We have been saying for years that the cruise industry maintains one of the best public relations operations of any industry in the world.  Accidents are often under reported, if they are reported at all.  Passengers go missing, are raped and sexually assaulted by cruise line employees, and are injured in large numbers.  But, these incidents rarely make the headlines.

However, after the recent Concordia cruise ship accident, there may be ano opportunity for much needed oversight to be imposed on the industry.  Today a piece by Reuters news agency points out some of the issues with regulating the industry until now.

First the story quotes a statement by the European Council saying “During the past two decades, cruise lines have maintained the best safety record in the travel industry.”

However, as the story goes on to point out, this is a very difficult assertion to verify, given the lack of adequate reporting by the cruise ship industry to date.

“Research by Reuters has revealed, however, that patchy safety data and poor accident reporting standards make it difficult to verify how safe the industry really is and impossible for members of the public to easily compare the relative safety standards of different operators,” the article says

The article goes on to list different ways the cruise industry is under-regulated, including lack of minimum stafffing levels, and regulations which are “full of holes”

Particularly shocking is that, according to the article “The IMO database lists 38 incidents involving passenger ships since 2005 in which more than 60 people died.”

The hope is that finally the international governing community will finally wake up and make the necessary changes to ensure ships are operating in a safe manner.

Primary Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/25/us-italy-ship-regulation-idUSTRE80N1OD20120125

The cruise ship disaster involving Concordia Cruise Lines is an excellent example which hilights many different facts about the cruise business which were previously unknown.  One of these facts is that when a passenger agrees to board a cruise ship, they usually agree at the same time to waive many of their rights to hold the cruise line, and its subsidiaries or parent company, accountable for certain damages.  In the wake of the Concordia disaster, attorneys around the world will be looking into just how iron clad those agreements are.

In a New York Times article published today, the paper covers the topic of liablility in the Concordia case.  Our own Jack Hickey was quoted for the piece.  Referring to the fact that the Costa Cruise Lines seems to be attempting to place liability soley on the captain, arguing he acted in a negligent manner on his own, Hickey says “nobody with more authority or responsibility than him” on the ship.

He also added today we live in an age in which ships are in constant commuincation with their owners.  It seems logical that if the ship were truly off course, the owners should have known.   “You mean if it gets that far off track, you don’t know?” Hickey asked.

Due to cruise contract limitations, it seems that the maximum damages any passenger can seek from the line, even in cases of death, is about $71,000 per passenger – according to the article.

Unraveling the legal case against Costa will take an internation team of attorneys working long hours, fighting for the victims.  We are proud to say that our own Jack Hickey has been fighting for years for cruise victims, and will help those of the Concordia in any way he can.

Primary Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/world/europe/cruise-lines-use-law-and-contracts-to-limit-liability.html

Jack Hickey, a Miami attorney who has practiced maritime law for 32 years, said Costa Cruises will likely face legal consequences for a whole host of reasons, including the captain of the Costa Concordia’s apparent decision not to immediately issue a mayday call and inability to properly navigate the ship before it ran aground.

Costa said in its statement that the captain tried to prepare for an eventual evacuation, but that it was too difficult for passengers to get off because the ship tilted suddenly.

“If you are the captain of a ship carrying 4,000 people, you should know the waters you ply like the back of your hand,” Hickey said. “There are obviously questions about that. It’s one thing to get into problems, but you must react appropriately.”

However, Hickey also said he doubted the accident would have a broad impact on the cruise industry.

“The cruise industry as a whole is pretty healthy, it’s growing,” he said. “It might affect bookings on Costa in the near term, certainly over the next year.”

Safety standards for large passenger ships grew out of a convention in 1914, two years after the Titanic disaster. The rules eventually were adopted by the International Maritime Organization, an agency of the United Nations.

Among the requirements: Ships must have public address systems for announcements to passengers; lifeboats must be fully or partially enclosed; and ships must have evacuation chutes, similar to what airplanes have. Ships also must hold weekly “abandon ship” and fire drills.

International rules require that lifeboats be capable of being loaded, launched and maneuvered away from the ship within 30 minutes of the signal to abandon ship. The lifeboats apparently weren’t accessible in this case because of the ship’s rapid tilting.

