of that. And I keep our kitchen pantry and fridge full now with fresh items (if I can get them) so I'm still doing my weekly $100 grocery pickup. I bought more alcohol this week.

I wasn't planning on spending $300 on emergency office furniture, but no choice so I did. We drove to pick that up this morning. I will probably set up the second office in the house in the basement. DH and I absolutely are going to need completely different workspaces or I will lose my mind.

I activated my Freedom cats for Q2. Grocery stores are good. Fitness/Gyms probably not great considering. Every gym here is banned from opening. I have a home gym anyway.

Congress is working on a massive stimulus package this weekend. $2T is what they are saying. That might just be the first package... we have to save the regular folks first. Companies like Disney can get in the back of the line. But I do worry about inflation. What a nightmare.

I did get Mexican takeout from my favorite place today. My first restaurant meal in 3 weeks. Another $26. The cashier told me they are trying to stay open as long as possible but this is killing them. The place was dark except for the entrance area and the kitchen. Broke my heart.

I am just wondering why you are blaming just the federal government and not state/county/cities governments and/or their emergency management for the shortages? We live in NJ and my husband works for NYC and after 9/11 and NYC being an obvious terrorist target, why are they not ready for something like this??? What about the hospitals? Why don't they have enough supplies? I read that the entire world has a shortage of medical supplies, not just the US. Sadly, no one could predict this of ever happening and it happened so fast, therefore no time to prepare!

 

[Eighty8Keys]

Ok, DD is going to help the economy. I guess two xboxes and a switch between two kids is not enough. She wants a switch lite to play animal crossing. She still has lifeguarding money from last summer and has a lot of free time, so why not?

I drove by Best Buy on Friday and was surprised to see a long line outside. Was thinking they maybe started stocking TP or hand sanitizer until I remembered that the new animal crossing game was just released. DS works part time for Old Navy and Starbucks and since both are closed, he’s happy to have something new to do at home.

 

[Haley R]

I drove by Best Buy on Friday and was surprised to see a long line outside. Was thinking they maybe started stocking TP or hand sanitizer until I remembered that the new animal crossing game was just released. DS works part time for Old Navy and Starbucks and since both are closed, he’s happy to have something new to do at home.

I was super tempted to buy a switch for the new animal crossing game, but in about a month we won't have any time to play it.

 

[Alexle2007]

We have a similar problem - met MSR on DW CIP with $2500 final payment for Royal Caribbean cruise next month which is certain to cancelled. I am endeavoring to make up the shortfall that would be created by the refund, but only have about 2 weeks to get it done.

@*WDW*Groupie* We just had our RCCL Harmony of the Seas cruise canceled last Fri evening that was supposed to leave on 3/15/20. We have two options: a full refund or a voucher for 125% of the cost. All of the incidentals are to be refunds (drink package, excursions, WiFi, etc.) I am not sure which direction, we are going.

Here’s the message from them:
We’re sure you’ve been monitoring the news regarding COVID-19. This situation remains quite fluid, and we all continue to assess the impact and monitor the number of cases around the world. And while there are still a lot of unknowns related to COVID-19, we do know it presents the most serious health risks to older individuals, the immunocompromised, and those with serious underlying medical conditions.

At Royal Caribbean International, the safety and well-being of our guests and crew is our top priority. As a result, we are suspending operations for sailings that depart from US ports (including Puerto Rico) effective at midnight tonight, March 14th. Regrettably, we will need to cancel your upcoming Harmony of the Seas March 15, 2020 cruise. Our goal is to resume operation on April 11th, 2020.

Knowing this situation is ever-changing, we want to provide you with some options. As we know, this too shall pass, and we are optimistic that very soon you’ll be excited about planning your next cruise vacation. As always, the most important thing to us will always be the safety of both our guests and crew. In the meantime, we’ll continue to monitor the global situation. And, when it’s determined that the time is right, we’ll be ready to welcome you back.

As a result of this change, we’re providing you with a 125% Future Cruise Credit to come back and sail with us by December 31, 2021.

• This amount will be based on of your total cruise fare paid. And, we’re giving you a little extra, knowing that this is such a unique circumstance.
• We will automatically issue you your Future Cruise Credit by Monday, April 13th, 2020 via email. So, there’s nothing for you to do!
• Please know, if you pre-purchased any amenities and packages – like internet, beverage, dining, or RoyalUp Upgrade, those will be automatically refunded.

