For most people, a cruise represents a vacation opportunity. Most of the time, people conclude a cruise with an enjoyable experience. However, with more than 35 million people taking cruises worldwide, some passengers’ experience is much different. They may leave the ship with a serious injury or even be the victim of an assault.
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Cruise Ships Must Avoid Negligence
Cruise ship owners owe a duty of reasonable care to its passengers. This legal duty cannot be ignored and cruise ships must take adequate precautions to prevent accidents. As a service that transports people, a cruise ship’s ultimate requirement is to ensure that its passengers are provided safe passage during their voyage.
The precautions that a cruise ship must normally take include maintaining/repairing the ship, warning passengers of dangers, ensuring the ship’s systems are in good working order, designing the ship in a way to prevent/avoid accidents, and providing adequate security. In addition, passengers that decide to go on off-vessel excursions, must receive adequate training to prevent accidents or to avoid potential dangers.
Surprisingly, cruise ships often fail to comply with their standard of care. The reality of the cruise experience is it occurs in an unfamiliar environment where the perils of the sea increase the chance of an accident. Cruise ships often fail to provide sufficient security and allow guests to become inebriated and sometimes violent. Although a cruise ship is filled with slipping hazards, cruise ships often fail to take sufficient measures to prevent injuries until it is too late.
Common Causes of Injuries on Cruise Ships
Some of the most common causes of accidents and injuries include the following:
- Mechanical malfunctions or breakdowns: When a ship’s mechanical systems fail, passengers may be stranded at sea or exposed to unlivable conditions.
- Improper ship maintenance: When the ship is not properly maintained, passengers may be injured by equipment or personal devices that pose a risk of harm.
- Improperly trained crew members: Crew members must be properly trained to ensure a safe environment.
- Intoxicated, violent, or careless passengers: A cruise ship owes a duty to prevent passengers from being unruly and must provide adequate security to ensure passengers are safe.
- Medical negligence: A cruise ship must provide adequate medical personnel and render medical treatment in a reasonable and professional manner.
- Insufficient security: A ship must ensure that there is adequate security to prevent assaults, rapes, and violence.
- Failure to warn of hidden dangers: A cruise ship must warn passengers of hidden dangers on the ship.
- Contaminated food: The food served on a cruise ship must be free of viruses and a ship must take reasonable precautions to prevent viral outbreaks.
- Dangerous ports of call or shore excursions: A cruise ship must properly warn its passengers of dangerous excursions and must provide proper training and guidance to do dangerous activities.
Limited time to sue
It is important for injured passengers to understand that they have a limited period of time to file their claim against the cruise ship company. Unlike most personal injury claims, cruise ships limit the period to file a suit against them to one-year. This time limitation is incorporated into the ticket a passenger purchases from the cruise line. This one-year limitation has been upheld by some courts.
In addition, it is important to promptly inform the cruise line that you were injured or that you intend to file a claim. Some cruise lines have incorporated additional notice requirements in their ticket contracts requiring passengers to notify the cruise line of their injury within six months.
It is important that a passenger promptly notify the cruise line of any accident that resulted in injuries and retain a qualified maritime attorney to file their claim.