Jack Hickey is a leading attorney in the area of Cruise Line personal injury and sexual assult. Among other news organizations, the following have quoted Jack regaring the Costa Cruise Lines disaster:

The Huffington Post

MSNBC (Travel News)

Business Insider

Silobreaker

Vibrantfin

Ad Crowd Daily

Ukraine-English-News

CM Wire

Goolyduk.com

Nearly 100 years after the Titantic crusie ship disaster, another monster ship has been damaged by unseen obstacles underwater.  The Costa Concorida, a major cruise line, has run aground off the coast of Italy.  3 people have been confirmed dead, and the search for others is ongoing.  There have been various reports, by passengers who have been rescued, of the damage done to the ship and the lack of direction given by the crew. 

Passenger reports indicate there was a chaotic scene soon after the ship ran aground, while  many people remained unaware something serious had happened.  Apparently there were no announcements made immediatley following the accident.  Passengers have reported an announcement was made about 30 minutes after the crash, that there was some kind of ¨electrical problem¨on the ship.

The evacuation was said to have been chaotic, partly because the listing of the ship made it difficult to deploy rescue vessels.  In addition, the captain of the ship is said to have abandoned the ship.

Rescue efforts are ongoing. 

Primary Source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/picturethis/2017242319_cruiseship.html

Key West, Florida is known for offering its visitors a rocking good time. There are art galleries, nice beaches, tons of activities, and great night life for visitors to enjoy. Every year tens of thousands of people visit Key West aboard cruise ships, which dock on the south side of the island and allow passengers off for a day of fun in the sun. Though passengers are looking for a rocking good time when they get off the cruise ship, they certainly don’t expect to be literally rocked from side to side when 2 ships bump in the Key West cruise ship docks. But, that’s exactly what happened Tuesday when 2 Carnival Cruise Lines ships, the “Imagination” and the “Fantasy”, suffered a minor collision.

The Carnival Fantasy was on a six day cruise from Charleston S.C., and the Imagination was on a 4 day cruise out of Miami. They both docked in Key West at the same time. According to the Coast Guard, the Imagination was already moored (docked) at the time of the incident. While the Fantasy was in the process of mooring, it struck the Imagination stern to stern. Both ships suffered minor damage, reported to be only cosmetic in nature. Both ships are listed as having a capacity of 2,052 passengers. Fortunately all reports are that there were no passenger or crew injuries. Also, no pollution was released into the ocean. According to the Coast Guard, the ships personnel that may have been working in safety-sensitive positions at the time of the incident, were tested for drug and alcohol use. The findings have not been released.

This incident can be described as minor, but any bad press for the cruise ship industry can hurt their bottom line, especially in the current economy. According to Marketwatch.com, the cruise industry’s economic outlook may be concerning to investors. Despite 52 week gains, political and violence problems in major markets such as North Africa and the Middle East may be harbingers of tough times for the cruise sector in the near term. Additional challenges facing the cruise industry are natural disasters, such as the Japanese earthquake and resulting tsunami and nuclear fallout. Also, economic woes in much of Europe could affect the ability of many Europeans to take a cruise vacation. To top it all off, relatively high fuel prices also play a factor.

With all the challenges facing the cruise industry, they surely don’t need this kind of bad news. We at Hickey Law Firm support every person’s ability to take a fun, affordable, and most of all safe cruise vacation. We are here to help hold them accountable. In the end, the cruise lines must do all they can to help ensure the safety of all passengers.

Primary Sources: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/07/27/2333737/carnival-ships-bump-in-port-of.html

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/analytical-reports-on-carnival-corp-and-royal-caribbean-cruises-ltd-cruise-line-recover-may-be-coming-to-a-stall-2011-07-26?reflink=MW_news_stmp

The following is a description of a personal injury case we have filed. This is a case involving a personal injury resulting from a car accident in Miami Dade County, Florida.

On the date of the accident, the Defendant driver drove a Bentley automobile owned by Defendants RO-MA Holdings and Company Inc. and/or Francisco Inguanzo on South Beach after a late night event. The Defendant driver drove the Bentley out of a parking lot across 2 lanes of traffic and turned left onto 23rd Street heading west. Our client, a pedestrian, was crossing 23rd street with a group of pedestrians heading north.

The Defendant driver had been drinking alcohol before he got behind the wheel of the car he was driving that night. He pulled out into the roadway when the group of pedestrians was in the road and already crossing the road. Yet the driver failed to yield the right of way or otherwise avoid our client, one of those pedestrians, and negligently struck our client, a pedestrian, with his automobile. Our client has suffered substantial, permanent, and debilitating injuries requiring surgery.

