How Do Cruise Ship Companies Try to Avoid Lawsuits?
Cruise ship companies often take active steps to try and avoid passenger lawsuits as much as possible. Though cruise ships create hurdles for victims to get compensation, our lawyers can help you overcome them to get the compensation you deserve.
One of the most common ways cruise ship companies try to avoid lawsuits is by requiring passengers to send notice of a claim before they file a lawsuit. Some passengers are unaware of this additional filing requirement and might unintentionally miss it. Having passengers sign liability waivers for excursions and including forum selection or arbitration clauses in tickets are also attempts to avoid lawsuits. Our lawyers are also familiar with tactics cruise ship companies use to avoid liability once a lawsuit has been filed, which we can also address during your case.
You can call Rivkind Margulies & Rivkind’s cruise ship injury lawyers today at (305) 204-5369 for a free case review.
What Do Cruise Ship Companies Do to Avoid Passenger Lawsuits?
Our lawyers are familiar with cruise ship companies’ typical methods for avoiding passenger lawsuits and may help you file a successful claim in spite of them.
Notice of Claim Requirement
Maritime law sets a one-year statute of limitations for cruise ship injury lawsuits. This is already a short timeframe; one victim might miss it without even realizing that much time has passed. Cruise ship companies make it even harder for victims to bring claims by including a “notice of a claim” requirement in most passenger tickets.
Under this requirement, you must send notice of your lawsuit within six months of an accident or injury. Failure to meet this requirement means you can’t file a lawsuit, even if it’s been less than a year since you were injured.
Our attorneys are well-versed in the notice of claim requirement and have extensive experience in meeting it for victims. Six months is a short time, and we may need much of it to send notice to the cruise ship company, so don’t wait to have us review your case.
Liability Waivers
Cruises also try to avoid lawsuits by having passengers sign liability waivers for land excursions, and might even include them in passenger tickets. Liability waivers are not always enforceable, so don’t let this stop you from contacting our cruise ship injury lawyers to see if you have a case.
We can obtain a copy of the liability waiver you signed to determine if we can challenge its validity due to ambiguous language, conflicting with public policy, or attempting to excuse gross negligence or intentional misconduct. Minors can’t sign liability waivers, and no one can sign one on your behalf.
Forum Selection Clauses
Another thing cruise ship companies do to complicate the recovery process for victims is including a “forum selection” clause in passenger tickets. This means the cruise ship can choose the venue for a lawsuit. For example, suppose the company is headquartered in Florida. In that case, you may need to file the lawsuit there because of a forum selection clause in your ticket, and our lawyers can confirm if that’s the case and help you navigate potential challenges moving forward.
Arbitration Clauses
Some cruise ship companies even include arbitration clauses in passenger tickets to avoid lawsuits. Rather than filing a lawsuit and potentially going to court, passengers must settle the dispute through binding arbitration. Arbitration is not a negotiation, but a process overseen and decided by an unbiased third party, the arbitrator. Arbitration clauses are not always enforceable, however, and you may still be able to file a lawsuit and have your day in court.
How Do Cruise Ship Companies Try to Avoid Paying Damages in Lawsuits?
Cruise ship companies cannot always stop passengers from filing lawsuits, no matter how hard they may try to prevent them. Even after you file your case, the cruise ship company might be difficult and non-communicative, and our lawyers can help in these situations.
Delays in Providing Medical Records
Suppose you initially sought medical care on the cruise ship from its medical staff. You need those medical records, but the cruise ship might delay providing them since they benefit your claim. We can step in, using the lawsuit to compel the cruise ship company to hand over all relevant medical records promptly.
Hiding or Deleting Surveillance Footage
We can do the same if the cruise ship tries to avoid liability by refusing to provide security camera footage or even deleting it. The Cruise Ship Vessel Security and Safety Act requires the installation of surveillance cameras for the safety of passengers, and such cameras often capture injuries resulting from negligence or intentional misconduct.
Being Unresponsive
Cruise ship companies might continue to be intentionally non-communicative during settlement negotiations. This sometimes makes victims feel forced to accept a lower settlement because it’s taking too long to get compensation. We can respond to poor communication by going to trial, which may be the last thing the cruise ship company wants to do. This may expedite your access to fair damages, whether they come from a jury award or settlement.
Arguing Passenger Negligence
Cruise ships often try to avoid full and even partial liability for a passenger’s injuries by arguing that the passenger was partially or totally negligent, not the ship or its staff. Defendants might claim that plaintiffs ignored safety warnings or otherwise contributed to or caused their injuries.
Our lawyers can prepare for this situation by providing evidence that directly refutes such arguments. Eyewitness testimony confirming that a crew member overserved alcohol to you prior to your fall onto a lower deck or security camera footage showing an intentional assault can all help us prove that you were not negligent and are not at all liable for your injuries or damages.
Get Our Help with Your Cruise Ship Injury Lawsuit
Call the Miami cruise ship injury lawyers of Rivkind Margulies & Rivkind at (305) 204-5369 to discuss your case.
