Time Frame for an Injured Cruise Ship Passenger to Sue

If you or your loved one has been injured on a cruise ship, your first course of action may be to address the injury. However, keep in mind that besides tending to your injury, there are strict deadlines which you must adhere to in order to have a viable claim against the cruise line.

You may have heard the term “statute of limitations” thrown around before and you may have wondered what that means exactly. It means that legal actions must be filed within a certain time frame. These time frames are referred to as “statutes of limitations.” For most maritime negligence cases, there is a three-year statute of limitation. However, most major cruise lines and many of the smaller ones include language in their passenger ticket contracts which waives the normal three-year statute of limitation in favor of a one-year statute of limitation.

This is good news for the cruise lines, but bad news for you, the injured cruise ship passenger. Good news because the cruise lines know many of their passengers won’t bother reading the fine print. Bad news because if you were injured on a cruise ship, you are bound by the fine print in your passenger ticket, and are required to file suit within one year from the date of your injury.

If your suit is not brought within this one-year time period following the date of your injury, you have lost the right to recover any damages from the cruise line. This may not seem fair, but courts have consistently enforced this limitations period. As the courts see it, passengers are expected to read their tickets, and in doing so, learn their legal rights.

Thus, while tending to your injuries after an accident is important, the first thing you should do after seeking medical help is to read the fine print in your passenger ticket and contact a lawyer immediately. This way, you can move to preserve your legal rights as soon as possible after your accident, and ensure that your case won’t get dismissed on a technicality.

How An Attorney Can Help An Inured Cruise Ship Passenger

If you have been injured on a cruise ship like wether it be onboard a CarnivalRoyal CaribbeanCelebrityDisney, Princess, Holland AmericaNorwegian, Regents Seven Seas, Oceania or other cruise lines- we recommend that you contact a cruise ship accident lawyer in Miami as soon as possible. Our maritime accident attorneys have over 30 years of combined legal experience suing the major cruise lines on behalf of the injured. Call us today toll-free 1-866-597-4529, local 305-441-0440 or email us at [email protected]. We offer anyone injured on a cruise ship, in port, on an excursion, tender boat or gangway a free initial consultation. Call us today, we are ready to help.