The Defendant driver admitted to his fault by fleeing the scene. A Miami Beach police officer witnessed the accident, gave chase after the Defendant driver, caught him and ticketed him.

JONES v. CARNIVAL CORPORATION

The following is a description of a personal injury case we have filed. This is a case involving a personal injury aboard the Imagination, a cruise ship owned by Carnival Cruise Line.

The accident occurred on Carnival Imagination in navigable waters while our client, Mr. Jones, was a passenger onboard. Carnival Cruise Line created a dangerous condition on its ship, a large puddle of water or other liquid on the Lido Deck near the lifeboats. Carnival allowed the dangerous condition to exist without cleaning and drying it for an unreasonable amount of time such that Carnival Cruise Line knew or should have known of the existence of the puddle, had the time and opportunity to clean and dry the puddle, and failed to clean and dry the puddle.

This negligence on behalf of Carnival Cruise Line thereby caused an accident in which our client, Mr. Jones, slipped and fell and was severely injured. Because of this slip and fall, Mr. Jones underwent reconstructive surgery of his right knee and will need more surgery in the future.

We are fighting… for the safety and security of you and your family. Making cruise lines, other commercial facilities, and products safer and more secure, one case at a time.

Call us today. All consultations are free and strictly confidential. TOLL FREE: 1.800.215.7117. See our website for information on what to do in the event of an injury on a cruise ship: www.hickeylawfirm.com. See also www.cruiseshipassault.com. The bottom line is get medical care immediately, take photos of the area where you were injured, get the names and contact information of witnesses, and report the accident or incident at once. Also, CALL HICKEY LAW FIRM, P.A., TOLL FREE AT: 1.800.215.7117. Our consultations are always free. We work on a contingency fee basis; if we don’t recover, you don’t pay. Personal injury, wrongful death, sexual assaults, and medical malpractice. This all happens on cruise ships and we have handled these types of claims for 29 years.

The cruise ship industry has restricted when and where you can place a claim. Those restrictions appear in the fine print of the ticket. The ticket may also have a provision that requires you to file your claim within one year of the time cruise ship accidents occur, and they also require that claims be made in Miami, FL. Because of these limitations, it is important to have representation from an experienced attorney who can ensure you take the necessary steps in case of cruise ship accidents.

CONTACT US AND SEE OUR RESULTS AT: www.hickeylawfirm.com and CALL US TOLL FREE AT 1.800.215.7117.

BEVILL v. NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE

The following is a description of a personal injury case we have filed. This is a case involving a personal injury aboard the Norwegian Gem, a ship owned by Norwegian Cruise Line.

The cruise line installed and failed to maintain sliding glass doors on the outside cabins onboard its cruise ship, the Norwegian Gem. Those sliding glass doors, during the cruise on which our client sailed, and before, were chronically broken. The cruise line, on the subject cruise, was warned and advised at the beginning or toward the beginning of the cruise that these sliding glass doors were broken, and that they would not lock in any open or closed position. Accordingly, the doors were a hazard when the ship was out at sea. In that case, the doors would open and close unexpectedly, creating a hazardous situation for any passengers.

The cruise was advised about the broken door by the passengers, including our client. After that advice, a mechanic or carpenter from the cruise line came to the cabin of our client and attempted to “fix” the door by placing a piece of wood, an approximately 14 inch x 1 ¼ inch wooden stick wedged into the lever controlling the door. This “fix” did not hold the door, and was not appropriate to fix this dangerous condition or to prevent the door from sliding back and forth with the rough seas. After the “fix”, the door slammed shut on the hand of our client. This door and the negligence of Norwegian Cruise Line caused serious, debilitating, and permanent injuries to the hand and body of our client. This, in turn, has caused our client to undergo surgery, and may require surgery or medical care or treatment in the future.

The following is a description of a personal injury case we have filed. This is a case involving a personal injury aboard the Grandeur of the Seas, a cruise ship owned by Royal Caribbean Cruise Line.

Royal Caribbean, on October 12, 2007, negligently allowed the floor by the Casino Royale to remain wet and slippery and to be exposed and open for foot traffic of passengers, such as our client, as a result of an overflowed toilet. Royal Caribbean negligently failed to post any warning signs or any other warnings of the hazardous condition.

As a result of the negligence of Royal Caribbean, when our client attempted to enter the casino, she slipped and fell which caused her to suffer serious, debilitating, and permanent injuries.