Complain to P&O Cruises
P&O Cruises complaints: the official complaints form, the 28-day deadline once you are home, and free stage-one ABTA dispute resolution under V8764.
TravelHow to complain
P&O Cruises handles complaints through its official online form.
Common P&O Cruises complaints
Cruise cancelled or itinerary changed
A sailing pulled, or ports dropped and swapped after you booked the trip for those ports
Refund held back after a cancellation
Money that hasn’t arrived, or a future cruise credit pushed on you in place of the refund
Cabin not the one you booked
A downgrade, an obstructed view, or a cabin moved without your agreement
Onboard facilities closed
Restaurants, entertainment or pools shut for the trip you paid for, with no price reduction offered
Price rise or fee added after booking
A surcharge or supplement applied to a holiday you had already put a deposit on
Laws that protect you
Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018
A cruise is a package, which P&O Cruises’ own booking conditions confirm. It is responsible for the proper performance of the whole holiday, owes a price reduction where services weren’t provided as agreed, and must refund a terminated booking within 14 days.
Maritime passenger rights (Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010, retained in UK law)
Covers a cruise from a UK port, but Article 2 leaves cruise passengers out of the delay and cancellation payouts a ferry passenger gets. What stays is assistance: refreshments once a departure is held more than 90 minutes, and accommodation where an overnight becomes necessary.
ATOL protection
Fly-cruises are financially protected under P&O Cruises’ ATOL licence 6294, so your money is covered and you are brought home if the company fails.
Tips for P&O Cruises complaints
- Raise it on board, at the time, with a P&O Cruises representative. Their booking conditions make that the first step, and a problem that never came up on the ship is easier for them to argue with later.
- You have 28 days from getting home to put anything unresolved in writing. P&O Cruises says missing that may affect its ability to investigate, so treat it as a hard deadline.
- Use the email form on pocruises.com and choose the Cruise Feedback topic. P&O Cruises publishes no complaints email address, so an address off a forum is a guess, and a guess goes nowhere.
- Say the words “package holiday”. A P&O Cruises booking is a package under the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, which makes them answerable for the whole trip rather than for their own parts of it.
- Ask for a price reduction rather than goodwill. Where part of what you paid for wasn’t provided, money off is the remedy the regulations give you, and naming it changes the shape of the reply.
- Quote ABTA membership V8764. P&O Cruises publishes it on its own company information page, and it is what lets you take an unresolved dispute to ABTA.
- The sea passenger delay compensation you may have read about doesn’t apply to cruises. Article 2 of the retained regulation carves cruise passengers out of it, so build the claim on the package rules instead.
- If 28 days pass with nothing, chase in writing and say you will register the dispute with ABTA. That is a real next step rather than a threat you can’t carry out.
If P&O Cruises doesn't respond
- 1
On board
During the cruiseRaise the problem with a P&O Cruises representative while you are still on the ship. Their booking conditions make this the first step.
- 2
Written complaint
Within 28 days of getting homeSubmit it through the P&O Cruises email form under the Cruise Feedback topic, quoting your booking reference, the ship and the sailing dates.
Visit website - 3
ABTA stage one
Up to 50 calendar daysRegister the dispute with ABTA, approved by government under the ADR Regulations 2015 and at no cost to you. It brings you and the company together but does not itself decide the case or award compensation.
Visit website - 4
ABTA arbitration
Stage two is independent arbitration and does make a legally binding award, payable within 28 days. Registration costs £150 for claims up to £25,000, and you pay the company the same amount if you lose.
Visit website - 5
Money Claim Online
The court route stays open instead of arbitration, for claims up to £10,000 on the small claims track.
Visit website
How to complain
P&O Cruises handles complaints through its official online form.
Expected response time
28 days
P&O Cruises aims to respond to a written complaint within 28 days, and asks for anything left unresolved on board to reach it within 28 days of the end of your holiday.
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Frequently asked questions
Tools & guides for your P&O Cruises complaint
Free calculators and explainers that strengthen the case you make to P&O Cruises.
- Holiday compensation calculatorCalculate package holiday compensation claims.
- Train delay compensationLate train? Get your money back.
- Section 75 & chargeback checkerPaid by card? You have a secret weapon.
- Chargeback letter generatorGenerate a bank chargeback request letter.
- Consumer rights checkerFind the laws that back you up.
- Ombudsman finderBeing ignored? Here’s who to escalate to.
- 6 ways to get your money back when a company refuses a refundA refusal isn’t the end. Six free routes to your money - Consumer Rights Act letters, chargeback, Section 75, ombudsmen, small claims - and when to use each.
- Buy Now Pay Later Gets Regulated: What Changes From July 2026From 15 July 2026, Klarna, Clearpay, and other BNPL providers fall under FCA regulation. You’ll gain affordability checks and the right to complain to the Financial Ombudsman - though Section 75 still doesn’t cover BNPL itself.
- Summer 2026 Holiday Rights: Everything You Need Before You BookBNPL gets Financial Ombudsman access in July (not Section 75, which stays credit-card only). Drip pricing is banned. UK261 covers all UK departures. Here’s your complete pre-travel checklist and what to do when things go wrong.
- Company Gone Bust? How to Get Your Money BackWhen a company goes into administration, most people assume their money is lost. It usually isn’t. Section 75, chargeback, ATOL, and the FSCS can all help. Here’s how.
Not sure what the law actually entitles you to? Start with our UK consumer rights guide - refunds, faulty goods, and how to enforce your rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
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Last reviewed: by NoReply Editorial