Or, if you prefer the lower value in a full refund, we’re happy to process this for you. Given how fluid this situation is, and the opportunity to use the extra credit being offered, you have plenty of time to make up your mind. You do not need to request your refund until December 31, 2021.

• Please contact us to start the refund process, if you’re willing to give up the higher value of your 125% Future Cruise Credit.
• We’ll then deactivate your Future Cruise Credit and process your refund to your original form(s) of payment, which will include any non-refundable deposits.
• To avoid waiting on the phone to cancel, please click here and we will get the process started for you.
• You can expect to receive your refund 30 days after you submit your request.

And, if you purchased air or hotel…

• via Royal Caribbean, these will also be automatically refunded to you.
• on your own, please contact the service provider directly for your options with them.

If you have any questions, please contact your Travel Advisor immediately or contact us at:

• 1-800-754-500 in Australia
• 0344 493 4005 in the U.K.
• 1-800-256-6649 in the U.S. or Canada
• All other countries, please visit http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contactus for your local Royal Caribbean International office phone number.

Thank you for your patience, understanding, and cooperation during this situation. We wish you good health and truly appreciate your continued loyalty.

 

[gottalovepluto]

UA follow up.

Do NOT cancel UA tickets in the app. It will show no fees to be charged, cancel your ticket and then "error" your refund. Upon calling you will be told to "pay money".

Decided to update the app today and try to cancel. It let me go all the way through, showed me the miles would be re-deposited and I would get refund, made no mention of a fee. I clicked confirmed cancellation and it cancelled my ticket and popped up with an error saying couldn't process refund call. Got an email saying the same. Called and they said I must pay money or I cannot have my miles back. Supervisor said that too and she said I could not talk to anyone else she was the supervisor and I must "pay money". Goody. I knew it was a chance because this is United and I only had 12.5k miles at risk. Worst comes to worst it's part of my Europe trip so I'll throw the fee in with my insurance claim for canceling my trip. Next DOT complaint filed.

 

[snugglebug]

In the what seems to be ever changing world of tech and credit card coding:

My most recent Google Domains charge (3/19) coded 3x on CIP. The previous one on 2/26 did not.

 

[Judique]

I drove by Best Buy on Friday and was surprised to see a long line outside. Was thinking they maybe started stocking TP or hand sanitizer until I remembered that the new animal crossing game was just released. DS works part time for Old Navy and Starbucks and since both are closed, he’s happy to have something new to do at home.

Best Buy has switched to curbside servicing effective today according to an email I've received. Maybe they were already doing this in your area?

****


Beginning Sunday, March 22, we will offer contactless curbside service at all locations across the country where state or local laws allow. Rather than ask you to come into our stores, any items you order on BestBuy.com or the Best Buy app will be delivered to your car curbside. If, for any reason, you didn't order the product in advance and the product is in stock in the store, one of our employees will be more than happy to go get it in the store and sell it to you while you remain in your car. This service also extends to returns and exchanges, the period for which has been extended on most products so that you have more time. Only employees will be allowed in the store, but we are determined to serve you as fully as we can. Unfortunately, we are temporarily unable to continue our product trade-in and recycling services.

For those who want to continue shopping with us online or on the app, we will, of course, still get you what you want.

 

[GZanta77]

UA follow up.

Do NOT cancel UA tickets in the app. It will show no fees to be charged, cancel your ticket and then "error" your refund. Upon calling you will be told to "pay money".

Decided to update the app today and try to cancel. It let me go all the way through, showed me the miles would be re-deposited and I would get refund, made no mention of a fee. I clicked confirmed cancellation and it cancelled my ticket and popped up with an error saying couldn't process refund call. Got an email saying the same. Called and they said I must pay money or I cannot have my miles back. Supervisor said that too and she said I could not talk to anyone else she was the supervisor and I must "pay money". Goody. I knew it was a chance because this is United and I only had 12.5k miles at risk. Worst comes to worst it's part of my Europe trip so I'll throw the fee in with my insurance claim for canceling my trip. Next DOT complaint filed.

DD has a trip to Costa Rica on United in June that I suspect we'll be canceling. 54k miles at stake and I think it is something like $125 to re-instate.