Suppose a party member drops out at the last minute

[squirk]

No, I’m not “asking for a friend.” Just curious.

Suppose you are well past PAT, and one member of your sailing party has to drop out at the last minute due to something (not COVID) that was unexpected and not covered by trip insurance.

I know that in the “before times,” you could swap out that party member with another person up until, like, three (?) days before sailing. I’m not even sure if DCL is allowing that anymore.

But let’s just say you can’t find a substitute party member. Too late for refund; insurance won’t cover.

Is there anything DCL does for you in such a situation (e.g., future cruise credit; convert the fare into non-refundable OBC), or do you just eat the fare?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

No, I’m not “asking for a friend.” Just curious.

Suppose you are well past PAT, and one member of your sailing party has to drop out at the last minute due to something (not COVID) that was unexpected and not covered by trip insurance.

I know that in the “before times,” you could swap out that party member with another person up until, like, three (?) days before sailing. I’m not even sure if DCL is allowing that anymore.

But let’s just say you can’t find a substitute party member. Too late for refund; insurance won’t cover.

Is there anything DCL does for you in such a situation (e.g., future cruise credit; convert the fare into non-refundable OBC), or do you just eat the fare?

If someone cancels, or cannot take the cruise, after final payment date, and the other person on the reservation is now a single traveler, there's usually a 100% single traveler fee. That is, a single traveler in a room still pays for two people (less taxes & port charges).

Yes, you can still swap out the traveler with another one. There's a fee if it's within 3 days, I believe.

 

[squirk]

If someone cancels, or cannot take the cruise, after final payment date, and the other person on the reservation is now a single traveler, there's usually a 100% single traveler fee. That is, a single traveler in a room still pays for two people (less taxes & port charges).

Yes, you can still swap out the traveler with another one. There's a fee if it's within 3 days, I believe.

Thank you for that, but suppose we take the single-traveler surcharge out of the equation.

Suppose it was three ppl in a stateroom, and one person bails, post-PIF, for reasons that insurance won’t cover. No replacement can be found.

I know DCL can just say “sucks to be you,” and you eat the fare. But is that what they actually do in practice?

 

[SteveMouse]

Yes, it is. The company has offered you an insurance option, you are free to find a third party insurer, or you can decline insurance. If you decline, you should expect to bear the risk.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thank you for that, but suppose we take the single-traveler surcharge out of the equation.

Suppose it was three ppl in a stateroom, and one person bails, post-PIF, for reasons that insurance won’t cover. No replacement can be found.

I know DCL can just say “sucks to be you,” and you eat the fare. But is that what they actually do in practice?

If a third person cancels after the penalty date or doesn't show up on embarkation day - the fare is lost. That's what insurance is for.

 

[lanejudy]

Yes, if you are past the PIF date with no insurance (DCL or other) and 1 passenger cancels there is no refund, credit, etc. (except port fees/taxes). The remaining guests may cruise as planned.

 

[squirk]

If a third person cancels after the penalty date or doesn't show up on embarkation day - the fare is lost. That's what insurance is for.

Yes, thanks. I know what insurance is for.

As I mentioned, I was hypothesizing a cancellation for a reason that insurance would not cover.

Yes, if you are past the PIF date with no insurance (DCL or other) and 1 passenger cancels there is no refund, credit, etc. (except port fees/taxes). The remaining guests may cruise as planned.

Thanks. I figured that was the likely answer.

At first, I was expecting to hear that DCL, while not obligated, still goes above and beyond to do something to help mitigate the issue.

But the more I thought about it, I realized that DCL has no idea whether or not you were 100% reimbursed by your trip insurance, so why would they do anything to help when it’s possible you were already “made whole”?

 

[SteveMouse]

it’s not Disney‘s concern whether you are “made whole’ or not. You have responsibility to take action you feel necessary to manage your risk. Disney offers a product to help ameliorate the risk. It’s the buyer‘s choice to purchase it, or not.

As a real parallel, there have been times I have not purchased the accidental damage insurance for a new laptop or other computer equipment. In one instance, the insurance quote was almost half the price of the computer. I took the risk that if it broke, I was out buying a new machine. But if it didn’t break, I’d have saved half the cost of buying it’s replacement.

