Our cruise ship accident lawyers investigate dozens of potential claims every day from passengers around the world. Perhaps the most common question we are asked is, “What is my case worth?”
Every cruise ship accident case is different, based upon what I believe are the three most crucial facts
- What did the cruise line do wrong?
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Did what they did wrong cause or contribute to an injury or damage?
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What damage or injury did the cruise ship’s wrongful act or conduct cause?
Once I have the answers to the questions above, the next question is, “How can I prove it?”
[youtube id=”kfOk2Luai78″]For example, perhaps the most common potential case we look at involves a passenger slipping, tripping, or falling while on a cruise ship. It happens; people get hurt on cruises. People fall on cruises, but in order for the cruise line to be held accountable to pay a passenger money for pain and suffering and to reimburse her for medical expenses, the fall must be deemed to be the cruise line’s provable fault.
“Provable” is the key element here. For example, a person slips and falls and breaks an arm while on a Carnival cruise ship; the most important facts that would have to be proved in order to have a viable claim pertain to why the person fell and how it was the cruise line’s fault.
Unfortunately, many times when people fall, they have no idea why they fell. They were simply walking, and the next thing they knew was that they found themselves flat on their backs, in excruciating pain. Their thoughts were not on lawsuits and lawyers, but rather on their pain and seeking medical care.
People are surprised to learn that falling and getting hurt on a cruise ship does not automatically entitle a passenger with the legal right to receive money from the cruise line. Rather, only claims that can be proved to be the fault of the cruise line do so. It is important to note that the cruise line does not have to be entirely at fault, but rather at least some part in fault.
Returning to the common cruise ship slip and fall, the question then becomes what was the cause of the fall and did the cruise line either know about the danger or cause the problem. If there was water, oil, or other liquid on the floor, we would have to prove that the cruise line either knew about it, should have known about it, or caused the liquid to be on the floor.
Sometimes it is easy, if we can trace the source of the water–like a leaking ice box, or dripping coffee maker–but other times, when the passenger has no idea how long the substance was on the floor or where it came from, the case becomes very weak and perhaps impossible to prove. This is why obtaining the Closed Circuit TV footage of an accident scene is crucially important.
HOW TO PROVE A PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM ON A CRUISE
Our advice to anyone who gets hurt while on a cruise ship is to try to figure out how and why the fall occurred. Whenever possible, take photographs or video of the scene. Take a few minutes and jot down notes of what you remember about the fall, such as did you smell cleaning solvents, were your clothes wet or hands sticky. All of those seemingly irrelevant factors, when taken together, can prove enormously valuable to our ability to help injured cruise ship passengers obtain reasonable compensation for their accident claims.
FREE CONSULTATION WITH A CRUISE SHIP ACCIDENT LAWYER
If you have been hurt while on a Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian, Disney, Holland America, Silverseas, or MSC and are seeking assistance to sue a cruise line, we recommend you contact an experienced maritime accident lawyer immediately–before you speak with or sign anything from the cruise line. Cruise lines hire very aggressive and highly qualified lawyers to defend them; injured passengers deserve the best possible representation, too.
Call our office today for a free initial legal consultation, at 1-866-597-4529 and allow our combined experience of nearly 50 years help you hold the cruise lines accountable when and if they put their profits ahead of passenger safety. Speak to a lawyer who knows how to prove your case and obtain the compensation you deserve for pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost cruise, and wages.
