By Leigh Raper
Going on a cruise this summer? You won’t be alone:
twenty-three million people worldwide went on a cruise in 2015, according to the Cruise Lines
International Association. Unfortunately, it isn’t always smooth sailing. Here
are some common problems faced by cruise passengers, some of the legal
challenges that come with those problems, and some practical tips.
Medical issues
Getting sick during a vacation is
never fun. Getting sick or injured on a boat in the middle of the ocean is even
worse. Cruise ships do have medical professionals on board, but often those
people are independent contractors, not cruise line employees. This doesn’t
necessarily mean that quality medical care is compromised, but it does make
things more complicated if the care isn’t up to snuff or negligent.
Norovirus, a particularly contagious
gastrointestinal bug, can spread through the close quarters of a cruise ship
like wildfire. Cruise lines stock public areas with lots of hand sanitizer, but
that isn’t always enough. Passengers on norovirus infected voyages have filed
suits claiming negligence in the cleaning and disinfection of affected ships.
Travelers also need to understand
what their current medical insurance will and won’t cover during the cruise and
in any ports of call. Travel insurance policies can help alleviate concerns
about medical issues before, during, or after a cruise. Some policies will even
cover helicopter evacuation or airlift back to the United States in case of
emergency.
Criminal Issues
A cruise ship, particularly some of
today’s massive super ships, are floating cities, and cities have all kinds of
people, including some bad apples. Unfortunately, passengers fall victim to the
same sorts of wrongdoings that happen back home, crimes like theft and sexual
assault.
Many passengers don’t know how to
report a crime and, in the past, cruise lines have not always been helpful or
transparent about reported incidents. This changed with the passage of the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act (CVSSA) of 2010. The CVSSA, among other things,
mandates that ships monitor passenger safety via closed circuit TV, requires
public reporting of cruise ship crime allegations, and requires each cruise
line to provide a publicly available security guide.
The CVSSA isn’t particularly popular
with the cruise lines. Royal Caribbean, in the introduction to their Safety & Security Guide, points out,
“This public reporting requirement is unique to the cruise industry, as there
is no similar requirement for any other commercial industry, including hotels
and airlines.”
Jurisdictional issues get
complicated at sea. The FBI maintains jurisdiction over any incidents that
occur in US territorial waters and for any incidents that occur in
international waters where the victim or alleged perpetrator is a US national.
(This falls under what is known as the Special Maritime and Territorial
Jurisdiction of the United States.) If something happens on shore, the local
authorities would handle it, but a passenger should always report the incident
to the cruise ship security officers as well.
Trip interruptions
Royal Caribbean made lots of
headlines early in 2015 with two separate, ill-fated voyages of the Anthem of the
Seas. In the first incident, the ship sailed into a massive storm,
causing injuries to passengers and crew. During the second voyage, several
passengers became ill (reportedly from norovirus). In both cases, the ship
returned to port early, and the cruise line went into damage control, offering
refunds and discounts on future bookings. It is important to remember that
passengers who accept such accommodations for an interrupted vacation are often
waiving their right to sue the cruise line.
Legal challenges to legal challenges
Suing a cruise line is not an easy
prospect. In addition to the jurisdictional issues discussed above, the cruise
contract, which many passengers never bother to read, has lots of fine print.
It will likely include a choice of law provision, specifying that disputes be
settled under the laws of a particular state – one that tends to be friendly
toward the industry. Cruise contracts also typically contain shortened statutes
of limitations.
A passenger with a problem should seek the advice of a lawyer who specializes in maritime litigation. As Ira H. Leesfield, a senior partner at Leesfield Scolaro, a firm that specializes in cruise
line litigation, wrote to the Miami Herald, “The cruise industry has
built in their own protection and insulated themselves from equal and fair
treatment applied to other wrongdoers.”
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