 

[squirk]

it’s not Disney‘s concern whether you are “made whole’ or not. You have responsibility to take action you feel necessary to manage your risk. Disney offers a product to help ameliorate the risk. It’s the buyer‘s choice to purchase it, or not.

I mentioned - three times now - that I am discussing a cancellation for a reason that trip insurance would not cover.

I said this specifically to avoid micro-lectures (like yours) on buying insurance, because a.) I always buy insurance; and b.) the benefits of insurance were not the point of my question.

And I think I also already acknowledged (again, more than once) that Disney isn’t obligated to do anything. But they are known for helping ppl out even when they are not obligated.

They aren’t obligated, for example, to offer you a refund or cruise credit if you test positive at the port, but they still do it. Not 100% altruistically, I grant you, but they do it nonetheless.

Before you make some high-handed supercilious post about someone’s “responsibility” and the assumption of risk, please read the original question, as well as the follow-up posts you are responding to, more carefully.

 

[lanejudy]

I think to PP's point -- there are different types of insurance coverage. A cancel-for-any-reason policy would pay-out for a last minute cancellation regardless of reason. If that coverage wasn't purchased, it's pretty much a case of assuming the risk.

DCL's coverage does offer a kind of CFAR with a credit of 75% towards a future cruise within a specified time period (maybe 12 months). If third-party insurance was purchased and it's a non-covered reason, they are likely out of luck. If they feel the circumstances warrant special consideration they are welcome to discuss it with DCL, but any refund or credit at the last minute would not be the norm.

 

[squirk]

I think to PP's point -- there are different types of insurance coverage. A cancel-for-any-reason policy would pay-out for a last minute cancellation regardless of reason. If that coverage wasn't purchased, it's pretty much a case of assuming the risk.

DCL's coverage does offer a kind of CFAR with a credit of 75% towards a future cruise within a specified time period (maybe 12 months). If third-party insurance was purchased and it's a non-covered reason, they are likely out of luck. If they feel the circumstances warrant special consideration they are welcome to discuss it with DCL, but any refund or credit at the last minute would not be the norm.

Thanks. And thanks for addressing my actual question.

Again, I get what insurance is for (and, to be fair, even CFAR has limitations and provisos).

That is why I proposed at the outset that my hypothetical situation would not be covered by insurance. Because I knew if I didn’t (and apparently, even if I did), someone would come in and wag their finger about the assumption of risk when you don’t buy insurance, which isn’t related to my question at all.

I was asking about DCL’s policy (if any) in my hypothetical. And I think you answered it. Thanks again.

 

[Mommb]

The description of the coverage if you purchase insurance through DCL and then cancel for a non-covered reason is near the top of this page:
https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/contracts-terms-safety/vacation-protection-plan/

As described further down the page, this credit for up to 75% of the cancellation fee (which, for cancellations withing 2 weeks of sailing, is the entire fare) is available only after a claim is submitted to Aon Berkley insurance and denied. It must be used with 1 year of the original sailing, for a single cruise -- that is, if the new cruise costs less than the credit, you can't get the difference in cash or use it for another cruise.

If insurance was not purchased through DCL, this coverage won't apply. However, if the cancellation occurs after paid in full but before sailing, you could still get some money back, because the cancellation fees are staggered. These are the "normal" cancellation fees -- the cancellation fees for cruises through September 2022 kick in even later. So if the cancellation occurs 15-29 days before sailing, for example, you'd get a refund of 25% of the fare.

Cruises of up to 5 days

Days Prior to Vacation Commencement Date	Fee Amount
89-45 days	Deposit per Guest
44-30 days	50% of vacation price per Guest
29-15 days	75% of vacation price per Guest
14 days or less	100% of vacation price per Guest

Cruises of 6 days or more

Days Prior to Vacation Commencement Date	Fee Amount
119-56 days	Deposit per Guest
55-30 days	50% of vacation price per Guest
29-15 days	75% of vacation price per Guest
14 days or less	100% of vacation price per Guest

 

[AquaDame]

Closing at OPs request!