“They kept my money all this time and I didn’t get any services,” said nurse Jennifer Perkins.
The cruise planned for spring 2020 was called NurseCon at Sea. It was announced as the definitive nursing conference and was hosted by Nurse Blake, a famous social media influencer. However, the inaugural cruise never left due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Perkins, along with three other friends, paid for the cruise in full, so they were disappointed when the cruise was delayed and wanted a refund. “I have a lot of accounts. I am the only source of income for a family of four, so it is undeniable that it would be useful now,” said Perkins.
Also without money is Raleigh’s emergency nurse Julie Walker. “For me, they have had my money since 2019 and no services,” said Walker.
Instead of refunds, the cruise has been rescheduled for spring 2021. However, the 2021 NurseCon cruise has now been postponed again due to the pandemic and postponed to April 2022.
“Many of us have asked for a refund and have told us that absolutely no. There is no refund that we can sail in 2022,” said Walker.
In addition to these nurses’ frustrations, the cruise line is offering refunds to customers who have made reservations directly through them. But these front-line employees made reservations through the third-party NurseCon website and not directly with the cruise line, and NurseCon’s policy is no refund.
“The most discouraging part is that Nurse Blake is a nurse,” said Perkins. “2020 was the year of the nurse and one of ours refuses to recognize that it is a pandemic, we do not know when it will end and we continue to save our money without providing any kind of service”.
More than 63 complaints involving cancellations were filed at the Florida Attorney General’s office.
NurseCon said in part: “NurseCon at Sea is a small company created by a registered nurse, to bring nurses together and celebrate our profession as first-rate healthcare professionals. Like so many small businesses, ours has been tremendously impacted by the unprecedented effects and unforeseen events of this global pandemic. “
They added that their event is directly linked to the cruise line’s navigation capabilities; unfortunately, they had no choice but to reschedule the conference. The company also added: “It is important to know that our refund policies have always been clearly explained on our website and during the registration process and require confirmation from the participant at the time of purchase. Participants who do not wish to board the next year can apply for a full credit, and we also waive the fee for participants looking to transfer their registration to someone else. As nurses and a small business, we are like everyone else; we are just trying to survive this global health crisis. We remain grateful for the support that we continue to receive from our nursing colleagues. “
These are options that neither Walker nor Perkins considers fair.
“I really just want my money back because we don’t know,” said Perkins. “There is no way to say, ‘ok, let’s go in April 2022’. Well, that was the plan this year and the cases started to decrease and now we are in the middle of another outbreak, so who’s to say, even with the vaccine, that there won’t be another outbreak. It’s so unpredictable. “
Troubleshooter conclusions:
This is a good reminder if you are booking any type of trip in the future, read the fine print. If you use a third-party company, instead of booking directly with the cruise line, airline or hotel, be aware that the refund and cancellation policy is sometimes different. It is also a smart idea to look for travel insurance and make sure it covers the COVID-19 pandemic.
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